Marc expected the next day to feel calmer.
But when he stepped onto campus, he realized something:
It was quieter again.
Too quiet.
Not like yesterday's "off rhythm" quiet.
This was the wrong kind of silence.
Like the world was waiting for something.
Luca noticed first.
"…Bro," he muttered, "why does today feel like a loading screen?"
Marc didn't laugh.
Because he felt the same thing.
Homeroom started.
Everyone was present.
Except Aria.
Marc tapped his pencil nervously.
"She's never late."
Luca glanced at the empty seat.
"Maybe the correction event from yesterday messed with her schedule."
Marc frowned.
"Or something's happening to her."
Hana walked over.
"Is Aria okay? She didn't answer when I said hi in the hall."
Marc froze.
"She was here?"
Hana nodded.
"Yeah. But when I blinked she was gone."
Luca and Marc shared a look.
The world was glitching again.
Marc left class the second the bell rang.
He checked everywhere he could think of.
The courtyard.
The library.
The gym.
Nothing.
But when he reached the back of the school — the quiet stretch behind the storage shed — he stopped.
Aria sat alone on the concrete, knees pulled close, hands resting lightly on her skirt.
Not crying.
Not shaking.
Just… frozen.
Like a paused character.
Marc approached slowly.
"…Aria?"
She didn't look at him.
He sat down beside her.
"Talk to me."
After a long moment, Aria whispered:
"I was supposed to disappear."
Marc blinked.
"…What?"
Aria kept staring straight ahead, voice trembling so faintly it barely existed.
"A long time ago… I was supposed to be removed from the world. My route was deleted. My flags were cut. My ending never rendered."
Marc swallowed hard.
"Aria—"
"But something went wrong," she continued quietly.
"The world forgot to erase me."
Marc felt his chest tighten painfully.
She hugged her knees closer.
"I've been stuck here ever since. Watching years repeat. Watching people reset. Watching myself stay the same."
Marc clenched his fists.
"How long… have you been like this?"
Aria finally turned her head, meeting his eyes with a look so soft it hurt.
"Long enough to stop counting."
A gust of wind blew through the trees.
Aria's hair lifted slightly, and she looked away.
"When you and Luca showed up, the world shifted. Emotions moved in ways I've never seen."
She paused.
"And I got scared."
Marc blinked.
"Scared of what?"
Aria's voice cracked.
"Of being deleted."
Marc's heart dropped.
"Aria—"
"If the world sees me changing again… it might try harder to erase me this time."
She pressed a shaking hand to her chest.
"And when I'm with you… I change."
Marc leaned close.
"That's not a bad thing."
Aria shook her head slowly.
"For me, it is."
A soft chime echoed across the courtyard.
Not a school bell.
A sound like a digital tone.
The air shimmered for a second — like heat distortion — then snapped back.
Marc stood instantly.
"What was that?"
Aria stared at the ground.
"A warning."
Marc clenched his jaw.
"A warning for what?"
Aria's voice was barely above a whisper.
"For getting too close to you."
Marc's chest tightened.
"…So the world sees me as a threat?"
"No."
Aria slowly looked up at him.
"You're worse than a threat."
Marc blinked.
"What does that mean?"
"You're a variable."
Aria stood, dusting off her skirt.
"And the world doesn't know how to calculate you."
Marc reached out gently.
"Aria. Listen to me."
She froze.
"You don't get erased," Marc said softly.
"Not while we're here. Not while I'm here."
Aria stared at him — eyes widening just a tiny bit, like something inside her cracked open.
But before she could answer—
Footsteps echoed behind them.
Marc turned.
Ryo stood at the edge of the path, notebook in hand, expression unreadable.
He had clearly been watching.
But he didn't look angry.
He looked…
terrified.
He whispered:
"…You're not supposed to exist, are you?"
Aria went completely still.
Marc stepped between them on instinct.
"Ryo," he said, voice low,
"don't."
Ryo's breath shakily escaped.
"What are you two…?"
Aria whispered:
"The world is waking up."
The light flickered again.
Harder this time.