"No way... I've regressed into a different timeline."
Zun stared at the mirror, touching his cheeks.
"Whose room is this?"
He stepped out of the bathroom, still stunned by what had happened.
He looked around the room. The ceiling had an eye drawn on it.
"I drew an eye on the ceiling?"
The room was covered with posters from a band called *Naken*. A two-door closet stood in the corner, and on it hung a picture of a family—his family, maybe. Two of the three people in the photo had large X marks over their heads.
"Is this... my family or something?"
Zun looked closely at the picture. There were three figures, including himself. Two had been crossed out. Behind them, in the background, a shadowy figure lurked on the wall, peeking out.
Goosebumps crawled over his skin.
"That's hella scary."
He took the picture from the closet and slipped it into his pocket.
Zun sat down at the desk beside his bed and opened a small cabinet.
Inside, he found a strange-looking book with a worn, cryptic cover.
"A book...? It looks like it's written in Greek."
εφημερίδα** — *journal.
The book was slightly burnt on the edges.
As he opened it, a rush of memories surged into his mind. Scenes flashed before his eyes—his parents being killed, right after they had taken a photo together. His mother stabbed in the neck. His father in the stomach.
"Stop! Help!"
They died in the hallway near the road.
Zun remembered—he had been out buying ice cream.
When he returned, he saw it all. Their lifeless bodies on the ground. Blood pooling. Silence.
His eyes widened in horror.
"Is that... a memory from this world?"
Zun quickly shut the book, his mind spinning, curiosity growing deeper and darker.
"Regressing is fun but... this world is weird."
He remembered the bus crash—the moment of his death.
"Yeah... weirder than getting killed by a pole," he said, forcing an awkward smile.
Suddenly, a sound came from the window.
"Hm?" Zun turned his gaze toward it, curious. He could now hear voices—people laughing, shouting, chattering.
"Weird... why didn't I hear this earlier?" he muttered with a confused expression.
He opened the window and looked out.
A vast city sprawled before him. Countless people bustled through the streets below.
He realized he was on the second floor of the building.
"Whoa... there are so many people here."
Then he looked up.
Floating in the sky were strange, luminous flowers, shining down upon the city.
"Holy shit! Is this really the past I used to live in? And why am I in a building?"
Zun trembled.
He mumbled to himself, "So I didn't regress like in those comics I read... I reincarnated. Well... I did die."
He gave an awkward smile and patted his head.
Zun closed the window and sat down on the bed, his face clouded with sadness.
"I'm happy I reincarnated... but I won't get to see that girl again."
His eyes darkened.
But then, he snapped out of it.
"Ughhh, fuck that."
He smiled, this time with determination.
"Enough with this chit-chat. I'm gonna start anew!"
"YAHOOOOOO!!!"
He jumped up, hitting his head on the ceiling.
"Ack!"
He passed out.
Outside, far above the city, one flower suddenly turned into black liquid.
---
TO BE CONTINUED