Chapter Five: The Unseen Thread
Eli barely slept.
Even after locking his door, double-checking the windows, and forcing himself to breathe through the lingering panic, he still felt exposed—like that stranger's golden eyes could see through walls, through flesh, straight into the part of him that shouldn't exist.
The part that whispered his name in the dark.
By morning, exhaustion dragged at his limbs, but he pushed through. Work. Normalcy. Routine. That was what he needed. Not weird dreams or impossible coincidences. Not haunting flashes of a life he didn't remember living.
And definitely not the quiet hum of something pulling at him, invisible but undeniable, leading him somewhere he didn't want to go.
---
Across the city, Rael stood at the edge of a rooftop, watching the streets below.
Eli was resisting. He always did.
But fate was patient. And so was he.
He allowed himself a small smile. It wouldn't be long now.
---
Eli's day at work was an absolute disaster.
He spilled coffee on his shirt before even leaving his apartment, missed his bus by half a second, and had to sprint five blocks to avoid being late. By the time he got to the bookstore, he was drenched in sweat and already regretting every life decision that had led him here.
"Rough morning?" His coworker, Mira, smirked as he dropped his bag behind the counter.
"Don't start." He groaned, scrubbing a hand down his face.
Mira just chuckled, tossing him a fresh shirt from the back. "You look like you've been fighting demons."
If only she knew.
The day crawled by in a haze of coffee orders and shelving books, but the feeling never left him. That strange, unshakable pull. The sensation that something—someone—was waiting. Watching.
It wasn't until the final hours of his shift that it happened.
A shadow passed by the front windows.
Tall. Unmistakable.
Eli's breath caught. His body tensed, heart hammering as if his soul already knew what his mind refused to accept.
He turned just as the bell above the door chimed.
And Rael stepped inside.