The wind that carried fractured echoes of the broken simulation brushed softly against the cliffs where Jay stood. Not even a ghost of yesterday's dreamscape remained— just a raw, humming world patching itself together like a wounded animal.
He heard footsteps behind him. Familiar. Precise. A little hesitant.
"Hey," Alicia said.
Jay didn't turn. Not at first. He just stared out over the edge of the floating fragments, his voice distant but strangely gentle. "I figured you'd find me."
Alicia stopped beside him, her arms crossed, as if guarding herself— but not from him. From the silence between them.
"You disappeared right after the merge point. Rei and I thought—"
"You mean after I almost broke everything trying to fix it?" Jay interrupted, his laugh bitter and hollow. "Yeah. That sounds about right."
Alicia's eyes narrowed. "You always do this. Pretend it doesn't matter. Shrug like the weight of the world is just another dumb thing to ignore."
