"Damnit! Damnit! Damnit...!"

Cursing under my breath, I darted between pedestrians after pedestrian, weaving through the crowded concrete pavement like a madman.

"Outta my way!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, though my voice was drowned out by the relentless honking of cars and the rumble of elevated trains overhead.

While many ignored my crazed advance, some heads did turn toward me.

Their gazes carried a mix of annoyance, curiosity, and even amusement. Though only a few spared fleeting glances of sympathy, probably recognizing the universal look of someone desperately late.

Yup... I was late for class.

'Of all days to be late, why today?!'

My lungs burned with every gasp. My legs weren't faring much better, screaming in protest as I pushed them harder. And in the back of my mind, the same thought kept looping over and over:

I should've just gone to bed earlier.

But nope.

I had to binge the entire season of Cyber Blades last night.

And now?

Here I was, sprinting like my life depended on it.

Maybe it did.

Missing this exam wouldn't just wreck my semester grades—it would ruin me. And the worst part? Mom. If I didn't pass this semester, she'd kill me. Slowly. Painfully. Maybe even literally.

Then I saw it: the alleyway.

Dark, narrow, and nestled behind the old concrete apartment buildings, it loomed ahead like a lifeline. I knew this place. I passed it all the time on my way to campus...

But I had never gone through it.

Technically, it was a shortcut.

According to online maps, it could shave ten whole minutes off my journey.

But there was a reason I'd never dared to take it.

Nobody did, even.

The alley had a reputation—a bad one. Haunted, some said. Gang territory, said others.

They whispered about people who vanished without a trace... swallowed by the darkness, never to be seen again.

No one had ever proved those rumors. Then again, no one wanted to try. Its infamy was enough to keep people away.

But right now?

I didn't care.

Desperation overrode fear.

Without thinking twice, I veered into the shadowy passage, plunging into its depths without hesitation.

Darkness enveloped me instantly.

The warm glow of the morning sun disappeared as if snuffed out, leaving me in suffocating gloom. Only the faintest ambient light guided my steps, barely enough to see where I was going... but it would have to do.

It was barren... to say the very least. I could see a few rows of backdoors and garages belonging to the old apartment buildings, dumpsters lined up sporadically, and several air conditioning units sticking out from the walls above.

It was somewhat a relief to see these small signs of life in this infamous alleyway... but unfortunately, they did little to dispel the eerie vibe this narrow, straight-line path gave off.

In fact... it felt odd. I knew people lived in these buildings, yet this alleyway screamed lifeless.

"Don't think too much about it, Zane..." I whispered to myself, maintaining a steady running pace as I ventured deeper into the unsettling path.

I had to focus on what lay ahead—a straight beeline to the other side.

The exit.

I could see it clearly. The light pouring in from the end of the alley was almost inviting, like the promise of salvation. Hell, it almost looked like the gates to another world, beckoning me to step through and leave this grim corridor behind.

With the beacon of hope in my sight, I put even more power into my aching legs. Every muscle screamed in protest again, but I continued to ignore it. I'd deal with the aftermath later—Future Me could handle the regret and muscle cramps.

Right now, the only thing that mattered was making it to that light...!

And so... I continued to run even faster. Faster than I'd ever run before. The air around me seemed to thin, whipping past my ears as though trying to keep up with my desperate pace.

The end of the alley grew closer with each step I took, bringing me nearer to salvation... My breath came in short, ragged gasps, the pounding of my heart echoing in my ears like a war drum—

But then something shifted in my sight.

"What the hell...?!"

A strange, rippling distortion suddenly appeared right in the middle of the path. At first, I thought it was some kind of heatwave, like the ones you'd see rising off hot asphalt in the summer.

But this was different.

It looked like a floating giant wormhole, its edges shimmering faintly, as though someone had painted the very air with a brush dipped in bluish light. The same bluish glow pulsed softly from its center, casting eerie shadows on the alley walls...!

I barely had time to process more of what I was seeing. My momentum carried me forward, and there was no way I could stop in time...!

I tried to force my feet into an emergency break, but the slick pavement betrayed me.

"Woah—!"

I stumbled, arms flailing... as I plunged headfirst into the unknown.

The moment I passed through the bluish hole, everything shifted.

The world around me dissolved into a whirlpool of light and sound. It was like being sucked into a spinning kaleidoscope, every shade of blue swirling in chaotic harmony. My ears rang with a strange hum—low, steady, and otherworldly—like the universe itself was vibrating...

And for a moment, I felt weightless.

Like an astronaut from those old movie reels as they ventured to the moon...

But right now, I was too disoriented to even enjoy this strange feeling. In fact, any longer in this swirling chaos, and I'd lose what little grip I had on reality.

The colors, the hum, the weightlessness—it all pressed against my mind, threatening to shatter it. I could feel my sanity slipping, unraveling with every passing second.

I would've screamed in fear and insanity as my thoughts spiraled further into panic—

But then, just as suddenly as it started, it was over.