The stairs creaked under my feet—exactly the same way they used to creak ten years ago. Every step felt unreal, like I was walking through a memory instead of the present.
I reached the bottom floor and froze.
My mother stood by the kitchen counter, humming softly while flipping pancakes. Her hair was tied up in a messy bun, just the way she always wore it on weekends. Sunlight spilled through the small window, reflecting off her warm brown skin.
She looked… alive.
I swallowed hard.
The last time I saw her in my original timeline, she was pale, frail, lying in a hospital bed with tubes everywhere.
"Aria?" She turned. "Are you okay? You're staring at me like I grew a second head."
A laugh slipped out of me—shaky, too emotional. "I'm just… glad to see you."
She blinked, confused. "You live here. You see me every day." She reached out and brushed my cheek. "Did you have a bad dream?"
If only she knew.
"I'm fine," I managed. "Really."
I sat down at the small dining table, taking in every detail—the little flower vase I broke years later, the faded tablecloth, the chipped mug my sister always fought over. All these things that once annoyed me felt precious now.
My mom placed a plate in front of me. "Eat. You have a long day ahead."
"Long day?" I asked.
"Yes," she said, raising a brow. "You're starting your first week at Aster Academy today."
Aster Academy.
My heart stopped.
That school was where everything began in the original timeline.
My friendship with Lysandra.
My painful mistakes.
My downfall.
And… where I met Kael Drayden.
The name alone in my mind sent a faint ache across my chest.
I took a deep breath. "Right. My… first week."
A glowing thread appeared as I reached for my fork—soft gold, barely visible, faint as morning light. It stretched from me to the window, as if pointing outside.
The moment I blinked, it disappeared again.
Mom didn't see it. No one could see it.
Only me.
ThreadSight.
The Weaver's gift… or curse.
I forced myself to eat despite the tightness in my throat.
Halfway through my pancakes, the front door swung open with a loud bang.
"Ariaaaa! Are you ready? We're going to be late!"
Eva burst in like a whirlwind, her backpack bouncing, her curly hair flying everywhere. My little sister looked exactly the way I remembered her at thirteen—bright, chaotic, full of life.
In the old timeline, she lost her happiness too early. After our mother fell sick, after my life collapsed… everything changed.
But right now, she was smiling.
"Eva," I whispered.
She paused mid-rant. "Why do you look like you saw a ghost?"
Instead of answering, I got up and hugged her tightly. "I missed you," I murmured.
"You literally saw me last night." She squirmed. "Why are you hugging me? Ew, emotions."
I laughed, actually laughed—a sound that felt foreign after so many years.
Eva studied me, suspicious. "You're acting weird."
"Let's just go," I said, grabbing my bag.
As we stepped outside, sunlight warmed my face. The neighborhood looked younger. Cleaner. Not yet damaged by the future.
A gentle breeze brushed past, and the golden thread reappeared—leading down the street.
I frowned. "Eva, wait."
She groaned. "What now—?"
But then she froze.
Because someone stepped out from behind a parked car.
A tall, striking figure in a black uniform jacket.
My heart lurched.
Kael Drayden.
Even from a distance, he had the same magnetic presence—dark hair slightly tousled, sharp eyes that missed nothing, posture relaxed yet intimidating.
He wasn't looking at me.
But something inside me reacted anyway.
A pull.
A familiarity.
A memory of a life only I remembered.
The golden thread brightened, stretching straight from me toward him.
Eva squinted. "Who is—oh. That's the Drayden guy. He moved into the estate last month, remember?" She nudged me. "People say his family's loaded. And scary."
Loaded was an understatement.
His family practically ruled half the city, but beneath that wealth… was magic.
Old magic.
Dangerous magic.
He walked toward us slowly, expression unreadable.
I couldn't move.
In my first life, he barely noticed me at this age. We didn't cross paths until much later. So why was he here now?
Eva tugged my sleeve. "Do we… say hi? Or do we run?"
Before I could respond, Kael stopped directly in front of me.
"Aria Vale," he said.
My heart nearly jumped out of my chest. "Y-yes?"
He studied me with a strange intensity, as if searching my face for something. His gaze was cool, but not unkind—just… observant.
"You dropped this."
He held out a small silver pin shaped like a star.
My breath froze.
The star pin.
I lost this on the day my life changed forever.
I hadn't even noticed it was missing yet.
I reached for it slowly. "Thank you."
As my fingers touched his, the golden thread flared—bright, blinding—
Kael flinched. Just slightly.
His eyes widened, confusion flickering across his features.
He felt something.
Not saw.
But felt.
The same way he used to sense me nearing danger in the old timeline.
"I…" he muttered softly, almost to himself. "Strange."
"What is?" I asked.
He shook his head, expression returning to impassive. "Nothing. You should get going. The Academy gates close early."
Before I could say another word, he turned and walked away.
Eva exhaled dramatically. "Okay, wow. I thought he was going to arrest you with his face."
I wasn't listening.
I stared at the fading golden thread between us.
A thread that didn't exist in the original timeline.
Something had changed.
Something big.
And it wasn't just me.
Kael Drayden—
the man who never noticed me until it was too late—
had looked at me today like he recognized something he shouldn't.
I pressed the star pin against my chest.
This life was already different.
And fate… was already moving.