Iris's POV
I didn't know how long we had been sitting there.
Rian had been pacing around the living room for the past few minutes, occasionally looking toward the door as if he expected his father to suddenly walk back in and explain everything.
Maybe he had gone somewhere.
Maybe he had simply left without telling anyone.
Maybe there was a perfectly normal explanation for what we had seen.
Except...
There wasn't.
"I don't believe he disappeared."
Rian finally stopped pacing.
I looked at him.
He rubbed his forehead and sighed.
"He probably went somewhere. Maybe he left the city. I don't even know why he came here in the first place."
Kaizer was standing near the window.
He hadn't said much since we came back.
Neither had I.
Rian picked up his phone again.
"He should just go back," he muttered. "This place isn't even—"
"It did take him."
Kaizer's voice was quiet.
Rian stopped.
"What?"
Kaizer looked at me.
"It did take him."
Rian's eyebrows drew together.
"Who?"
Kaizer didn't answer immediately.
I knew why.
Because there was no way to explain it.
Not without sounding completely insane.
Rian looked between the two of us.
"What took him?"
Silence.
His expression slowly became more irritated.
"Okay. Seriously. What are you two talking about?"
Kaizer looked away.
Rian rolled his eyes.
"Fine."
He unlocked his phone.
"Let's just call him."
He searched through his contacts and pressed the call button.
The room became strangely quiet while we waited.
One ring.
Two.
Three.
No answer.
Rian pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at the screen.
Then he called again.
Nothing.
His jaw tightened.
He tried one more time.
Still nothing.
He lowered the phone.
"See?"
He looked at us.
"This doesn't mean he disappeared. His phone could be somewhere else. He could have gone somewhere without it."
I didn't say anything.
Rian shoved his phone into his pocket.
"I'm going to look for him."
Kaizer finally spoke.
"Kuya—"
"I'll find out what happened."
Rian turned toward the door.
"And when I do, I'll tell you."
He opened it.
Before stepping outside, he looked back at us.
His expression had softened slightly.
"Don't stay up all night thinking about this."
Then he left.
The door closed.
And suddenly the house felt much quieter.
I remained where I was.
Kaizer was still standing near the window.
Neither of us spoke.
A few seconds passed.
Then he walked toward me.
He sat down beside me.
His shoulders dropped slightly as he leaned back.
"He didn't see it."
I looked at him.
I had been thinking about the same thing.
"No," I said quietly.
Kaizer stared at the floor for a moment.
"The last time we saw it..."
He paused.
"I read some newspapers."
"Hmm?"
"Remember that influencer?"
I thought for a moment.
Then I remembered.
"The one everyone hated online?"
"Yeah."
"She was stressed."
Kaizer nodded.
"She was carrying a lot."
I looked down.
"The day we found her..."
"She wasn't drunk."
My eyes widened slightly.
"She was about to disappear."
Kaizer nodded again.
"I looked for news about the other people who disappeared."
I turned toward him.
"What did you find?"
"They weren't random."
His voice became quieter.
"They were exhausted. Emotionally. Some were dealing with things nobody knew about. Some had completely isolated themselves."
My fingers tightened slightly around the edge of my sleeve.
"So the people who disappear..."
"Are carrying something."
I looked at him.
"Then your father..."
Kaizer leaned his head against the back of the sofa.
"I don't know."
His answer was simple.
But somehow, it sounded heavier than anything else he had said.
I looked down at my hands.
There were so many things we didn't know.
What those golden threads were.
Why they appeared.
Why people couldn't see them.
Why they took people.
And most importantly,
why could we see them?
"Kaizer..."
He turned his head toward me.
"Hmm?"
"Why only we saw it?"
He looked at me for a moment.
"If I knew that, I would've told you."
I gave a small nod.
"I know."
Silence settled between us again.
I stared ahead.
"Don't you find it weird?"
He let out a quiet breath.
"Isn't everything weird?"
I looked at him.
For some reason, that almost made me smile.
Almost.
My eyes dropped to his hand resting beside him.
It looked normal.
