9: Welcome Back

The shock of what had happened in the park made Tom forget all about why he’d gone there in the first place.
Even the straws had vanished from his mind. All he wanted now was to get home as fast as he could.
And yet…he couldn’t stop thinking about the way the officer had changed.

“Um… Officer? Are you… okay? I mean, earlier… you were acting kind of like a different person…”

“What are you talking about? I guess my shoulders feel a little stiff, but that’s all.”

Tom wasn’t so much suspicious of the officer himself as he was haunted by that black shadow that had loomed behind him.
If it really was some kind of paranormal phenomenon—if the officer had been possessed or something—that would at least give him a reason, some kind of logic to hold onto.
Even if it was nonsense… Tom needed something to believe in.

“…Okay. I’ll be going now.”

Avoiding eye contact, he gave a quick bow and took off running, before the panic had a chance to flood him again.
Now wasn’t the time to think—he had to calm down.

“One step at a time. First, focus on running.
Then I’ll open the front door. Next, take a bath. Then drink some milk…”

Ever since he’d had a terrible fever dream as a child, Tom had made it a habit to fight panic with his own method—a set of steps he called “My Rules.”
It was his personal coping system, and it always helped him reset his thinking.
Rena had even once said she envied his weirdly creative brain.

“Maybe Dad will be standing there in the entryway…wearing that cow mask and yelling,
‘Moo! Where have you been!?’ (As if the cow mask gave him the right to shout like that.)
Heh… Okay. Feeling better already.”

Tom finally made it home.
He tiptoed upstairs, careful not to wake his sleeping family, and collapsed onto his bed.
Within seconds, he was fast asleep.

***

“Big bro! I’m leaving it on your desk, okay? School’s off today, but it’s already ten!”

Tom didn’t hear much of his sister’s voice.
His head was still buried under the covers, and on top of that, a splitting headache blurred his thoughts.

“I already ate your scrambled eggs! Mom made them for you, but hey—you snooze, you lose!”

Tom peeked out from beneath the blanket and mumbled, eyes still closed.

“Got it. Just… don’t talk so loud. My head’s killing me this morning.”

“You’re not feeling well? Sorry… I took the milk out of the fridge, though.
You like it lukewarm, right?”

“Yeah… Thanks. I’ll get up in a bit.”

“Anyway, like I said—there’s something on your desk. Pretty sure it’s yours, right?”

“…Huh?”

“The officer from the other day stopped by. Said you left it in the park, so he brought it over.
You were probably off daydreaming about your novel again and forgot it, right?”

Still half-asleep, Tom couldn’t make sense of what she was saying.

“I’m going to the movies with my friends!
‘That Long Call with My Unique Boyfriend’—it’s finally in theaters! Ahhh I’m so excited!! Byeee!!”

Normally, Tom would’ve tuned her out. But this time, her words stuck with him.
Something about what she’d said…he couldn’t ignore it.

“…The officer… The park… Something of mine…?”

He cracked his eyes open and looked toward his desk—And froze.

“N-No way… That can’t be…”

There it was. The thick book.
The one that looked like an encyclopedia—but was unmistakably a picture book.
Its red tongue lolled out between the pages, as if waiting patiently for its new “friend” to wake up.