The first thing Kairo noticed was the tree.
It wasn't anything obvious.
If you walked past it, you wouldn't stop. Most people didn. It stood just outside the school fence, roots pushing slightly against the cracked pavement, branches stretching out over the road like it had always been there.
But Kairo slowed.
Not because it looked strange.
Because it didn't feel right.
He stood there for a second longer than necessary, eyes tracing the shape of the leaves.
They were too… full.
Not greener. Not bigger.
Just—full. Like something was pushing into them from the inside.
"Kairo."
He didn't respond.
"Kai."
A hand slapped the back of his head.
He blinked and turned.
Malik stood there, already halfway annoyed, backpack hanging off one shoulder.
"You planning to stand here all morning or what?"
Kairo glanced back at the tree.
"It changed."
Malik followed his gaze, squinting slightly.
"That tree?" he asked. "That thing's been ugly since we got here."
"It wasn't like that yesterday."
"You checked yesterday?" Malik raised a brow. "You keeping records now?"
Kairo didn't answer immediately.
That was the problem.
He did notice things like that.
Not on purpose.
It just… stuck.
Small differences. Tiny shifts. Things that didn't line up with how they were supposed to be.
"It's different," he said finally.
Malik stared at the tree for another second, then shrugged.
"Or," he said, turning and walking ahead, "you're overthinking again."
Kairo didn't move right away.
A breeze passed through the branches.
The leaves rustled.
For a moment—
Just a moment—
He felt like they moved after the wind.
Not with it.
After.
He frowned slightly, then turned and followed.
The classroom buzzed with the usual noise.
Chairs scraping. People talking over each other. Phones out. Someone laughing too loudly at something that wasn't that funny.
Normal.
Everything was normal.
Malik dropped into his seat, stretching his legs out.
"You see that video from yesterday?" he said, already pulling his phone out.
Kairo sat down beside him.
"What video?"
Malik gave him a look.
"Of course you didn't." He shook his head, scrolling. "Guy somewhere—don't even know where—picks up something glowing in the ground."
Kairo looked over slightly.
Malik turned the phone toward him.
The video was shaky. Probably recorded in a hurry.
A man stood in what looked like farmland, breathing hard, pointing the camera at a small patch of earth.
Something faintly visible.
Not bright.
Not dramatic.
Just—
Wrong.
Like light that didn't belong.
"Look," Malik said, zooming in. "You see that?"
Kairo leaned closer.
The image blurred as the camera struggled to focus.
For a split second—
It looked like the ground was… shifting.
Not physically.
Just—
Unstable.
Like it wasn't fixed in place.
Then the video cut.
"That's fake," someone from behind them said.
Kairo glanced back.
A few students were already leaning in.
"Obviously edited," another added. "People will do anything for views."
Malik scoffed.
"Yeah? Then how come there's like ten more like it?"
"Because people copy trends."
"Or," Malik said, leaning back slightly, "something's actually happening."
"Nothing's happening," the first guy replied. "If it was real, you'd hear it on the news."
Kairo looked back at the screen.
The paused frame flickered slightly.
Just slightly.
He felt that same thing again.
That quiet discomfort.
Like something didn't sit where it was supposed to.
Later, during break, he found himself back near the fence.
The tree stood where it always had.
Still.
Silent.
Unremarkable.
Kairo stepped closer this time.
Close enough to touch.
He hesitated.
Then reached out—
His fingers brushed the bark.
Rough.
Normal.
But underneath—
There was something else.
Not heat.
Not movement.
Just—
Presence.
He pulled his hand back slightly.
The feeling lingered for half a second longer than it should have.
Then it was gone.
"Still thinking about it?"
Malik's voice came from behind him.
Kairo didn't turn.
"Come feel it," he said.
Malik walked up beside him, frowning slightly.
"Feel what?"
"The tree."
Malik stared at him.
"…you dragged me here to touch a tree?"
"Just do it."
A pause.
Then Malik sighed and stepped forward, placing his hand against the bark.
For a second, nothing happened.
Then—
Malik's expression shifted.
Just slightly.
"What?" Kairo asked.
Malik pulled his hand back.
"…it's weird."
Kairo looked at him.
Malik frowned, flexing his fingers.
"Feels like…" he paused, searching for the words, "…like it's not just a tree."
They stood there in silence for a moment.
The wind passed again.
The leaves rustled.
This time—
Both of them noticed it.
They moved a second too late.
Malik let out a quiet breath.
"…okay," he said, voice lower now, "that's not normal."
Kairo nodded slightly.
He didn't feel surprised.
Just—
confirmed.
Somewhere, far beyond what either of them could see—
Something shifted.
Not in the sky.
Not in the ground.
But in the space between things.
And for the first time—
It was noticed.