Shackles

It was about a month ago now when Rin discovered the tiny latch on top of the pocket watch.

Pulling it caused the device to open up in his palm and emanating from its core were three sets of chains. Each had their own locks attached to them with distinct shapes from the others.

"Are there keys for this thing?", he asked.

"Can't tell you something I don't know.", his reflection said.

Rin snapped back to the present and looked at his right hand. The pocket watch was gone, but in its place was something that could only be described as a flash drive. One with an immediately recognizable and distinct shape.

"Our first key.", his reflection said.

Rin didn't react to that. All he could do was stare at the flash drive. Unlocking the pocket watch would bring about the end of the world. No matter how many times he reminded himself he didn't know that for sure, it was the only theory that made sense to him.

Suddenly, everybody else in the mall vanished. The floor started to crumble. And all that was left was a wasteland devoid of life. 

-Is this what everything will look like in the end?

"What is that?"

Lena's voice brought him back to his senses. Rin turned to look at her. Then at the rest of the mall. Everything was back to normal, well as normal as a mall could be after a violent incident. 

"Uh... It's nothing sorry.", he said.

He sat back in his seat, casually slipping the flash drive into his pocket as he did.

***

A security officer hurriedly made his way over to the scene of the incident only to be stopped by Klein and his partner. 

"We've got this one."

Klein flashed a detective's badge as he said that before approaching Rin. His partner lagged behind a bit in order to apologize for the surprise.

***

Rin didn't know what to do with the paper bag or the rest of its contents. He didn't have a jacket to hide them in, and the portable voice recorder was just big enough for it to not fit in either of his pockets. 

"What are you doing?"

Rin and Lena both turned to see the two men who'd been following them all day.

"...What do you mean?", Lena asked.

She was terrible at feigning innocence which made Klein even more suspicious. And after a quick scan, he noticed the paper bag in Rin's arms. 

"Don't just go around grabbing evidence like that, kid."

"Oh, he's really sorry! Right, Rin?", Lena asked.

She pushed Rin's head down to apologize. He didn't resist much, but he did find it a tad bit annoying.

"You know boys, right? Always curious about the kinds of things you see in movies, heh."

Her awkward laugh didn't seem to convince Klein very much, so she decided to change the subject.

"Sorry about what I did to your friend by the way... I really didn't mean to kick him there."

Hearing this, the person she was referring to peeked out from behind Klein's back and added himself to the conversation. 

"Oh, don't worry about me. I'm completely over it now. I'm Miles by the way."

He extended his hand to shake Lena's, but Klein raised his arm as if to block him from doing so. 

"Did you know this would happen?"

Klein looked at the man he'd shot earlier.

"Huh, what are you talking about?", Miles asked.

Klein responded by handing him a formerly crumpled-up piece of paper. It read: 

"Keep a close eye on us today. The second things look dangerous; you need to act. Otherwise, you'll lose your only leads."

"Did you know this would happen?", Klein repeated.

Lena looked back and forth between the two of them, confused. It took a while, but Rin eventually responded. 

"I didn't. That message was just... a prank."

"...What?"

Rin's second response was much quicker.

"I was messing with you."

A brief silence.

"Pfft."

Miles let out a slight laugh but acted like the noise had nothing to do with him as soon as Klein turned to give him a dirty look.

"There's no way this note was a prank. I don't buy it.", he said.

"What other explanation is there? That I hired a criminal to threaten mine and Lena's lives? Or that I have some way of predicting the future? Would you believe either of those stories over mine?"

This seemed to put the issue to rest. Whether or not Klein actually believed him, there was nothing he could really say to that. But that didn't mean he was giving up completely.

"Then given how this incident played out, you wouldn't mind if we watched over you for a while, would you? You know, just to guarantee your safety."

Before Rin could protest, Lena jumped in yet again.

"That's fine with us! Actually, that would be great! Right Rin?"

She turned to him expectantly. There was a look on her face that seemed to say, "Just drop it for now." And so, Rin backed down.

"Fine. Can we go home then?"

"Before that... Miles, get that guy off the floor and down to the station."

Miles followed his instructions immediately and escorted the suspicious man off the scene. Right after this, Klein turned back to Rin and Lena. 

"Sit tight for a while. The police will be here soon to ask you some questions about what happened."

Rin sighed and went to go sit down at the table again. Lena bowed slightly to thank Klein for his help before joining him. 

"Hey, he did just save our lives you know..."

"...Doesn't mean I have to like him."

Lena watched as he leaned his head against his arm, which was pressed against the table. He was absolutely drained. Thinking of a way to cheer the kid up, Lena remembered something and dug through her bag.

She eventually pulled out a small white box.

"Hey, Rin?"

Turning slightly, Rin's forehead collided against the corner of the box Lena was extending out to him. He recoiled and rubbed his forehead as Lena apologized profusely.

"What is that?", he asked.

"Well, I... couldn't wrap it or anything, but...

Happy Birthday."

Just two short words. Rin was completely stunned by them.

"...What?"

"D-Did I get it wrong? But I could have sworn I-"

"No, you're right. It's just... I didn't think you knew."

"O-Oh, well it has been a while since we've seen each other, huh?"

Lena nodded in relief as Rin looked at the present, the initial confusion wearing off and being replaced by a strange warmth. He didn't know what it was, but he knew it was there.

"...Should I open it?", he asked.

"Uh, what else would you do with it?"

Once given permission, he took off the lid and saw a sleek silver wristwatch sitting inside the box. 

"You were looking at it before, so I figured you liked it."

Lena smiled as Rin examined the wristwatch from every angle. But then she remembered something else.

"Oh yeah, we never did get our food, did we?"

"...Oh, I guess not."

"Then how about I go find us something?"

She got up to look for a food stall that hadn't been abandoned yet leaving Rin alone. He muttered to himself.

"Is this why she was going to come here today?"

"That's right."

Rin's reflection appeared on the surface of his gift.

"Congrats on stopping my prediction by the way.", he said.

"By the end of the day, Lena will end up dead..."

Rin clutched the wristwatch in his hand and then began tapping his foot.

*Tap, tap, tap*
"And it was because of me."

*Tap, tap, tap*
Rin eased up as Lena walked away from him.

"Well... At least I prevented the worst from happening."

*Tap, tap, tap*
Out of the corner of his eye, Rin saw his reflection grin.

It's not the end of the day yet, is it?

Rin jumped out of his seat immediately, but before he could do anything, the mall erupted behind him. An intense round of gunfire destroying all the glass layering the entrance. A bone chilling scream filled the room.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEETHAAAAAAAN!!!"

A woman in a red suit stepped forward. She had an Uzi in her left hand, a crazy smile on her face, and a small army equipped with assault weapons following closely behind her. Everyone inside the mall was trapped.