2: Pulled into the Page

(Stupid Tom...! That’s it, no more emails for you!)

Still fuming from their argument, Rena stormed off down the park path.
In her haste, she failed to watch her step and suddenly felt something beneath her right foot.

“Huh...? Did I just step on something?”

She turned around and saw an old picture book—now smudged with the sole of her shoe.
Though worn with age, the book had a beautifully crafted cover, its design strangely nostalgic.

“What a fancy book… Did someone drop it?”

Even through her tears, Rena felt oddly drawn to the book.
She picked it up, brushed off the dirt, and squinted at the faded text.

“…There’s something written here, but I can’t make it out right now.”

Her teary eyes made the letters on the cover blur. 
She opened the book—only to find the pages blank. Then the next page. And the next.
Something beyond reason urged her on, page after page, until her hands stopped on one particular page.

---

“A swing… That looks just like the one in this park… The scenery… it’s the same.”

The swing in the drawing began to blur and shift—until it looked almost too real.
Before long, it resembled a photograph.
But Rena, caught up in her memories, didn’t even notice the change.

“I used to play here all the time with Tom…

We were always together. And even if we argued, deep down, I...”

That was when her thoughts were suddenly yanked back—violently—by the book.

---

“What...? Tom’s on the swing...? He’s swinging…?”

The pages flipped rapidly, forming a flipbook-like animation that played before Rena’s eyes.
The boy—who looked like Tom—began to change, transforming into a figure draped in eerie black robes, hooded and unrecognizable.
He turned toward her and spoke in a raspy, chilling voice:

"Hey, Rena. How’ve you been?"

She let out a scream that tore through the air.

“KYAAAAAAAHHH!!”

From the open spread of the book, countless film strips exploded outward, wrapping around her frozen body.
The picture book began to glow, and like a predator claiming its prey, it swallowed Rena whole.

---

“H-Help… me… Tom…”

The book snapped shut with a contented thud, its red tongue still lolling out as it lay forgotten on the path—quietly waiting for its next victim.