Echoes of Time

Chapter 18 - Frozen

Adeline closed the door behind her as she waved goodbye to Debbie, who flashed a tired smile back before returning to the closing duties at the cafe. The cool evening air wrapped around Adeline, the soft hum of distant car engines and murmurs from people walking by filled the atmosphere. The streetlights blinked on, casting long shadows across the pavement. She exhaled a sigh of relief. Another long shift was finally over. She looked forward to the quiet walk home, the familiar sounds of the town at night soothing her like a lullaby.

But then, something shifted.

Adeline felt it first—a sudden stillness, like the world had taken a deep breath and held it. Her steps faltered, and she glanced around. The murmur of conversation faded into silence. She blinked, confused. A dog barked in the distance, and then... nothing. It was as though the world itself had gone mute. The air grew unnaturally still, and the hair on the back of her neck prickled.

She stopped walking. A couple across the street, who had been laughing and holding hands, were now frozen mid-step. Their smiles eerily locked in place. Adeline's heart began to race. She turned, her eyes scanning the street, but everywhere she looked—people were stuck. Not moving. Like statues in some bizarre gallery of life paused.

"Debbie?" she called, turning back toward the cafe.

No response.

Her legs wobbled beneath her as she rushed toward the window of the cafe. Inside, Debbie stood behind the counter, frozen in the act of wiping a glass, her face fixed in a permanent, concentrated frown. Adeline's heart pounded harder, her breath quickening as panic surged in her chest. She pounded on the glass window. "Debbie! Debbie!"

Nothing. Not even a flicker of recognition in Debbie's eyes.

She whirled around to the street again, her vision blurring as fear tightened its icy grip around her throat. Everything was still—so, so still. She felt like she was trapped in a nightmare. The kind where you scream and scream, but no one hears you.

"Hello?" Adeline's voice wavered. "Can anyone hear me?"

No one could. Because everyone—everything—was frozen in time.

The cars that had been passing by were now frozen mid-motion, their drivers staring straight ahead, unblinking, unmoving. A man on his bicycle was stuck in the middle of the road, his feet hovering just above the pedals, the tires no longer spinning. The entire town had come to a halt.

"What... what is this?" Adeline whispered to herself, her voice barely a breath.

Her chest tightened, and her vision began to blur at the edges. Her pulse roared in her ears, the world spinning as if gravity itself was warping. Adeline stumbled backward, her legs barely holding her up as the air felt thinner, colder. Her breath came in shallow gasps as she spun in place, searching for any sign of life.

Panic seized her. She dropped to her knees, her hand clutching her chest. "What's happening to me?" she rasped. The words barely escaped her trembling lips.

She tried to scream, but no sound came out. It felt like she was suffocating—drowning in a world where time had abandoned her. Her vision darkened, the streets spinning in a dizzying swirl of light and shadow. She could feel the sweat beading on her skin, her hands shaking uncontrollably.

And then, blackness.