'Fumi, wake up. Fumi. Fu~mi. Wake up!'
A female voice called my name. All I see it black, but why? I hear a female's voice calling my name. I'm certain of it, my name is Fumi. This lady is calling my name! I suddenly awoke to the sensation of a damp, concrete floor beneath my figure. I don't remember a thing.
Okay… breathe. That's the first thing I tell myself, because if I don't, my chest feels like it's going to lock up. The floor under me is cold, damp, and definitely not somewhere I'm supposed to be lying down. I don't remember falling. I don't remember coming here at all. All I know is that it's dark. Not normal dark, but the kind that feels like it's leaning in, waiting to see what I'll do next.
I push myself up slowly, half-expecting something to grab me the moment I move, but nothing happens. My footsteps echo weirdly when I take a step, like the sound comes back late, unsure of itself. That's when I notice the mirror, barely visible, catching just enough light to show a shape. Me. Bald head, eye patch, some tight black suit that looks way too clean for a place like this. At lest I have toned muscles. Toned from what? I flex my fingers without thinking, just to make sure I can. At least they move. At least I'm real. I think.
I keep telling myself there has to be an explanation. People don't just wake up like this for no reason. Someone put me here. Someone dressed me like this. And someone definitely called my name earlier. I didn't imagine that. I stare at my reflection longer than I should, trying to feel something familiar, but all I get back is that same hollow feeling in my gut. Whatever happened before this, whatever I'm missing, it's not gone. It's just hiding from me.
But yet, I see no girl in sight. So who was calling my name? I then see a door with a bright, white light shining through the cracks. Pushing through the door, a burst of light shined on my face. As my eyes adjusted to the light, I could see the space around me. I was in a hospital, at least that's what it looked like. I was suddenly pushed onto a hospital bed, with multiple nurses surrounding me and pushing the wheels. "Oh dear, are you hurt? Thankfully we found you in time, it would've been a disaster!" one of the nurses said to me in a fake-sounding tone. I felt the bed's soft fibre underneath me, and I felt a sense of anticipation and ease all at once.
I didn't mind all of this happening to me. All I wanted to know was the person who called my name. "Name, Fumi. Gender, male. Occupation, unknown. Age 18. Date of birth, August 19th." the nurse pushing my bed said, reading off a clip board with a piece of paper on it. But where are they taking me? I wonder...
A young boy sat on the cold tile floor near the wall, carefully stacking plastic cups into a tower that was way too tall to be stable. His tongue poked out slightly in concentration as he placed each cup, hands steady despite the noise of carts, footsteps, and distant voices echoing around him. A nurse passed by and slowed down, watching for a moment, but chose not to interfere.
Just as the tower reached its peak, someone nearby coughed loudly. The entire stack collapsed instantly, cups scattering across the floor in every direction. The boy didn't react at all. He simply reached for another cup and started rebuilding, like the collapse was expected. "Poor guy..." I muttered under the husk of my breath.
After about 30 seconds of walking, the nurses wheeled me into a room with a nice, high view outside the window. As I looked out of the window, I saw cars pulling up, and cars leaving. I saw people entering and leaving. I could watch this for hours. "Fumi~ Please don't go off like that again, as there's a probability we won't be able to find you, you see~" the nurse said to me, eyes sharp as a tiger, but a smile as sweet as a rose.
A large clock hung above the hallway doors, its second hand ticking louder than it should have. Each sound echoed slightly, stretching the silence between ticks until it felt unnatural, almost deliberate. People passed beneath it without paying attention, but the sound lingered all the same.
A woman seated beneath the clock glanced up at it, then checked her watch, her eyebrows knitting together in confusion. She checked the clock again, then her watch once more, before quietly muttering that time felt "off today." Standing up, she walked away, leaving the clock to continue ticking alone.
"Uh, yeah, noted. I won't leave my room anymore. Sorry to cause a disturbance." the boy replied with a sincere expression, back hunched and sweating while looking into the female nurse's sharp, detailed velvet eyes.
