The night felt heavier than usual.
Ryan sat on the edge of his bed, staring at his phone screen, but he wasn't really looking at anything. His mind was stuck on one thought.
26 days.
Not just for Skye.
Not just for a few people.
For everyone.
He clenched his fists.
"…This doesn't make sense," he whispered.
How could an entire city—no, maybe the entire world—have the same countdown?
What kind of event could erase everyone?
And why him?
Why could he see it?
A soft notification sound pulled him out of his thoughts.
Shaan: "You still alive?"
Ryan typed back.
Ryan: "Barely."
A few seconds later:
Shaan: "Good. That means you can come out. Silent Garden. Now."
Ryan sighed.
He didn't feel like going anywhere.
But staying alone with his thoughts felt worse.
"…Fine," he muttered.
Silent Garden was quiet at night.
The lights around the path glowed softly, and the lake reflected the moon like a broken mirror. The air was cold, and the place felt almost… unreal.
Shaan was already there, lying on the bench like he owned the place.
"You're late," Shaan said without looking at him.
"It's been five minutes," Ryan replied.
"That's still late."
Ryan sat down on the grass.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Shaan said, "I checked something."
Ryan looked at him. "What?"
"I went through old news records," Shaan said. "Accidents, disasters, anything unusual. I thought maybe something big is supposed to happen in 26 days."
"And?" Ryan asked.
"Nothing," Shaan said. "No predicted disasters. No warnings. Nothing that could explain why everyone has the same timer."
Ryan frowned.
"That means it's not a normal event," Ryan said.
"Obviously," Shaan replied. "Normal events don't erase people from existence."
Ryan looked at the lake.
"…Then what is it?"
Shaan didn't answer.
Because he didn't know either.
"Ryan."
A voice came from behind them.
Ryan turned.
Skye was standing there.
Her presence felt… different tonight.
More serious.
More distant.
Ryan stood up. "You came."
"I needed to talk to you," Skye said.
Ryan's heart tightened slightly.
Something about her tone felt wrong.
Shaan noticed it too.
"I'll go grab something to drink," Shaan said, standing up. "You two talk."
He walked away, leaving them alone.
For a few seconds, neither Ryan nor Skye spoke.
The wind moved her hair slightly, and the red timer above her head continued counting down.
25:18:44
25:18:43
25:18:42
Ryan forced himself to look away from it.
"What did you want to talk about?" he asked.
Skye looked directly at him.
"Stop," she said.
Ryan frowned. "Stop what?"
"Stop trying to save me," she said.
Ryan felt like he misheard her.
"…What?"
"I'm serious," Skye said calmly. "Don't interfere. Don't follow me. Don't try to change anything."
Ryan stared at her.
"Are you serious right now?" he said.
"Yes."
"Why?" Ryan asked, his voice rising slightly. "You have 25 days left—"
"I know how much time I have," Skye interrupted.
Ryan went silent.
Skye continued, her voice steady.
"In the last timeline, someone tried to save me," she said. "And he died instead."
Ryan clenched his fists.
"That doesn't mean I will die too," he said.
"You don't know that," Skye replied.
"And you don't know that I won't save you," Ryan shot back.
Skye's eyes hardened slightly.
"You're not understanding," she said. "This isn't something you can win. The more you interfere, the worse it becomes."
Ryan stepped closer.
"So what? I just watch you disappear?" he said.
"Yes," Skye said.
The word hit harder than anything else.
Ryan froze.
"…You want me to do nothing?" he asked quietly.
Skye nodded.
"Yes."
Ryan let out a short, disbelieving laugh.
"That's insane," he said. "You're basically telling me to let you die."
"I'm telling you to survive," Skye said.
Ryan looked at her, confused.
"What?"
Skye took a step closer.
"If you get involved, you become part of the system," she said. "And when that happens… your existence is at risk too."
Ryan shook his head.
"I don't care," he said.
Skye's expression changed slightly.
"You should," she said.
Ryan looked directly into her eyes.
"I don't," he repeated.
There was a moment of silence.
The air felt heavy between them.
Skye looked at him for a long time.
"…Why?" she asked quietly.
Ryan hesitated.
He didn't know how to explain it.
How could he say it?
That he couldn't ignore it.
That he couldn't pretend nothing was happening.
That seeing her timer felt like watching a countdown he couldn't escape.
"…Because I can't just watch," Ryan said finally.
Skye's eyes softened for a brief moment.
But then she looked away.
"That's exactly why you'll lose," she said.
Ryan frowned. "Lose what?"
Skye didn't answer immediately.
Then she said something that made Ryan's heart stop.
"Yourself."
Shaan returned a few minutes later, holding three bottles of water.
"…Did I miss something?" he asked.
"No," Skye said. "We're done talking."
She turned and started walking away.
"Skye," Ryan called.
She stopped but didn't turn around.
Ryan hesitated.
Then he said:
"I'm not stopping."
There was a pause.
Then Skye spoke without looking back.
"…Then next time," she said quietly, "don't expect me to help you."
And with that, she walked away.
Ryan stood there, staring at her disappearing figure.
Shaan walked up beside him.
"So," Shaan said, handing him a bottle, "I'm guessing that didn't go well."
Ryan took the bottle but didn't open it.
"She told me to stop," Ryan said.
Shaan nodded. "Makes sense."
Ryan looked at him. "You're on her side?"
"I'm on the side that keeps you alive," Shaan said.
Ryan looked back at the path where Skye had disappeared.
"…I'm still going to do it," he said.
Shaan sighed.
"I know," he said.
Ryan clenched the bottle in his hand.
"I don't care what happens," he said. "I'm not letting her disappear."
Shaan looked at him for a moment, then smiled slightly.
"…Then we do it properly," he said.
Ryan looked at him. "What do you mean?"
Shaan's expression became serious.
"If we're going to fight something we don't understand," he said, "then we stop acting blindly."
He took out his notebook again.
"We study it. We test it. We break it."
Ryan felt something shift inside him.
Fear was still there.
But now…
There was also determination.
"…Yeah," Ryan said.
Shaan smirked slightly.
"Good," he said. "Because tomorrow…"
He looked at Ryan.
"We do something dangerous."
Ryan didn't ask what.
Because he already knew.
Whatever it was…
It would change everything.