Kai hurried up the steps with a plastic bag of food swinging from his hand. His breath still carried the sting of the night wind as he pressed the doorbell.
A round-bellied fat man opened the door, scowling the moment he saw him.
"You're ten minutes late!" the man barked while jabbing a finger at Kai's chest.
Kai's jaw tightened.
His hands trembled for a moment from the anger boiling under his skin.
Ten minutes.
After weaving through traffic, skipping dinner and rest, and pushing his old scooter past its limit, all he got was scolding.
Still, he forced a smile and lowered his head.
"I'm sorry," he said softly, voice calm even while his chest burned. He had become used to this right now.
The man snatched the bag and slammed the door without another word.
Kai walked back to his battered scooter. Thankfully this was his last delivery for the night.
He climbed on the seat, let out a long yawn, and rubbed his eyes.
His body pained with exhaustion but more than that, the hollowness in his chest made the world feel heavier.
As the scooter coughed to life and rattled down the dim street, his thoughts spiraled out of control again.
He had reached twenty-eight years old last month, and his bank account was nearly empty.
No savings, no future, no direction.
Each day bled into the next, and the thought of waking up tomorrow terrified him because of the certainty that nothing would change.
His parents had both died the same way—on the road.
His father was a truck driver, he had fallen asleep at the wheel and never woken again.
His mother followed years later, killed in an accident while delivering food for a restaurant.
The roads had taken them both, and now the same endless cycle chained him too. He wondered if he would die the same way.
Their family had never known wealth. Poverty clung to them and passed down generation to generation.
Now it rested on him and the two people he couldn't abandon, his grandparents.
Sometimes, in the quiet moments between deliveries like this, he wondered if it would be easier to just end it all.
The thought of suicide flickered often in his mind, but the courage to do it never came.
Deep down, he told himself it was cowardly and also selfish. If he left, who would take care of his grandparents?
The scooter sputtered into the small neighborhood he called home.
He parked in front of the narrow house, the metal frame creaking as he swung off.
Inside, the living room glowed faintly from the television screen.
His grandfather had fallen asleep in his chair, soft snores blending with the muffled chatter of late-night programs.
His grandmother, as usual, had already gone to bed.
Kai fetched a blanket and gently draped it over his grandfather's shoulders.
Then he moved to the bathroom, washing off the sweat and grime of the night.
By the time he crawled into his own bed, the exhaustion finally hit him like a wave. The thin mattress creaked under his weight.
He lay on his back, staring at the ceiling, the faint hum of the city outside pressing in.
Kai picked up his phone from the small table beside his bed.
He had taken good care of it—no cracks on the screen or glaring scratches there.
For something bought three years ago, it was almost a miracle the device still worked smoothly and also still hadn't its screen cracked.
It wasn't much, but at least he had a phone.
This late at night was the only time he could do something for entertainment. His fingers moved automatically, opening the same app he always returned to.
A web novel reading app.
The bookmarked page blinked open and he dove back into the story of a man thrown into a steampunk world.
The protagonist fought mad people with supernatural power, pirates with supernatural power, and huge conspiracies that involved gods and goddesses.
Kai's tired eyes softened as the words pulled him in.
Page after page, he let himself sink deeper, forgetting for a while about angry customers and the choking weight of his own reality.
In this story, adventure never ended. The main character always pushed forward, no matter how impossible the odds.
A faint smile touched Kai's lips. If only life worked that way.
His eyelids grew heavier, but he kept reading.
The glow of the phone lit up his tired face as he fought to stay awake, chasing just one more chapter. Then another.
Until finally the phone slipped from his fingers and landed on the blanket.
Sleep claimed him quietly.
The next thing he heard was the shrill beep of his alarm.
His eyes cracked open in the dark—still before sunrise.
Kai washed himself with cold water, the icy sting chasing away the haze of sleep.
He lingered for a moment staring at his reflection in the cracked bathroom mirror.
The man in the mirror has dark circles under his eyes, the weariness etched into every line of his face.
With a sigh, he dried himself off and stepped into the kitchen.
The rich aroma of bitter coffee filled the air. His grandmother had already prepared it for him, a black, thick coffee without sugar that could jolt even deadman awake.
Alongside it sat a single slice of toast, browned perfectly the way she always made it.
He wrapped his hands around the chipped ceramic cup and took a long sip.
The taste burned his tongue but it steadied his mind.
Coffee had become his morning ritual cause it was the only way to push his tired brain into motion.
He took a bite of the toast and eating in silence as he sat in the living room.
His grandmother lowered herself onto the seat beside him, her hands folded neatly in her lap.
She wore a faint smile.
"Is it good?" she asked gently.
Kai smiled back, swallowing the bread before answering.
"Yes. It's good as always."
For a moment, there was peace between them that was very comforting.
Then her voice broke it with words that made his heart lurch.
"I'm sorry, Kai. We must be a burden to you."
Kai froze, the toast halfway to his mouth. His chest tightened.
Slowly, he turned to her, shocked. "Grandma… what are you saying? You both are never a burden to me."
He set the toast down, reaching out to grasp her hand. Her skin was warm and fragile but steady in his grasp.
His throat ached as he forced a smile.
"I love you both. You are the only reason I'm still able to keep going until this day."
Sadness flickered in his eyes even as he smiled. It hurt him that she could think like that, even for a second.
His gaze shifted to the old clock hanging on the wall. The ticking reminded him that time was already slipping away.
He quickly finished the last bite of toast and drained the cup of coffee.
"I'll go to work now, Grandma. Don't think about that anymore, or I'll be angry. Hehe," He added a small laugh, trying to lighten the mood.
"Be careful, Kai," his grandmother said softly.
"Yes, of course."
But she didn't let go. Her eyes looked at him with a seriousness that unsettled him.
"I mean it. Be careful, son."
Something in her voice felt heavier today, her concern was thicker than usual.
But Kai brushed it off, telling himself it was just normal concern.
He forced a grin as he stood. "Yes, Grandma," he said firmly.
He was on his scooter again, the morning air biting at his cheeks as the engine rattled beneath him.
He didn't notice how his grandmother lingered at the doorway, watching him ride off with that same troubled look in her eyes.
It was the last time Kai saw his grandparents.
—