From a nearby room came the sound of a man arguing loudly on the phone, his voice sharp and defensive. He paced back and forth beside the bed, gesturing wildly with his free hand while the other clutched a phone to his ear. His arm was wrapped tightly in thick white bandages, yet he kept insisting he was completely fine, that he didn't need to be there at all.
Eventually, the call ended. The man stared at the dark screen of his phone, his shoulders slowly slumping as the tension drained out of him. He sat down heavily on the edge of the bed, rubbing his face with his good hand, suddenly looking far more tired than angry.
As the nurses left the room, the boy was left to ponder, "But what do they mean by 'again'?"
A janitor pushed a cleaning cart down the hallway, just outside of Fumi's room, at a painfully slow pace, the wheels squeaking like they were begging to be put out of their misery. He hummed some old tune that didn't really have a melody, stopping every few steps to adjust the mop handle or wipe his hands on his pants for no reason at all. The smell of disinfectant followed him like a fog, mixing with the sterile hospital air until it felt almost suffocating.
He stopped near a vending machine, stared at the glowing buttons for a long time, then sighed like he'd just lost an argument with himself. Without buying anything, he turned away and continued down the hall. The vending machine beeped once behind him, sharp and sudden, loud enough to make him flinch, as if it was disappointed he didn't choose anything.
Meanwhile, at the front of the hospital, a woman, no older than 19, was heading to the entrance. A piece of water fell down in front of her. She looked up, expecting to see rain, but there was none. It was a sunny day, not a cloud in sight. "Huh? I would've expected there to be some rain, given a drop of water just fell in front of me." she said before she caught something in her peripheral vision. She could see Fumi staring down at her from the high window in his hospital room. With a friendly smile and wave, she headed into the hospital, the automatic doors sliding open before her.
Near the front desk inside the hospital, a receptionist struggled with a printer that seemed determined not to work. Sheets of paper slid out halfway before jamming, others falling uselessly onto the floor. Each failed attempt made her jaw tighten just a little more.
After a long pause, she stared at the printer, took a slow breath, and unplugged it entirely. The sudden silence felt heavy, almost satisfying. She straightened the papers on the desk and pretended nothing had happened.
As the girl entered the hospital, she walked towards a corridor before looking behind her to see two men with black coats on and black hats on. "Damn pursuers..." she said as a cold and serious expression formed on her face before turning into a light and playful expression. "They're always so persistent, huh?" she said, humming a tune while walking down the hallway.
Two doctors walked past each other in the hallway, both clearly exhausted. One gave a brief nod, barely lifting his head. The other returned it automatically, eyes unfocused, steps never slowing.
They continued walking in opposite directions, neither of them turning around. It was the kind of interaction that happened dozens of times a day, forgotten almost instantly by both sides. A nurse leaned against the wall near a supply closet, scrolling through her phone with one hand while holding a clipboard in the other. She laughed softly at something on the screen, covering her mouth as if that would somehow make it quieter.
When she noticed movement in her peripheral vision, her expression snapped back into something professional. She locked her phone, tucked it away, adjusted the clipboard, and walked off down the hall like she'd been working the whole time.
As the girl walked down the hallway, she happened to glance into some of the rooms. In there, she saw some bizarre people doing some rather bizarre things. Her eye caught some really muscular and buff man shadow boxing in front of a TV. On the screen was a music video of a singer with purple hair performing on stage. The name of the singer was Kama Kamori. "I love you!" the man said, shirtless, screaming at his TV and still shadow boxing. "Yeah, he's definitely one of those cringe fan boys..." she said, walking to the next room. "Is he on steroids or something? His body was so toned!"
Walking to the next room, she peeked in, seeing a short man with grey hair, sitting with 30 cats in the room. "Make sure to eat your food, Keicho. Don't go hungry now." the man said, feeding one of the cats out of a bowl. "And don't think I forgot you either, Chin-Chan-Chan." he said, feeing another cat with his bare hands. "Uhh... yeah that's weird..." the woman said, storming off into the elevator and pressing the buttons before the door closed. As the elevator went up about 10 stories, she tapped her foot as the door opened. "Come on, I just need a room to hide in for about 30 minutes to avoid these pursers!"
