Morning's Dawn

"At tomorrow's twilight... you will die."

The wind stirred unnaturally the moment he said those words, sending a cold chill up Celeste's spine.

Before she could react, the man's hand flared with dark energy, and in an instant, he vanished, leaving only the crackle of static in the air.

Suddenly exhausted, Celeste collapsed to the ground, gasping for a breath she didn't even knew she needed. And as the tension around her slowly dissolved, her body began to tremble uncontrollably. She couldn't help but notice her hands shaking as she gave them an intense look. Then, tentatively, she took them both to her face, wiping away the sweat dripping from her brows.

"I must be losing my mind."

She stared at the spot where the figure had stood, her mind reeling. Who was that?

And more importantly…

"What the hell is happening to me?"

Celeste struggled to regain her composure, unsettled at the fact that her heart was still racing.

"I really have some issues, don't I."

She laughed, pushing herself up, and then shook her head as if to clear the remnants of the encounter from her mind.

The park, once vibrant and alive, now felt ominous and twisted. Every rustle of leaves to every distant conversation, seemed to echo the lingering fear.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm the storm inside of her.

Focus, Celeste. Just focus.

As she stood there, still on edge, her phone buzzed in her pocket, startling her. She fumbled to pull it out, half-expecting it to be some urgent message. Instead, it was a text from her best friend, Haruki.

>Haruki: Where are you? Class starts in 20 minutes!

Celeste typed back quickly, her fingers still shaking slightly.

>Celeste: Just got caught up. I'll be there.

She tucked the phone away, glancing around the park one last time, still sensing the feeling of being watched. The damn feeling clung to her like a shadow.

"I can't let this get to me," she muttered, forcing herself to walk away from the spot.

As she stepped onto the bustling street of the neighboring community, the normalcy of the city felt like a mask, hiding a sense of chaos just beneath the surface. She tried to shake off the unease, blending into the crowd of early-bird students and underpaid workers. But by the time she entered the university campus, the sensation returned, prickling at the back of her neck.

"Celeste!" A voice called out, cutting through the noise.

Frantically, Celeste spun to see her friend jogging toward her, a look of concern etched on Haruki's surprisingly handsome face as he continued:

"You okay? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Celeste forced a smile, noting something different about his usually short and disheveled hairstyle.

Maybe he got a it cut.

But she couldn't tell. Either way, he looked clean and presentable, like when you'd planned for a dated. The ironic thing about about that was, as handsome as he cleaned up, she'd never actually seen him date anyone - not even while they were in grade-school.

"Hey. Earth to Celeste... did you here me?"

His voice brought her back to reality, and then she cleared her throat.

"Yeah, just… a rough night. You know how it is."

Haruki raised an eyebrow.

"Rough? More like you were battling demons in your sleep. Come on, let's grab a coffee before class. You clearly need to wake up."

Celeste frown at first, but then she chuckled, grateful for the distraction - despite her friend's crassness.

"Yeah, good idea."

******

The café was lively, its noise a symphony of clinking cups, murmured conversations, and the occasional hiss of a high quality espresso machine - a privileged curtesy granted to students by the university, but usually available only to high ranking citizens in the South ward. It was the only perk worth the debt she willingly accumulated since transferring to the prestigious School of Science and Technology, or S&T University- probably the only perk at all, for that matter.

Celeste sat by the window, her fingers wrapped tightly around a warm cup of cinnamon cappuccino as if it were her lifeline. The rising sun, through the window right of her shoulder, cast a pale golden glow over her profile, highlighting the faint shadows beneath her eyes.

She wasn't entirely sure why she had agreed to meet Haruki this early. After all, sleep had been a fleeting, cruel companion lately, and the dreams left her feeling frayed. But maybe that was the reason. Haruki had always been a grounding force in her life - a tether when she felt like she might drift away - so his support with something he could never know somehow made sense to accept.

Across the table, Haruki was speaking animatedly about something, his hands moving in expressive arcs that barely matched his words.

She tried to focus, but her mind kept slipping, replaying the events from the encounter at the park. The ominous figure, the cracks in the earth, the whispers of death - more specifically, her own death.

I'll die at tomorrow's twilight... was I hallucinating?... That guy? The fractures? Were they real?

She hadn't even realized her grip on the coffee cup had tightened until the searing heat pressed against her palms, causing her to curse under her breath and snatch her hands away.

