Kazuki woke up in pitch-black darkness. He furrowed his brow, confused by his surroundings. "Where am I? Is this a dream?" he thought, feeling something was off. Carefully, he tried to stand, groping with his hands to figure out what was around him. But all that greeted him was an endless void; no sound, no light, just emptiness.
Suddenly, a mysterious voice echoed in the silent space. "Who are you?!"
Startled, Kazuki looked around in every direction. "Huh?! Whose voice is that?" he shouted, trying to find the source of the voice, but nothing was visible. "I'm asking you, who are you?! Show yourself!"
At that moment, Kazuki felt panic envelop him. His previously calm chest now felt like it was buzzing, as if something was burning from within. "What's happening to me?!" He clutched his chest, feeling the heat intensifying. In an instant, a sharp pain struck him, causing him to fall to the floor in the darkness. A sound of agony escaped his lips, filling the empty space.
After a while, Kazuki woke up gasping for breath. When he opened his eyes, a soft light greeted him. "Am I at Grandpa Fujita's house? When did I come back?" he thought, confused. He looked around, trying to remember what had happened. "Eh, did I fall asleep on the sofa?" he wondered, realizing his uncomfortable position.
"Oh, you're awake, huh?" A familiar voice greeted his ears. Kazuki turned to see Fujita, the owner of the house, standing in front of him with a surprised expression.
"What's wrong with you?" Fujita asked, noticing Kazuki's face looked different than usual.
"Why does your face look like that?!" Kazuki replied, confusion overwhelming him.
"That should be my question!" Fujita raised an eyebrow, puzzled by the change in Kazuki.
"How would I know? I suddenly woke up looking like this!" Kazuki glanced at the mirror on his phone and was shocked to see his reflection. His hair was now black with some white strands, and his eyes looked dark.
"Why are you two so noisy?!" A voice came from Rin, who just came down the stairs, still sleepy. "Hey, Rin, take a look at Kazuki's face now!" Fujita exclaimed, trying to grab Rin's attention.
"Huh? What happened to you, Kazuki? I don't remember your face looking like this last night!" Rin replied.
"My hair is now black, but there are some white strands. My eyes have also turned dark!" Kazuki explained, still fixated on his strange appearance.
"This is the second time my body has changed. This is weird! If my body changes, shouldn't yours change too?" Kazuki stared at Rin.
"I don't know about that. We both took the same medicine, but why are you the only one who has changed twice?" Rin answered, looking puzzled and anxious.
"Try to remember what you did last night. Anything at all?" Fujita suggested in a serious tone.
"I'll try to remember." Kazuki closed his eyes, trying to recall every detail of the previous night. However, as he strained to remember, a sudden sharp pain struck his head, as if something was stabbing him. All memories of that night seemed to vanish, as if erased from his mind. He held his head, feeling blood flowing from his eyes.
"Kazuki, your eyes!" Rin screamed, seeing the blood trickling down Kazuki's face.
"Huh?!" Kazuki stared at his hands now covered in blood. "What is happening to me?!"
"Do we need to go to the hospital? You look unwell," Fujita said, his face showing concern.
"Yeah, I'm not feeling well either. Something seems wrong inside you," Rin added.
"No need, I think I'll be fine," Kazuki replied. "Don't worry about me, I can take care of myself." After that, Kazuki headed upstairs and entered his room.
"He's so stubborn," Rin said, shaking her head as she listened to Kazuki's door close.
"That's just how he is. Since he was little, he always took care of himself," Fujita reminisced about Kazuki's past. "When he got hurt, he would treat himself. The reason he does that might be because he doesn't want his parents to worry, and he doesn't want to disturb his busy parents."
Rin fell silent, pondering with a blank expression.
Minutes later, Kazuki decided to leave the house. He went to the nearest store to buy hair dye. After purchasing several colors, he returned home. However, when he tried to dye his white hair, he was shocked to find that the black dye seemed to be absorbed by his white hair.
"What is this? This white hair cannot be removed!" Kazuki was now very confused. "Why is this happening?!" Kazuki tried to find a solution while leaving the bathroom and heading downstairs for lunch.
Today, Kazuki and Rin did not go to school due to illness. "Oh, Fujita, do you have a bicycle? I want to borrow yours to go to my parents' house to get my things," Kazuki asked with a flat expression.
"Eh, sure. Just use it," Fujita replied with a smile. "Why don't you take Rin with you?"
Rin was surprised by that question. "Why should I go?" she asked, feeling unnecessary to be involved.
"Rin, you should go with him. You've been at home for the past few days; it's not good for a girl to stay home and do nothing. At least you should get out and take a walk," Fujita explained, trying to convince Rin.
"So what, Kazuki? Are you going to take her?!"
"It's up to you," Kazuki replied nonchalantly, feeling indifferent about the situation.
"So you agree you will take her to your parents' house, right? If she wants to come, then so be it," Kazuki said.
"In that case, Rin, do you want to go to my parents' house?" Kazuki asked.
Rin thought for a moment, then replied, "Okay, I'll go."
By the way, Kazuki's little brother had already gone to school, escorted by Grandpa Fujita.
A few minutes later...
Rin had changed clothes, wearing an outfit that suited her, looking very covered up. Kazuki observed her from outside. "That looks good on you," Kazuki tried to give her a compliment.
"Thank you, but I don't need your praise," Rin replied coldly, though there was a slight smile on her face.
"Hmm, is she shy?" Kazuki thought, recalling his mother's advice always to compliment women who changed clothes. "Whatever, let's go." Rin got on the bike and sat behind Kazuki.
"Hold onto my shirt if you don't want to fall!" Kazuki reminded her as Rin slowly grasped the edge of his shirt. With caution, they set off on the bike, feeling the wind touch their faces.
An hour later...
They finally arrived at Kazuki's parents' house. After getting off the bike, they started walking towards the door.
Before Kazuki could knock, the door suddenly swung open.
"Welcome, you two!" Kazuki's mother exclaimed, opening the door with a broad smile. "Fujita called to tell me you both would be coming."
"Yeah, it seems like mom can't lie about that," Kazuki replied with a flat expression. "Come on, let's go inside," his mother said, inviting them into the house.
"For some reason, I feel very uncomfortable around you, mom!!!" Kazuki thought to himself. "Why do you think that about your mother?" Kazuki noticed the expression on his mother's face, which looked displeased.
After that, they all entered the house with a mixed atmosphere. Kazuki felt that something was off.