The elevator doors opened on a floor that looked completely empty. The hallway lights were dimmed, half of them flickering slightly, casting long shadows across the floor. No one stood there, no footsteps echoed, and no sound came from either direction. After several seconds of silence, the doors slowly slid shut again. No one inside the elevator said anything.
Inside the elevator, a man stood staring intensely at the floor number display above the doors. He whispered each number under his breath as they passed, his lips moving just slightly. When the display skipped faster than he expected, he blinked and stopped counting. He lowered his gaze to the polished floor, staring at the reflection of his shoes until the elevator finally slowed.
After walking out of the elevator, the girl continued down the hallway. Walking down the hallway, She looked out of a window in a patient's room. A television somewhere down the hallway flickered quietly, changing channels on its own. A cooking show appeared for a few seconds, then static, then the evening news, then static again. The room it played in was empty. The remote sat untouched on the table beside the bed, facing the screen.
"How... strange..." she said before entering the room. "Wow, we're up so high!" she said, looking out of the window. A few seconds passed before she looked at the boy sitting there, admiring the view. It was Fumi, just a curious boy, (at least he acted like one) looking out of a window. Fumi, turning his head towards the mysterious woman, wanted to know... "Uh, who are you, lady?" he said, pointing a finger at the woman.
"Uhm.. I'm Abby Kawakami..." the girl said, glancing at the floor before looking back up at Fumi. "Hey, you're the guy I waved to not too long ago." she said. "Huh, you're right. Well uh, can I help you, Kawakami-chan?" Fumi replied, wondering why she was in his room. "Uh well, uh, you see... it's a long story, really. You don't mind if I stay here, do you? Right?" Kawakami replied. Fumi raised an eyebrow, indirectly telling her to give him the whole story. "Uh, okay... fine. The truth is, I'm being pursued. That's all. I'm being pursued is all." she followed up.
"Abby Kawakami… your clothing is naturally coordinated, like you didn't try too hard, yet everything fits together perfectly. You wear an off-the-shoulder cropped top in a light blue and white checkerboard pattern, the fabric resting loosely around your arms while fitting snugly across your torso. It exposes just enough to show confidence rather than carelessness. Around your neck sit two necklaces, one a purple choker with a small heart charm, the other resting lower, echoing the same shape. The repetition feels intentional, like you know exactly what details matter and which ones don't."
Fumi said, pointing a finger at her once more.
"What's more is you have a pink skirt that sits high at your waist, cleanly fitted, with subtle slits that suggest movement even when you stand still. A white belt with a heart-shaped buckle holds it in place, layered with a thin silver chain that adds weight and texture. A small, glossy shoulder bag hangs at your side, catching the light without demanding attention. Your hair falls naturally to your shoulders, brown and slightly tousled, held back only by two small white flower clips. You stand with one hand on your hip, posture steady, eyes forward. You have a confident facial expression. There's no hesitation in you. You look like someone who knows where they are, and more importantly, knows themselves."
"Huh, go figure... you're right about everything. Do you like my style or something?" Kawakami replied to Fumi's detailed explanation of her appearance. "Oh, and, Kawakami... you're a C-Cup in case you didn't know." Fumi said. "Ew, creep!! Why are you looking?!" Kawakami said, punching Fumi on his bald, shiny head. After getting punched in the head, Fumi grabbed his skull in pain. "Ah!! What was that for?!" he exclaimed. "If you EVER mention something to me like that again, I'll-" she said, getting cut off by Fumi. "Okay, okay! I won't! Sorry! I was just trying to help, jeez!!"
