The Author's POV

"Ah!"

Abruptly opening my eyes, I sat up straight.

"I can control my body again!"

Touching my face and body I couldn't help but be elated. I could now feel my hands, face, and every other part of my body. The senses that I had previously lost had returned to me.

...I no longer felt like a trapped beast.

I could finally move.

"hu?"

Just as I was rejoicing at the fact that I could now control my body, I suddenly noticed my surroundings.

What's going on?

Wasn't I at the park moments before?

Looking around me, I found myself outside of what seemed to be a kindergarten.

Scanning around, I could see children playing tag in the playground of the kindergarten, followed by their parents coming in and out of the premises to pick them up.

Confused I stood up.

I tried to walk around, but three steps in, an invisible wall stopped me from moving any further.

"What?"

Taken aback by the invisible wall, I frowned. Placing my hand on the invisible wall, I exerted a little bit of strength...but it was to no avail as it didn't budge.

Frowning even harder, I placed both hands on the wall and pushed as hard as I could. Still, in the end, no matter how much strength I put in, the wall didn't budge.

Turning around, realizing that I could not move the wall, I tried to go in the opposite direction, but it was also to no avail as three steps in, another wall blocked me.

Taken aback, I tried to move in all directions, but it was futile. Every three steps I took, an invisible wall would stop me from moving.

No matter how hard I tried to push the walls, they wouldn't budge.

...I was trapped inside of an invisible cube

What's happening?

Where was I?

...and what is this place?

Millions of questions emerged in my mind, as I kept trying to find a way out of the cube.

...In the end, after ten minutes of constantly trying, helpless, I could only sit down and stare at the children in the kindergarten playground.

Maybe the key to getting free was outside of the cube...

"...hm?"

As I observed the kindergarten, I couldn't help but focus my attention on a certain area. More specifically a certain young boy who looked to be around five years old.

Disheveled, unkempt brown hair and dull eyes. As he swung on the swing of the garden of the kindergarten, the young boy kept staring in the distance. Seemingly waiting for someone to pick him up.

No matter how long he had to wait.

He waited.

...yet, despite thirty more minutes passing and most of the children leaving, no one picked him up.

As I watched the young boy in the distance, my heart hurt as I couldn't help by wonder...

"Who is he?"

"That's Matthew..."

Abruptly turning my head, a youth with blue eyes and jet-black hair appeared beside me. Staring in the distance, towards the young boy, a complicated expression appeared on his face.

"y-you"

my direction, he

meet you. I'm

"Ah...eh"

but it was to no avail as I couldn't say anything. What was the old Ren doing here?

current state of turmoil as I couldn't find

even know who

reaction,

been

"W-what?"

his shoulders, Ren

ask me, I don't know what happened either...I just suddenly found my consciousness watching

everything I did since taking

Smiling, Ren nodded.

"Yeah"

eyes opened wide. To think that someone was watching everything I was

"But ho-"

"Shhhh!

to speak, putting his finger on his mouth, he motioned me to be quiet as he pointed towards the

about that now, It's

"Matthew are you okay?"

out of nowhere, a young boy with jet-black

"Yeah"

and nodding his little head, Matthew kept his eyes towards the entrance of

the shoulder, the black-haired boy

"Let's play Matthew!"

parents will

just play

get mad if they don't

at the

play here on the

"Um!"

I couldn't help but turn my

"...is that you?"

young boy with jet black hair and blue eyes playing with Matthew,

"Yea..."

the kid that the old Ren was playing with, I

guy I met at

sadness appeared in Ren's eyes as he looked at the

was my best

but look at Ren in shock. Remembering what had happened moments before appearing in this strange world, Matthew looked more like a bully rather than a

someone like that ever

"Best friend?"

face, Ren smiled but didn't

"Yea..."

-Vooom!

still in shock by the revelation, a black sedan entered the parking area of the

doors opened and a man and a

"Mom! Dad!"

-Pa!

as Matthew was a few feet away from them, raising his hand, the dad slapped him in

told you not to come running at us like that. You're an elite, you must keep your composure at all

smiled weakly and nodded his

"Here"

his pocket, Matthew excitedly handed it to his father. It was a drawing he had made in class that

grabbed the

-Crrrrr

it and tossed it

this what you wasted your entire

and urging his wife to follow him, they

"Bye..."

his parents enter the car, Matthew secretly picked up the crumpled paper on the floor and entered the car. As he did, turning

"Bye Ren!"

scene cut and the

-Swooosh!

the world around me changed. Soon the world around me

turned itself into a

to ask Ren about what was going on, a familiar voice disrupted

"Wha-t happened Matthew!"

towards Matthew, Ren's figure