"So, uh, Dad," I start, trying to sound casual. "What's going on? How did I... how did I get here?"
My father exchanges a look with Molly, and I feel a shiver run down my spine. Something is definitely off, and I am not sure I am ready for the truth.
He passes me a cup of warm milk, his eyes locked on Molly, who just nods silently.
What was that look? What are they not telling me?
"Is everything alright, son?" Dad asks, his voice laced with concern. "I understand you're still confused about getting accepted to both Harvard and Oxford but you've been behaving strangely for the past week."
Harvard AND Oxford?
I almost choke on my milk. The shock must show on my face because Molly quickly hands me a napkin, her worried eyes studying me a little too carefully.
That's impossible. Yes, I was one of the smart ones in my past life but I quit college to pay off debts. How come I am suddenly accepted to colleges I wanted to attend back then?
Something uncomfortable settles in my chest. Like the universe is dangling the life I could have had right in front of me—the life that was stolen piece by piece until there was nothing left.
Don't think about it. Not now.
I glance at Molly, who is staring blankly into space, her eyes filled with worry and something I can't quite recognise. When I turn back to Dad, I see the same concern written all over his face. My chest tightens.
I don't want to worry them. Not when they seem so fragile.
"I-I'm sorry, Dad," I stammer, my voice barely above a whisper. "I didn't mean to make you worry about me."
The mask slides on so easily. It always does. It can't be called mask at this point. It's like a second skin.
Molly's soft voice cuts through the silence, her lips trembling slightly. "Is something wrong, young master? You can tell us."
Young master. The way she says it - like I actually matter to her.
I sigh, trying to gauge their reactions carefully. If I tell them the truth - any of it - they'll either think I've lost my mind or they'll worry themselves sick. Neither option helps anyone.
"I... I don't know if you'd believe me if I said... I don't remember anything."
If I play dumb, they might leave me alone. It's safer this way. Both for them and for me.
Dad's eyes slightly widen, and Molly's face turns pale. "W-what do you mean?" He asks with a hint of curiosity in his voice.
I laugh, the sound hollow even to my own ears. "I remember who you are, Dad... and everything about myself. It's just... everything else is fuzzy." I trail off, hoping they won't press me further.
The silence that follows is oppressive, heavy with unspoken questions. My heart pounds in my chest, threatening to jump out from my ribcage as I wait for their response.
Molly's face lights up with realisation as she connects the dots. "Is that why you looked at me like you never saw me before?" She asks, her eyes brightening with excitement.
"Y-Yeah..." I stammer from shock.
I thought I was hiding it well. Is she secretly a Goddess or something?
"I knew something was off the moment you didn't greet me like you usually do!" She shouts and quickly covers her mouth.
"Sorry..."
"It's alright," my father replies and a warm smile spreads across his face. "Though try to keep your excitement for yourself next time?"
She nods eagerly, her eyes glowing from happiness. There's something genuinely endearing about her enthusiasm - pure and uncomplicated in a way that makes my chest feel lighter for just a moment.
Dad clears his throat as he turns his attention back to me. "Alright, I gotta get to work. Cecil, we'll talk later today, okay? Put your thoughts in order and feel free to reach out if you need anything."
I nod, and he heads out. Molly gives me a look - bright and knowing - before following him.
At least they seem okay. At least they're not...
I don't finish the thought.
The moment they close the front door, the silence hits me like a wall. No voices. No footsteps. No one watching me to make sure I'm acting normal.
I let out a breath I didn't realise I was holding.
Okay. You're alone. You can drop it now.
But I don't. Not entirely. Old habits don't die easily.
I turn around and head to my room, my footsteps quiet against the floor. The house feels strange around me - familiar in a way that doesn't quite belong to me yet. Like wearing someone else's skin.
I push the door open and my eyes scan the space automatically. Same desk. Same bookshelf. Same grey blanket draped over the armchair.
Wait.
Something feels different.
I stand still for a moment, letting my gaze travel slowly across every surface. The books on the shelf - are they in the same order as before? The chair, was it angled exactly like that this morning?
Someone was here.
The thought sends a small spike of unease through my chest but before I can dwell on it, something catches my eye.
