On our way back, the sun had dipped lower, casting long shadows on the road. The air was cooler now. We walked side by side, still chatting, though a bit more quietly this time.
As we walked back from the shop, bags in hand and laughter still hanging in the air, Jane suddenly grabbed my arm and started shaking it fiercely.
"What now?" I asked, startled.
She didn't say anything, just widened her eyes and subtly tilted her head toward the other side of the road.
I followed her gaze and there he was. Aizen. Walking alone, hands in his pockets, like he had nowhere particular to be.
He was wearing a red high neck t-shirt and dark trousers, his usual messy hair a little more tamed by the breeze. Headphones rested around his neck, wires swaying slightly as he walked.
His eyes met ours from across the street. There was a flicker of recognition calm and unreadable.
We didn't wave or say anything. Just a really small smile with a nod from both sides, like an unspoken "hey," and we continued on our way.
Jane grinned beside me. "You saw that, right?"
"Yeah," I murmured, still thinking about how strange it felt, how normal and yet not normal it was to see him like that outside of school.
Then we hurried home, it had gotten darker than we expected, and we were already past our curfew. We exchanged quick goodbyes at the turn near Jane's building and rushed to our homes.
When I reached, Dad was already home. I greeted him and handed the groceries to Mom, who was in the kitchen.
Dad looked up from the TV and asked, "How was the exam?"
"It was good," I replied, slipping off my shoes. "I attempted all the questions. Just got stuck on one, it was a bit confusing."
He nodded without looking away from the news channel. "Hmm... Good."
I headed straight to my room and sat down to study a bit more. The house felt quiet, just the faint sound of the news in the background.
Later, we had dinner together... simple, like most days. And after that, I went to bed, tired.
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Again, I found myself in that vivid dream.
The air was thick with a cool mist, the kind that clung to your skin but didn't chill you. Everything around me was tinted in soft grey-blue hues, like the world had been drained of colour except for the faint light peeking through the fog.
I sat on the same worn wooden bench, the surface damp beneath me, though I didn't feel wet. The silence wasn't unsettling... it was calming, like the world had finally quieted down just for this moment. Trees loomed around the clearing, their outlines blurred by the fog. No birds. No breeze. Just stillness.
But I wasn't afraid. I didn't want to run this time.
I waited.
Then fog began to thin, slowly, like a curtain being drawn back. And there he was again.
Aizen. The one with the sad eyes not like the one I saw earlier in class.
He stood near the edge of the clearing, his hands tucked into the pockets of his dark coat. He wasn't looking around, wasn't trying to find anything. His gaze was fixed on me from the moment the fog thinned. It felt like he knew I'd be there and was waiting for me.
After a few seconds, he slowly walked toward me... not rushed, not hesitant either. His steps made no sound on the mist-covered ground.
His expression had softened, those sad eyes looking even more distant now... like he wasn't quite looking at me.
When he got closer, he raised his hand gently, fingers moving toward my face, as if trying to tuck a strand of hair or maybe just confirm that I was real. His fingertips were inches away...
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Then I woke up. My heart was still pounding. My room felt too quiet, too still. I laid there, staring at the ceiling.
It was the second time I saw him like that. And each time, he felt more real.
I sat up slowly, rubbing my eyes as if that would blur the memory away. But it was still there... clearer than it should be. The bench. The fog. Him.
"Why this dream again?" I muttered under my breath. "Why did I see him again?"
I wasn't even thinking about him that much, was I? Sure, the band-aid, the way he looked at me, the way he was... but that didn't explain this. Dreams weren't supposed to feel this real. They weren't supposed to pull me back like this... same place, same silence, same boy with those hauntingly sad eyes.
I pressed my hand against my cheek, right where his fingers were about to touch in the dream. It still tingled faintly.
Then mom's voice cut through the silence.
"Wake up! You'll be late for school!"
I blinked and pulled the blanket off slowly, slapped my cheeks lightly, trying to shake off the dream.
"Get a grip," I mumbled to myself.
"Coming, mom," I called back.