Austin suburbs, Texas, USA
Morning sunlight filtered through the curtains, casting dim rays across the bedroom. On the large bed, a boy of about thirteen lay in deep sleep. The light seemed to bother him—his eyelids twitched, and he unconsciously turned his head away from the window.
Ding!
The cat-shaped alarm clock on his nightstand shrieked to life, yanking the boy from his dreams.
Frowning slightly, he reached out from under the covers with practiced ease and silenced the alarm, then slowly opened his bleary eyes.
After rubbing the sleep away, he sat up and stretched his limbs wide, letting out a groan that sounded vaguely constipated.
A glance at the clock showed 7:00 AM. Without a moment's hesitation, he threw off the covers, slipped on the slippers by his bed, and shuffled into the bathroom to wash up.
Grabbing his cup and toothbrush from the sink, the boy caught sight of his reflection in the mirror—handsome features, clear skin. The corner of his mouth curved upward with a hint of satisfaction.
"Didn't expect transmigrating would come with perks like this."
That's right. He was a transmigrator who'd died and somehow ended up in this world. Nearly a month had passed since his arrival, and he'd gone from bewildered and anxious to gradually adapting. Surprisingly, this world seemed almost identical to his original one.
Here, his name was Bryan. Both his parents were Chinese-American, but due to work, they were rarely home. The entire house was occupied only by him and a housekeeper—which conveniently spared him the awkwardness of having to fake recognition of parents he'd never met.
Overall, he was quite satisfied with his current life. Gone was the crushing pressure of his previous existence—no mortgage payments, no car loans hanging over his head. Most importantly, he'd been an orphan in his past life and had never married, which meant he could live here without any psychological burden.
After finishing up in the bathroom, Bryan shed his pajamas, pulled a school uniform from the closet, and threw it on. A quick once-over later, he headed out of his room.
In the first-floor living room, a middle-aged woman was busy in the kitchen preparing breakfast. When she heard footsteps on the stairs, she leaned back and spotted Bryan standing there.
"Hey, you're up early today!"
Seeing the woman's head pop into view, Bryan nodded and greeted her. "Morning, Josie."
"Go sit at the table. Breakfast will be ready in a sec."
Crossing through the living room, Bryan took a seat at the dining table and picked up the newspaper lying there. Without a phone to scroll through, it was better than nothing. But as he scanned the headlines, his brow furrowed.
"Hospital Admissions Surge—Mysterious Infections Up 300%"
"FDA Discovers More Contaminated Crops, Major Recalls Expected"
"Woman Goes Berserk, Kills Husband and Three Others"
Ever since he'd arrived in this world, Bryan had noticed strange infection incidents and violent crimes escalating daily. It made him wonder if his arrival had somehow triggered bizarre changes in this world.
"Here's your breakfast. Make sure you eat it all."
While Bryan was absorbed in the paper, Josie set his plate down in front of him—eggs, donuts, hash browns, and milk. A typical American breakfast.
He couldn't help but roll his eyes. God, how he missed the soymilk, fried dough sticks, and congee from his past life. Not that they were gourmet cuisine, but eating this sugar-bomb, carb-heavy food every single day was getting hard to stomach.
He picked at his food half-heartedly, and the moment Josie's attention was elsewhere, Bryan grabbed his backpack and bolted for the door, ignoring her shouts behind him.
"Hey, Bryan!"
He'd barely closed the front door when someone called his name. Turning, he saw the girl who lived next door.
Her name was Sarah. She had short, honey-blonde hair and a cute face—the first friend Bryan had made since arriving in this world. Well, "friend" might be generous. He'd mostly used their conversations to extract information about his predecessor and the neighborhood.
"Good morning."
Sarah bounced up to him, and Bryan greeted her warmly. Then he noticed the man standing behind her—square-jawed, face covered in a thick beard, staring at him with undisguised suspicion.
The man was Joel, Sarah's father. He seemed to work in construction. Bryan had never seen the man's wife; she was either divorced or deceased.
Under Joel's scrutiny—which felt like being sized up by a butcher eyeing livestock—Bryan's mouth twitched, but he kept his composure and offered a polite greeting.
"Morning, Joel."
Joel stared at him for a long moment, long enough to make Bryan uncomfortable, before finally giving a curt nod. Then he pulled out his phone and started making a call. Though they were some distance apart, Bryan caught fragments about contractors and deadlines.
Sarah had witnessed the entire exchange. She covered her mouth to stifle a giggle, then patted Bryan's shoulder. When he turned to look at her, she smirked.
"My dad doesn't seem to like you very much."
"Yeah, I noticed."
Bryan and Sarah attended the same school. A bus picked up students from the area since they lived in the suburbs near a highway interchange. For safety reasons, everyone gathered at a designated spot. If you missed the pickup time, tough luck—your parents would have to drive you themselves.
"Morning, Jimmy!"
"Hey, Cooper!"
As they walked their usual route, Sarah seemed particularly cheerful today, waving enthusiastically at everyone she recognized.
Once they were alone, she turned to Bryan with a conspiratorial look.
"Hey. I'm planning to sneak out of school and hit the mall today. You in?"
Bryan raised an eyebrow. In the month he'd known her, Sarah had always been a well-behaved kid. He hadn't expected this rebellious streak.
"If you do that, Mrs. Judy is gonna lose her mind."
"Pfft. Only if she catches me."
Sarah had clearly planned this out. She pulled a folded piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to him.
"I snagged this from Mrs. Judy's desk. Take a look."
Bryan unfolded it and immediately understood her confidence:
SCHOOL NOTICE: On September 6th, 2013, at 1:00 PM, all faculty are required to attend a meeting in the conference room. Please arrive promptly.
"You've been scheming, haven't you?"
He waved the notice, impressed. Then curiosity got the better of him. "So why the mall?"
"It's my dad's birthday. I want to get him a present."
"Alright, I'm in. When do we move?"
"I'll let you know."
...
On the bus, Bryan found a seat and gazed out the window at the passing scenery—lush greenery and open spaces he'd never experienced living in a city before. Compared to cold steel and concrete, he much preferred this vibrant landscape.
After a bumpy half-hour ride, they arrived at school. Teachers waited at the gate to escort students to their classrooms.
The education system here was completely different from what Bryan had known. It was... relaxed. Barely any supervision. He could tell American schools prioritized creativity and imagination over rote memorization—a high-level approach versus the foundation-focused system he'd grown up with. Both had their merits.
The morning passed pleasantly enough. At lunch, Bryan stood in the cafeteria staring at the display of burgers and sandwiches with resignation. His stomach was staging a protest, but skipping meals wasn't an option. He'd just have to cook something decent for himself tonight.
After eating, he noticed someone posting a new announcement on the cafeteria bulletin board. Curious, he wandered over once they'd finished.
The notice explained that due to the rapidly worsening outbreak, Austin was entering a state of emergency. Starting in October, the school would close indefinitely. Students were instructed to inform their parents immediately; a hotline was provided for questions.
"It's gotten that bad already?"
Memories of a certain pandemic from his past life surfaced. Bryan decided he'd better stock up on masks. He turned to leave—and found a crowd of students had gathered behind him, reading the notice with barely contained excitement. Some were actually cheering.
He squeezed through the crowd, planning to head back to class, when he felt something jabbing his back. He spun around to find Sarah standing there.
Seeing she had his attention, she pressed a finger to her lips, jerked her chin toward a corner of the cafeteria, and mouthed silently:
"It's go time!"