Chapter 19 – Whispers Beneath the Bloom
The sun had long dipped behind the horizon by the time Riku reached home. The warmth from earlier felt like a distant memory. He tossed his bag beside the door and flopped onto his bed, still clutching the little red crane Airi gave him.
He hadn't told anyone about the flicker he saw. That strange ripple in the air near her. Maybe it was just his imagination. But the way the paper crane had twitched in his hand—that wasn't normal.
He set it on the table and stared at it.
"Why does everything feel… off?" he muttered.
As if in answer, the crane's wings trembled slightly again.
Riku froze. "Nope. Not my imagination."
Before he could react further, his phone buzzed.
Unknown ID:
> "You felt it, didn't you? The Bloom stirs around you."
Riku's blood ran cold.
He tapped to reply, but another message came before he could type.
Unknown ID:
> "She's one of them. So are you. But you don't remember yet."
> "Not all powers are gifts. Some are warnings."
He backed away from the phone, now glowing faintly blue at the edges. A soft hum began vibrating from the device. The crane on his table unfolded slightly—as if stretching its wings.
"Enough," he muttered, grabbing it.
And just as he touched it, a vision flashed through his mind.
A burning field. Red skies. A girl standing barefoot in the ash, holding a blood-soaked flower. Her face was hidden—but her voice echoed loud and clear.
> "If you ever awaken… remember our promise."
Riku gasped, stumbling back. The room returned to normal. His phone was dark again. The crane still. Only his rapid breathing filled the silence.
A knock sounded at his door.
"Riku?" his mother called softly.
"Y-Yeah, I'm fine."
But he wasn't.
That night, he couldn't sleep.
---
Meanwhile…
At another house not too far away, Airi sat alone in her room, her window open to the night breeze. Her eyes were blank, distant.
In her palm, a similar crane rested. Only hers was pure white—and glowing.
She didn't remember folding it.
And as it glowed brighter, a voice whispered through the wind.
> "The Bloom remembers what you've forgotten."
---