Tiger had just finished bathing and stepped outside his rented apartment when he noticed someone familiar in the distance. It was Rizard. Tiger saw him but decided to ignore him and continued walking as if he hadn't noticed anything.
But Rizard immediately spotted him.
"Tiger!" Rizard shouted loudly from across the road.
Tiger stopped and let out a tired sigh. As Rizard began crossing the road toward him, Tiger watched him for a moment. Suddenly, a bike came speeding down the road directly toward Rizard.
Rizard hadn't noticed it.
Tiger's expression immediately changed. Without wasting a second, he rushed forward and grabbed Rizard, pulling him away just before the bike could hit him. The biker quickly applied the brakes and stopped nearby.
Rizard stood there for a moment, still processing what had just happened. Tiger casually helped him regain his balance while Rizard dusted off his clothes.
"You... , Rizard..." Tiger said with a sigh.
"Sorry," Rizard replied awkwardly.
The biker looked at both of them with concern. "Are you okay? You should really be careful while crossing the road. If he hadn't pulled you away in time, things could have gone really badly. My bike's brakes are also acting up a little—I was actually taking it to get repaired."
Rizard nodded. "I'm fine. Don't worry."
The biker gave them one last concerned look before leaving. Tiger turned toward Rizard and said, "You should pay more attention while crossing the road. Are you sure you're okay? We can go somewhere if you need to rest."
"No, no. I'm completely fine," Rizard quickly replied. "I'll be more careful from now on."
"Good," Tiger said.
After a brief silence, Rizard smiled. "By the way, want to go to a café and talk for a while?"
Tiger looked at him. "Why not?"
A little later, the two of them arrived at a café and took their seats. Rizard leaned back in his chair and looked outside the window.
"Sunday ended so quickly," he said. "Tomorrow, school starts again. Time really passes fast."
Tiger nodded slightly. "Yeah. You're right."
Rizard smiled. "Sometimes it feels like the days disappear before we even realize it."
Just then, a waiter approached their table and asked what they wanted to order. At the exact same moment, both Tiger and Rizard answered.
"Coffee."
For a few seconds, they simply stared at each other.
Then Rizard started laughing.
The waiter smiled awkwardly. "Alright, two coffees. Anything else?"
"No," Tiger replied.
The waiter nodded and walked away. Tiger was about to say something to Rizard when suddenly a female waiter walking nearby accidentally lost her balance.
Water spilled toward their table.
Rizard quickly moved away, avoiding most of it, but the glass and several things on the table fell and shattered. The waitress immediately froze.
"I'm so sorry!" she quickly apologized. "I didn't mean to—"
"It's okay," Rizard said calmly. "Things like this happen sometimes."
But the waitress looked extremely worried. "I'll call my boss."
"No, you don't need to—"
Before Rizard could finish, she had already rushed away. Tiger quietly placed some yen on the table.
Rizard immediately looked at him. "No, no. I'll pay for it. It wasn't your responsibility."
Tiger simply replied, "I already gave it."
A few moments later, the girl's boss arrived and looked at the broken items. Instead of listening to her properly, he became angry.
"What did you do? Your salary will be reduced for this."
After saying that, he walked away.
The waitress stood there silently, looking upset. Rizard watched her for a moment before reaching out and giving her some yen.
She looked surprised. "There's no need for this. It was my mistake."
"Take it," Tiger said. "It might help you a little."
"But—"
"No 'but'," Tiger interrupted calmly.
For a moment, she looked at both Tiger and Rizard before accepting the money. "Thank you... both of you."
She slowly walked away.
As soon as she disappeared, Tiger suddenly felt something strange. His expression changed slightly, and he slowly turned his head toward the large glass window on the right side of the café.
Something felt wrong.
Rizard noticed Tiger's reaction. "Is something wrong?"
Tiger remained silent for a moment. "Nothing. I'll be back."
Before Rizard could ask anything else, Tiger suddenly rushed outside. He ran through the streets, following the strange feeling he had sensed.
After running for a while, he reached a quiet and almost empty road. There was a sign nearby that clearly said:
DO NOT ENTER.
Tiger didn't even pay attention to it and jumped over the barrier.
He looked around.
Nothing.
Tiger stared to his right, then left, then above him. There was no one there.
"Huh?" Tiger muttered. "I definitely felt something."
The strange presence had completely disappeared.
Tiger stood there for a few more seconds, confused. "But there's nothing here... how is that possible?"
Unable to find anything, Tiger eventually turned around and ran back toward the café.
When he entered, Rizard was still sitting there waiting for him.
"Where did you go?" Rizard asked.
"Nowhere," Tiger replied while catching his breath. "I just went to check something."
Tiger then noticed that their coffee had already arrived.
"Oh. The coffee is here."
"Yeah," Rizard said. "It came just a little while ago."
The two of them began drinking their coffee. For a while, they simply talked about random things, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere.
Eventually, Rizard looked outside the window again.
"Time really passes quickly," he said quietly. "Sometimes I wish we could control it."
Tiger looked at him silently.
"But we can't," Rizard continued before taking another sip of his coffee.
After finishing their drinks, Rizard stood up. "I guess I'll leave now."
"Alright," Tiger replied. "I'll leave too."
Tiger suddenly looked at the table. "Wait. Did you pay the yen for the coffee?"
"No," Rizard replied.
At that exact moment, both Tiger and Rizard reached toward the table and placed yen down simultaneously.
They froze.
Then they looked at each other.
Rizard started laughing.
Tiger smiled slightly. "You're something else, Rizard."
The two of them left the café together. After they were gone, the same waitress who had accidentally spilled the water noticed the yen still lying on the table.
She slowly walked toward it.
For a few seconds, she simply stared at the money before gently picking it up. Her expression became strangely quiet as she looked toward the café's window.
Then she silently walked toward the kitchen.
Meanwhile, Tiger and Rizard were walking together outside.
Rizard eventually stopped. "Alright, I'll go home from here."
Tiger looked at him. "You'll be fine going alone?"
Rizard looked slightly confused. "Tiger..."
Tiger understood and looked away. "Right. Just be careful."
Rizard smiled before waving goodbye and walking away.
Tiger eventually returned to his rented apartment. After entering his room, he stretched his body and lay down on his bed.
It didn't take long before he fell asleep.
Soon, Tiger found himself standing on a dark and unfamiliar road.
He looked around.
Something enormous was standing in front of him.
Tiger's eyes widened.
The creature resembled a massive turtle, but its body was completely black. Two huge drill-like spikes extended from its body, thick and terrifyingly sharp.
Then Tiger noticed something even worse.
More of them were appearing.
"What the..." Tiger muttered.
The creatures began moving toward him.
Tiger immediately prepared himself. "Good thing I attacked first."
Before they could reach him, Tiger rushed forward and attacked. The battle quickly began, and Tiger managed to defeat several of the creatures.
Some of them, however, suddenly vanished.
Tiger stopped.
"Teleportation?" he thought.
He slowly moved his hand, stretching it after the fight.
Then—
Tiger suddenly felt something behind him.
He immediately turned around.
One of the enormous drill-like spikes was rushing directly toward his eye.
Tiger's eyes widened.
Before it could reach him—
Tiger suddenly woke up.
He immediately sat up on his bed, breathing heavily. His hand moved toward his head as he tried to understand what had just happened.
"Why is all of this happening to me?"
The room was silent.
Tiger slowly lay back down on his bed, staring toward the ceiling.
"Is there something wrong with me...?"
After some time, exhaustion finally took over.
Tiger closed his eyes.
And eventually, he fell asleep again.