Chapter 40: NightMart
MIRA:Goodnight, El.
The light of the screen glowed against his face.
He stared at the words.
Goodnight.
She's saying goodnight.
Because it's night.
Because the day is over.
Because time moved forward.
But he wasn't ready.
He was still in his head.
Still in the garden.
Still looking at the white flower.
Still hearing Nev's voice.
"Face this Tuesday, El. Not for her. For yourself."
He faced it.
He remembered.
He was so close to understanding—
Then—
Nothing.
He was back.
Friday.
His bed.
Her message.
Goodnight.
His heart pounded.
He moved forward.
The loop didn't reset.
Time didn't break.
He was just... here.
Friday night.
The night before Saturday.
The night before Yassy's message.
The night before everything.
He was back.
And he didn't know what to do.
Before he could think — before he could even breathe —
Thump.
Oreo landed on his chest.
"Meowww."
El blinked. Stared at her.
She stared back. Judgment in her tiny cat eyes.
"Meowww."
He looked at his phone again.
MIRA: Goodnight, El.
Friday.
He was back to Friday.
He let out a breath. Slow. Shaky.
"Oreo. What day is it?"
She meowed again. Didn't answer. Obviously.
He looked at his phone again. The date. The time. The message.
Friday.
He was really back.
Oreo pressed her face against his chin. Purred.
"Are you hungry?"
She meowed. Louder this time.
"I just fed you—"
He stopped.
I just fed you.
But that was before the lost Tuesday.
Before the loops.
Before all of this.
She doesn't know.
She's just a cat.
She just knows she's hungry.
Even though she already ate.
Even though she doesn't remember.
Because she's a cat.
And cats don't remember.
They just... exist.
He sat up. Scooped Oreo into his arms. She was warm. Purring. Oblivious.
He walked to the kitchen.
Opened the cabinet.
Pulled out the cat food.
Poured it into her bowl.
Oreo jumped from his arms and immediately buried her face in the food. Ate like she hadn't eaten in days.
She doesn't know.
She doesn't remember.
She just eats.
She just sleeps.
She just exists.
Lucky cat.
He sat down on the chair and stared at the wall.
The lost Tuesday.
He remembered.
Not everything.
But enough.
The white flower. The garden. The shadow. The biscuit.
The barista. The boss. Nev. The riddle.
"Go back to the original."
He still didn't know what it meant.
But he was back.
And that had to count for something.
Oreo finished eating. She licked her paws, then jumped onto his lap, curled into a ball, and purred.
He looked down at her.
You're lucky.
You don't have to remember.
You don't have to forget.
You just... are.
He looked at his phone.
MIRA: Goodnight, El.
He didn't reply.
He just stared at the words.
Goodnight.
She doesn't know.
She doesn't remember.
She just... texts.
She just... waits.
She just... stays.
He set the phone down.
Then he remembered.
Demi's words.
"Maybe touch some grass. Breathe some fresh air."
He looked at the window. It was dark outside. But the streetlights were on. The city was still awake.
It's night.
But maybe that's what he needed.
Air.
Space.
A moment where no one was watching him.
No loops.
No lost days.
Just... walking.
He stood up. Grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair.
He glanced at the refrigerator. Opened it.
Empty shelves. A few condiments. A sad-looking container of leftovers he didn't remember buying.
I need to buy groceries.
The food is running out.
When was the last time I shopped?
Before the lost Tuesday?
Before the loops?
He couldn't remember.
He never could.
He grabbed his keys. Looked at Oreo.
"I'm going out. I'll be back."
She meowed. Didn't look up. Just kept cleaning her paw.
"Bye to you too," he muttered.
He opened the door. Stepped outside.
---
LANDSBURGE STREETS – NIGHT
The air was cool. Not cold. Just... different.
The streets were quiet. But not empty. Streetlights glowed against the pavement. Cars passed occasionally. The city hummed in the distance.
Landsburge.
The city of the rich.
Where businessmen were born.
Where bank accounts went to die.
Where he was just a middle-class man pretending to belong.
He walked slowly. Hands in his pockets. No destination. Just... moving.
He needed this.
A breather.
He was so exhausted.
From the loops.
From the lost days.
From the memories that didn't make sense.
From the ones that did.
He didn't know what was real anymore.
He didn't know what was happening.
He didn't know—
Kaye.
Where was Kaye?
She hadn't visited his dreams since the cracker.
Since the playground.
Since they almost touched.
Was she still there?
Was she still fading?
Was she still waiting?
Or had she given up?
He stopped walking.
He was in front of the bookstore.
The one from before.
The one where he saw the figure.
The one where the shadow watched him.
