They say every choice has a consequence.
Yeah, well—I can see them.
Literally.
It's not some "gut feeling" or life advice from YouTube. When I make a choice—any choice—I see a flash of what'll happen next.
It just happens , you know? Like a glitch in my brain or something. Every time I'm about to make a choice—no matter how small—it flashes ahead. Like a quick preview. A couple seconds. Maybe less. But enough.
Enough to dodge the pop quiz Mr. Tanaka was gonna hit me with today. All I had to do was "forget" my notebook. Again. He gave me that look, but he didn't push. And now I didn't have to answer any dumb questions. Like why the hell do I need to know why this Baroda women didn't express her feeling.
Yeah, I know. Kinda jerk move. But hey, school's not exactly fair. Might as well use what I've got.
I call it cheat codes. Like I'm playing life on god mode or whatever. It's not like I abuse it all the time. Just enough to make things easier. Avoid drama. Stay ahead.
The bell rings. Time for lunch. I could sit with Jin and Mia again, but…
I pause, close my eyes.
A flash hits.
Future vision:
Jin's giving me side-eye again. He thinks I rigged the class presentation draw last week. Maybe he's right. Either way, he's been cold ever since. At lunch, he mutters something under his breath. Someone laughs. I pretend not to notice. But I do.
Another version pops up:
I walk over, try to smooth things out. He fakes a smile. Then later texts someone: "He thinks he's better than everyone." My name comes up again.
Ugh. Pass.
I open my eyes. The hallway's starting to fill up.
Mia waves at me from down the hall. "You coming?"
I wave back half-assed. "Nah. Got stuff."
She rolls her eyes and walks off with the others.
Good.
Less noise. Less pretending.
That's basically my whole system—see what happens before it happens. Pick the best option. Keep moving.
But then, out of nowhere—
Something weird happens.
Not big. Just… off.
Like when your phone lags for a split second and you're like, "Wait, did that just freeze?" That kind of feeling.
I stop walking.
A new flash hits me.
Except this one isn't just one future.
It's like… three?
What?
No one gets multiple outcomes. That doesn't happen. I pick a path, I see where it goes. That's how this works.
But here we go—
Option one: I keep walking. Bump into some sophomore girl. She says sorry. I shrug it off. Nothing really happens.
Option two: I stop here. Someone else walks by instead. No collision. No nothing.
Third one: I turn around. For no reason. And then—
There she is.
Lena.
My chest does this weird clench thing. Like I forgot how to breathe for a second.
No. Way.
She left over a year ago. No warning. No goodbye. Just gone.
And now, suddenly, she's standing across the hallway like nothing happened.
Dark hair. Same sharp jawline. That quiet confidence. The way she always looked like she knew something you didn't.
It's her.
Lena's back.
And my power?
Totally freaking out.
I try to get another read—what happens if I say hi? If I walk over?
But the visions keep splitting. Like my brain can't decide which one's real.
Multiple futures.
This has never happened before.
Never around anyone.
What the hell is going on?
I take a slow step forward.
One thing's clear—
My cheat codes just stopped working.