Prologue – “So This Is It”

It was early morning but the sky was still dark.
Not the beautiful kind of dark with stars and moonlight—but the kind that felt heavy, like the world hadn't quite decided to wake up yet.

A lone figure trudged down the empty sidewalk, his breath visible in the early morning chill. The city was quiet, still half-asleep. The occasional rumble of a distant car or the flicker of a traffic light were the only signs that life hadn’t completely paused.

Kaito clutched his thin jacket tighter. The synthetic fabric couldn’t keep out the cold, but it was better than nothing. His shoulders sagged under the weight of a cheap convenience store backpack filled with half-eaten snacks, an empty thermos, and crumpled pay stubs. His name was smudged on the latest one.

He had just finished another overnight shift at a job he didn’t care about, working for people who didn’t know his name. Eight hours of silent stocking, mindless beeping scanners, and a manager who smiled like it hurt.

And now, like always, he walked home alone—exhausted, numb, invisible.

The sidewalk curved past a small intersection. School signs and a blinking pedestrian light warned drivers to slow down, but no one ever really did. Kaito’s gaze drifted up. The sky was just starting to lighten at the edges, smearing pale orange behind the rooftops.

Then he saw her.

A little girl, maybe seven or eight, skipping toward the crosswalk in a yellow hat and red backpack—too early, probably excited for something. Maybe it was her birthday. Maybe she just liked school. Either way, she didn’t notice the black sedan barreling toward the turn.

But Kaito did.

Time snapped into motion.
He dropped his bag.
Ran.

“Hey—!”

The girl looked up.

The driver didn’t see her.

But Kaito made it.

He slammed into the child, wrapping his arms around her and twisting just in time to throw her clear of the lane.

The car hit him instead.

It didn’t feel like much.
A dull pressure.
The sound of shattering glass.
Then quiet.

The world tilted sideways. Cold asphalt met his cheek. A distant ringing filled his ears.

A pair of tiny hands clutched at his sleeve. The girl’s face was pale and crying. She was safe.

That was enough.

His eyes grew heavy. His chest, hollow. But for the first time in forever… the numbness was gone.

Maybe that was what feeling alive was.

“So this is it…”
His lips moved, even as everything blurred.
“I wish I could’ve lived… not just...”

Then came light.
Warm, blinding, and gentle.

And silence.