Sakura didn't go home.
Not because she didn't want to.
But because something felt wrong about going somewhere she might not be able to return from properly.
---
The streetlights flickered slightly as she walked.
Not dramatically.
Just inconsistently.
Like the world was having trouble deciding whether she should be illuminated.
---
"…Haruto…" she whispered again.
The name still came.
But softer now.
Like it had to travel further to reach her lips.
---
She stopped at a convenience store window.
Her reflection looked normal.
Too normal.
But her eyes didn't feel like they belonged to someone being seen correctly.
---
"…I'm still here…" she said quietly to herself.
A pause.
Then she frowned slightly.
"…right?"
---
A man walked past her.
He didn't look at her.
Not even briefly.
Not even accidentally.
Just passed through her presence like she was air occupying unnecessary space.
---
Sakura turned slightly.
"…excuse me?" she said.
The man continued walking.
No reaction.
No acknowledgment.
---
Her breath slowed.
"…he didn't hear me…"
---
She tried again.
A little louder.
"…hey!"
Still nothing.
---
A strange calm began to form in her chest.
Not acceptance.
Realization.
---
"…it's starting," she whispered.
---
Her phone vibrated.
She already knew what it would say before looking.
But she still looked.
---
> **"SOCIAL RECOGNITION DROP: 42%"**
---
Sakura stared at the screen.
"…forty-two…" she repeated softly.
"…that's not even gradual anymore…"
---
A second message appeared.
---
> **"ANCHOR ENTITY DETECTED OUTSIDE NORMAL PERCEPTION RANGE."**
---
Her fingers tightened slightly.
"…Haruto…"
---
The world around her felt thinner now.
Like it had less reason to maintain consistency.
People moved around her, but their paths no longer adjusted for her presence properly.
She had to step aside more often.
Not because they avoided her.
But because they didn't calculate her existence at all.
---
Sakura walked faster.
Not panicking yet.
But close.
---
"…I need to hear him again," she muttered.
"…just once…"
---
She stopped near an empty alleyway.
The air felt different here.
Heavier.
Like pressure without direction.
---
"…Haruto," she called softly.
Nothing.
---
Then again.
"…please."
---
Silence.
---
But this silence wasn't empty.
It was *strained*.
Like something on the other side was trying to respond but couldn't push through fully.
---
And then—
a flicker.
A voice.
Weak. Fragmented.
---
"…Sakura…"
---
Her heart jumped instantly.
"…I'm here!" she said quickly.
"…I can hear you!"
---
A pause.
Long.
Unstable.
Then—
---
"…you shouldn't be able to find me this easily anymore…"
---
Sakura stepped forward immediately.
"…I'm not letting you go," she said.
---
A faint distortion formed in the air again.
Not full manifestation.
Just pressure bending reality slightly.
---
Haruto's voice came again, strained.
"…I am just an error in the world…"
---
Sakura shook her head.
"…I don't care what they call it."
---
A longer silence followed.
Then—
softer now.
Weaker.
Almost sad.
---
"…Sakura… if you keep remembering me like this…"
"…you'll stop belonging here too."
---
She froze slightly.
"…what does that mean?"
---
No immediate answer.
But the air between them tightened again.
Like the system itself was listening now.
---
"…it means…" Haruto's voice faded slightly mid-sentence.
"…you won't be able to go back…"
---
Sakura's breath slowed.
"…back where?"
---
A pause.
Then—
barely audible.
---
"…anywhere that remembers you correctly…"
---
The connection flickered violently.
Like something was cutting the line.
---
Sakura stepped forward again.
"…wait—don't go—"
---
But Haruto's voice broke apart.
Fragments only now.
---
"…they're adjusting… faster than expected…"
"…Sakura, listen—"
"…if the convergence completes—"
---
Then silence.
Clean. Sudden.
Like a thread snapped.
---
Sakura stood still.
Her hand still slightly raised.
"…Haruto?"
---
Nothing answered.
Not even distortion.
Just absence.
---
And for the first time—
the system reacted differently.
---
> **"ANCHOR OVERLAP DETECTED."**
> **"UNSTABLE BINDING: CRITICAL THRESHOLD APPROACHING."**
> **"REALITY SEPARATION FAILURE IMMINENT."**
---
Sakura slowly lowered her hand.
"…so that's how it ends…" she whispered.
"… either I forget him…"
"…or I go with him."
Yet,it seems she had already made her decision.
---
The wind passed through the alley.
But this time—
it didn't feel like wind anymore.
It felt like a decision being made.