Elena was supposed to die at 8:43 PM.
At least, that's what the system said.
She stared at the glowing red words floating in front of her eyes:
[DEATH CONFIRMED: 20:43 – CAUSE: HIT AND RUN]
Her hands trembled.
"This… this isn't funny," she whispered.
But no one around her reacted.
Cars passed by. People walked. The city moved like nothing was wrong.
Only Elena could see it.
The countdown appeared.
00:02:15
Two minutes left.
Her heart pounded so hard it hurt.
"I'm going crazy… right?" she muttered, taking a step back from the road.
Then—
A voice.
Cold. Mechanical. Right inside her head.
[Do you want to survive?]
Elena froze.
"What…?"
[Confirm: YES / NO]
Her breath hitched.
This wasn't real. It couldn't be real.
But the timer dropped.
00:01:02
A car sped past her.
Too fast.
Too close.
Her instincts screamed.
Without thinking—
"YES!"
Silence.
Then—
[Survival mode activated.]
Time stopped.
Literally.
Everything froze.
The cars. The people. Even the wind.
Elena stood there, shaking.
"What… is happening?"
Footsteps echoed behind her.
Slow.
Heavy.
Not frozen.
She turned.
And her blood ran cold.
A man in black stood in the middle of the unmoving street.
Watching her.
Smiling.
"You weren't supposed to see that," he said.
Elena took a step back.
"Who are you…?"
The man tilted his head, amused.
"Someone who fixes mistakes."
Her stomach dropped.
"Mistakes…?"
His smile widened.
"Like you."
The timer appeared again.
But this time—
00:00:05
"Elena," the man said softly.
"Let's see if you can survive twice."