Someone Is Watching
Seventh loop.
Han Seo-yeon didn't scream this time.
Didn't panic.
Didn't even move immediately.
She just stood there, gripping the metal pole, breathing slowly.
Coffee.
Perfume.
The crying child.
Cabin C.
Kang Ji-hoon was already looking at her.
"Seven," he confirmed.
She nodded.
Her body felt heavier than before.
Like she hadn't slept in days.
Her hands trembled slightly.
The train slowed toward the station.
The lights hadn't flickered yet.
Ji-hoon spoke quietly.
"We don't interfere immediately."
She swallowed.
"We observe longer?"
"Yes."
The announcement began—
"Attention passengers— please remain calm—"
Static.
Same timing.
Exactly the same.
Seo-yeon's eyes moved across every face in the cabin.
Who planted the bomb?
Who benefits from this?
The pale man was normal.
No red eyes.
No strange breathing.
Just another passenger.
Her head throbbed again.
Stronger.
Ji-hoon noticed.
"You're worse."
"So are you."
His nose wasn't bleeding yet.
But his skin looked paler.
The ticking began again.
Faint.
Hidden beneath the train's vibration.
Seo-yeon focused.
But this time—
There was another sound.
A faint buzzing from somewhere above.
She glanced up.
A small black dome camera near the corner of the ceiling.
It had always been there.
Normal security camera.
But—
Was it?
"Ji-hoon," she whispered. "Have you noticed the cameras before?"
He didn't look up immediately.
"Yes."
"Are they always on?"
He studied it briefly.
The tiny red light blinked once.
Slowly.
Rhythmically.
Not random.
Tick.
Blink.
Tick.
Blink.
Her stomach tightened.
"Is it connected?" she asked.
"Possibly."
"Connected to what?"
Ji-hoon's voice lowered.
"Not the bomb."
She stared at him.
"Then what?"
"Monitoring."
The train shook lightly.
Her pulse quickened.
"Why would someone monitor a random cabin?"
He looked directly at her.
"Because we're not random."
Her throat felt dry.
"What do you mean?"
Before he could answer—
A man near the middle of the cabin suddenly stood up.
Not the pale one.
Another passenger.
He looked confused.
Holding his phone.
"Why is there no signal?" he muttered loudly.
Seo-yeon's ears rang.
No signal?
She pulled out her phone instinctively.
No network.
Ji-hoon checked his.
Same.
The train hadn't entered a tunnel.
There was no reason to lose signal.
The ticking grew louder.
Passengers began whispering.
"Why isn't the internet working?"
"Is this maintenance?"
The pale man looked around nervously.
This time—
He looked scared.
Not violent.
Not aggressive.
Just afraid.
Ji-hoon leaned slightly closer to Seo-yeon.
"The environment changes when we interfere."
"So?"
"So we're not just inside a loop."
Her heartbeat pounded in her ears.
"We're inside something controlled."
The vibration beneath the floor intensified.
Earlier than usual.
The timing shifted again.
Seo-yeon's breathing became shallow.
Her vision blurred for a second.
"Ji-hoon… I feel—"
He grabbed her wrist.
"Stay conscious."
The ticking stopped abruptly.
Total silence.
Then—
From the front cabins—
Screams.
Not from explosion.
From people.
Raw.
Terrified.
Seo-yeon's chest tightened.
That was new.
That never happened before.
"What changed?" she whispered.
Ji-hoon's jaw clenched.
"We observed too long."
The red emergency lights turned on instantly.
The train didn't jerk this time.
Instead—
The sound of something tearing through metal echoed from ahead.
Like something was forcing its way inside.
Passengers began screaming in Cabin C.
Someone from the next cabin ran through the connecting door—
Face covered in blood.
Eyes wide.
"It's attacking people!" he screamed.
Attacking.
Not explosion.
Seo-yeon's breath froze.
Before she could process it—
The entire front of the train erupted.
BOOM.
Fire rushed backward violently.
The blast swallowed the screaming man first.
Then everything.
—
She woke up gasping violently.
Cabin C.
Eighth loop.
Her hands were shaking uncontrollably now.
Her heartbeat felt unstable.
Ji-hoon wiped blood from his nose again.
This time it flowed heavier.
She stared at him.
"It wasn't just the bomb."
"No."
"There were screams."
"Yes."
Her voice trembled.
"That didn't happen before."
Ji-hoon looked toward the front of the train slowly.
"They're adjusting faster."
"Who is?"
His eyes were cold now.
"Whoever is running this."
The announcement began again—
"Attention passengers—"
Seo-yeon swallowed hard.
For the first time—
She didn't feel like she was fighting fate.
She felt like she was being tested.
And somewhere—
Someone was watching how they reacted.