Everything about him looked normal.
Maybe that was what felt strange.
There was something so ordinary about him.
Something familiar.
Something that made the world feel a little less frightening.
I didn't know what was happening around us.
I didn't know what those threads wanted.
I didn't know how many people had already disappeared.
But I knew him.
And somehow, that felt like the only thing I could hold onto.
"Kaizer."
"Hmm?"
I hesitated.
Then asked quietly,
"Can you hold my hand?"
He looked at me.
His expression changed slightly.
"Hmm?"
"Can you hold my hand?"
I didn't know why I was asking.
I didn't have a reason.
Maybe I simply wanted something normal.
Something I understood.
Something I could feel.
I wasn't thinking about whether it was appropriate.
Or whether we were getting too close.
Or whether someone might misunderstand.
I just...
wanted to feel that he was there.
Kaizer looked at me for another second.
Then he slowly reached for my hand.
His fingers closed around mine.
Warm.
Steady.
Real.
I looked down at our hands.
"Kaizer."
"Hmm?"
"Only we can see it."
He was quiet for a moment.
Then he nodded.
"Only we can see it."
I swallowed.
"And only we know something is wrong."
He looked at me.
"Yeah."
I didn't know what we were supposed to do.
I didn't know whether we were ready.
But maybe neither of us had to know everything yet.
Kaizer's fingers tightened slightly around mine.
"We'll be together."
I looked up.
His eyes met mine.
There was no hesitation in them.
No fear.
Just certainty.
I nodded.
"Hmm."
And somehow, those two words were enough.
For a moment, I forgot about the threads.
The disappearances.
The questions.
Everything.
All I could remember was another day.
Another version of us.
A bus stop.
The three steps distance between us.
My nervous hands.
I had been worried that performing with him would ruin everything.
I could still remember how uncertain I had felt.
And then Kaizer had looked at me and said—
If we're going to ruin it, let's ruin it together.
I looked at him now.
Maybe nothing had really changed.
Back then, I had been afraid of ruining a performance.
Now...
we were standing in front of something neither of us understood.
But maybe it didn't matter.
Because if we were going to face it,
we would face it together.
Anya's POV
The evening air was cold.
Not unbearably cold.
Just enough to make me pull my sleeves over my hands as I walked.
I had just finished basketball practice, and instead of going straight home, I decided to walk for a while.
I needed air.
Or maybe I just needed to let my brain continue producing completely unnecessary thoughts in peace.
I was thinking about three different things at once when I noticed a familiar figure ahead.
I narrowed my eyes.
That posture.
That stupidly recognizable hair.
I smiled.
Then I ran.
He was standing there, apparently lost in his own thoughts.
Perfect.
I quietly approached him from behind.
Tiptoed.
Raised my hands.
And,
"LUXXXX!!!!"
He immediately covered both his ears.
"WHAT THE—?!"
I burst out laughing.
He turned around, glaring at me.
"Why are you shouting directly into my ear?!"
"Because we listen to sound through our ears and not our mouths."
He stared at me.
I stared back.
"So were you going to shout at my mouth?"
I slowly turned toward him.
"What kind of diabolical phrase was that?"
He ignored my question completely.
"I know I'm handsome, but you should control yourself."
I looked him up and down.
"Fantasies."
I walked past him.
He followed.
"What do you mean by fantasies?"
I didn't answer.
He continued walking beside me.
"Anya."
Nothing.
"Angry bird."
Still nothing.
"Hey—"
I stopped.
He stopped too.
My eyes had fallen on something ahead.
A group of boys.
They looked like middle-school students, judging by their uniforms.
Three of them were standing around another boy.
A few others were watching.
The boy in the middle wasn't laughing.
One of the three boys picked up some mud and smeared it across his shirt.
They burst into laughter.
My hands curled into fists.
Lux looked at me.
I looked at him.
Neither of us needed to say anything.
We walked toward them.
"You petty pups!"
All of them turned.
The boys stared at me.
One of them frowned.
"What do you want?"
"What are you doing?"
"Nothing."
