Kaizer's POV
The automatic glass doors slid open behind us with a soft hiss.
Cool evening air immediately brushed against my face.
The grocery bag hanging from my hand wasn't particularly heavy. We hadn't bought much—just vegetables, bread, eggs, coffee, jam, and a few other necessities. Everything fit comfortably into one reusable bag.
Beside me...
Iris glanced down at the small plastic bag in her own hand.
She slowed her pace, quietly checking everything once again.
"The bread..."
she murmured to herself.
"The coffee..."
Her fingers lightly squeezed the plastic.
"...The medicine..."
She nodded faintly.
"...Everything's here."
I looked at the tiny bag she was carrying.
"...Give it to me."
She looked up.
"This?"
"Mhm."
"It barely weighs anything."
I extended my free hand anyway.
"I'll carry it."
A small smile appeared on her face.
"...Kaizer."
"What?"
"It isn't heavy."
"If a girl has to carry bags in the presence of a guy..."
I shifted the grocery bag higher on my shoulder.
"...it's a shame."
Silence.
Then...
I heard the smallest laugh beside me.
I turned.
She was looking at me with obvious amusement dancing inside her eyes.
"...Where do you even learn these movie dialogues?"
I shrugged.
"...From you."
"...Me?"
"You've watched enough old movies."
She stared at me for a moment.
Then quietly admitted,
"...I guess that's true."
Neither of us spoke after that.
We simply continued walking beneath the orange glow of the streetlights.
The neighbourhood had begun settling into its evening rhythm.
Children chased one another near the park.
Someone watered the plants outside their house.
A bicycle bell rang somewhere behind us.
Everything felt...
Ordinary.
Peaceful.
I almost preferred days like these.
Days when my mind wasn't buried beneath riddles.
Days when the journal stayed inside the house instead of inside my head.
...
A small figure suddenly rushed across the pavement.
I barely had enough time to notice before Iris looked up.
Her expression softened instantly.
"Oh..."
She smiled.
"It's her."
I followed her gaze.
A tiny girl was running toward us with short, hurried steps.
I had seen her before.
Not once.
Several times.
She wandered around the neighbourhood often.
Always alone.
Always smiling at strangers as though she somehow knew everyone.
She couldn't have been older than five.
Tiny ponytail.
Round cheeks.
A faded yellow frock.
She looked...
Oddly familiar.
Not because I had met her.
Because it felt like...
she had always existed somewhere in the background of this neighbourhood.
The little girl noticed us.
Her smile widened.
She waved both arms enthusiastically.
Then—
Her tiny shoe caught against the uneven pavement.
Everything happened within a second.
"...Ah!"
She stumbled forward.
And fell.
Right onto both knees.
Silence.
Then...
A loud cry echoed through the street.
I had already put the grocery bag down before I even realised it.
Iris reached her first.
She crouched beside the little girl immediately.
"Hey..."
Her voice became unbelievably gentle.
"It's alright."
"It's alright..."
The little girl only cried harder.
Huge tears rolled down her cheeks.
I knelt beside them.
"...Are you okay?"
Wrong choice.
The crying somehow became louder.
I blinked.
"..."
"...I only asked."
Iris slowly turned her head toward me.
She didn't say anything.
She didn't have to.
That look alone somehow managed to accuse me of making the child cry.
"...I didn't..."
I stopped defending myself halfway.
The little girl buried her face inside both palms.
I glanced around.
"...Do you want candies?"
"Nooooo..."
"...Chocolate?"
Another louder cry.
"..."
I looked at Iris.
"...Am I really that bad at this?"
She smiled despite herself.
Then looked back at the little girl.
"...Isn't big brother a little bad at handling children?"
I narrowed my eyes slightly.
Without looking away from the little girl, I replied,
"...Isn't big sister a little short?"
The crying slowly paused.
The little girl lowered her hands.
She looked at me.
Then at Iris.
A tiny hiccup escaped her.
Finally...
She giggled.
"...Short Sister Iris."
Iris blinked.
"...Hey."
The little girl giggled once again.
Even through the remaining tears.
I couldn't help smiling.
Well...
At least she had stopped crying.
Iris gently lifted one of the girl's little legs.
"...Let's see."
She carefully brushed away the dust.
A scrape covered the girl's knee.
Not deep.
But enough to sting.
"...You've hurt yourself."
The little girl sniffled.
I looked around once more.
No adults.
No one searching.
No worried voices.
Nothing.
"...Where are your parents?"
I asked.
She only blinked.
Iris tried instead.
"...Are you lost?"
The little girl slowly shook her head.
"...No?"
Another shake.
I frowned.
"...Let's ask later."
I stood.
"We should clean the wound first."
I carefully lifted the little girl into my arms.
She was surprisingly light.
She sniffled once more before quietly resting against my shoulder.
Iris picked up the grocery bag.
"...There's a pharmacy just ahead."
"Mhm."
We walked together in silence.
The little girl had finally calmed down.
Only tiny hiccups escaped every now and then.