"Uh, anyways. What are you in the hospital for? You don't look hurt. You got cancer or something like that? Or maybe a chronic illness?" Kawakami asked. "Uh, well, I'm not entirely sure. You see, I can't remember anything about myself." Fumi said. "You don't... remember anything...?" Kawakami said a tone of disbelief. "Yeah, the only thing I know about myself is my name." Fumi replied. "Wait, I've... heard your voice from somewhere before..." Fumi said, creating a weird atmosphere.
Before Kawakami got the chance to respond to his sudden request, Fumi glanced toward the door without really knowing why. Two men were standing there, both dressed in black, like they didn't care how obvious they looked. They hadn't rushed in or said anything yet. They were just there. One of them leaned against the wall near the doorway. The other stood straight, blocking the exit without even trying to hide it.
Kawakami noticed them a second later. The smile she'd been wearing dropped almost instantly. She didn't move away from Fumi, but her shoulders tensed, and she let out a quiet sigh like she'd been expecting this to happen sooner or later.
"Abby Kawakami." the taller man said. His voice was calm and way too relaxed. "We need you to come with us." he continued. As he spoke, his hand slipped out of his coat, stopping halfway to show the grip of a handgun. He wasn't pointing it yet, but he clearly wanted it seen.
Kawakami rolled her eyes and placed her hands on her hips. "You guys always show up at the worst times." Kawakami said. "This is a hospital. Chill." she added.
The second man stepped forward, fully blocking the doorway now. His expression stayed flat. "We're not leaving without you." the second man said.
"No." Kawakami said. Her hands stayed on her hips. "You see Miss Kawakami." the first man said in a slightly more serious tone. "We cannot do that. We have come for you. And only you." he finished.
"No." Kawakami said. "Do I have to repeat myself again. Idiots." she added.
The room went quiet for a moment. Not the awkward kind, just the kind where no one rushed to speak next. The first man's hand stayed near his coat, fingers flexing slightly like he was thinking it over. He glanced at Fumi briefly, then back at Kawakami, clearly annoyed that someone else was even in the room.
"This does not have to turn into a problem." the first man said. His voice stayed calm, but it wasn't friendly anymore. "You walk out with us. And no one gets hurt." he continued. He shifted his weight, taking a small step closer, enough to make his point without touching her.
Kawakami didn't move. She tilted her head, unimpressed. "You guys keep saying that." Kawakami said. "And it is never true." she finished. Her voice wasn't loud, but it didn't shake either.
The second man let out a short laugh under his breath. "She is doing it again." the second man said. "Dragging it out." he added.
The first man clenched his jaw. His patience was clearly gone. His hand slid fully out of his coat this time. "Last chance." the first man said.
Then he raised the gun and aimed it at her.
"Don't kill her." the second man said, placing a hand on the gunman's shoulder. "Just give her a few warning shots." he added.
"Got it." the man said, his finger moving back to pull the trigger. Before the man's finger was able to fully pull back the trigger, a small, hallow sphere. Its colour was a tint of blue, and in size, it was approximately 5cm tall. It hovered just above the gunman's eyes before coming in contact with the pupil. "Huh? W-What the hell? What's this thing hovering in front of my eyes?" the man said, feeling no pain or stuff like that from the sphere coming in contact with his eyes. Suddenly, the man's eyes started to heat up and turn red.
At this point, the sphere had already phased into the man's eyes. It seemed as if the man's eyes heated up due to the sphere touching it. "AAAHHHH! FUCK!" the man screamed before dropping the gun. His eyes were boiling at this point, and had formed small bubbles across the surface from how hot they were. "A-Are you okay, man?!" the other man said, placing his hands around his shoulders to make sure he's fine. "NO, MY EYES ARE FUCKING BOILING, MAN! I'M BLIND! GET ME A DOCTOR!" the gunman said, waving his firearm around.
In that moment, Fumi got out of his bed and started walking towards the two. The man who was helping the gunman didn't notice, as he was too distracted by this bizarre anomaly. Suddenly, Fumi struck the man who wasn't visually impaired directly in the face without warning. He then grabbed the man's shirt and pulled his face close to his. "Fuck off." Fumi said in a serious tone before physically throwing the two men out of his room and slamming the door shut.
