Chapter 1 : A Smile

2038, Aragoub – The City at the Edge

The city of Aragoub stood at the edge of civilization, a place that had long since been forgotten by progress. The streets were lined with crumbling buildings, neon signs flickering in and out of life, and potholes that no one bothered to fix. The air smelled of gasoline, damp concrete, and the lingering stench of rotting trash piled in forgotten corners. The skyline was a patchwork of modern high-rises clashing with the ruins of structures that should have been condemned years ago.

Jia Sun and her friend Mikky walked side by side, their shoes scraping against the cracked pavement. The city's heartbeat was erratic, lively in some parts, dead in others. As they passed through the market district, the streets were filled with the usual night crowd: vendors yelling out discounted prices, children running barefoot between stalls, and tired workers dragging their feet home.

But Jia knew that once she turned onto the wrong street, everything would change.

She sighed, adjusting the strap of her school bag. "I swear, school is actually trying to kill us this week."

Mikky groaned. "I thought last semester was bad, but this? This is a new level of torture. Three essays? And don't even get me started on math."

"I feel like if I don't turn in that history project, they're gonna send a hitman after me." Jia kicked a stray can, watching as it clattered against a wall.

"Oh, please, Mr. Yu already wants me dead. You saw the way he looked at me during class. Like he was disappointed in my existence."

Jia laughed. "He looked at all of us like that."

Mikky nodded in agreement, stretching her arms. "Anyway, you sure you don't wanna take the long way with me? That street is kinda… y'know."

Jia forced a smile, even as unease settled in her stomach. "I'll be fine."

Mikky gave her a skeptical look. "If you say so. Just don't die or get kidnapped or something. I don't wanna do all this homework alone."

"Wow, you'd really let me die over homework?"

"Obviously."

Jia shook her head as Mikky turned down a well-lit street, disappearing into the crowd.

Now alone, the air around her shifted. The noise of the market faded, and the street ahead stretched into a dark, narrow corridor of cracked asphalt and flickering streetlights. This was the part of the city where people walked fast and never made eye contact.

And right in the middle of it stood the Galaxy Apartment Complex.

Jia's fingers tightened around her bag strap. "Stupid apartment," she muttered under her breath. "Why do I always have to walk past this place?"

Her father had always warned her about this street, telling her to avoid it when possible. It was where the forgotten lived, where screams were just background noise, and no one cared enough to ask questions.

Jia quickened her pace, keeping her head down.

Then, a scream ripped through the night.

She froze.

It wasn't just a scream, it was raw, agonized, filled with desperation.

Her pulse slammed against her ribs as she turned toward the source.

The Galaxy Apartment Complex.

A door burst open.

A boy, barefoot, wearing torn, dirt-stained clothes, stumbled out, his chest rising and falling in frantic, shallow breaths. His face was blotchy and red, as if he'd been crying for hours.

And behind him.

A man staggered into view.

Bloated, filthy, and reeked of alcohol. His clothes were damp with sweat, his hair sticking to his greasy forehead. His eyes, red-rimmed and wild, locked onto the boy with an expression so full of hatred that it made Jia's stomach drop.

His voice came out in a deep, slurred snarl-

"COME HERE, YOU LITTLE SHIT!"

Jia's breath hitched.

The boy whimpered, his body trembling like a cornered animal.

"I SWEAR TO GOD, WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON YOU-" His words slurred into a drunken growl, his bloated fingers curling into fists.

The boy's chest hitched as he choked on his own sobs.

"AHHHHHH! HELP-!"

Jia's body moved before she could think. She ripped her phone out of her pocket and dialed the police.

"Hello, police?? There's a drunk man chasing a boy, he's going to hurt him! PLEASE, HURRY!"

Her fingers were slick with sweat, her breathing uneven as she tried to keep her voice steady.

The man lurched forward, nearly tripping over his own feet, but he didn't stop.

"YOU THINK YOU CAN RUN FROM ME?" his voice thundered. "HUH? YOU THINK YOU CAN ESCAPE AFTER WHAT YOU DID?"

The boy flinched violently.

Jia saw it then, the way his whole body shrank in on itself, the way his hands twitched as if expecting a blow.

He had been hurt before.

The boy turned to run.

The man lunged.

Jia gasped.

The man's foot caught on the edge of a broken stair.

His body twisted. His weight shifted.

He lost his balance.

For a second, the world slowed.

His body tumbled down the stairs.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

His limbs flailed awkwardly, his head snapping back with a sickening crack as he crashed to the bottom.

Jia stared, unblinking.

The boy, who had been running for his life just seconds ago, now stood frozen.

A thick silence swallowed the air.

Jia's voice was barely above a whisper.

"Y-you… what happened?"

The boy's lips quivered. His body trembled as he whispered-

"I-I don't kn-know… he was chasing me a-and then..." sniff "...Dad? Dad, are you okay? Please... Dad... DAD, PLEASE, I'M TALKING TO YOU!"

He staggered forward, dropping to his knees beside the lifeless body.

"Please... help me turn him over. Please, I need to see his face."

Jia's instincts screamed at her to stay away.

But looking at the boy's desperate, tear-streaked face, she swallowed her fear and stepped forward.

She took a deep breath.

"Okay... in 3... 2... 1... Now!"

Together, they turned the man onto his back.

As soon as they turned the man over, Jia's stomach lurched. The jagged bone jutted out of his twisted neck, and the unnatural angle of his head made it clear—he was dead on impact.

She barely had time to process before her body betrayed her. A wave of nausea surged up her throat, and she vomited onto the pavement, her breath coming in ragged gasps.

But the boy… he wasn't looking at the corpse in horror.

Jia wiped her mouth, blinking away the tears in her eyes. And that's when she saw it.

That smile.

It stretched across his face—not a normal smile, not one of relief or sadness. It was something else, something wrong.

Jia's breath hitched, a cold shiver racing down her spine.

Then, the sound of doors creaking open.

She turned.

The residents of Galaxy Apartment Complex stood in their doorways, their faces shrouded in shadow, peering down from the balconies and dimly lit corridors. Eyes. So many eyes. Watching.

Jia's voice cracked as she took a step forward, waving an arm frantically.

"Help! Please! Someone call an ambulance! H-he fell! He's not breathing!"

But no one moved.

They just stared.

Blank faces. Hollow expressions.

Not a whisper. Not a sound.

One by one, the residents turned and stepped back into their apartments, doors clicking shut. Curtains drawn. The lights in the corridors dimming once more.

Like nothing had happened.

Like they had seen this before.

Jia stood there, frozen.

Her heart pounded in her chest, her throat dry.

She turned back to the boy.

The smile was gone. His face was blank now, pale, trembling. Tears welled in his eyes again as he shook his father's lifeless body.

"Dad...? Dad, please get up... I-I'm sorry... please..."

The distant sound of police sirens grew louder, but in Jia's mind, one question lingered, echoing over and over.

What the hell just happened?