Adrian woke up with a jolt, his body stiff as if he had been thrown around in his sleep. His heart raced, and he struggled to make sense of what had just happened. The disorienting fog of his memory made him dizzy, the sense of reality slipping through his fingers. He pushed himself up from the bed, his mind reeling from the nightmare or had it been real?
The last thing he remembered was the sharp pain, the coldness of the blade stabbing through his chest. His eyes widened as he instinctively placed a hand over his chest. There was no wound. No sign of injury. His skin was smooth, unmarred. His breath quickened in disbelief as he ran his fingers over his chest and felt nothing but normal, warm flesh.
Impossible…
His head spun as he struggled to stand. He needed to make sense of this, to understand what had happened. His legs wobbled beneath him as he stumbled toward the bathroom, his hands shaking. His face reflected back at him from the mirror, still pale, but no different than before. He leaned closer, studying his eyes, expecting to find some sign of what he had been through. But there was nothing. No blood. No marks. The memories came rushing back the cold steel of the hunter's knife, the sudden pain, the feeling of his heart being pierced. But now, nothing. His chest felt… whole. A cold shiver ran through his body, and his breathing became shallow. He pressed his hand against the cool surface of the sink, trying to steady himself. Was this some sort of dream? Some sort of delusion?
As the confusion clouded his thoughts, his eyes fell to something on the counter, catching his attention: a small piece of paper, slightly crumpled. He reached for it instinctively, unfolding it with shaking hands. The paper was simple, with only a single phone number scrawled across it. No name. No message. Just a phone number. Adrian stared at the number, a sense of unease creeping over him. His mind raced how did it get here? Who had left it? And why? Had someone saved him? He quickly shoved the paper into his pocket, gathering his belongings. He needed to get out of here. Get back to his apartment. There were too many unanswered questions, too many things that didn't make sense. As he made his way out of the motel room, the sun's light hit him full force. His body recoiled as the harsh rays seemed to pierce through him. He squinted against the brightness, feeling an unexpected heaviness settle over his limbs. The weakness was immediate, and the dull ache that spread across his chest made him pause.
What the hell is going on?
Adrian staggered to his motorcycle, fighting the wave of exhaustion that swept over him. The sunlight was unbearable, almost suffocating. He tried to push through it, clenching his teeth and forcing himself to mount the bike. His vision swam for a moment, his body protesting every movement, but he managed to start the engine. The pain from the sun was intense, a strange pressure that weighed on him as he began to ride toward the city. His head pounded with each turn of the wheels, and the sun seemed to drain him more with every passing second. It felt like he was carrying an invisible weight, his energy sapping away. His hands gripped the handlebars tighter, but his body refused to cooperate, the fatigue creeping deeper into his muscles. His breath came in ragged gasps, and despite his best efforts, he couldn't shake the sense of weakness.
The strange symptoms continued to worsen as he neared Sidan City. The oppressive heat of the day combined with his strange physical reactions left him dizzy and disoriented. He barely remembered passing the city outskirts, his mind clouded with exhaustion. The sunlight seemed to make the world around him blur, turning everything a bright, painful haze. Finally, Adrian arrived at his apartment, parking the motorcycle with shaky hands. He stepped off the bike carefully, as if his legs might give way beneath him. He moved to the front door, each step feeling heavier than the last. The exhaustion was unbearable, and his chest still felt tight, as though something inside of him was trying to fight its way out.
Once inside, Adrian locked the door behind him and leaned against it for a moment, trying to catch his breath. The light from the window was harsh, but not as piercing as it had been outside. He shuffled toward the couch, his movements sluggish and uncoordinated, and collapsed onto it, closing his eyes for just a moment. But as he sat there, the confusion from the morning and the events of the night beforerushed back to him in full force. His mind whirled with questions he couldn't answer, his heart pounding with an unfamiliar sense of fear. The paper with the phone number felt like a puzzle he couldn't solve. His chest, his body, his mind nothing felt right. The wounds, the blood, the pain from the knife… why was he completely healed? Why was the sunlight affecting him so strangely?Everything was changing. And Adrian couldn't stop it.He glanced toward his phone, the number still burning in his pocket. Should he call it? What would it even mean? Who had left it for him? The thought gnawed at him, but another part of him part of his confusion and fear wanted to ignore it all. But he couldn't. Not now. Not when he was so far from understanding anything that had happened to him. With a heavy sigh, Adrian pulled out his phone, staring at the screen. The number was still there, staring back at him, waiting for him to make a choice.With a trembling finger, he dialed the number.
The phone rang once, twice… then picked up.
"Hello?" The voice on the other end was calm, yet somehow familiar.
"Who is this?" Adrian's voice was strained, thick with exhaustion.
There was a brief pause, and then the voice responded, with a hint of amusement, "You really have no idea what's going on, do you?"
Adrian froze. The words felt like an electric shock.
"Who is this?" he repeated, his tone growing more desperate.
The voice chuckled lightly. "You'll understand soon enough. Just don't trust everything you see."
The line went dead.
Adrian stared at the phone in his hand, his body suddenly going cold. The weight of what had just been said hit him all at once.