Then, the tone took a shift to a more friendly one, as Fumi's face slowly calmed as he sat back in bed. "Fumi..." Kawakami said under her breath, barely audible. She didn't give the boy a look of shock, surprise, or fear. More like an interested look, like this concept was familiar to her. "So uh, what was I saying before these guys walked in? Uh, damn it... I forgot!" Fumi said, flailing his arms before softly slamming them down onto his bed sheets.
'So he has one too...' the girl thought to herself.
Down the hall, the two gunman were screaming for help and crying. "Damn it! Someone! Someone help me! Someone help me please! I'm begging you! I'm blind! Please, someone help me! Gyaaaah!" the man who was blind said, now hiding his gun in his pocket. "I-It's okay, Sir! I'm here!" a female nurse said before seeing the gun in his pocket. "A-Aaaaah! There's a gun! Sir! Why do you have a gun?!" she exclaimed, drawing the attention of everyone present on floor 11.
"Well, that's not good..." Fumi said, looking towards the shut door. Despite the door being shut, he could still hear the nurse's cries due to them being extremely loud. As Fumi turned his head back to look at Kawakami, she was on his bed and on top of him. Kawakami's right hand was holding Fumi's left hand. Both of their fingers interlocked naturally, creating a sense of ease and an atmosphere full of mindfulness. "Uh, Kawakami..." Fumi said softly.
'This boy... I feel a connection between him and I...' she thought to herself.
'He's... just like me as well. He's special.'
Fumi's grip on Kawakami's hand slightly tightened as his facial expression eased up. Before they could continue, a nurse abruptly opened the door in a panic. "Everyone please evacuate the building. There's an armed person present inside of the hospital. We're issuing everyone an evacuation notice currently." the nurse said before leaving the room and heading to the next patient's room. Standing up, the two quickly exited their room and approached the stair case leading downwards. After barging through multiple people on their way out, they finally exited the hospital.
"Hey, Fumi-kun, let's ditch this hospital, what do you say?" Kawakami said, grabbing Fumi's hand and walking away with him. "Huh? Where are we going?" Fumi said, trailing behind Kawakami who was dragging his hand. "I need to show you something Fumi." Kawakami said as they walked down the streets of the place they call Atami.
The automatic doors of the convenience store slid open with a familiar chime, and the cool air inside washed over them immediately. Fumi slowed down without realizing it, eyes drifting over the rows of shelves packed with snacks, drinks, and random junk. Everything felt weirdly normal in here. Too normal. After everything that just happened, standing under bright fluorescent lights next to instant noodles and candy bars almost felt fake.
Kawakami wandered ahead like she owned the place, hands clasped behind her back as she scanned the aisles. She stopped near a small rack by the counter, crouching down slightly. "Oh my god." she said, reaching out and picking something up. It was a cheap plastic toy gun, bright colors and way too light to be convincing. She turned it over in her hands, inspecting it like it was some rare artifact. "Look at this. Tell me this isn't hilarious."
Fumi leaned closer, squinting at it. "Why would anyone even buy that." he said. The toy made a quiet rattling noise when Kawakami shook it, like something inside was loose. She pointed it at him dramatically, pulling the fake trigger with a soft click. "Pew pew." she said, completely straight-faced. Fumi stared at her for a second before snorting despite himself.
"Okay no." Fumi said. "You cannot be serious." Kawakami stood up and tossed the toy lightly in the air before catching it again. "Dead serious." she replied. She dropped it into a small shopping basket and kept walking, like the decision had already been made. At the counter, the cashier barely reacted. He scanned the toy gun, a bottled drink, and a bag of chips without looking up. Fumi watched the total flash on the screen.
Stepping outside, the two continued walking down the street. "So uh, care to tell me what the point of that was?" Fumi remarked, catching the attention of Kawakami. Looking back at Fumi, her face took a sudden change in tone and expression. "You'll see." she said ominously, continuing walking straight. After 30 minutes of walking, the two finally reached the edge of the town. "Finally, we've reached the edge of Atami." Kawakami said, stretching her arms out. "Ah, so we're in Atami, huh?" Fumi replied.
