The flashlight beam trembled in the engineer's hand.
"…You were the last person Ethan called before he died."
The words echoed in the broken skeleton of the tower.
Liya felt her chest tighten.
"…That's impossible."
The engineer slowly stepped closer, still staring at her.
"I remember your voice."
The motorcycle girl immediately stepped between them.
"Stop."
The engineer froze.
Her eyes were sharp now.
"Tell us exactly what you mean."
The man looked confused.
"You two… were supposed to be here tomorrow."
Liya blinked.
"Tomorrow?"
"Yes."
"At the collapse site."
The girl's voice dropped slightly.
"…Start from the beginning."
The engineer swallowed nervously.
"Seven days from now this tower collapses."
"We all know that," the girl said.
"But before it happens…"
He pointed at Liya again.
"You show up."
Liya felt cold.
"…Me?"
"Yes."
"You were asking about the structural design."
"That's impossible."
"I swear it happened."
The girl narrowed her eyes.
"Then what?"
The engineer continued.
"You left about an hour before the collapse."
"And Ethan called you."
Liya's breath caught.
"…Called me?"
"Yes."
"He sounded panicked."
"Panicked about what?"
The engineer shook his head.
"I couldn't hear everything."
"But he kept saying something."
The wind howled through the broken structure.
The engineer whispered the words slowly.
"'The loop already started.'"
Silence.
The girl's eyes widened slightly.
"…That's not supposed to happen yet."
Liya's voice shook.
"What do you mean?"
"The loop should begin after Ethan dies tonight."
The engineer looked between them.
"…Tonight?"
The girl suddenly grabbed Liya's wrist.
"Something's wrong."
"More wrong than usual?"
"Yes."
The engineer frowned.
"Wait."
He studied Liya's face more carefully.
Then something clicked in his mind.
His expression shifted from confusion to fear.
"Oh no."
Liya's stomach dropped.
"What?"
The engineer stepped back slowly.
"You look exactly the same."
"What?"
"The same clothes."
"The same hair."
"The same face."
Liya's voice trembled.
"…What are you talking about?"
The engineer whispered,
"You haven't aged."
The girl's eyes narrowed.
"…Explain."
The man looked terrified now.
"You came here a week ago."
"Yes."
"And you look exactly the same today."
Liya felt dizzy.
"…That's not possible."
The girl slowly realized what this meant.
Her voice dropped.
"The timeline isn't just fractured."
"It's overlapping."
The engineer looked lost.
"What does that mean?"
She pointed at Liya.
"It means she's already been here before."
Liya's heart skipped.
"…What?"
The girl's voice was quiet now.
"In the future timeline…"
"…you come here a week from now."
"But we're already here."
Liya shook her head.
"That doesn't make sense."
"Exactly."
The girl looked up at the broken tower.
Then back at Liya.
"That means the loop didn't start tonight."
Silence.
The wind rattled loose metal around them.
Liya whispered,
"…Then when did it start?"
The girl answered slowly.
"Seven days ago."
Liya's mind spun.
"But Ethan only started dying today."
"Yes."
"That's what we thought."
The girl looked toward the dark skyline again.
Her expression serious.
"But if the loop actually began a week earlier…"
"…then someone triggered it before Ethan died."
The engineer looked terrified.
"Who would do that?"
The girl didn't answer immediately.
Instead she looked directly at Liya.
Her eyes filled with a new realization.
"…Someone who already knew the future."
Liya's heart started pounding.
"…You think I did this?"
The girl whispered quietly.
"No."
Her gaze shifted toward the broken entrance of the tower.
"…I think Ethan did."
At that exact moment—
A loud metallic crash echoed somewhere deep inside the ruins.
All three of them turned.
Footsteps.
Slow.
Heavy.
Someone was walking through the wreckage.
A shadow appeared between the broken steel beams.
And a familiar voice echoed through the darkness.
"…Took you two long enough."
Liya's heart stopped.
That voice.
She knew that voice.
But something about it felt wrong.
Older.
Colder.
Then the figure stepped into the light.
And Liya's breath vanished.
Because standing there…
Was Ethan.
But not the Ethan she knew. ⏳