Kyle sighed and glanced around. The downpour was relentless—he'd been stuck under this awning for two hours with no sign of it letting up.
Vrrrrrrrrum.
His phone buzzed against his leg. He pulled it out and squinted at the notifications cluttering his screen.
[Holla(36+): Three countries collaborate with the Guardian... [Read more]]
[Snaptub(99+): Check this out Kyle! Janet posted a new... [Read more]]
[HotNews(54+): A sum of twenty rape cases have been leveled against A-rank Guardian Leon for... [Read more]]
[Weather: Today shows unusual climate actions]
[GuardiansOfficial: [Outsider Attack] Citizens are warned to evacuate... [Read more]]
His thumb scrolled through the mess with practiced indifference. Then it stopped.
[Messenger(29): [Stalker: I am waiting for you back home]]
He stared at the message for a while. Nothing good ever came from her using that tone.
He stared at the words until they blurred, then shoved the phone back in his pocket.
BOOM!
Thunder cracked overhead. Kyle flinched and rubbed his arms as the temperature dropped another few degrees.
"Should've brought my coat," he muttered through chattering teeth. The sky had gone from sunny to midnight in minutes.
"You should take better care of her."
Kyle's head snapped around. A man sat on the small concrete steps leading to a shuttered stall, like he'd been there the whole time.
"Wait... when did you—who are you?" Kyle frowned. He'd been alone when he ducked under here. He was sure of it. Probably.
Then again, with everything that had happened today, he'd barely been paying attention. Nearly walked into three different people as everyone scrambled for cover when the storm hit. Maybe he'd missed the guy.
The stranger just smiled and tilted his face toward the churning clouds.
"Call me whatever you want."
Kyle's head cocked to the side. "I don't think that's how introductions work."
The man chuckled—a sound barely audible over the rain hammering the awning above them.
"Never remembered having a sense of humor," he said under his breath.
Kyle stepped closer. "Did you say something?"
The man shook his head and patted the concrete beside him. "Why don't you sit? This could take a while."
Kyle glanced back at the street. If anything, the rain had gotten worse—sheets of water turning the world into a gray blur.
"Looks like it." He walked over with a defeated sigh.
The closer he got, the stranger the man became. His features were clear but somehow weren't—like looking at someone through water. Kyle sat down and let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. His fingers started drumming against the concrete in a steady rhythm.
"You said 'take care of her' just now. Were you talking to me?"
The man had gray eyes and a goatee that gave him a weathered, mature look. His white hair hung loose to his shoulders, moving slightly in the wind.
"Yes."
"But you don't know me. Why would you say that?"
The stranger smiled and looked away. "I don't need to know you. I was giving advice. In life, we chase shadows and forget what's really important." His gray eyes found Kyle's again. "You look like you're carrying a lot of baggage. Can you tell me your story?"
Kyle had a dozen questions to ask, but for some reason, none of them came out. There was something about this man—a connection that made questions feel unnecessary.
"There's nothing to tell." He stared at his open palm.
"Everyone has a story."
"Mine isn't worth telling."
"Try me."
Kyle was quiet for a long moment. "I'm just a guy with a messed-up childhood."
"You don't say."
"Yeah, everyone probably had their fair share of trauma. Mine just..." He shrugged. "Isn't the same."
The stranger waited.
"I lost everyone in one night. Just one little kid, surrounded by the corpses of everyone he loved. His family."
Silence stretched between them, filled only by the drumming rain.
"At this point in my life, I'm tired." Kyle laughed—a hollow sound. A tear slid down his cheek. "I've lost everything. All the world ever does is take from me. Take, take, take, and take. Now there's nothing left."
"So you want revenge?"
"Revenge?" Kyle's laugh turned bitter. "Can't have that without power. Life cheats me at every turn. I can never win. I've lost everything."
WHOOOM!
BOOM!
Thunder crashed with renewed fury.
"You haven't lost everything... yet."
Kyle's phone buzzed. He looked down.
[Messenger(30): [Stalker: Where are you, you idiot?]]
[Messenger(31): [Stalker: Reply right now or I swear I will kill you!]]
The phone started ringing.
[Nelia [Answer] [Decline]]
He watched until it stopped.
[Missed calls(99+)]
"You're lucky," the stranger said.
Kyle looked up. "You think?"
The man smiled. "Ever heard the saying, 'You don't know what you have until you lose it'?"
Kyle glanced back at his phone. "Save your proverbs—she won't leave me. Ever."
"She won't... but not when she doesn't have a choice.
BOOM!
The thunder grew more vicious.
"What do you mean by that?" Kyle asked as he glared at the man.
For some reason, he was feeling this deep... dread.
He didn't like this feeling. Not one bit.
"You said the world likes to take from you." The stranger's voice was calm.
"So you think life still wants more from me?"
"Probably." The stranger smiled. "There are only two types of people in this world—winners and losers. No middle ground. You either lose it all, or win it all."
"Why do you seem so sure?" The word came out barely above a whisper.
"Experience."
"Experience?" Kyle repeated, confused.
The stranger smiled. "I've seen it all, Kyle. I've watched this story play out so many times I've lost count." His voice dropped. "This is the last chance."
"For you?"
"For us."
"What do you mean, 'us'?"
The stranger looked up at the chaotic sky.
"You'll understand soon. Very, very soon."
BOOM!
"Understand what? And you still haven't told me who the hell you are."
"...,"
"Wait." Something clicked. "I never told you my name."
"You just don't remember."
"No, I didn't tell you." Kyle's eyes narrowed.
"Does it matter?" The man asked.
"It matters. How do you know me? Who are you? Why do you look so much like..."
The questions kept slipping from his mind like water through his fingers. Every time he tried to focus on the man's face, something pulled his attention away.
BOOM!
Lightning struck the ground ten feet in front of them, leaving a smoking crater in the concrete.
"What the hell?" Kyle scrambled backward.
"You ask a lot of questions but forget to ask the right ones." The stranger placed a hand on Kyle's shoulder.
For that split second, Kyle felt something run through his body.
"Go home, Kyle. Go home to her. Because after tonight..." The man's voice carried infinite sadness. "You won't see her again."
"Stop saying that!" Kyle shoved the hand away.
BOOM!
"And what the hell is happening to the weather?!" He looked up at the writhing sky.
When he looked back, the man was gone.
"What?" Kyle spun around, checking behind the pillars, the stairs, everywhere.
Nothing.
The rain continued to fall, but now he was completely alone.