The call

CHAPTER 0 - THE CALL

There are moments you remember because they were important.

A birthday. 

A farewell. 

A first meeting.

And then there are moments you remember for no reason at all.

A smell in the air. 

A train disappearing in the distance. 

The color of the sky at a certain hour. 

A face you're sure you've never seen.

For Akito Kazama, it was the sky. 

He just didn't know it yet.

4:18 PM

The final bell rang. 

Chairs scraped. Voices filled the room.

"Finally!" 

"Summer vacation!"

Akito didn't move. 

He sat by the window, watching sunlight slide across the floor.

Outside, the trees weren't moving. 

Everyone else was rushing toward something. 

Home. Friends. Plans. Summer.

Akito had nowhere to rush to.

He closed his notebook. 

Last day of school. 

Sixteen, and already good at watching people leave.

He stood. 

A camera hung from his neck. 

Battery. Card. Lens. 

Everything fine.

Photographs didn't lie. 

People did.

He looked out the window one last time. 

The sky was bright blue. 

Ordinary.

Outside, summer had already started. 

Groups filled the road. 

Akito walked alone. 

Backpack on one shoulder. Camera bouncing against his chest.

At the gate he paused. 

Thought about taking a photo. 

Didn't.

"Maybe tomorrow."

He didn't know tomorrow wouldn't look like he imagined.

5:03 PM

The house was quiet. 

"I'm home." 

No answer.

"Mom?"

In the kitchen, Reina stood by the table. 

She looked at him.

"Akito."

Something in her voice made him stop.

"Pack your bag."

"Why?"

"We're going to the village tomorrow."

"For how long?"

"I haven't decided."

"That's suspicious."

"Just pack."

"Mom? Why are we going?"

Her fingers tightened around the cup. 

"Your grandmother called."

"Is Grandma okay?"

"She didn't say anything was wrong."

"Then why—"

"She just wants you there."

There was something else. 

Akito didn't ask again.

His room was small. Clean. Full of things he didn't show anyone. 

Books. Photos. Camera gear. A box under his bed.

He pulled it out. 

Photos from different years. 

School. His mother. His grandmother.

He stopped.

A photo he didn't remember taking. 

A narrow road between trees. 

The sky above it was wrong. 

Not day. Not night. 

Something between.

He flipped it. 

Blank.

"I don't remember this."

It felt familiar. Too familiar. Like he'd stood on that road before. But he hadn't.

A knock.

Reina opened the door. 

"Don't forget your camera."

"I won't."

"Don't wander around alone when we get there."

"Why would I?"

"You always do."

The next morning the station was crowded. 

Their train arrived.

Akito stepped inside. Looked back. City waking up. Everything familiar. The train moved. The city shrank. Then disappeared. Green hills replaced concrete.

He rested his forehead on the window. It felt like he was returning somewhere. Not visiting. Returning. He'd never been to his grandmother's village before. At least, not that he could remember.

The train entered a tunnel. Darkness. His reflection. For a second, someone stood behind him. A girl. Long dark hair. Red ribbon. Flowers in her hands.

He turned. Nobody. Only passengers.

"I'm tired," he muttered.