I pointed toward the boy standing between them.
"That doesn't look like nothing."
"He's our friend."
"Then you have a strange way of treating your friends."
The boy rolled his eyes.
"It's just a joke."
"Does he look like he's laughing?"
He glanced at the boy.
The boy immediately lowered his head.
I stepped forward.
"Apologize."
The boy laughed.
"Why should I?"
"Because you just ruined his uniform for entertainment."
"It's not your business."
"It became my business the moment you decided to make someone miserable for fun."
Lux stood beside me quietly.
The boy seemed irritated.
"Why do you even care?"
I opened my mouth.
"Because—"
Lux interrupted.
"Because you're being an idiot."
I looked at him.
He shrugged.
"What? It's true."
The boys started arguing again.
It took several minutes before they finally backed off.
I crouched beside the boy.
"Are you okay?"
He nodded.
His eyes were still lowered.
"Do they do this often?"
He hesitated.
"Sometimes."
"Tell your parents."
He looked worried.
"They'll do it again."
"Then tell a teacher."
"They'll know I complained."
I frowned.
Before I could answer, one of the boys suddenly came back and tried to snatch the boy's water bottle.
Lux caught his wrist.
The boy froze.
Lux's expression had changed.
It wasn't angry.
It was simply serious.
"Ask respectfully."
The boy tried pulling his hand away.
Lux didn't let go.
"Ask."
The boy finally muttered,
"Can I have the bottle?"
Lux released him.
"See? That wasn't difficult."
The boy grabbed the bottle and left with his friends.
The bullied boy looked at Lux.
Lux crouched slightly.
"You should tell someone if they keep doing this."
The boy nodded.
"And don't let them convince you that you're weak just because you're scared."
The boy looked at him.
Lux smiled faintly.
"If you get scared of the fear, the fear scares you more."
I stared at him.
For some reason, those words stayed with me.
He continued speaking to the boy.
"Next time, if they try something, look them in the eye and tell them to stop."
"They'll hit me."
"Then push them away and get out."
He paused.
"And if they're actually hurting you, protect yourself. But don't go looking for a fight. Get help."
The boy nodded slowly.
"Okay."
Lux smiled.
"Good."
The boy picked up his bag and walked away.
I watched him disappear around the corner.
Then I looked at Lux.
He was still watching the boy.
Something about his expression was different.
Not his usual stupid grin.
Not his teasing face.
Just...
calm.
I suddenly remembered his words.
If you get scared of the fear, the fear scares you more.
For some reason, they felt strangely familiar.
Like something I had needed to hear once.
Maybe more than once.
"What?"
I blinked.
Lux was looking at me.
"What?"
"You're staring."
"I wasn't."
"You were."
"I was thinking."
"About me?"
I rolled my eyes.
"Don't flatter yourself."
He smiled.
I looked away.
"You're a sweet talker."
His eyebrows rose.
"Really?"
"Yes."
He grinned.
"I knew you liked me."
"I take it back."
"Too late."
I started walking.
He followed immediately.
"You're still an angry bird, though."
"So?"
"You argue with everyone."
"Because people deserve to be argued with."
"Even middle-school kids?"
"Especially them."
He laughed.
I looked at him.
"You should've slapped them."
"Violence isn't always the answer."
"You literally grabbed his arm."
"To stop him from taking the bottle."
"Exactly."
"There's a difference."
I smiled despite myself.
"Whatever."
We continued walking.
The evening had become quieter.
The streetlights had started turning on one by one.
Neither of us said much for a while.
But somehow, the silence wasn't awkward.
I glanced at him.
He was looking ahead.
Then I remembered what he had told that boy.
Everyone is brave in their own way.
I wondered if he knew how many times he had said things that sounded much more meaningful than he probably intended.
I looked away before he could catch me staring again.
Maybe...
he was more thoughtful than I had given him credit for.
"Anya."
"Hmm?"
"Why are you smiling?"
I immediately stopped.
"I wasn't."
"You were."
"Walk."
He laughed and followed me.
And this time...
I didn't tell him to go away.