For the future💫 (English version🤙)

chapter one💫

Before I begin, I'd like to apologize for any grammatical errors. This is not my first language, so I may not be as precise as I would like to be. Thank you for reading❤️

Ryan woke up with a start, the deafening sound of his alarm pounding in his head like a crazed drum. He opened one eye, squinting against the light streaming in through the window. It was exactly 9:00 AM, and though it was late, he wasn't running behind for school. Classes were starting late that day due to an assembly. Slowly, he got out of bed, feeling the tiredness still weighing on his body. He'd struggled to sleep the night before, his mind crowded with unsettling thoughts.

Rubbing his eyes, he noticed a strange sensation: his vision was dimmer, blurred, as if a mist clouded his sight. He brushed it off, thinking it was just the grogginess of sleep, nothing to worry about. Grumbling, he dragged himself to the bathroom, ignoring his reflection as he turned on the cold water to splash his face.

The cold jolted his senses, and instinctively, he looked up. The image he saw in the mirror froze him in place.

The boy staring back at him had one eye completely black. Not just the pupil, but the entire eyeball was enveloped in a dark, impenetrable shade, as though shadow itself had taken possession of it.

Ryan screamed, the sound echoing through the house and shattering the morning silence.

"LUCAS!" he yelled, leaning over the sink, breathing heavily, his heart pounding in his chest. "What the hell did you do to my eye?!"

Lucas, his younger brother, came running in, looking confused and still half-asleep. "What's wrong?" he asked, staring at Ryan, baffled.

"Look!" Ryan pointed to his face in the mirror. "What did you do to my eye?"

Lucas stared at him, raising an eyebrow. "I didn't do anything to you! You probably hurt yourself in your sleep."

Ryan gritted his teeth, his face twisting in anger. "Don't talk nonsense. It's got to be one of your stupid pranks!"

Without thinking, he shoved Lucas aside, almost knocking him over. Ryan stormed into his room, furiously opening drawers in search of something to cover his eye. He tossed shirts and pants into the air, his breathing growing heavier as the desperation mounted within him. He couldn't think clearly; all he knew was that he couldn't be seen like this.

Then, his eyes landed on an old stuffed toy sitting on his shelf. The toy wore an eye patch—one of those pirate ones. Ryan grabbed it without hesitation, surprised when the patch fit his face perfectly.

He took a deep breath, looking at himself in the mirror. He hadn't solved anything, but at least the horror was hidden. Covering it seemed to momentarily cancel the problem.

He hurried downstairs to the kitchen, where his mom was finishing setting the table for breakfast. The smell of freshly made pancakes filled the air.

"Good morning, sweetheart," she said in her usual warm tone.

"Morning," Ryan replied, barely glancing at her as he sat at the table, fiddling with his pancakes.

"What's that on your eye, honey?" his mother asked, noticing the patch.

"It was probably Lucas's doing," Ryan replied angrily, not looking up from his plate.

"I didn't do anything!" shouted Lucas, his frustration growing as he pounded the table. Ryan didn't respond, finishing his pancake quickly and getting up to leave. He grabbed his backpack, slipping on his shoes in a hurry.

"I'm going to school. Have a good day," he said curtly, not waiting for a reply, and walked out the door.

He pedaled fast on his bike, the cool wind slapping his face, briefly sweeping away his anxiety. The feeling of speed made him feel alive, helping him forget the horror of the black eye, at least for a moment. When he reached school, he chained up his bike and hurried inside. The school was almost deserted, just as he'd expected, given his early arrival.