Absentia

He placed his plate on the desk.

He organized his belongings and started setting up his computer.

Kane's little world… That's what we could call it.

Once he finished setting it up, he pressed the power button and quickly took three to five steps back.

Every time he built his computer from scratch, he had this irrational thought—if he had done something wrong, it might explode.

This was one of Kane's silly, small entertainments.

The computer booted up.

He took a deep breath and relaxed.

Then, he sat down, played something on the screen, and started eating his meal.

As always, he left his plate beside his desk.

In a few weeks, those plates would pile up.

Until his mother walked in and cleaned his room.

But his mind was on something else.

The military.

He was going.

He was definitely going.

So, he called his friend.

He told him what had happened on the road and that he had decided to enlist.

At first, his friend questioned him.

But in the end, he accepted that it was Kane's decision.

And yes, it was Kane's decision.

Because he felt it.

He had been experiencing too many emotions that he couldn't understand.

Maybe the time he spent in the army would be enough to bring him back to himself.

He walked to his bed.

Lay down gently.

Closed his eyes.

Thoughts tangled together.

He started dreaming.

In his dreams, he was a superhero.

He imagined sudden events unfolding.

He was fighting off a burglar who had broken into his house.

He was stopping a bank robbery.

And then…

He slowly drifted into sleep.

For the first time in a long while…

He had fallen asleep in his bed.

And he felt that long-lost comfort.

But then…

In his dream…

A black-haired figure appeared.

Their eyes were brighter than the sun.

They were staring at Kane.

But it wasn't an ordinary look.

It was a gaze that pierced through his soul.

Their lips moved.

But…

The words were unintelligible.

Kane grew frustrated because he couldn't understand.

The man extended his hand toward Kane.

Something black started wrapping around Kane's body.

He started trembling.

But the thing touching his skin didn't hurt.

It just…

Felt unsettling.

But it wasn't unfamiliar.

It was something he had known before.

And the worst part…

He knew him.

But…

He didn't know who he was.

At that moment…

A wind blew through Kane's room.

But the windows were closed.

The covers on his bed rippled slightly.

The boy's eyes were open.

And they shone brighter than the sun.

His lips whispered a single word.

Again.

And again.

And again.

"Remember."

Kane felt like he was suffocating.

The man…

Had not blinked once.

Kane realized he couldn't even close his own eyes.

Just then…

Behind the man…

A beauty unlike anything he had ever seen…

Silently approached him.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him back.

And at that moment…

Both figures…

Shattered into nothingness.

Kane's surroundings changed.

And suddenly, he opened his eyes.

Everything was back to normal.

No figures.

No woman.

None of it was real.

But…

He was covered in cold sweat.

His body had soaked the bedsheets.

He looked at himself in confusion.

It was an unbelievably terrible nightmare.

And…

He had no idea what it meant.

He didn't even have time to think about it.

"Should I take a shower?" he thought.

But he was too exhausted.

His whole body ached.

He closed his eyes again.

And slowly…

He drifted away from reality.

And this time, he fell into a normal sleep.