"Fumi, make no mistake. This town, located in the Southern part in the middle of Japan, Atami, is a quiet and peaceful town. But it's not!" Kawakami said in a serious tone. "What do you mean?" Fumi replied in a curious tone. "See, the thing about this town, is that it won't let youleave." she said, grabbing the toy pistol from before. "Watch this." she said, throwing the toy pistol about 10 meters in front of her, landing the ground with a high pitched thud. "Uhh... Kawakami... what was that for?" Fumi asked, pointing a finger towards the now cracked toy pistol.
Without saying a word, Kawakami walked forward. While walking, she suddenly slipped on a considerably large rock and fell on the ground. "K-Kawakami, are you okay?" Fumi said, extending his hand out to help her. "Don't worry, this is all natural." she said, standing back up and continuing to walk forwards. As she continued, a black snake popped out of the bushes, hissing at her. "Fine." she said, turning back and walking towards Fumi.
"You see? Even if I tried, fate physically won't let me leave Atami." she said, looking up at Fumi. "W-What...?" Fumi says, sweat dripping down his shocked face. "Yeah, and if I tried to leave when that snake was there, I'd bet it would've bitten me and I would've died in 5 minutes. And even if I got past that snake, I bet there'd be something else to push me back into the town." she said, hands on her hip, her expression matched the tone of the atmosphere.
Fumi didn't answer straight away. He just stood there staring at the bushes where the snake had been, like he expected it to pop back out and prove her point again. His mouth opened slightly, then closed again, like his brain was trying to pick which part of this was the most insane. "So what you're saying," Fumi said. "Is that this town is basically a cage." he finished. "Yeah." Kawakami said. "And before you ask. No. It's not a normal cage." she added. "It doesn't need walls." she finished.
"And the weirdest part is, no one even questions it! It's always just, 'Oh, my family holiday was cancelled due to unfortunate events that stop me from leaving', but it's not! I'm sick of people writing it off as just bad luck! And I don't even know why they're doing it!" she said, tears forming in her eyes. "And your ability, Fumi... I have a power as well... I believe you and I were drawn together. At least that's what I believe." Kawakami said, hugging Fumi and digging her head into his chest.
"Just relax, Kawakami-chan." Fumi said, wrapping his arms around her. "Fumi... I need your help... I need your help uncovering the mysteries of this town, Atami. Please... I know you have a special ability. You've saved my life... so I trust you." she said, digging her head in deeper into Fumi's chest. Fumi then raised his head and looked ahead, to what they consider 'outside of Atami.' "So, how long have you figured this out, Kawakami-chan?" Fumi asked.
"6 months..." Kawakami replied, slightly raising her head in order for her to talk.
"I see..." Fumi replied.
"Kawakami-chan... there's no need to worry anymore. I and I alone will solve this mystery. Don't you worry." he said, placing his hands on his hips.
"T-Thank you... Fumi-kun..."
'This girl... she has the utmost faith in my ability to solve the mystery of Atami.' Fumi thought to himself.
'But... even though she's wishing for me to aid her in figuring out this mystery, I want to solve it as well. Not just because some girl asked me to, but I genuinely find it strange how the town won't let you leave.' he thought once more.
'What's more is the town's people don't even recognize this bizarre phenomenon.'
'This may sound strange, but I, Fumi, have no memories. I have no recollection of my memories. I don't know why, but the nurses tried everything in their power to keep me in the hospital. Was I a patient there? I don't know. What I do find strange, though, is the mystery of Atami. No one questions why, but the town, or rather fate itself, doesn't let you leave, no matter how hard you try. Abby Kawakami, my friend that I recently made, is allowing me to move into a really big house that all of her college friends live in. They all seem pretty nice, for now, at least.'
To Be Continued! In Chapter 2!