The child began walking ahead of me with confident steps, not turning back, not saying a word. I followed right behind him... my steps hesitant, my heart pounding with tension, and the street narrowing around me as if it were swallowing me whole.
"What kind of madness have I gotten myself into? Running after a child in an alley??!"
He suddenly stopped in front of an abandoned building—its windows shattered, its walls cracked, and its door leaning to one side.
He turned to me calmly and said,
"Enter."
A slight shiver ran through me, instinctive... Should I go in?
"W–why should I go in? It looks terrifying."
But I had already crossed every boundary of logic since yesterday.
I entered.
And the moment our feet touched the ground inside... everything changed.
The walls began to glow, the dust vanished, the floor shimmered with faint lights, and the air filled with a mysterious floral scent. The place looked like a laboratory... a witch's lab straight out of a fantasy novel!
My eyes widened, and my voice burst out in a full scream:
"Wizard! You're a wizard, right?! I'm in a movie! Where's the hidden camera?! Or am I dreaming?!"
The boy sighed in annoyance, placing his hand on his forehead.
"Ugh... annoying. Stop screaming! The place will collapse from your yelling!"
I screamed again:
"Who are you?! And do you have anything to do with the album?! And am I—"
And suddenly… before my eyes, he began to transform.
The child… started aging. His hair turned gray. His face wrinkled. His posture bent. His features returned to those of the old man.
I trembled, staring at him, my mouth slightly open:
"Is this… a dream? Am I hallucinating?"
He was whispering words I couldn't hear:
"You haven't changed… (T＿T)"
Then he spoke clearly:
"Where is the album? Return it. I dropped it by mistake."
I stepped back and shouted:
"Return it in your dreams! I saw my disastrous future because of you!"
He gave me a stern look:
"Return it. The album won't help you—it will destroy you."
I waved my hands and yelled:
"I already changed one photo! So I can change it!"
He said in a low voice, filled with deep sorrow:
"If you don't return it… your fate will be like theirs."
I froze.
"Like who?! Are… are there others who have this album?!"
He nodded:
"I made seven albums. Each one has an owner… but they all failed. None of them could change anything. They came back regretting the ruin of their own futures."
I gasped:
"But how? Who are they? And what do they—"
He cut me off sharply:
"They all failed. And you will fail too."
I stepped toward him, fists clenched, shouting:
"How do you know that? I'm not like them! I challenge you! I will change my future—no matter what it costs!"
He looked at me, his eyes not cold anymore, but holding a trace of hope:
"The choice is yours… Just don't come crying to me later."
He said it mockingly, as if he already knew I would.
I screamed at him, furious:
"Me? Cry? Shut up, you arrogant old man! Arrrrgh! Old… ugly man!!"
He frowned, angry now, and shouted back:
"Ugly? How dare you! Look now!"
And in an instant… he changed again before my eyes.
The white hair remained, but the face became young again—clear, flawless, features like a work of art. His body tall and perfect… an angel in the form of a man.
My mouth fell open in shock. For a few seconds, I couldn't even count how long… then I blurted out:
"Are you… Gojo-san… famous? Where did you come from?! Even your height is perfect?! Are you my dream guy?!"
He smiled arrogantly, twirling a strand of his hair.
"Of course… I'm handsome. You annoying girl."
Then he pointed toward the door and said:
"Now… get out."
Before I could reply, I was thrown out by an invisible force, pushed as if by magical wind. I fell to the ground, my bag rolling away, and when I turned back…
The building had returned to its original form. Abandoned. Broken. Desolate.
"Was that… real? Did I actually see that?"
> _<
I went back home, still trying to make sense of what had happened.
But as soon as I reached the doorstep, I saw him.
Michael… sitting there, his head lowered between his knees.
Waiting.
The moment he saw me, he ran toward me… and hugged me.
Tightly.
With his heart.
With words unspoken, but I felt them all.
He whispered:
"Where were you? I was worried."
Time seemed to stop for a moment.
"Is this… Michael? The loud, arrogant, annoying one? Or… someone else hiding inside him?"
But I didn't answer yet.
Because my heart was whispering something new, something different…
I didn't know what to do—so I just stood there while he hugged me tightly… so tightly…
_ ^^ ^o^ ^~
I'd love your support to keep going 🙃
Thank you for reading 🌹❤
And have a wonderful day 💃🏻💃🏻💃🏻