The crack stayed where it was.
It didn't flicker.
It didn't fade.
It simply remained there, suspended in the air like something that didn't belong—like a tear in reality that refused to close, no matter how long they stared at it.
Zeke didn't move at first.
He just watched it.
Silent. Still.
Then, slowly, he stepped closer.
Carefully this time.
Measured.
Through the crack, he could see it more clearly now.
His apartment.
Exactly the way he remembered it.
Unchanged.
The faint light.
The stillness.
Nothing out of place.
Nothing disturbed.
His bed.
And on it—
Himself.
Lying there.
Unmoving.
Zeke's gaze lingered longer than he expected.
There was something unsettling about it.
Not loud.
Not immediate.
Just quiet.
The kind of quiet that stayed with you.
Aria stepped beside him, her eyes fixed on the same sight.
"That's really you?" she asked.
Zeke nodded once.
"Yeah."
She didn't look away.
"You look… peaceful."
Zeke let out a soft breath.
"I don't feel it."
The words came easily.
Too easily.
Behind them, the shadow shifted slightly.
Not closer.
Not farther.
Just present.
Neither of them turned.
"You're pulling the two worlds together," it said.
Zeke crossed his arms slightly, still watching the crack.
"Then stop me."
"I can't."
That made him glance back.
"Why not?"
The answer came without pause.
"Because you're the Anchor."
Zeke exhaled slowly, looking away again.
"There it is again."
Everything led back to that.
Every answer.
Every problem.
He turned toward the crack once more.
This time, he didn't hesitate as long.
He lifted his hand.
Slowly.
Carefully.
As if expecting something to go wrong.
Then pushed it through.
There was no pain.
No resistance.
Only a strange, cold sensation.
Like his hand had slipped into something that wasn't quite there.
Not air.
Not water.
Something else.
Something empty.
Aria stepped closer, her voice lower now.
"Zeke…"
He pulled his hand back quickly.
It trembled slightly.
But it was fine.
No injury.
Nothing visible.
Nothing left behind.
"It's connecting," he said.
The shadow corrected him.
"It's merging."
The word lingered.
Heavier than the last.
Zeke looked at Aria.
"If both worlds become one… what happens to the loop?"
She hesitated.
Only for a moment.
"It might stop resetting."
Zeke held her gaze.
"And you?"
She didn't answer.
She didn't have to.
Zeke looked back at the crack.
His jaw tightened slightly.
The shadow spoke again.
"Now you understand the cost."
Zeke nodded.
"Yeah."
A pause followed.
Long enough to matter.
Then, quieter—
"I just don't accept it."
Aria looked at him, something shifting in her expression.
"You should."
Zeke shook his head.
"I care about you," he said. "Not the system that's trapping you."
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
The words stayed between them.
Unresolved.
The crack flickered.
Hard.
The image beyond it stuttered.
Lights froze.
Cars paused mid-motion.
Everything on the other side seemed to stop.
Like time itself had hesitated.
Zeke's expression changed.
"That's new."
"Yes," the shadow said.
"It's getting worse."
The crack widened slightly.
Just enough to notice.
Not breaking.
But stretching.
Then—
Something appeared on the other side.
Not clear at first.
Just a shape.
A presence.
Zeke narrowed his eyes slightly.
Trying to focus.
Trying to understand.
A figure.
Standing in his world.
Still.
Facing the crack.
Facing him.
Watching.
Zeke's stomach tightened.
"That's not supposed to happen," he said quietly.
The figure didn't move.
Didn't react.
Didn't look away.
It just stood there.
And then—
It smiled.
Small.
Subtle.
But unmistakable.
Zeke didn't move.
Didn't speak.
The shadow said nothing.
And somehow—
That silence felt worse than any answer. 🌙