Chapter 1: The Message I Never Sent

At exactly 11:59 PM, Aika Kisaragi decided she hated Mondays.

Not because of school.

Not because of exams.

Not even because her chemistry teacher somehow enjoyed surprise tests.

No.

It was because Mondays always reminded her that life repeated itself.

Wake up.

School.

Homework.

Sleep.

Repeat.

Aika lay on her bed, scrolling through old messages while rain tapped softly against her bedroom window. Her room was small and ordinary—books stacked near her desk, school uniform hanging on the closet door, unfinished homework spread across the floor.

Everything looked normal.

Everything felt normal.

Yet she couldn’t shake the strange feeling crawling under her skin all evening.

Her phone screen showed 11:59 PM.

“Great,” she muttered. “Another day wasted.”

Outside, thunder rumbled.

The lights flickered once.

Then twice.

At exactly 12:00 AM—

Buzz.

Her phone vibrated.

Aika lazily opened the notification.

Unknown Sender.

Her eyebrows pulled together.

She opened it.

You have 100 days left.

She stared.

“What kind of weird spam is this?”

Another message arrived immediately.

Do not trust the people around you.

Aika frowned harder.

“Okay… creepy.”

She pressed the profile icon.

No number.

No account picture.

Nothing.

Then a third message appeared.

You are already late.

Aika rolled her eyes.

“Someone really needs hobbies.”

She prepared to block the sender.

Then she saw the contact name update by itself.

Her breathing stopped.

The sender name changed into:

Aika Kisaragi

Her own name.

“No.”

Aika clicked the profile.

The profile picture loaded.

It was her.

Not a random picture.

Not social media.

A photo she had never taken.

In the image, she looked older.

Tired.

Her school uniform was covered with dust.

And written on her hand with black marker were three words:

DON’T TRUST REN

A loud crash outside made Aika jump.

She rushed toward her window.

The street below was empty.

Rain poured heavily.

Streetlights flickered.

Nothing unusual.

Yet her heart refused to calm down.

Buzz.

Another message.

Tomorrow. 8:17 AM. Avoid the stairs.

Aika quickly typed:

Who are you?

Seen.

Typing...

Typing...

Typing...

Then:

You already know me.

The lights suddenly went out.

Darkness swallowed the room.

“Seriously?!”

Aika grabbed her phone flashlight.

Her hands shook slightly.

She hated power outages.

Ever since she was little.

Because darkness always made her imagine things.

Footsteps.

Voices.

Someone watching.

The electricity returned after several seconds.

She looked around.

Everything normal.

Except—

Her bedroom mirror.

Written across the fogged glass were numbers.

100

99

98

97

They slowly disappeared.

Aika froze.

“No…”

She walked toward the mirror.

Touched it.

Nothing.

Only cold glass.

Her reflection stared back.

But for half a second—

Her reflection didn’t move.

Aika stepped backward.

The reflection smiled.

She didn’t.

The lights flickered again.

The reflection returned to normal.

Aika grabbed a blanket and threw it over the mirror.

“Nope.”

She refused to think about it.

Ghosts weren’t real.

Future messages weren’t real.

Mirrors definitely weren’t smiling.

She climbed into bed.

Pulled the blanket over her head.

And somehow fell asleep.

—

6:45 AM.

Rain still covered the city.

Aika walked toward school half-asleep while eating convenience store bread.

“You look dead,” her best friend Mio said, appearing beside her.

“You always appear like a horror character.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Mio blinked.

“No seriously. Why do you look scared?”

Aika considered telling her.

Then remembered the message.

Do not trust the people around you.

“Didn’t sleep.”

“Again?”

“Again.”

Students filled the sidewalks.

Cars passed.

Everything ordinary.

Yet Aika checked the time every minute.

8:10 AM.

She entered school.

8:12 AM.

Students changed shoes.

8:14 AM.

Her hands became sweaty.

8:15 AM.

She reached the staircase.

Hundreds of students moved up and down.

Nothing strange.

See?

Just nonsense.

8:16 AM.

A tall boy wearing another school’s uniform walked past her.

Black hair.

Sharp eyes.

Cold expression.

Transfer student?

He suddenly stopped.

Turned toward her.

Their eyes met.

“You shouldn’t stand there,” he said quietly.

“What?”

8:17 AM.

A scream echoed above.

CRASH.

Students shouted.

People ran.

Something heavy smashed into the staircase exactly where Aika had been standing seconds earlier.

Broken metal scattered everywhere.

Silence filled her ears.

The mysterious boy looked directly at her.

Then at her phone.

Which vibrated again.

Buzz.

New message.

Now do you believe me?

And beneath it—

Ren Asakura has found you.

Chapter 2: The Boy Who Knew Her Name

The school felt different that morning.

Not because anything had changed visually.

But because Aika Kisaragi could feel it.

Eyes.

Whispers.

Something unseen moving through the corridors like a shadow that didn’t belong to anyone.

