Sam awoke with a start, his mind still reeling from the bizarre events that had led him to this place. He felt disoriented, as if he had been dropped into the middle of a dream. The first thing he noticed was that he was lying on a soft bed, the mattress firm yet comfortable. He blinked a few times, trying to shake off the grogginess, and took in his surroundings.
The room was small and sparsely furnished, with wooden walls that gave off a warm, cozy feel. To his left was a small window, through which the moon light filtered in, casting a soft glow across the room.
Directly in front of him was a bunk bed, and on the top bunk, a boy about his age—or at least, what he assumed was his age now—lay sleeping soundly.Sam frowned, confused by the sight.
"Where am I? And why is everything so... big?" He slowly pushed himself up, intending to stand, but as soon as he tried to get out of bed, his legs gave out beneath him. He tumbled to the floor with a loud thud, the impact jarring but not particularly painful.
The noise startled the boy in the bunk bed, who groggily rubbed his eyes and peered down at Sam with a sleepy expression. "Satoru? What are you doing on the floor?" the boy mumbled, his voice thick with sleep.Sam froze. "Satoru? Who's Satoru?" he thought, but before he could dwell on the question, the boy's face came into full view.
As their eyes met, something strange happened.It was as if a floodgate had opened in his mind. Suddenly, memories that were not his own surged forward, overwhelming his senses. Images flashed before his eyes—laughing with the boy, training in a small courtyard, crying over a skinned knee—all memories that belonged to someone else, someone named Satoru.
Sam's head spun as he tried to make sense of it all. The memories kept coming, each one sharper than the last, until he could hardly distinguish between his own thoughts and those of this other person. He knew, in a way that was both unsettling and certain, that the body he now inhabited belonged to a five-year-old boy named Satoru, a boy who lived in the leaf village during a time of great conflict.The shock of the realization was too much.
Sam's vision blurred, and his thoughts jumbled into a chaotic mess. "This... this isn't happening..." he tried to tell himself, but the truth was undeniable. The life of Satoru had become entwined with his own.The last thing he saw before everything went black was the concerned face of the boy above him, who was now wide awake, calling out to him with worry.
Sam slowly regained consciousness, his head throbbing and his body feeling oddly heavy. As his eyes fluttered open, he realized he was lying on a cot in a small room filled with the smell of herbs and disinfectant. The dim light filtering through the curtains suggested it was still early morning.
He blinked, trying to clear the fog from his mind. "Where am I now?" he wondered, panic rising in his chest as the unfamiliar surroundings pressed in on him. But before he could dwell too much on his disorientation, he heard a soft voice beside him."Satoru, are you okay?"Sam turned his head to see Tatsuo, the boy from the bunk bed, sitting beside him with a worried expression. It took a moment for Sam to remember that Tatsuo was a friend—or rather, he had been Satoru's friend.
The concern in Tatsuo's eyes made Sam feel a pang of guilt. He wasn't Satoru, after all, just someone who had taken over his body.Before Sam could think of how to respond, another voice broke through his thoughts. "Satoru, dear, how are you feeling?"Sam looked up to see a woman standing at the foot of his bed, her face lined with worry. She had a warm, motherly presence, with gentle eyes and a soft smile that was tinged with concern.
This was Aunty Hana, the owner of the orphanage where Satoru had lived. Her presence brought back more memories, filling in the gaps of Satoru's short life."I... I'm fine," Sam managed to say, though his voice sounded small and uncertain, even to his own ears. He was still trying to process everything, the memories of Satoru's life swirling in his mind, confusing him further.
Aunty Hana frowned, clearly not convinced. "You gave us quite a scare, Satoru. Tatsuo found you passed out, burning up with a fever. What happened? Did you hurt yourself?"Sam opened his mouth to respond but found himself at a loss for words. What could he say? That he wasn't really Satoru, that he had somehow ended up in this boy's body from another world? The thought was absurd, even to him. Instead, he simply shook his head, unable to articulate the whirlwind of emotions and confusion he was feeling.
Aunty Hana sighed, still concerned but not wanting to push him too much. Just then, the door to the infirmary opened, and a nurse walked in, holding a clipboard. She gave Sam a quick once-over before nodding to Aunty Hana."He's free to go now," the nurse said. "The fever has broken, and he just needs some rest. Take it easy, Satoru."Aunty Hana nodded in thanks before carefully picking Sam up in her arms. It was a strange sensation—being carried like a child—when just hours ago, he had been a teenager. Sam didn't resist, though; he was too overwhelmed to do much of anything.
As they made their way back to the room he now shared with Tatsuo, Sam's thoughts drifted to the memories he had of Satoru's life. It was a simple life, filled with the day-to-day struggles of an orphan in a world that was both beautiful and brutal. Satoru had known loss from a young age, just like Sam had, but he had also found warmth in the small moments—playing with Tatsuo, listening to Aunty Hana's stories, and dreaming of one day becoming strong enough to protect the people he cared about.Sam felt a lump form in his throat.
'This boy… he had dreams, a life ahead of him… and now I'm here, in his place.' The weight of the responsibility pressed down on him, and for a moment, he felt like he couldn't breathe. He had already lost his own world, his grandmother… and now he had taken someone else's life, even if by accident.'I have to find a way to make this right,' Sam thought, determination slowly replacing his initial panic. 'If I'm going to be in this world, in this body, I need to honor Satoru's life. I need to protect these people like he wanted to. And maybe… maybe I'll find a way back to my own world.'
Lost in thought, Sam barely noticed when they reached the room. Aunty Hana gently laid him down on his bed and tucked him in, her warm smile returning."Rest now, Satoru. Everything will be okay," she said softly before leaving the room with the nurse.
Tatsuo, who had followed them back, sat on the edge of the bed, still watching Sam with concern. "If you need anything, just wake me up, okay?"Sam nodded, feeling a strange mix of gratitude and guilt. Tatsuo smiled, though it didn't quite reach his eyes, before climbing up to his bunk.As Sam lay there, staring up at the ceiling, he couldn't shake the feeling that his journey had only just begun. But this time, he wasn't alone.