Chapter -2

Ian's Pov

I had been sitting in my chair all day, lost in thought, as the clock ticked past 9 PM. The office was silent, the city lights outside blinking like distant stars. With a deep breath, I finally came back to reality.

Reaching for my car keys, I stood up, stretched my stiff limbs, and made my way to the parking lot. The cool night air did little to clear the haze in my mind as I slid into the driver's seat and started the engine.

I had moved on from her. I told myself that over and over again. Then why the hell did I miss her today?

My grip tightened on the steering wheel as I drove through the near-empty streets. Thoughts of Evelyn clawed at the edges of my mind, pulling me back to a time I wanted to forget.

And then—

A flash of white light.

I snapped back to reality. What the hell—? Was it a truck? Headlights?

I slammed my foot on the brakes. Nothing.

Panic surged through me. What the fuck is happening?! The car wasn't stopping. The wheel refused to turn. The light grew blinding, swallowing everything around me.

I clenched my jaw, my pulse hammering against my ribs. I had no choice. I shut my eyes, bracing for the inevitable impact.

Silence.

No crash. No screeching tires.

Just... stillness.

My heart pounded violently in my chest. I hesitated before slowly opening my eyes—only to find everything around me white.

No road. No buildings. No sky. No trees. Nothing.

Just an endless, empty void stretching in every direction.

Confusion gripped me as I instinctively reached for the car door. Was I on the ground? Floating in space? I had no idea.

Cautiously, I placed a foot outside. It landed on... something. Solid, but invisible. As if I were standing on air.

I stepped out completely and shut the door behind me. The sound echoed unnaturally in the emptiness. Taking a few tentative steps forward, I turned back—

My car was gone.

I was alone.

Completely alone in the white abyss.

"Ian..."

A voice echoed through the endless white void, deep and resonant, vibrating through my very core.

I stiffened, my breath hitching. The emptiness around me pulsed with an unseen presence, something far beyond my understanding.

"There is a reason I called you here."

The voice carried no urgency, no warmth—just a quiet certainty. "Fate has been rewritten. A life was lost before its time. That should not have happened."

I stood frozen, trying to process what I had just heard. A life was lost? What the hell was this supposed to mean?

A scoff left my lips. "I don't believe in this crap." My voice was steadier than I expected. "I'm an atheist. I don't believe in God."

Silence.

Then, the voice spoke again, unshaken. "That is precisely why I chose you."

I frowned. "What?"

"You do not place your faith in miracles. You do not rely on fate. You believe only in what you can see, in what you can change with your own hands. And that is why you will not fail."

A strange chill ran down my spine. I couldn't tell if it was fear, confusion, or something else entirely.

"You seek answers, Ian." The voice continued, its tone laced with something... knowing. "You may not realize it, but you have been searching for them all along. That is why you are here."

I swallowed hard. My throat felt dry.

"If you complete the task I give you, you will find the answers you seek."

I didn't know what was more unsettling—the fact that this 'God' claimed to know what I was searching for... or the terrifying possibility that he might be right.

The very next moment, I found myself lying on a bed.

My chest rose and fell in a deep, shaky exhale as my mind scrambled to make sense of what had just happened. My fingers curled into the sheets beneath me, gripping them as if they could anchor me back to reality.

Was it a dream?

I turned my head, scanning the room. Everything looked normal. The familiar walls. The dim glow of the city bleeding through the curtains. The bedside clock blinking 10:00 PM.

But I was just... there. In that white void. Talking to—

I sat up abruptly, running a hand through my hair. My pulse still hadn't settled. My body felt real. My surroundings felt real. But if that was truly God—if that voice was real—then what the hell was I supposed to do now?

What did I need to change?

What was his task?

And what answers was I even looking for?

Too many questions. No answers.

I leaned back, staring at the ceiling, frustration gnawing at me. Whatever just happened, whether real or hallucination, it had left something behind—an unease that refused to fade.

And for the first time in years, I wasn't sure if I wanted to forget it.