The Man Who Knows Too Much
Kira didn't go back to sleep.
She sat at her kitchen table, staring at the cold coffee in her hands, her pulse still uneven from Kairos's voice in her ear.
"You should be more careful, Kira."
The words looped in her head like a broken record.
He had never spoken to her directly before. He had lurked, controlled, glitched her world—but now he was stepping out of the shadows.
And that scared her more than anything.
8:00 AM – Studio
_"Are you even listening, Kira?"_
She blinked out of her thoughts, looking up.
Aoki Renn.
Her manager, her accomplice, her biggest headache.
Dressed in an oversized sweater three sizes too big, sneakers that looked one step away from falling apart, and a permanent look of confusion, Renn didn't exactly scream
professionalism.
But somehow, this clumsy fool had managed to keep her secret.
For now.
He pouted, waving a clipboard in front of her face.
"Kiraaa. Hello? Did you hear anything I just said?"
She sighed. "Something dumb?"
His pout deepened. "Rude. I was saying we need to change your setlist. The venue owner wants you to sing something new. How about that song you always murmur?"
Kira froze.
Her breath caught in her throat.
A faint memory surfaced—one she hadn't dared to think about in years.
Soft humming. A warm voice.
A woman—beautiful, delicate, no older than thirty—sitting by a window as golden light streamed in. Her lips moved in perfect rhythm, singing that very song.
Kira had been just a child, curled up beside her, listening.
Her chest tightened.
The scene faded, snapping her back to reality.
Her fingers curled into her jacket.
"Not that one."
Renn blinked. "Huh? But you hum it all the time—"
"I said no."
For once, he didn't argue.
And Kira didn't offer an explanation.
"Okay! Then Moonlight Lullaby?"
She exhaled. "Fine."
Crisis averted.
…Or so she thought.
Because Renn suddenly leaned forward, staring at her too intently, like a detective about to crack a case.
"You're acting weird today," he declared.
Kira forced a yawn. "I'm tired."
He gasped. "Oh no. Are you sick?
Did you eat? Wait, did you get cursed?!"
Kira rubbed her temples. "Renn—"
"OH. MY. GOD." He shot up, panicked.
"YOU ACCIDENTALLY SAID YOUR REAL NAME ON STREAM, DIDN'T YOU?!"
She threw a cushion at him.
"STOP SHOUTING."
He dramatically caught the cushion, hugging it like it was his emotional support pet.
"So you're not cursed?"
"No."
"Not exposed?"
"No."
"Then why do you look like you saw a ghost?"
Because a hacker is watching me. Because my entire life is a lie. Because I don't know if I can trust anyone.
But she couldn't say that.
So she forced a lazy smile. "Maybe I did."
Renn gasped again. "Tch. Ghosts again. I told you to stop watching horror movies at night, Kira."
Kira gave up.
---
1:00 AM – The Apartment
She should've known he wasn't done.
The moment she stepped inside her apartment, the lights flickered.
Her stomach dropped.
No. Not again.
She shut the door behind her, locking it out of habit, but the uneasy feeling wouldn't leave.
Her laptop was open on the desk. She didn't remember leaving it that way.
Slowly, cautiously, she walked over. The screen was black, the cursor blinking in the middle of nothingness.
Then—
A message appeared.
Are you hiding from me.
A chill ran down her spine.
Another message.
Do you think I can't see you?
Her fingers hovered over the keyboard.
She didn't know what to type.
Then, before she could react—
The laptop screen turned on.
And there he was.
A grainy, low-quality video feed .A man sitting in the dark, his face half-hidden in shadows.
Kairos.
Kira's breath hitched. It was the first time she had ever seen him.
And somehow, that was worse.
He wasn't some faceless entity behind a screen anymore.
He was real.
A person.
A presence that could reach her.
He tilted his head slightly, as if studying her reaction. Then, his lips parted.
"You should've listened, Kira."
And just like that—
The screen went black .
---