And of course Haruki noticed - he always noticed.

"You okay, Celeste?" Haruki asked, cutting through her spiraling thoughts. His expression, usually lighthearted, was tinged with concern.

Celeste blinked, snapping her focus back to her friend.

"Yeah. Just tired."

"You look more than tired," he said, leaning forward slightly. His tone was softer now, the teasing edge replaced by something more genuine. "You've been like this for weeks. What's going on?"

Her lips parted, but the words wouldn't come. She wanted to tell him everything, to pour out the confusion and fear that had been building inside of her since the dreams began. But what could she say? That the world was breaking apart in her dreams and that she might somehow be the cause of it spilling into the real world? It sounded insane, even in her head.

Instead, she chose her next words carefully.

"Nothing," she said finally, her voice barely audible. "It's just school. Long nights at the study hall, you know..."

Haruki tilted his head and studied her.

"You're a terrible liar, 'you know'..."

She forced a small laugh.

"Yeah, well, it's too early to come up with a convincing one."

There was a pause as he looked her over, then he finally smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. But… you don't have to deal with it alone - you know that, right?"

Something about the way he said it made her chest tighten, prompting her to look away, her gaze falling to the half-empty coffee cup that sat in front of her.

"Thanks, Haruki."

A brief silence settled between them. It was heavy but not uncomfortable. Celeste glanced at him from the corner of her eye, noting that as Haruki was staring at his own coffee, a faint flush had crept into his cheeks. He looked as though he wanted to say something but couldn't quite find the words.

For a moment, she wondered what was going through his head. Haruki had always been there for her, ever since they were kids. He was her constant - steady and dependable, unshakable by any measure. But lately, she'd noticed things she hadn't before. The way his gaze lingered a second too long when she wasn't looking. The way his jokes softened when she was upset. The way he seemed to always be just a little closer than necessary.

It was a thought she pushed aside, of course, unsure of what to do with it.

"So, uh," Haruki began, breaking the silence, "are you still helping me with the festival booth?"

Celeste blinked.

"Festival booth?"

He let out a dramatic sigh, as if her forgetting was a personal betrayal before adding:

"The campus festival! You promised you'd help me set up the tech exhibit. I even roped you into the demo."

"I don't remember agreeing to that," she said, though there was a faint smile on her lips now.

"You definitely did. I have witnesses," he replied, leaning back with a grin that was more relief than amusement. "It's gonna be great. You, me, and cutting-edge holograms. What could go wrong?"

Celeste chuckled, but the sound was lighter than she expected.

"Fine. Just don't make me wear one of those ridiculous lab coats."

"No promises," he said, his grin widening.

For a moment, the world felt normal again. The café, the festival, Haruki's teasing - it was all so ordinary. So safe. But the illusion shattered when her phone buzzed against the table, her stomach tightening as she glanced at the screen.

[Unexplained Phenomena Reported Throughout City. Experts Urge Caution.]

The headline sat beneath a blurry photo of jagged fractures in the sky.

This can't be!

Her blood ran cold and her thoughts raced wildly. The cracks weren't just in her dreams or the park. They were spreading.

"Something important?" Haruki asked, leaning over slightly.

But Celeste locked the screen and slipped the phone into her pocket, giving a nonchalant response:

"No. Just a spam notification."

Haruki frowned but didn't press.

"You sure you're okay? You've been extra distracted lately."

"I'll be fine."

He reached out then, his hand hovering just above hers for the briefest moment before pulling back.

"If you ever need… I mean, if something's wrong, you can always count on me."

Her breath caught. The vulnerability in his voice and the unspoken weight behind his words was something she didn't know how to respond to. So she nodded, giving him the smallest of smiles.

"I know. Thanks, Haruki."

And just then, every nearby device capable of receiving a tranmission, suddenly sprang to life, shattering their moment.

RIIIING!

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

DING! DING!

Commotion erupted throughout the café - even on the street outside as Celeste and Haruki swept their gaze around the chaos before snapping their heads toward the TV mounted above the café's counter.

The message that Celeste had received on her cell was now being broadcasted on every news outlet in the city. Worse, they even showed live images of the fractures stretching across the entire city.

"It's an emergency broadcast." Haruki said, frowning at the TV.

Celeste gasped, relieved that she wasn't loosing her mind, but terrified by what that implied.

Does this mean... I'm actually going to die... tonight?