Chapter 2
Over the next few days, Ryan and I were actively experimenting, trying to crack the rules behind this time-space glitch.
But the deeper we dug, the more lost we felt.
Sometimes, I dropped something casually, and it would disappear in a blink. But if I tried putting another item in the exact same spot, it wouldn't go anywhere.
This glitch seemed to show up whenever it wanted, totally unpredictable, and even the size of the stuff that got sent over was random.
But there were some patterns, too.
Like, my food had a habit of popping up on Ryan's side, while his clothes somehow kept landing on mine.
One time, I finally decided to treat myself and splurged on a lunchbox with my favorite pasta.
But as soon as I opened it, the food disappeared right before my eyes.
Then Ryan let out a yell.
He shouted, "Anna, why is my pencil case packed with pasta?"
Another time, I was napping when I suddenly felt like I couldn't breathe.
I jolted awake and found Ryan's clothes had ended up smack on my face.
Ryan screamed again.
He asked, "Anna, did you do this on purpose?
"I just got out of the shower, and you stole my clothes. Are you just waiting to see me run for my bedroom like a mess?"
As time went on, Ryan and I grew closer.
Ryan lived in Dinstaburg, more than 180 miles away from me.
We were both high school seniors, and we promised to meet in real life after the SAT, our first face-to-face after being online friends for so long.
Ryan's schoolwork was honestly kind of worrying.
One time, my draft paper got teleported over to him.
He stared at the math written on it and asked me, "Anna, are you secretly a foreign language genius or something?"
If I had a spare moment, I would pick out a couple of math problems to walk Ryan through, but honestly, he would be snoring before I even finished.
That day, when I got home and saw Ryan bombarding me with messages like a magpie, I just responded with a simple reply.
I said, "I'm a bit tired today. I'm going to rest."
Maybe he sensed something was off, because Ryan went quiet for a bit before speaking in a low voice.
"Anna, you've been crying," he said.
I was stunned and quickly asked how he could tell.
Ryan replied, "Your tears fell right onto my face, like a silent rainstorm.
"Did someone mess with you? It smells like blood here."
I instinctively touched the corner of my mouth, and it finally dawned on me what Ryan meant.
"Are scents getting transferred now, too?" I asked.
For once, Ryan didn't reply. Instead, he started rummaging through his stuff.
After a bit, a few medicine bottles popped up out of nowhere right next to me.
"Did they make it over? I don't know how serious your injury is, but I hope this helps you out," Ryan said.
Tears streamed down my face, and Ryan just stayed quiet, keeping me company in the silence.
It wasn't until I cried myself out and my voice grew weak that Ryan finally spoke up.
"Anna, did someone mess with you?" he asked.
I rubbed at my puffy eyes and asked, "How did you know?"
Ryan let out a sigh, sounding a bit resigned.
"Don't tell me you're crying because you challenged someone to a fight and lost, like I did," he said, half-joking.
I couldn't help but laugh, but Ryan suddenly turned serious.
He said, "If anyone bullies you again, fight back. Grab one of them and beat the crap out of them. They started it, so you finish it.
"And if things get really bad, just drop my name. I'll catch a bus this weekend and come over to back you up."
A warm feeling spread through my chest, and suddenly, my injuries didn't hurt as much anymore.
"Ryan, thank you," I said softly.
Ryan suddenly thought of something and asked, "Oh, right, what about your parents? How come you've never talked about them? Do they ignore it when you get bullied?"
I bit my lip and stayed quiet for a long time.
Ryan realized he messed up and hurried to smooth things over.
He said, "Ugh, ignore what I said, okay?"
"I've never met my dad. The only time I ever saw my mom, it was her silhouette walking away," I said quietly.
I gazed into the distance, lost in memories.
I said, "I grew up in an orphanage. They covered my tuition, but I had to work part-time on weekends to pay for everything else.
"Everyone always said my mom was a hostess at some bar, and that I was a bastard. That rumor stuck with me from grade school all the way through high school.
"When I was little, I wanted so badly to prove my mom wasn't a bar hostess. I saved up and paid someone to act as my mom. But the woman I found was actually a bar hostess, so I ended up proving the rumor myself."
I chuckled bitterly.
Ryan's voice got choked up on the other end.
"Is that why people bully you? Because of that rumor?" he asked, his voice trembling.
I murmured, "Yeah."
Ryan's voice rose sharply, cracking with emotion as he choked back tears, furious and frustrated.
Ryan said, "If they don't even bother to get to know you and hate you because of some stupid rumors, those people are just trash.
"I mean, I'm just a loser at school, but they're straight-up scumbags.
"Got their numbers? Hand them over. I'll drag them out this weekend and teach them a lesson."
He was like a little angry kitten, spitting out curses and ranting nonstop.
Listening to him ramble on, I didn't feel annoyed at all; in fact, I just drifted off to sleep.
Ryan heard my steady breathing and softly called my name. When I didn't respond, he laughed quietly to himself, a bit resigned.
"Goodnight, Anna. Everything's going to be okay," Ryan said.