The café was unusually quiet that afternoon. Lila stood behind the counter, humming softly as she wiped the table. After her strange burnout moment yesterday—when the number 4114 sent chills through her—she had tried to brush it off as exhaustion.
But the feeling still lingered.
The bell above the café door jingled.
Lila looked up automatically, a customer-service smile forming on her lips.
But the moment she saw the person entering, the smile froze.
A tall man walked in—broad shoulders, pale skin, wearing a long dark coat despite the warm weather. He had soft black hair and a gentle but unreadable expression, as if he were constantly thinking of something far away.
He looked strangely familiar.
Lila frowned.
"Good afternoon… What can I get for you?"
The man stepped forward, his gaze sharp but calm.
"One Americano, please."
She nodded and turned to prepare the drink. But while she worked, she felt his eyes on her—watching her movements closely, almost studying her.
When she handed the coffee over the counter, their fingers brushed.
And something electric sparked.
Lila inhaled sharply.
A strange flash shot through her mind—like she'd touched someone important, someone connected to the numbers that haunted her.
The man noticed her flinch.
He smiled faintly.
"Are you alright?"
Lila nodded quickly but her voice shook.
"Y–yes. Just… a little tired."
He didn't take his coffee immediately.
Instead, he leaned closer, lowering his voice.
"You wrote something yesterday… didn't you?"
Lila froze.
Her heart skipped.
He knows.
He knows about the number she wrote by accident—4114.
She swallowed hard.
"…W–what?"
The man finally picked up his cup, wrapping his long fingers around it.
"You seem like someone who has seen something you're not supposed to," he murmured.
Her throat tightened.
"I don't understand."
The man's eyes softened—not threatening, but full of an unsettling sadness.
"You will," he said quietly.
"Soon."
He turned to leave.
But at the door, he hesitated and looked back.
"Take care, Lila."
Lila's breath stopped.
She never told him her name.
The door closed behind him, leaving the café silent again.
But Lila stood still, heart pounding, the cup still warm in her hands.
Who was he?
And how did he know her name… and her mistake?
The number 4114 pulsed in her mind again, stronger than before.
---
Classes had just ended for the day.
The students scattered from the lecture hall, chatting, laughing, shoving notebooks into their bags.
Nira gathered her papers neatly, placing them into her folder when her phone vibrated.
She glanced at the screen, expecting a message from her department.
Instead, she saw Agani's name.
Her heart dropped before she even opened it.
The message read:
"Re-ha collapsed. We're taking her to the hospital."
The entire hallway around her felt like it blurred for a moment.
Her lungs tightened, refusing to fill.
Her fingers trembled around the phone.
Collapsed?
Re-ha?
Nira swallowed hard, trying to stop the wave of fear rising inside her.
She immediately slung her bag over her shoulder and rushed out of the classroom.
As she turned the corner, she collided with someone—papers flew everywhere.
"Oh—sorry, sorry—!"
Nira looked up.
It was Lila, breathing heavily, eyes wide and glassy.
They stared at each other for a single second.
Just one.
And in that second, they both understood without speaking.
"You saw the message?" Nira whispered.
Lila nodded, voice trembling.
"Let's go. Right now."
They didn't waste another breath.
They ran across the wide campus courtyard, their footsteps echoing off the stone pathways, the cold afternoon air burning their lungs.
Not one word was exchanged on the way.
Fear didn't need language.
---
Scene 2: Hospital Hallway
The hospital corridor was too bright and too quiet, the kind of quiet that made every heartbeat feel loud.
Nurses passed by in crisp uniforms.
A distant monitor beeped softly.
Everything smelled like antiseptic and cold metal.
Nira and Lila spotted Agani near the waiting area.
Her hands were clasped tightly together, knees bouncing slightly—her nervous habit.
When she saw them, her shoulders fell with relief.
But her face… her face was pale.
"Is she okay?" Nira asked immediately.
Agani inhaled deeply, voice trembling.
"She fainted on the spot. I—I tried calling her name but she wasn't answering. I thought—"
Lila hugged her suddenly.
No words, just warmth.
When they pulled away, Agani wiped her eyes.
"She's awake now. Weak, but awake."
They walked together to Room 204.