The pharmacist handed us a small bottle of antiseptic along with cotton.
Outside...
A long cement bench stood beneath a streetlight.
I sat the little girl down.
Iris crouched before her once again.
"...This might sting a little."
The girl nodded bravely.
I watched as Iris poured a little antiseptic onto the cotton.
She was incredibly careful.
Almost afraid of hurting her.
"...Ready?"
A tiny nod.
The cotton touched the wound.
The little girl's face immediately scrunched up.
She squeezed her eyes shut.
But...
She didn't cry.
Instead...
She quietly reached out...
And grabbed Iris's sleeve.
Iris smiled softly.
"...Good job."
She gently blew over the cleaned wound before placing the small bandage across it.
"There."
"All done."
The little girl looked down at her knee.
Then back at Iris.
A tiny smile appeared.
Iris smiled back.
"...Better?"
Another nod.
For a brief moment...
Neither of us said anything.
The street remained peaceful.
The grocery bag rested beside the bench.
The evening breeze lazily stirred the leaves overhead.
I looked at the little girl again.
Something about her...
Still felt strangely...
familiar.
---
For the next few minutes...
None of us spoke.
The little girl sat quietly between us, swinging her tiny legs beneath the bench. Every now and then, she'd glance down at the fresh bandage on her knee before looking back at Iris as if silently confirming it was still there.
I picked up the grocery bag once more.
"...Can you walk now?"
She looked down at her knees.
Slowly slid off the bench.
Took one cautious step.
Then another.
She looked at us proudly.
"...Good."
A small smile escaped Iris.
"You'll be alright now."
The little girl nodded enthusiastically.
Yet...
She didn't leave.
She simply continued standing beside us.
Almost as though she was waiting for something.
Or...
Someone.
I exchanged a brief glance with Iris.
She seemed to be thinking exactly what I was.
"...What do we do now?"
she asked quietly.
I looked around the street once again.
Shops were beginning to close.
One after another...
The shutters rolled down.
The evening crowd had thinned considerably.
The sky had deepened into shades of indigo.
Streetlights now illuminated almost every corner.
"...We can't leave her alone."
Iris nodded immediately.
"No."
She crouched back down before the little girl.
"Can you tell us where you live?"
The little girl tilted her head.
Silence.
"...Do you remember your house?"
Nothing.
"...Your parents?"
She slowly shook her head.
I frowned.
"Maybe she's too young to explain."
"Or..."
Iris looked at the child again.
"...Maybe she genuinely doesn't know."
The thought lingered between us.
An uncomfortable silence followed.
The little girl, completely unaware of our concern, had found a dried leaf on the ground and was now examining it with utmost seriousness.
I sighed.
"...Let's keep walking."
"If we find someone looking for her..."
"We'll ask."
Iris agreed.
Without another word...
The three of us resumed walking.
This time...
The little girl walked exactly between us.
Every few seconds she'd look up...
As if checking whether we were still there.
---
We had barely crossed the next intersection when...
Something...
Made Iris stop.
I noticed it immediately.
She wasn't walking anymore.
She was staring ahead.
Toward a narrow alley between two old buildings.
Her brows had slowly drawn together.
"Iris?"
She didn't answer.
Instead...
Her eyes remained fixed in the same direction.
Following her gaze...
I looked toward the alley as well.
Nothing.
Only darkness.
Old brick walls.
A broken streetlight near the entrance.
Nothing unusual.
Then...
It happened.
A thought.
So faint...
I almost believed I'd imagined it.
*...Come...*
Another.
*...It's alright...*
The voice wasn't loud.
Nor frightening.
It sounded...
Comforting.
Gentle.
The kind of voice someone would willingly follow.
I straightened unconsciously.
Another thought drifted into my head.
*...You're tired...*
*...Come with me...*
It wasn't one person's thoughts.
It felt...
Wrong.
Like someone was speaking directly into another person's mind.
My heartbeat slowed.
"..."
No.
Not slowed.
It had become focused.
"Iris."
This time...
She answered without looking at me.
"...Something's wrong."
The little girl, who had been quietly walking until now, suddenly moved closer to Iris.
Her tiny fingers found Iris's hand.
She held it tightly.
Very tightly.
I looked down.
She wasn't smiling anymore.
Her eyes remained fixed toward the alley.
Almost...
Fearfully.
"...Stay here."
I took a step forward.
"No."
Iris's voice stopped me.
She looked at me finally.
"...Let's go together."
I nodded once.
The three of us slowly approached the alley.
Each step made the thoughts grow clearer.
*...You're alone...*
*...No one needs you...*
*...Come...*
The words echoed through my head like whispers trapped beneath water.
I clenched my jaw.
Another step.
Then another.
The little girl had stopped walking entirely.
She clung to Iris's leg now.
Her tiny body trembling.
Without hesitation...
Iris bent down and lifted her into her arms.
The girl buried her face against Iris's shoulder immediately.
I had never seen a child become frightened so quickly.
"...It's alright."
Iris whispered softly.
"It's alright..."