The one where—
He was about to step forward.
Then—
HONK.
A car screeched beside him.
The window rolled down.
"Hey! Stop daydreaming and open your eyes! You're on the road! Do you want to get killed?"
The driver's voice was sharp. Impatient.
El stepped back. "I'm sorry. I don't want to."
The driver stared at him. Then shook his head.
"Just stop daydreaming and face reality."
He rolled up the window.
Drove away.
El stood there.
Face reality.
The driver said that.
Just a stranger.
Just someone who almost hit him.
But why did it feel like a hint?
Why did it feel like someone was trying to tell him something?
Or was he just... imagining things?
Giving meaning to words that didn't have any?
He did that a lot lately.
Reading into things.
Seeing clues where there were none.
Maybe Demi was right.
Maybe he was going crazy.
He looked at the bookstore.
The doorway was empty.
No figure.
No shadow.
Just darkness.
He turned away.
Walked in the opposite direction.
---
BOOKSTORE DOORWAY – SAME TIME
The shadow flickered.
It had been watching. Waiting. Ready.
El was about to step inside.
Then the car came.
Then the driver spoke.
Then El walked away.
The shadow's hollow eyes burned.
"You again," she hissed. "Stop interfering with my plan!"
The air crackled.
The driver was long gone.
But the shadow wasn't talking to him.
She was talking to someone else.
Someone who wasn't there.
Someone who was always watching.
Always interfering.
Always protecting El.
"You can't protect him forever," she whispered.
The air grew cold.
Then nothing.
The shadow faded.
The doorway was empty.
---
NIGHTMART – NIGHT
El walked into the small convenience store.
The sign above the door read: NightMart
It was open.
It was bright.
It was normal.
He grabbed a basket. Walked down the aisles.
Bread. Eggs. Instant noodles. Biscuit. Ingredients for burrito. Coffee. Condiments.
He reached for a can of coffee grounds.
Then—
The world shifted.
Not slowly. Not gently.
Instantly.
The fluorescent lights flickered. Then dimmed. Then changed.
The shelves were gone.
The linoleum floor was gone.
The bright, cold atmosphere of NightMart was gone.
He was standing in the garden.
The dying garden.
The flowers were wilted. The fountain was dry. The sky was bruised purple.
But the white flower was still there.
Glowing.
Alive.
El's heart stopped.
No.
Not now.
I'm not ready.
I can't—
He blinked.
The garden was gone.
NightMart was back.
Fluorescent lights. Linoleum floor. Shelves full of products.
He stood there. Basket in hand. Heart pounding.
I'm just tired.
I need rest.
I'm seeing things.
I'm—
He shook his head. Kept walking.
Biscuit. Coffee. Condiments. Bread.
He put them in the basket. One by one.
His hands were shaking.
But he kept moving.
---
He placed his basket on the counter.
The cashier was young. Tired eyes. Blank expression.
El didn't look at her.
He was counting his money. Calculating. Distracted.
"Sir?"
He looked up.
The world shifted again.
The fluorescent lights flickered. Then dimmed. Then changed.
The cashier wasn't the cashier anymore.
Kaye.
She was sitting behind the counter. Her dark hair fell over her shoulders. Her white dress seemed to glow in the dim light. Her eyes — those deep, warm, impossible eyes — held his.
She smiled.
Soft. Sad. Beautiful.
"I miss you."
Her voice was velvet. Just like he remembered.
"Where have you been?"
Tears burned behind El's eyes.
"I've been waiting for you."
He didn't think. Didn't hesitate.
"I've longed for you for so long."
His voice cracked.
"Please don't leave me again."
He reached out. His hand trembled. His fingers inches from her cheek.
Almost there.
Almost—
He blinked.
The garden was gone.
NightMart was back.
The cashier — the real cashier — stared at him. Her tired eyes wide. Confused.
"Uhm, sir? Are you alright?"
El's hand was still reaching out. Frozen.
He looked at her face. Not Kaye. Just a stranger. Just a tired cashier working a late shift.
He lowered his hand.
Wiped his tears with the back of his sleeve.
"Yes." His voice came out rough.
"I'm alright. I'm sorry."
The cashier stared at him for a moment longer. Then shrugged. Started scanning his items.
El stood there.
Heart pounding.
Tears still wet on his face.
She was there.
Kaye was there.
For a moment.
Just a moment.
But she was there.
She said she missed him.
She said she was waiting.
She said—
Was it real?
Or was he just imagining things?
Giving meaning to visions that weren't there?
He didn't know.
He didn't know anything.
But his heart was still racing.
His hands were still shaking.
His tears were still falling.