Chapter 22 – The Whisper Beneath the Skin
Riku had never been one to get nervous over dreams. He used to laugh them off, even the wild ones with dragons and shadowy figures. But tonight was different.
This dream felt… alive.
He stood in a crimson meadow, each blade of grass glowing faintly like embers. In the distance, a tree stretched into the sky—its branches twisted like veins, and from it, scarlet flowers rained endlessly.
He heard her voice again.
"Don't forget… you made a promise, Riku."
He turned, but there was no one there.
Only a mirror.
Inside it, his reflection looked back—except it wasn't him. Not exactly.
The eyes were sharper. Fiercer. There was something ancient in them. On his chest, a glowing red symbol pulsed like a second heartbeat.
He woke up gasping.
Sweat clung to his shirt. The crane on his desk was floating.
He blinked.
Not hovering.
Floating.
He reached out—and it dropped suddenly, as if caught red-handed.
The window rattled.
Then it burst open with a gust of wind, scattering pages from his notebook. One flew straight to his face.
It had a symbol drawn on it.
The same symbol from the dream.
Riku backed away. "What… the hell is going on?"
He grabbed his phone. It was 4:03 a.m. He scrolled through his contacts and clicked Airi's name.
But the call didn't even ring.
It connected immediately.
"…You saw it too, didn't you?" she said, quietly.
"Yeah," he whispered. "What is this? What's happening to me?"
There was silence. Then her voice came, softer than he'd ever heard it.
"It's starting. The Bloom. Your body… it's waking up."
"My body? Bloom? What are you talking about—"
"Do you remember when your brother disappeared?"
His heart skipped.
"…What does he have to do with this?"
"Everything," she said. "He was the first one chosen. And now… it's your turn."
The call ended before he could scream at her to stay.
He sat there in the dark, staring at the crane that had just floated like it was no big deal.
He opened his palm.
The symbol from the dream was there—barely glowing, pulsing like a hidden tattoo beneath the skin.
Scarlet.
Alive.
---
The next morning at school was anything but normal.
Sora and Yuki had apparently had nightmares too—burning flowers, stormy skies, strange voices whispering things they couldn't understand. Ren had a bloody nose the moment he stepped on campus.
And Airi?
She looked more distant than ever.
But when their eyes met in the hallway, she whispered just one word.
"Soon."
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