Chapter 2 — Whispers in the Morning
Flochien woke up to the sound of someone knocking lightly on his door.
Before he could respond, it opened.
His older sister, Linhua, walked in with narrowed eyes.
"Flochien," she said, crossing her arms. "Why were you talking in your sleep last night? You almost scared me."
Flochien blinked.
"Me? When?"
"Around 11:30," Linhua replied. "I was about to fall asleep."
Flochien frowned. "11:30? I wasn't even sleeping at that time. I was watching anime because I couldn't sleep."
Now Linhua looked confused.
"…What did you hear?" he asked.
She hesitated.
"I couldn't understand most of it. It was like whispers."
She looked at him seriously.
"But I clearly heard one word."
Flochien tilted his head.
"Darkness."
Silence filled the room for a second.
Then—
Flochien poked her arm teasingly.
"Uh huh. So that's why you came into my room? You got scared?"
Linhua puffed her cheeks.
"I just slept in the extra bed here because… because the AC!"
"There's an AC in your room too."
She punched him lightly.
"Stop questioning me! Fine! I was scared!"
Flochien dramatically slid down the wall like a badly peeled sticker.
"Unbelievable…"
A while later, Flochien stepped out of the house in his school uniform.
"So you're not going to the office?" he asked.
"I'm working from home today," Linhua replied, waving at him.
As he walked away, she shouted—
"Don't embarrass yourself in front of girls!"
"Oookay! Byeee!"
He walked down the street happily.
Then—
He paused.
A strange feeling washed over him.
Like he had already done this before.
He looked around.
Same street. Same air. Same morning light.
"…Deja vu?" he muttered. "Nah. Who cares."
He continued walking.
Up ahead, he spotted someone familiar.
"Oii! Quinshiki-san!"
The senior turned around.
"Oh, Flochien. Come. Let's walk together."
He slowed his pace so Flochien could catch up.
"Good morning, Quinshiki-san!"
"Morning."
Flochien glanced at him from the side.
He really is popular…
Quinshiki had a calm, charming aura. Girls walking past them blushed just from a single glance.
Every girl likes him… Flochien thought.
But I've never heard him talk about his family…
"Hmph… I'm a little jealous."
"Did you say something?" Quinshiki asked.
Flochien suddenly sprinted forward for no reason.
"Nothing! HAVE A NICE DAY, QUINSHIKI-SAN!"
Quinshiki sighed lightly.
Inside the school corridor—
Thud.
Flochien bumped into someone.
"My, my~ Excited to see me, Floch-kun?"
Pink hair.
Blue eyes.
Himari.
Flochien blushed slightly but quickly tried to recover.
"I'm not blushing!"
As he bent down to help pick up the things she dropped, something caught his eye.
There was a small black mark near her knuckles.
Round.
Unnatural.
"What's that?"
Himari looked at it, confused.
"Eh? I don't know. I washed my hands after breakfast. I didn't even touch anything."
"Then how did it appear?"
"Maybe I brushed against a wall… or paint… or someone?"
She shrugged.
They began walking together.
From across the court, several boys stared at her.
One tall guy approached confidently.
"Well, you look beautiful today. Want to grab coffee with me?"
Flochien hissed quietly in the background like a jealous cat.
Himari's expression turned completely deadpan.
"No. I'm not interested."
The tall guy forced a smile.
"Come on. Just one coffee. It'll be fun."
"Nope."
Flochien stepped forward.
"She's uncomfortable. Stop insisting."
The tall guy smirked.
"Oh? And what will you do if I don't?"
"She said she doesn't want to go!"
Himari crossed her arms.
"Stop being stubborn. I'm already with… Flochien."
Flochien's face turned red instantly.
The tall guy's expression darkened. He raised his fist toward Flochien—
—but suddenly—
THUD.
He collapsed to the ground.
Quinshiki stood behind him, shaking his hand casually.
"Ah… that wasn't fun at all."
Even now, girls in the background blushed.
"Q-Quinshiki-san… thank you," Flochien said.
The tall guy was carried away by his friends.
"Don't worry," Quinshiki said gently. "Just a simple hit. Maybe a sore neck for a day."
He waved and walked away.
But then—
He stopped.
Something caught his eye.
The hallway clock.
The second hand…
Was ticking backwards.
Quinshiki frowned.
Strange… I just fixed that before coming here. I even changed the batteries.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
Then why is it doing it again…?