She stood at her locker for too long, pretending to search for books she didn’t need. Her fingers kept tightening around the metal door handle without reason.

“Get it together,” she whispered to herself.

But her mind kept replaying it.

8:17 AM.

The crash.

The staircase collapsing exactly where she had been standing.

If she had been even two seconds slower…

She closed her eyes.

No.

Don’t think about it.

Aika shut her locker and turned—

And froze.

He was there.

The boy from yesterday.

Black hair slightly messy, uniform from another school, standing calmly like he didn’t just witness chaos the day before.

Ren Asakura.

That name had appeared in the message.

DON’T TRUST REN

He looked at her as if he already knew she would be there.

“You’re late,” he said.

Aika frowned. “Excuse me?”

“For realizing it.”

“That makes no sense.”

Ren stepped closer, but not too close. Just enough to make her uncomfortable.

“Your reaction is slower than expected,” he said quietly.

“My reaction to what?”

He tilted his head slightly.

“To dying.”

Aika’s breath caught for half a second.

Then she forced a laugh. “Okay, creepy stranger, are you done roleplaying now?”

Ren didn’t react.

Not even a blink.

Instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out something.

A phone.

Aika’s phone vibrated at the exact same time.

Buzz.

Her heart dropped.

She slowly looked down.

New Message

Unknown Sender:

He is already inside your timeline.

Aika looked up immediately.

Ren was watching her reaction carefully.

“Who are you?” she demanded.

A faint sound echoed in the hallway—students walking, laughing, completely unaware of the tension between them.

Ren finally spoke.

“That depends on which version of me you’ve met.”

“What does that even mean?”

He exhaled slowly.

Then, for the first time, something changed in his eyes.

Not emotion.

Not softness.

Something heavier.

Like exhaustion.

Like someone who had repeated the same nightmare too many times.

“I was told you would deny everything at first,” he said.

“By who?”

Ren looked at her phone again.

“By you.”

Aika felt her stomach twist.

“No. Stop. This is not funny anymore. I don’t know you. I’ve never met you.”

Ren stepped slightly closer now.

“This morning,” he said calmly, “you avoided the stairs at 8:17 AM.”

Aika froze.

“How—”

“You didn’t die.”

Silence.

He continued.

“But in another version… you did.”

Aika stepped back without realizing it.

“Okay, I’m done. This is insane.”

She turned to leave.

But Ren’s voice stopped her instantly.

“You got a message last night.”

Aika stopped.

Her fingers tightened.

“…What message?”

A pause.

Then he said it clearly:

“‘Do not trust Ren Asakura.’”

Her blood ran cold.

She slowly turned her head back.

Ren was watching her carefully, as if waiting for something.

“Who told you that?” she whispered.

A small silence passed between them.

Then Ren said something that made everything worse.

“You did.”

Aika felt her knees weaken slightly, but she refused to show it.

“I’m blocking you,” she said sharply, pulling out her phone.

Ren didn’t stop her.

He didn’t move at all.

Instead, he simply said:

“It won’t work.”

Aika pressed block.

Nothing happened.

She tried again.

Error.

No signal.

Her phone suddenly froze completely.

Black screen.

Then—

A single line appeared.

SYSTEM OVERRIDE ACTIVE

Aika dropped the phone slightly.

“What is this…?”

Ren looked away for the first time, toward the window.

Outside, the sky was overcast, heavy with clouds that looked too low for comfort.

“This school is already inside the loop,” he said.

Aika looked at him sharply. “Loop?”

He finally turned back to her.

“You have 97 days left now,” he said.

Aika froze.

“That message last night… it changed,” he continued. “It updates in real time based on divergence.”

“Divergence…?”

Ren stepped forward again, this time serious.

“Every time you survive something you were supposed to die from, the timeline adjusts.”

Aika shook her head. “This is insane. I’m not special. I’m not in a movie.”

Ren’s expression didn’t change.

“That’s what all the previous versions of you said too.”

A loud bell rang across the school, signaling class.

Students began moving.

Normal life continued like nothing was wrong.

But for Aika, everything felt broken.

Ren started walking past her.

Aika turned quickly. “Wait!”

He stopped.

Without turning around.

Aika hesitated.

“…Why me?”

A pause.

Then Ren said quietly:

“Because you are the only one who remembers the future before it happens.”

He began walking again.

Aika stood there, frozen, heart racing.

Then her phone vibrated one last time.

She picked it up slowly.

A new message appeared.

Unknown Sender:

He lied about something.

Aika looked up instantly—

But Ren was already gone.

Only the hallway remained.

Empty.

Too empty.

And for the first time…

Aika realized something terrifying.

She was not being warned.

She was being watched.

Chapter 3: The Memory That Was Not Hers

Aika didn’t remember walking to class.

She only remembered sitting down.

And staring.

At nothing.

The classroom was loud like always—chairs scraping, students laughing, someone complaining about homework. But everything felt distant, like she was underwater and the world was happening above her.

