Chapter 1- Prologue
Crack... Croc
There are cracks of chips in the background and sounds of chewing. The back light of the monitor highlighted his spectacled face. His fat face looks pale, having received little natural light over the years. He is 39 now, soon turning 40.
He had a name, but that didn't matter now. So, when did this fall start? He didn't remember, but slowly he started going out less, lost interest in pushing himself, doing things that interested him, kind of a quiet quitting. He was not bullied, he had no great trauma, but it all started to feel meaningless. His parents had made enough for him to survive; food and basic survival were not his worries, so he chose to quit life itself. His parents tried to push him out; they called psychologists and psychiatrists; the meds only helped to put him on more weight. Slowly, friends stopped calling, and parents mirrored his apathy.
Time became a whirlwind for him, the stories forming to become a substitute reality. He started to consume them more. Movies, anime and webnovels all sucked into the centre of the storm. Becoming fodder for the mind.
His parents blamed themselves for their only son becoming a shut-in; they thought they had done something wrong. But their only mistake was providing him stability. Without realising it, they died quite young. He was annoyed at them for dying at that time, because he had to go out to the funeral. "He really is a bastard…."
As he was chewing his last snacks he felt his chest tighten. He was surprised. There should have been no pain. Then why?...
He fell down from his chair.
The back light now illuminated the green-coated chips.
He crawled forward towards his phone, and he desperately remembered he had a name. He is just ....., a human like any other with the instinct of any other life form. To survive. ....But he realised the phone was on the table. Maybe if he had been a few pounds lighter, he might have had a chance. He tried to shout to activate the voice assistant or anything, but only wheezing air came out of his mouth. He looked towards the monitor, there it was, his favourite anime playing. He wanted to see at least the majestic look of Madara one last time as he fought the Shinobi Alliance, but what he saw was Rasa getting sealed by Gaara....
"What a waste..." he muttered and closed his eyes.