Night in our house was never quiet.
That's just a fact.
You could try to sleep early, pretend everything was peaceful, convince yourself that tonight—just tonight—everyone would behave like normal human beings.
But no.
Someone would always ruin it.
Usually Kai.
"WHO TOOK MY FOOD?"
There it was.
Right on time.
I didn't even bother opening my eyes.
"It's in the fridge," I called lazily from my bed.
"I checked the fridge!"
"Then check your life choices," I muttered.
Footsteps thundered down the hallway.
Fast.
Aggressive.
Unnecessary.
My door burst open.
"William, I'm serious," Kai said, standing there like he was about to fight me over rice. "If you ate my food—"
"I didn't eat your food," I said, still lying down. "I don't even have the energy to eat my own food."
"That sounds like something a guilty person would say."
"That sounds like something a hungry person would say."
He stared at me.
I stared back.
Then—
"Jonah!" Kai shouted suddenly. "Did YOU take it?"
From the living room came a calm voice:
"No."
That was Jonah.
Always like that.
Short answers. No emotion. No stress.
Sometimes I wondered if anything actually surprised him.
Kai pointed at me again. "Then it's you."
"It's not me."
"Then who took it?!"
"…Maybe," I said slowly, "it disappeared."
Kai blinked.
"…Food doesn't just disappear."
"Exactly," I said. "So clearly, this is bigger than all of us."
He squinted at me.
"You're not funny."
"I didn't say I was."
A pause.
Then he sighed loudly and walked away like the world had personally offended him.
"Unbelievable," he muttered. "In this house, you can't even protect your own food."
I heard him continue arguing—with himself, probably—as he disappeared into the kitchen.
I finally sat up.
"…Peace," I whispered.
"Not for long," Jonah said from the doorway.
I turned.
He leaned against the frame, arms folded, watching me.
I hadn't even heard him walk there.
"…Do you teleport now?" I asked.
"No."
"You should. It would explain a lot."
He didn't respond.
Just looked at me.
That usual look.
Like he was thinking about something… but not saying it.
"What?" I asked.
He shook his head slightly.
"Nothing."
"You say 'nothing' like it's something."
Silence.
Then he said quietly:
"…Does anything feel strange to you?"
I paused.
That question—
It hit differently.
"…Strange how?"
He didn't answer immediately.
His gaze shifted slightly.
Toward the hallway.
Then back to me.
"…I don't know," he said. "Just… off."
I opened my mouth to joke.
Then stopped.
Because…
He wasn't joking.
And Jonah didn't say things like that for no reason.
"…You're overthinking," I said finally.
"Maybe."
He pushed himself off the wall.
"Go to sleep."
"You came here to tell me that?"
"Yes."
"…You're weird."
"I know."
He left.
Just like that.
No explanation.
No follow-up.
Typical Jonah.
I lay back down.
Stared at the ceiling again.
"…Off, huh?"
I exhaled slowly.
"…Yeah. Maybe."
I didn't realize when I fell asleep.
Or if I even did.
Because the next thing I knew—
I was awake.
And everything was quiet.
Not normal quiet.
Not "everyone is asleep" quiet.
This was different.
Heavy.
Like the silence had weight.
I sat up slowly.
"…Okay."
No noise from the kitchen.
No TV.
No Kai complaining about something.
No aunt shouting about something else.
Nothing.
I stepped out of my room.
"Aunty?"
No answer.
I walked down the hallway.
Each step felt louder than it should.
Like the house was listening.
"…Kai?"
Still nothing.
I reached the living room.
And stopped.
Kai was there.
Standing near the table.
But—
He wasn't moving.
At all.
"…Kai?"
No response.
I stepped closer.
"…This isn't funny."
He stood frozen.
Mid-motion.
Like he had been about to pick something up.
But never finished.
"…Okay."
I waved my hand in front of his face.
Nothing.
No blinking.
No reaction.
"…Nope."
I stepped back slowly.
"Jonah?"
No answer.
I turned—
And saw him.
Near the window.
Also still.
Also frozen.
But…
Something felt different.
I couldn't explain it.
Not exactly.
But—
Even though he wasn't moving…
He didn't feel the same as Kai.
"…Yeah," I said quietly. "I don't like this."
Then I heard it.
Tick.
I froze.
The clock.
On the wall.
Tick.
Pause.
Tick.
Longer pause.
"…Why are you struggling?"
I walked toward it.
The sound got louder.
Not from the clock.
From everywhere.
Tick.
The air shifted.
Tick.
Something pressed down.
Tick.
I stopped breathing for a second.
"…This is not normal."
The second hand moved again.
Slow.
Dragging.
Like time itself was tired.
Then—
It stopped.
And so did everything else.
Completely.
The air.
The light.
Even the feeling of movement.
Gone.
"…No."
I stood there.
Not moving.
Not thinking properly.
Just—
There.
Then something caught my attention.
My hand.
"…What?"
A faint glow.
Golden.
Soft.
But clear.
A symbol.
Etched into my skin.
I raised my hand slowly.
"…I did not have this before."
I rubbed it.
Nothing changed.
Of course.
Why would it?
Tick.
The sound came again.
Louder.
Closer.
And then—
"Don't move."
I turned sharply.
My aunt stood at the entrance.
Breathing slightly hard.
Like she had rushed.
Even though—
Everything was frozen.
"…Aunty?"
Her eyes locked onto me.
Sharp.
Focused.
Not the usual tired, annoyed look.
This was different.
"How are you seeing this?" she asked.
"Seeing what?" I replied. "The frozen people or the glowing hand? Because both are very visible."
She didn't react.
Not even a little.
Her gaze dropped to my hand.
"…It awakened already," she murmured.
"I'm sorry, what awakened? Because I don't remember signing up for anything."
She walked toward me quickly.
Each step felt… heavy.
Like the air resisted her.
"You need to listen carefully," she said.
Her voice—
Low.
Serious.
Different.
"For the next few minutes, don't argue. Don't joke. Just listen."
I opened my mouth.
Closed it.
"…Okay."
The air cracked.
Soft.
Like glass under pressure.
I stiffened.
"You're in danger," she said.
"…That sounds bad."
"It is."
Another crack.
Louder.
Something was pushing through.
From somewhere else.
"People are coming for you," she continued.
"…Why?"
She pointed at my hand.
"Because of that."
I stared at it.
"…Can I return it?"
"No."
"Of course not."
The crack widened.
Light seeped through.
Wrong light.
Not bright.
Not warm.
Just… wrong.
And for the first time—
I felt it.
Fear.
Real fear.
"What did I do?" I asked quietly.
She looked at me.
For a moment—
Something softened in her eyes.
Then it disappeared.
"You didn't do anything," she said.
"It chose you."
The crack shattered.
Sound exploded back into the world.
Kai dropped to the floor.
The clock resumed.
Voices from outside returned.
Everything moved again—
Too fast.
Too loud.
Too real.
My aunt grabbed my arm.
Hard.
"Run."
"…You always say that like I have another option."
Her grip tightened.
"They've found you."
My chest tightened.
"…Who?"
She looked toward the door.
Eyes sharp.
Cold.
Ready.
"Hunters."
And then—
The door shattered.