Seiji shot upright in bed, his chest heaving. His shirt clung to him with cold sweat, and for a moment, he couldn't tell if he was still trapped in that horrible dream or if the room around him was real. His breath slowed, and he ran a trembling hand across his face before collapsing back onto the bed.
The faint light of dawn spilled through the curtains. His alarm clock rang a few minutes later, dragging him fully back to reality. Seiji sat up again, this time slower, wiping the back of his neck with a towel he grabbed from the chair.
"…A bad dream, huh." He muttered to himself, staring blankly at the floor.
The room was quiet except for the faint hum of the fan. He dressed up for school as usual white shirt, navy pants, his uniform neat as ever then caught his reflection in the mirror. His eyes looked a little hollow, but he forced a grin anyway. "No point worrying them."
By the time he stepped outside, the neighborhood was already alive.
"Morning, Seiji!"
"Good morning!" He waved back at the kids running past.
Mrs. Tanaka from across the street struggled with her grocery bags, and Seiji rushed over without hesitation.
"Let me carry that for you!"
"Oh my, thank you Seiji. Such a good boy, I'm so glad your friends with my son.."
He smiled as he walked her to her door, making small talk as if nothing in the world bothered him. And for a while, it worked. Helping others grounded him, reminded him of who he was supposed to be.
But the unease from last night didn't vanish. It clung to him like a second shadow.
By the time he got to school, the courtyard was already buzzing with students. He greeted everyone he passed, holding himself together.
"Yo, Seiji! Can you help me with this project after class?"
"Sure, no problem."
Everything felt normal until it didn't.
Halfway through the day, as he sat in class, Seiji felt something shift. The sunlight streaming in through the window dimmed for just a moment. When he turned his head, he swore he saw someone standing outside a tall figure with their back turned.
He blinked. Gone.
Seiji shook his head and laughed under his breath. "I really need more sleep."
But then, as he copied notes from the blackboard, the letters seemed to twist for a brief second, rearranging themselves into jagged shapes before snapping back to normal.
No one else reacted.
He clenched his pen tighter.
After school, he stayed behind to help a classmate fix a broken chair in the clubroom, pretending everything was fine. But as he stood up, he thought he heard someone whisper his name.
"…Seiji…"
He spun around, heart pounding, but the room was empty.
He left quickly, telling himself it was just stress.
On the way home, the streets seemed quieter than usual. His steps echoed louder, and the air felt heavier. He glanced over his shoulder a few times, half-expecting someone to be following him.
No one was there.
When he finally reached home, Seiji leaned against the door, exhaling sharply.
"Get a grip. You're just tired."
He went about his evening routine as if nothing was wrong, but when night fell, he couldn't shake the feeling that someone or something was still watching.
Dinner was quiet that evening. Too quiet.
Seiji's parents chatted casually about work, but he barely heard them. His chopsticks hovered over his plate as he stared at nothing, lost in thought.
"You okay, Seiji?" his mom asked, her voice soft but concerned.
He blinked and forced a smile. "Yeah, just tired from school. Don't worry."
It was a lie, but what else could he say? Hey, Mom, Dad I've been seeing things and hearing voices all day. Probably fine, right?
He excused himself early and went back to his room.
The moment he shut the door, the weight of the day crashed onto him. His breathing quickened. His hands were cold and clammy. He sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the floor, waiting for the feeling to pass.
But then.
Knock.
Seiji froze.
The sound came not from the door, but from the window.
Slowly, he turned his head.
The curtains swayed faintly even though the window was closed. For just a second, he swore he saw a handprint on the glass, too large to be his own. before it faded away.
He shot up, yanking the curtains open. Nothing. Just the dark street outside.
"Get it together, Seiji…" he whispered, clutching the windowsill.
He sat back down and grabbed his phone to distract himself, scrolling through messages from classmates, group chats filled with memes and homework reminders. It felt normal.. safe.
But then a new notification popped up.
Unknown Number:Why are you pretending nothing's wrong?
Seiji's stomach dropped.
He stared at the screen. Before he could reply, another message appeared.
Unknown Number:You saw me today. By the window.
His grip on the phone tightened until his knuckles turned white. He wanted to throw it across the room, but before he could, the chat disappeared. Gone. Not even in his recent messages.
"...Nope. Not real. Just my brain messing with me."
But a faint laugh echoed through the room low, guttural, coming from nowhere.
He grabbed his towel again, wiping sweat from his forehead, and stumbled to his desk. His textbooks sat open from earlier. The words on the page blurred, twisted, then re-formed into something else entirely.
You can't save them.
Seiji shoved the book shut and stood up so fast the chair toppled behind him. His breath came in ragged gasps now.
This wasn't just stress. Something was wrong.
He pressed his palms into his eyes until stars danced in his vision. When he opened them, the room was normal again.
Silence.
Seiji sank back into his chair, exhausted. He didn't know how much time had passed when his mom knocked on the door, asking if he was alright.
"Yeah," he called back, voice shaky. "Just… studying."
Eventually, he changed into his pajamas and lay down, staring at the ceiling. The room was dark, but his mind wouldn't shut off. The dream from last night still clawed at him, its images flashing behind his eyelids every time he blinked.
And then he heard it. faint, like a whisper carried on the wind.
"…Seiji…"
He shot up in bed.
The room was empty.
He got up and checked the hallway. His parents' bedroom light was off. The whole house was quiet.
When he returned to his room, he caught a glimpse of something in the corner. a silhouette standing by his desk.
His heart stopped.
But when he turned on the light, there was nothing there.
Seiji collapsed back onto his bed, burying his face into the pillow. He wanted to scream, cry, do something, but he just lay there, gripping the sheets until his knuckles ached.
At some point, exhaustion won, and his eyelids grew heavy. His last thought before sleep claimed him was a single, desperate question:
Am I.. truly losing my mind.?