[ 10... 9... 8... 6... ]

Luna blinked hard, panicking. She waved her hand frantically through the air, trying to swat the glowing screen away, but her fingers passed right through the light.

[ 2... 1... ]

Beep.

[System Error: Selection time expired. Default option automatically selected: STAY.]

Luna froze, waiting for something terrible to happen, but nothing changed. The room remained quiet. She let out a long, relieved sigh and leaned back against her pillows. Exhaustion washed over her, and she closed her eyes to rest.

Thud!

The heavy wooden door to her private ward burst open, shattering the silence.

"Luna! Oh my god, Luna, what happened to you?!"

Jax rushed into the room, his face pale with anxiety. He grabbed her by the upper arms, shaking her backward and forward. "Why weren't you answering your phone? Where on earth were you going so late at night?!"

Luna couldn't speak. She just stared at him, her chest tightening. Jax narrowed his eyes, closely scanning her face, trying to read her expression like a hawk. "Did you... did you come by the apartment last night, Luna?"

Suddenly, a sharp chime echoed in her ears, and a bright blue window materialized right over Jax's head.

[Name: Jax Bell]

[Favorability: -15% (Dislike)]

[Current Thought: 'Did she hear us? Is that why she ran into traffic? Damn it, why didn't she just die out there? Well, at least she has a massive health insurance policy. I should pretend to take care of her, pocket the insurance money, and use it to take Blair on a luxury vacation.']

Luna's stomach twisted into a violent knot. The sheer cruelty of his thoughts left her breathless. Blinded by anger, she pointed a trembling finger directly at his forehead. "What... what is that showing?" she gasped. "Jax, can't you see that blue window floating on your head?"

Jax stopped shaking her. He slowly looked up at the empty air above his hair, then looked back at Luna with deep confusion. "Did you hit your head in the accident? What are you talking about?"

"See? Right here!" Luna insisted, tapping the air where the glowing text pulsed.

Jax backed away slightly, staring at her as if she had completely lost her mind.

'Oh... he really can't see it,' Luna murmured to herself, her hand dropping back to the bed.

Panic flashed across Jax's face, not out of worry for her health, but out of fear of her erratic behavior. He turned on his heel and rushed out into the hallway. "Doctor! Nurse! Come quickly, I think Luna hit her head!"

"I'm not mad!" Luna shouted after him, her voice cracking.

Frustrated, she tried to sit up properly. She didn't feel any pain in her head, but a sharp ache shot through her left upper body. Looking down, she realized her left arm and shoulder were completely locked in a heavy plaster cast. 'Did I break my arm? Weird...'

Before she could think further, a nurse entered the room to check her vitals. Instantly, a new window popped up.

[Name: Unknown]

[Favorability: 20% (Neutral/Sympathy)]

[Current Thought: 'Poor child. It's a miracle she survived that crash. Thank God the injury was only to her shoulder and not her head, otherwise she’d be in a coma right now.']

The nurse stepped forward gently, adjusting the rate of the IV drip. "How are you feeling right now, sweetie?"

Luna didn't answer immediately. Her eyes were glued to the air above the nurse's cap. Noticing her intense gaze, the nurse glanced upward, confused. "Is there something on my hair? Where are you looking?"

Luna snapped back to reality, quickly shaking her head. "Nowhere. Sorry."

Just then, the doctor walked in, with Jax hovering closely behind him. "Please check her properly, Doctor," Jax urged, his voice laced with artificial concern. "She's acting crazy. She keeps talking about some weird floating window."

As they approached, identical blue boxes hovered over both of their heads. Luna glanced at Jax's screen. His favorability rating had dropped even lower, and his floating thoughts were filled with nasty remarks about how she had officially gone insane.

His whining voice was grating on her nerves. Unable to stand his presence for another second, Luna clamped her hand over her forehead and groaned dramatically. "Ahh... my head. It hurts so much."

The doctor shot a fierce, reprimanding glare at Jax. "She needs absolute peace and quiet. Please leave the room immediately."