A piece of paper. Lying on my desk. Right in the middle, as if placed there deliberately.
I walk over slowly, my heartbeat picking up with each step.
I
t's not just a piece of paper—it's a letter. Folded once, neatly, with my name written on the front in handwriting I don't recognise.
Or do I?
I pick it up and unfold it carefully, as if it might crumble if I'm not gentle enough.
"Hey Cecil,
Congrats on getting into the same college as me! Your dad mentioned it last time he was visiting. If you need any tips or want to grab coffee sometime, I'm here. Oh, and if the dorms are packed, hit me up. We can figure something out together.
Later, K"
I read it once.
Then again.
Then a third time.
Who is this person?
But that's not the question that keeps pulling me back to the words. It's not the mystery of K's identity that makes me read it over and over. It's the feeling—warm and strange and impossibly familiar—that settles somewhere deep in my chest the moment my eyes touch the ink.
I know this. I know him. But how?
My fingertips trace the edge of the paper absently and I notice my cheeks feel warm. Not embarrassed exactly. Something quieter than that. Something that feels dangerously close to comfort.
When was the last time someone's words made me feel like this?
I set the letter down carefully - too carefully, like it's something precious I don't fully understand yet - and stare at it.
The warmth doesn't fade.
Who are you, K?
A part of me wants to find out immediately. To turn the whole world upside down until I get an answer. But another part - the part that's spent years learning that answers aren't always kind - holds back.
What if knowing the truth changes everything?
What if it doesn't change anything at all?
I sit on the edge of my bed, the letter still on the desk where I left it. I don't look away from it.
I want to know. I need to know.
But I'm terrified.
The silence of my room wraps around me and I sit there, caught between curiosity and fear, unable to move in either direction.
A few minutes pass. Maybe longer. I'm not sure.
I'm still sitting there, my mind turning over K's words again and again, when a familiar female voice cuts through the silence.
"Hi, Cecil. I am sorry, I was busy with work and I couldn't talk to you before since you were with your father and that girl. I figured out that it would be pretty suspicious if you started talking to yourself out of nowhere."
I flinch so hard I almost fall off the bed.
"Aethera?"
"Yes, it's me." A pause. "You seem surprised. Did you think I forgot about you already?"
"Can you not do that?" I think back, my heart still hammering. "Just... appear in my head like that?"
"I'll work on it," she says and I can hear the smile in her voice. "But I did want to check on you. How are you settling in?"
Settling in. As if I moved to a new apartment and not an entirely different world.
"I'm... managing it," I think carefully. "Your timing could use some work though. You're going to give me a heart attack if you continue like this."
"Noted."
Another pause. This one feels different - lighter. Almost playful.
"I knew that there was something useful about the connection that was created the moment I saved you but I didn't definitely expect this..."
"What connection?" I ask, my curiosity pulling at me despite everything.
"Apparently, Celestians create this connection with each person they save. It is usually used to stop these people from using their powers for evil, but that's not your case."
"Then what's my case?"
"How about I show you myself?"
I hesitate. Every instinct tells me to be cautious - to not just blindly trust a goddess who appears in my head uninvited. But then again... she did save my life.
"Fine. But if this is some kind of trick-"
"It's not," she interrupts gently. "I promise."
A simple light blue bracelet appears out of thin air, materialising right in front of me as if painted by an invisible hand.
I reach out and grab it, turning it over in my fingers. It's lighter than it looks—almost weightless.
"What do I do with this?"
"Put it on and think of me. If it works correctly, you should be able to stand beside me in a few seconds."
I stare at the bracelet for a long moment.
This is either the best decision I'll ever make or the worst.
I slip it onto my wrist and close my eyes, pulling Aethera's face into my mind - that soft glow, that knowing smile, the warmth of her presence.
The golden light comes immediately. Warmer than before, deeper somehow, wrapping around me like arms pulling me forward. My body feels weightless - not falling this time, but being carried.
Please don't let me fall again.
The thought slips out before I can stop it and for a moment something in the golden light pulses - almost as if it heard me.
Not sure if I am just being paranoid, but I really hope nothing will go missing during the time I am gone. It is really starting to scare me...