Vyom sat up suddenly.
"…What?"
He rubbed his face, breathing slowly.
"What a dream…" he muttered.
"I haven't seen a dream like that in so long."
He lay back down, staring at the ceiling
"Maybe my punishment is over. Yesterday was just a dream…"
----
Some time later, Vyom got out of bed and washed his face. Than his mother served him breakfast. He ate quickly and rushed to college — it was already 8:45 a.m.
He worked hard through all his classes.
By the time the day ended, he had almost forgotten everything about the previous night.
At daybreak, when the final bell rang, Vyom and Anand walked home together as usual.
Anand glanced at him.
"What happened to you last time?" he asked.
Vyom frowned.
"What?"
"Yesterday," Anand clarified.
"Oh… nothing," Vyom replied casually. "Just a headache."
"Don't push yourself too much," Anand said.
Vyom made a funny face.
Anand sighed. "Okay, okay. But what was your important topic ?"
Vyom hesitated.
My prison time is over, he thought.
If I tell him now, maybe that thing won't happen again…
He opened his mouth to speak.
But he suddenly realised—
Everything stopped.
The world froze around him.
Vyom's eyes dropped to his ring.
The green line was only half full… and it was slowly decreasing.
Fear gripped him.
But this time, he controlled himself.
He already knew — there was nothing he could do.
If Anand notices this… he'll keep asking, Vyom thought nervously. He'll tell Keya… maybe even my mom and dad.
"Hey bro," Anand said, confused. "What happened?"
"No—nothing," Vyom replied quickly. "I forgot."
"Then walk slower,"
Anand said.
"Okay, okay."
Their conversation drifted to random things.
(They had already forgotten what they had talked about yesterday — even that morning — just like every other day.)
Soon, they reached the three-way road.
"Bye, bro," Anand said.
"Bye," Vyom replied.
They went their separate ways.
When Vyom reached home, he was exhausted from the whole day.
He took a bath. His mother had already served lunch in the dining room.
After eating, he went to his room, played some mobile games, and watched anime.
Later, he attended classes on his phone.
After some time, his mother came in with tea.
Once he finished drinking it, Vyom started messaging with Keya and Anand.
Eventually, he lay down on the bed. It was about 12 pm
Bzz… bzz…
His phone rang.
A message from Anand.
Vyom frowned.
What happened to him at this time?
The message read:
"Bro… everything is over."