The First Encounter
Kanazawa City, Japan
The small city was drenched in the late afternoon rain.
Arka stood at the bus stop, staring at the puddle forming at the tip of his shoes.
Then suddenly, he heard a girl's voice.
"Come."
Arka turned quickly.
No one was paying attention to him.
"Am I starting to lose it…?"
As Arka entered the park near the school, he met a long-haired girl wearing a school uniform.
He stopped a few steps away from her.
"Morning," Arka greeted her.
The girl turned. "Good morning, Arka," she replied.
Arka stiffened slightly. "You know my name? Do we know each other?"
She looked at him and gave a faint smile. "Not yet."
"Then how do you know my name?" Arka asked, confused.
She smiled again. "You've already heard my voice, haven't you?"
Arka's heart began to beat faster.
"I don't know you, but… you're a transfer student, right? I've never seen you here before," he said, still staring at her.
"Hmmm… maybe?" the girl answered.
Arka let out a short breath. "Okay… this is weird. Who are you?"
She replied, "Sena."
The rain had turned into a thin drizzle. Yet not a single drop touched her.
Arka noticed.
"You're… not wet," he said, staring at her.
Sena stood and walked toward the small pond.
"I didn't come because of the rain," she said softly. "The rain came because of you."
Arka fell silent.
Sena touched the surface of the water.
Small ripples formed.
Then a bluish light began to glow from within the pond.
"What is that!?" Arka's voice shrank, slightly shaken.
Sena looked at him and smiled. "A gate."
Arka frowned in confusion. "A gate to what?! And where does it lead!?"
Sena remained quiet for a moment, gazing at the light.
"To the place that has been calling you all this time."
Arka swallowed. "Why me?"
She looked at him for a long moment.
"Because you've never truly felt that this world was enough."
The school bell rang sharply. The light in the pond disappeared.
Arka blinked. When he looked ahead again, Sena was already standing several steps away.
"We'll meet again," she said. "If you're brave enough."
"Sena, wait-"
Several students began arriving. Within seconds, the girl vanished among them.
Arka stood frozen. He looked down. A blue bracelet now circled his wrist. He was certain it hadn't been there before.
Inside the classroom, everything looked normal.
Arka stared blankly at his book titled "Gate."
He glanced toward the window and muttered, "Was that all just a hallucination because I've been overthinking today? But this bracelet…" He looked at the blue band on his wrist.
While he was focused on it, someone startled him. "Boo!"
Arka jumped, nearly dropping his pencil. "Ah! What's wrong with you?! You love scaring me!"
His friend, Danian Warley, looked at him with a grin.
"Hahaha! You're just too easy to scare! By the way, you've been really quiet today. What's up?"
Arka looked at his friend, then back at the bracelet.
"Today… is hard to explain. And you probably wouldn't believe me anyway."
Danian seemed slightly surprised. His smile slowly faded.
"Oh… well, if something's wrong, just tell me, okay?"
After a few hours, the dismissal bell rang, and Arka went straight home.
But when he picked up his phone after arriving home, he noticed something strange. A new contact had appeared, named "Sena."
Arka stared at it in confusion. He tried calling the number, but it couldn't be reached.
"What the heck… it's in my contacts, but it can't be reached. This is so weird."
A moment later, his phone buzzed. He received five new messages from "Sena." He opened them.
His eyes widened. The messages had been deleted by the sender. He immediately tried calling again, but once again, the call failed.
Arka stared at his screen for a long time.
It only said: Cannot be reached.
"This is a joke, right…?"
He tried once more.
Failed.
The number was still there in his contacts. The name "Sena" clearly displayed. But every time he called, the result was the same.
Arka dropped himself onto his bed. The blue bracelet was still on his wrist.
"If you're real… don't play games like this," he said softly into the air.
That night, the rain fell again.
Arka woke up to the sound of heavy raindrops. His chest felt tight for no clear reason. He sat at the edge of his bed, staring at the foggy window.
Then faintly-
"Arka."
He froze.
The voice was clearer than before. Not like a distant echo. Not a faint whisper. Close. Very close.
"What do you want?" he whispered.
Silence-only the rain. But the bracelet on his wrist grew warm again, pulsing slightly like a tiny heartbeat.
Arka swallowed. "If this is a dream… wake me up now."
The bedroom light suddenly flickered once.
Arka immediately stood up.
"Okay. This isn't funny."
He opened his bedroom door and made sure everything in the house was normal.
Except for one thing.
On his phone screen, a new notification appeared.
1 message from Sena.
His hands trembled slightly as he opened it. The message contained only one sentence:
"Tomorrow. Come earlier."
Arka pressed call immediately, but once again, the number could not be reached.
"Why is it always like this…" he muttered.
But this time, he felt challenged.
The next morning, the sky was still dark blue when Arka stood in front of the school gate. The clock showed 5:50 a.m.
He looked toward the park near the small pond. Empty. No one there but him.
"If you're just messing with me, I'm going home," Arka said, half annoyed.
The morning breeze blew softly.
A few seconds passed.
Then-
"I've never played with you."
Arka turned quickly. Sena stood beneath a maple tree near the park, her uniform perfectly neat.
"You…" Arka walked closer.
He looked at her, slightly irritated. "Your number can't be reached. Your messages delete themselves."
"I know," Sena said calmly.
Arka frowned. "You did it on purpose?"
She gave a faint smile. "Not everything can be explained through a phone."
Arka exhaled deeply. "Then explain it directly. What do you actually want from me?"
Sena glanced at the bracelet on his wrist.
"It has chosen you."
"This bracelet?" Arka raised his hand. "It even appeared without my permission."
"It's not an ordinary object. It's a key," Sena said softly.
"A key to what?" Arka asked, confused.
Sena stepped closer. Only a few steps separated them now.
"To fully open the gate."
Arka stared at her.
"And if I don't want to?"
Sena was silent for a moment.
"The rain will keep falling," she said gently. "And that voice will continue to call you."
"I'm just an ordinary high school student. I'm not the main character of some fantasy story."
She looked at him for a long time, then smiled faintly.
"That's exactly why you were chosen."
Arka stared at her in confusion. He fell silent for a moment.
Then suddenly, the blue light from the small pond in the park appeared again.
Arka's eyes widened in shock.
"Wha-what?! The gate again?! I thought that was all just my hallucination! But… what kind of gate is that?"
Sena only smiled, letting out a soft laugh.
"That is the gate where I belong."
Arka stared at her for a long moment, speechless.