The dream came suddenly, like a blade through the dark.
My mother.
Her hand cutting across my father's face.
The sharp crack of the slap echoing in the silence of the house.
I jolted awake, heart hammering against my ribs, my body drenched in cold sweat. My throat was raw, a scream dying in it. For a moment, I thought it was just another nightmare like the ones that came after Valkyrie's voice first clawed into me.
But then I remembered her words.
"Fragments of memory will reach you… as you become worthy of my help."
I sat up on the futon, pressing my palms to my face. My chest heaved. No… that wasn't just a dream. That was too vivid, too real. That was the future.
The clock on my phone blinked back at me.
3:00 AM.
I stared at it, unblinking.
"...This time again," I muttered. "Every glimpse… every fragment… it always comes at three."
I sat there, back hunched, as the glow of my phone lit my face.
Notifications cluttered the screen. Miyuki. Yui. Souta. My teacher.
I opened Miyuki's first
"Haruto, I couldn't sleep… I kept thinking of you. Please take care of yourself. I'll wait for you."
For a moment, I just stared at the text. That same soft, caring tone she always had. The kind of words that once would've melted me.
Now, they just felt like poison dressed as honey.
I clenched my jaw. How can this girl the one who writes like she'd die without me choose lust over love? Choose Souta over me?
I put the phone face down, refusing to reply yet. My thoughts churned, my body refusing to sleep again. But at some point, exhaustion took me.
And when the morning light broke through the shōji, I opened my eyes again.
I barely had time to sit up before the sliding door rasped open.
"Haruto."
Grandmother Sumire stood there, dressed in a simple but elegant beige kimono. Her eyes, sharp as ever, fixed on me.
"You're still in bed?"
"...I didn't sleep well," I admitted.
"Doesn't matter. Freshen up. Change your clothes."
I hesitated. "Why?"
Her eyes narrowed, and just one sharp glare was enough to make me stiffen.
"Do I need to explain myself twice?"
I quickly bowed my head. "...No."
Minutes later, I was washed, dressed, and seated at the table. The maids laid out breakfast: grilled salmon, tamagoyaki, rice, miso soup.
She sipped her tea, watching me eat. "We're going to the city today. You can buy what you need."
I set my chopsticks down. "I don't really need anything right now."
"You do." Her voice was firm, leaving no space for refusal. "Your phone is old. Broken. I saw it last night. If you want to live properly, tools matter. You'll get a new one."
I stayed quiet, but she didn't look away until I finally nodded.
"...Alright."
"Good."
When I stepped outside the mansion, a black luxury car waited in the driveway. The paint gleamed under the sun, the driver bowing as he opened the door.
I froze for a second.
Grandmother raised a brow. "Why are you staring? In the future, all of this will belong to my grandchildrens. You'd better get used to it."
I slid in without a word. The leather seats swallowed me in silence, the faint scent of cedar following her inside.
The city felt like another world compared to the quiet of her estate. Crowds moving like tides, neon bleeding into the daylight, the hum of countless voices.
She walked ahead of me, never hesitating, her stride commanding the same respect as the men in suits who bowed as she passed.
In just a few hours, I had bags in both hands. Clothes, shoes, a brand-new phone, even a laptop. Everything I'd lacked before, she put into my hands without a second thought.
"Use them well," she said. "Not carelessly."
"I will," I replied quietly.
By late afternoon, we stopped at a restaurant. The food was lavish, plates arranged like art. Afterward, she insisted on a movie not that she seemed interested in the film, but she sat through it beside me, unshaken.
When we finally returned to the estate, the sky was painted in dark purple.
I turned to her at the entrance. "Thank you. For everything today."
She studied me, then stepped closer, wrapping her arms around me in an embrace far warmer than her words ever were.
"You'll understand why one day," she said softly.
---Miyuki's perspective---
Homeroom.
The room buzzed with voices, friends chattering, Souta sitting with his usual smirk a few desks away.
"Hey, Miyuki," one of my friends whispered. "You're still with Haruto? Honestly… why? Souta's clearly the better choice. You know that, right?"
"Yeah," another chimed in. "Haruto's always quiet, gloomy. Souta's fun. Popular. He actually notices you."
I gripped my pen tighter. "I'm not breaking up with Haruto."
They rolled their eyes, sharing glances. "You're wasting your time. Just think about it."
I tuned them out. When the teacher began, I checked my phone under the desk. Haruto's reply from last night was still there.
Haruto: I was busy. I'm fine, I'll try to come faster if I can. Love you too.
A small smile tugged at my lips. Relief washed over me.
After school, Souta fell into step beside me.
"Heading home?" he asked casually.
"Yeah."
"You've been texting Haruto a lot, huh?"
I glanced at him. "...Of course."
He chuckled. "Don't take it the wrong way, Miyuki, but… sometimes you seem happier when you're with me than with him."
I frowned. "That's not true."
He raised his hands in mock surrender. "Relax. Just saying what I see."
We chatted about school, about tests, about clubs. His tone was always light, playful. But under it, I could sense something heavier.
At the corner where we usually split ways, he gave a lazy wave. "See you tomorrow."
"Yeah."
When I got home, I changed, grabbed a snack, and sat on my bed. My fingers hesitated only a moment before I messaged Haruto again.
" Did you eat dinner? I wish I was there with you."
---Haruto's perspective---
Back in my room, the glow of my new phone lit my face. My laptop sat unopened beside me.
A notification popped. Miyuki.
"Did you eat dinner? I wish I was there with you."
I typed back without hesitation.
" Yeah, I did. Don't worry. I miss you too."
My thumb lingered on the screen before I set the phone down.
On the outside, I was still her boyfriend. The sweet, loving partner she thought she had.
But inside, my mind was already sharpening itself into a blade.
I closed my eyes, leaning back against the wall. If 3 AM is the time Valkyrie grants me fragments, then I'll use it. I need to know more not just about Miyuki, or Souta, or my mother. I need to know what happens to my father after my death.
The thought pulsed like a heartbeat in my skull.
"I need to know everything," I whispered to the empty room. "No matter what it shows me."
The night pressed close, heavy, waiting.
And I waited with it.