Her phone lay face down on the desk.

She didn’t want to look at it.

Because she knew.

Another message would be there.

Another impossible thing.

“Hey,” Mio whispered beside her. “You’re acting weird again.”

Aika slowly turned her head. “I’m fine.”

“You always say that when you’re not fine.”

Aika didn’t answer.

Instead, she looked out the window.

Clouds still covered the sky.

Same grey color.

Same pressure.

Like the world was waiting for something to break.

Then—

The classroom door opened.

The teacher walked in.

“Class, we have a new transfer student.”

Aika’s body went cold instantly.

No.

Impossible.

The teacher smiled.

“Please come in.”

The door slid open wider.

And Ren Asakura walked in.

Again.

But this time…

He wasn’t wearing the same uniform.

This time, he looked like he belonged.

Like he had always been here.

“Introduce yourself,” the teacher said.

Ren glanced briefly at the class.

His eyes stopped on Aika.

Just for a moment.

Then he said:

“Ren Asakura.”

That was it.

No emotion.

No hesitation.

But Aika felt something twist inside her chest.

Because she realized something terrifying.

No one else reacted to him.

No one seemed surprised.

No one remembered yesterday.

Aika slowly raised her hand.

“Excuse me,” she said.

The teacher turned. “Yes?”

“That boy… he wasn’t here yesterday.”

The room went silent for half a second.

Then the teacher blinked.

“Of course he was. He transferred last week.”

Aika froze.

“What?”

Mio leaned closer. “Aika… he’s been in our class for days.”

Aika turned sharply. “No. That’s not true. I saw him yesterday. He saved me from the staircase collapse.”

Mio frowned. “What staircase collapse?”

The world tilted slightly in Aika’s mind.

“No… I— I remember it. There was an accident. Metal. People screaming—”

But Mio just looked confused.

“No one got hurt yesterday. It was a normal day.”

Aika’s breath became shallow.

Her fingers tightened on the edge of her desk.

This was wrong.

This was completely wrong.

She looked at Ren.

He was watching her.

Calm.

Like he was waiting for this exact moment.

The teacher continued the lesson like nothing happened.

Students returned to chatting.

Normal life resumed.

But Aika couldn’t hear any of it anymore.

She stood up suddenly.

“I need to go out.”

“Aika?” Mio called.

But Aika didn’t stop.

She walked out of the classroom quickly, heart pounding harder with every step.

The hallway felt longer than usual.

Too long.

Too quiet.

She reached the bathroom and locked herself inside.

Silence.

Finally.

Aika leaned against the sink, breathing heavily.

“This is not real,” she whispered. “This is not real. This is not real.”

She splashed water on her face.

Looked up at the mirror.

For a second…

Nothing was wrong.

Just her reflection.

Tired eyes.

Messy hair.

Normal.

Then the reflection blinked… a fraction of a second late.

Aika froze.

“No…”

The reflection smiled.

Aika didn’t.

“Stop,” Aika whispered.

The reflection tilted its head.

And then—

It spoke.

But its mouth didn’t move properly.

“You noticed the reset.”

Aika stepped back.

“What are you?”

The reflection’s smile widened.

“I am what remains when time corrects itself.”

Aika’s breathing became faster.

“This is impossible.”

The reflection laughed softly.

“You already saw it. The stairs. The message. The boy.”

Aika shook her head. “That’s not real. Mio said—”

“Mio remembers only stable timelines,” the reflection interrupted.

A pause.

Then it continued:

“You remember unstable ones.”

Aika’s legs felt weak.

She grabbed the sink to steady herself.

“Why me?” she whispered again. “Why is this happening to me?”

The reflection leaned closer inside the mirror.

Until its face nearly touched the glass.

“Because you survived your first reset.”

Aika frowned. “Reset?”

The mirror darkened slightly.

And suddenly—

Images flashed inside it.

A staircase collapsing.

Aika falling.

Ren reaching out.

Then everything turning white.

A voice:

REBOOTING TIMELINE

Aika gasped and stepped back instantly.

“No! Stop! I didn’t see that!”

But the reflection only watched her calmly.

“That memory was removed,” it said. “But fragments remain inside you.”

Aika shook her head violently.

“No, no, no… I would remember dying.”

The reflection tilted its head again.

“You did die.”

Silence.

Heavy.

Sharp.

Aika’s hands trembled.

Then—

The reflection said the worst thing yet:

“Not once.”

“Three times.”

Aika’s phone vibrated inside her pocket.

Buzz.

She slowly pulled it out.

Unknown Sender:

She is waking up faster now.

Another message appeared immediately.

We need to erase Ren before he stabilizes her memory.

Aika stared at the screen.

Her breathing stopped.

Slowly…

She looked up at the mirror again.

But the reflection was gone.

Only her normal reflection remained.

Tired.

Human.

Fragile.

Aika whispered:

“…What am I?”

And somewhere in the hallway outside the bathroom…

Footsteps stopped right in front of the door.