She gently rubbed the girl's back.
Then—
A scream.
It tore through the silence so suddenly that I instinctively flinched.
Iris covered one ear with her free hand.
The little girl buried her face deeper into Iris's shoulder.
The scream ended almost as quickly as it had begun.
Silence.
Absolute silence.
I blinked.
The thoughts...
Had disappeared.
Completely.
Not faded.
Not weakened.
Gone.
"I heard that."
Iris whispered.
"So did I."
My feet moved before I could think.
I stepped into the alley.
One glance.
Then another.
Nothing.
Only cracked walls.
Dust.
An overflowing dustbin.
An abandoned bicycle.
Empty.
Completely empty.
I walked farther in.
Still nothing.
"...There's no one."
My own voice sounded strange.
Behind me...
Iris remained near the entrance.
"...Kaizer..."
"I know."
I turned around slowly.
"There isn't anyone."
Just then...
Footsteps approached from the opposite side.
A middle-aged man in uniform appeared beneath the dim light.
He looked at us in confusion.
"What are you two doing here?"
Iris instinctively shifted the little girl higher against her shoulder.
"We..."
She hesitated.
"...We heard someone scream."
The man looked around.
"Scream?"
"Mhm."
I nodded.
"It came from this alley."
He frowned.
"I'm the constable assigned to this area."
"I've been making my rounds for the last fifteen minutes."
"I didn't see anyone enter."
Nor...
Leave."
My brows knitted together.
"You're sure?"
He nodded.
"This place stays deserted after evening."
"There aren't even houses nearby."
I looked around once more.
He was right.
No residential buildings.
No shops.
Nothing.
Only empty walls.
The constable studied us for another moment before his eyes landed on the little girl.
"...Is she yours?"
Both Iris and I answered together.
"No."
He blinked.
"...Then?"
Before either of us could explain—
A woman's voice called from behind.
"There she is!"
We all turned.
A woman dressed in formal office clothes hurried toward us, breathing heavily.
She finally stopped before us, trying to catch her breath.
Her eyes immediately found the little girl sleeping against Iris's shoulder.
Relief washed across her face.
"Oh thank goodness..."
She placed one hand against her chest.
"I've been looking everywhere..."
Iris looked at her carefully.
"...Do you know her?"
The woman nodded immediately.
"Yes."
Then paused.
"...Well..."
"Not exactly."
She offered an apologetic smile.
"I work at the government orphanage."
My expression changed slightly.
The woman continued,
"We found her missing almost an hour ago."
"She somehow slipped out through the front gate."
I frowned.
"...A little child managed to leave without anyone noticing?"
Guilt immediately crossed her face.
"...It was our mistake."
"I'm truly sorry."
"We've already tightened security."
I looked away with a quiet sigh.
Children this young...
Shouldn't be wandering alone after dark.
Iris remained unusually silent.
Then...
She asked something that made all of us pause.
"...She doesn't have parents?"
The woman lowered her eyes.
"We don't know."
"Someone left her outside our orphanage."
"A week ago."
Silence.
Then Iris spoke again.
"...A week?"
The woman nodded.
"Yes."
I felt Iris's body grow slightly still beside me.
Very quietly...
She said,
"...I've been seeing her around this neighbourhood for almost three months."
The woman looked at her in confusion.
"...I'm sorry?"
"I've seen her before."
"Many times."
The woman slowly shook her head.
"...That isn't possible."
Neither Iris nor I replied.
The little girl shifted in her sleep.
The woman smiled softly.
"...Millie..."
The name was spoken so gently that the little girl's eyelashes fluttered.
She opened one sleepy eye.
The woman extended her arms.
"Come."
Millie looked at her.
Then...
Toward us.
She reached her tiny hands out instead.
Without thinking...
I stepped forward and lifted her carefully into my arms.
She rested her head against my shoulder with a sleepy sigh.
"...Looks like someone likes you."
The orphanage worker laughed softly.
I smiled faintly.
"...Maybe."
I looked down at the tiny girl.
"...Time to go with Aunty."
"We'll play tomorrow."
She slowly opened her eyes again.
Without saying a word...
She lifted her tiny little finger toward me.
I smiled.
"...Promise?"
She nodded.
I hooked my little finger around hers.
"...Promise."
Then...
She turned toward Iris.
Her tiny pinky stretched out again.
Iris couldn't help smiling.
She hooked hers too.
"...Promise."
Millie finally seemed satisfied.
The woman carefully took her into her own arms.
This time...
She didn't resist.
As they turned to leave...
Millie lazily lifted one hand over the woman's shoulder.
A tiny wave.
Then they disappeared into the quiet night.
Neither Iris nor I spoke.
We simply stood there.
Watching until they were no longer visible.
Only after several long moments did I quietly pick up the grocery bag again.
"...Let's go home."
Iris nodded.
"...Mhm."
Yet...
As we began walking...
I couldn't shake one thought from my mind.
The scream.
The voices.
And...
The impossible little girl who had somehow existed in two different timelines.