The world was silent. Not quiet. Not peaceful.
Silent.
The fluorescent lights above my desk flickered once, then froze mid-buzz, like someone had pressed pause on reality itself.
My coworkers were statues.
One of them was halfway through standing up. Another was mid-sip with a paper cup hovering inches from their lips.
Time had stopped. But I hadn't.
I stared at my desk phone as it rang.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
The sound echoed unnaturally through the frozen office.
I didn't know why, but something inside me told me the call was meant for me.
So, I picked it up.
UNKNOWN CALLER:
You shouldn't exist.
MC:
...Who is this?
UNKNOWN CALLER:
That's the wrong question.
MC:
Then what's the right one?
UNKNOWN CALLER:
Why didn't the system delete you?
The line crackled softly.
A strange chill crawled down my spine.
I glanced around the office again. Everyone was still frozen exactly the same like mannequins, like props, like the world had stopped performing, functioning.
MC:
Delete me, Why?
UNKNOWN CALLER:
You were flagged.
MC:
Flagged for what?
UNKNOWN CALLER:
Existence.
The fluorescent light above me glitched. Just for a second. A faint distortion rippled across the ceiling tiles, like reality itself had skipped a frame.
MC:
You're not making any sense.
UNKNOWN CALLER:
You are a syntax error.
MC:
A what?
UNKNOWN CALLER:
An anomaly in the system.
My fingers tightened around the phone. I didn't know what frightened me more, the words or how calmly they were said.
MC:
What system?
UNKNOWN CALLER:
The one running your world well…universe.
Silence hung on the line.
Then the voice spoke again. It was lower this time. Colder.
UNKNOWN CALLER:
You shouldn't have made it this far.
UNKNOWN CALLER:
This is going to cause serious problems.
UNKNOWN CALLER:
For everyone.
A faint static hum filled the receiver.
Then—
UNKNOWN CALLER:
We need to remove you.
My heartbeat slammed against my ribs.
MC:
Remove me?
A pause. Longer this time. As if something on the other end was… thinking.
UNKNOWN CALLER:
Correction.
UNKNOWN CALLER:
We need to delete you.
The line went dead.
The office
lights flickered violently and somewhere deep inside my gut—I had the horrible feeling this call had only just begun.