Re-ha lay on the bed, an IV connected to her arm.
Her skin had lost its usual glow, replaced by a faint paleness.
But she smiled when she saw them.
Soft. Tired. But real.
"Why are you all looking at me like that?" she joked weakly.
"I'm not dying."
Lila's eyes filled with tears instantly.
"We were so scared!"
Nira sat beside her and gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"What happened?"
Her voice wasn't demanding. Just… concerned.
Re-ha took a slow breath.
"I saw Agani's pendant."
Agani tensed immediately.
Her hand moved subconsciously to her neck where her pendant hung under her shirt.
"My pendant?"
Re-ha nodded.
"It flashed for a moment… and then everything around me started to blur. I saw something—like… images. But they weren't mine."
She closed her eyes.
"A hallway… a long one. The sound of footsteps. Someone running. I smelled smoke. And then… someone screaming."
Lila covered her mouth.
Agani froze.
Nira's hand tightened around the bedsheet.
Re-ha continued in a whisper:
"It felt like a memory. But I've never seen anything like that before."
Silence fell like a heavy veil.
Nira finally spoke.
"Maybe… maybe it's connected to everything else happening."
Lila nodded slowly.
"The letter… the number… the map…"
Agani's voice turned hollow.
"And now this."
They all looked at each other.
Fear.
Confusion.
A feeling that something far bigger was beginning.
Something that involved all of them.
---
Scene 3: Outside the Hospital Room
They stepped out to let Re-ha rest.
Agani leaned against the wall, feeling guilty, exhausted.
Lila rubbed her shoulders gently while Nira paced quietly.
After a minute, Nira spoke softly.
"Agani… the pendant. Where did you get it?"
Agani hesitated.
"I don't know."
The other two looked at her sharply.
"What do you mean?" Lila asked.
Agani stared at the floor.
"I've always had it… I don't remember when I got it. Not the first moment. It's like… it's always been with me."
That silence again.
Heavy. Cold.
Nira finally whispered:
"Something is connecting us. And it didn't start now."
---
Scene 4: The Apartment
Far from the safety of the hospital…
A tall building stood silent against the evening sky.
One of its windows glowed faintly.
Inside the dim apartment, a young man sat on the sofa, elbows on his knees, staring intently at something in his hands.
A photograph.
Nira's photograph.
His eyes traced every detail—
her calm expression,
her soft smile,
the way her hair fell over her shoulder.
He touched the picture gently, almost reverently.
Like someone who had been waiting.
For too long.
A soft click echoed through the apartment.
The door had opened.
The young man didn't turn around immediately, but he quickly slid the photograph onto the table face-down.
Footsteps entered.
Calm. Slow. Heavy.
A second figure stepped inside.
A tall man with broad shoulders and pale skin.
His long dark coat brushed the floor softly as he moved.
His black hair covered part of his forehead, his eyes deep and unreadable.
He scanned the room once, then walked straight toward the far wall.
A massive board covered nearly the entire surface.
It was filled with:
Maps.
Red strings.
Old documents.
Blurred photographs.
Newspaper clippings.
And at the center—
Four photographs pinned next to one another:
Agani
Nira
Lila
Re-ha
The tall man stared at the board with an expression neither angry nor pleased.
Just… inevitable.
He spoke quietly.
"We need to meet them soon."
His voice was low, steady.
Dangerously calm.
The boy finally stood from the sofa and walked over as well.
He stopped beside the older man, eyes locked on Nira's photo.
When he spoke, his voice was cold — but underneath, a trembling obsession hid.
"Soon," he repeated.
"I want to see her."
His fingers brushed Nira's picture on the board.
A small smile — almost tender, almost terrifying — tugged at his lips.
The tall man glanced at him sideways.
"Don't rush."
"I'm not rushing," the boy murmured, eyes still fixed on the photo.
"I'm preparing."
The older man's gaze hardened.
"They're remembering. Slowly."
The boy's expression darkened with a mix of excitement and impatience.
"Good."
They both stared at the four photographs.
Four women whose lives were weaving closer to a truth they didn't yet understand.
A truth these two men knew.
A truth these two men had been waiting for.
The tall man whispered:
"Time is aligning again."
The younger one added softly:
"Let's see how long until they notice us."
--