Jax made a sour face, clearly annoyed, but he didn't dare argue with the medical staff. He turned around and slunk out of the ward.

Luna let out a massive breath of relief. 'Thank God I don't have to look at that text anymore.'

With the annoying distraction gone, she spent the next few minutes calmly discussing her injuries and recovery plan with the doctor. As the doctor finally opened the door to leave, a familiar voice echoed from the hallway.

"Doctor! How is she? Is her condition stable?"

The doctor offered a reassuring smile to the frantic girl standing outside. "She is doing well. You can visit her, just make sure to keep the environment completely quiet."

"Thank you so much, Doctor!"

The door opened fully, and a girl rushed inside. It was Marina, the friend Luna had been talking to on the phone right before the world shattered.

As Marina's footsteps neared the bed, a bright blue window flashed to life, just as the system had implicitly promised.

[Name: Marina Venice]

[Favorability: 100% (Absolute Loyalty/Devotion)]

[Current Thought: 'Oh, my poor friend... Look what that disgusting scumbag and his slutty mistress did to you. I swear, I am not going to leave them alone. They are dead to me, and I will make them pay.']

Reading those words, a warmth flooded Luna's chest. Tears of pure relief and gratitude welled up in her eyes. "Mari..."

Marina threw her arms around Luna, hugging her tightly while being mindful of her plastered shoulder. "Mari! Why did you do something so reckless?" Marina cried, her voice breaking as she wept against Luna's blanket. "How could you run into the street like that? Didn't you think about me? Didn't you think about your parents?"

Luna squeezed her eyes shut, her mind racing. 'Her favorability is a full 100%. That means she truly cares about me. And the window... it really does show their exact inner thoughts. Jax's score was negative. He genuinely hates me.' The heavy realization caused her own tears to spill over, and she sobbed silently into her friend's shoulder.

After crying out the worst of their shock, Marina pulled back and wiped her face. "I heard everything over the phone last night, Luna," she said, her expression hardening. "How could they do that to you? I always told you I had a bad feeling about Jax, but you were just so blindly in love."

Luna looked down at her lap, her voice trembling. "I didn't know... I didn't know he thought of me as a joke. I gave him everything, Mari. I loved him so much, but he never loved me. Waaah..."

"Shh, it's okay," Marina comforted her, gently patting her uninjured shoulder. "You know the truth now. You can cut that cancer out of your life and find someone who truly deserves you. 

Actually... stop crying. I have a secret to tell you. Once you hear it, you won't be crying anymore."

Luna sniffled, wiping the tears from her cheeks. Intrigued, she leaned her good ear closer to Marina.

Marina leaned in and whispered into her ear, Luna’s eyes went wide. She practically jumped out of her skin, completely forgetting about her injuries. "What?! Really?! You actually have it?!"

"Every single word," Marina smirked, a dangerous glint in her eyes.

A fierce, triumphant smile broke across Luna's face. "Good. Those bastards aren't escaping from me now."

As the two friends began whispering, planning their next move, the door to the ward clicked and swung open without a knock.

Marina immediately snapped, turning toward the entrance. "Hey! Don't you people have any manners? Knock before you open a door!"

Two distinct silhouettes stepped through the privacy curtains. It was Jax, and standing right beside him, looking smug, was Blair.

"Oh, please. It's just me, Luna," Blair said, tossing her hair over her shoulder and shooting a dismissive glare at Marina. "I don't think I need to knock before entering a room like some people."

The moment Blair crossed the threshold, a flashing, blood red warning banner erupted across Luna's vision, pulsing with an ominous light.

[WARNING: An enemy has been detected.]

[The target harbors extreme malice toward the Host.]

[Emergency Quest Triggered: Do you want to FACE them or RUN AWAY?]

[ FACE ] or [ RUN AWAY ]

You have 10 seconds to decide.

Luna stared at the flashing red light, her curiosity burning. She wanted to see exactly how deep Blair's malice ran. As her eyes locked onto the screen floating above Blair's head, Luna’s jaw literally dropped.