Rain fell steadily across the city as Liya and Ethan walked down the sidewalk.
Cars rolled slowly through the wet streets, their headlights glowing softly in the gray afternoon.
Ethan shoved his hands into his jacket pockets.
"So," he said casually, "according to our research…"
Liya sighed.
"You've been alive for five minutes and you're already calling this research."
"Scientific curiosity is important."
"This is not a lab experiment."
"Everything is a lab experiment if the universe keeps resetting," he replied.
She didn't argue.
Because he wasn't entirely wrong.
If the day was a loop…
Then every action they took was technically a test.
Ethan glanced around the street.
"So where exactly did I die the first time?"
"Near the café by the intersection."
"And the second time?"
"By the river."
"Good," he said.
"That means we avoid intersections and rivers."
Liya crossed her arms.
"You're simplifying this too much."
"Maybe."
"But it's a start."
They continued walking.
For a while, nothing unusual happened.
People passed them on the sidewalks.
A bus stopped nearby.
A dog barked somewhere down the street.
Everything looked perfectly normal.
Almost too normal.
Ethan suddenly stopped.
"What?"
He pointed across the street.
"Convenience store."
"…Okay?"
"I'm hungry."
"You're hungry?"
"Yes."
"You're in a time loop where you die every night."
"And?"
"And you're thinking about snacks?"
He shrugged.
"If I'm going to spend my final hours alive, I'd prefer snacks."
Liya stared at him.
Then she sighed.
"Fine."
They crossed the street together.
The small convenience store glowed brightly under fluorescent lights.
Ethan grabbed a bottle of soda and a bag of chips.
He placed them on the counter.
The cashier scanned them lazily.
"Seven dollars," the man said.
Ethan paid and stepped outside again.
Rain tapped lightly against the store awning.
He opened the chips.
"Want some?"
"No."
"Your loss."
He ate a few casually.
Then he paused.
"Okay."
"What?"
"Let's test something."
Liya narrowed her eyes.
"I don't like that sentence."
Ethan pointed toward the busy street beside them.
"I'm going to step into traffic."
"What?!"
"Relax."
"You literally die in traffic accidents!"
"Exactly."
"That's why we test it."
Before she could stop him, Ethan walked toward the curb.
"Ethan!"
He stepped off the sidewalk.
A car approached down the street.
Liya's heart nearly exploded.
"Are you insane?!"
The car slowed slightly as Ethan stepped into the road.
Then—
The driver honked loudly.
Ethan calmly stepped back onto the sidewalk before the car reached him.
The vehicle passed safely.
Liya grabbed his arm.
"What is wrong with you?!"
"I wanted to see if fate would immediately react."
"You almost got yourself killed!"
"But I didn't."
He looked at her seriously.
"That's important."
Her breathing was still uneven.
"Important how?"
"If fate was aggressively correcting things," he explained, "the car would've hit me."
"But it didn't."
"So?"
"So maybe my death only happens near midnight."
Liya blinked.
That… actually made sense.
"You mean there's a time window?"
"Possibly."
He checked his phone.
5:32 PM.
"Which means we have several safe hours."
Liya slowly released his arm.
"You're reckless."
"And alive."
He smiled again.
"You should see the positive side."
She shook her head.
"You're unbelievable."
"Admit it though."
"What?"
"This is kind of exciting."
She looked at him.
Rain continued falling softly around them.
Despite everything…
Despite the danger…
She felt a strange thrill too.
Like they were uncovering the rules of a hidden game.
But as Ethan finished his chips, something strange happened.
A sudden gust of wind blew down the street.
The nearby traffic light flickered.
Then went dark.
The intersection fell silent for a moment.
Liya felt a chill run down her spine.
"Ethan…"
"What?"
She pointed.
The traffic lights were completely off now.
Cars began slowing in confusion.
Some drivers honked.
Others tried to move through the intersection cautiously.
Ethan frowned.
"That's… unusual."
Liya's stomach tightened.
Because in the previous loops…
Something always went wrong.
And the universe had just changed the board again. ⏳