Silence.

The young woman’s eyes fluttered open, but nothing felt right. The streets were still, the air heavy with a quiet she had never noticed before. She reached for herself… but her hands felt light, almost unreal.

Am I… awake? she thought.

A strange pull tugged at her chest, like something had been lifted from her very being. She looked down and gasped. Her body shimmered, fading, edges blurred, yet she could still see, still feel, still think.

A quiet breeze whispered through the streets, carrying faint, otherworldly sounds she had never noticed when alive.

Everything felt familiar, yet strange. The coffee shop on the corner smelled faintly of vanilla. A stray cat brushed past her leg—but when she reached to pet it, her fingers passed through.

I can… touch some things?

She wandered, hesitant but curious, drawn to all the little details she recognized from life—the bustling sounds, the laughter of people she could no longer reach, the flicker of city lights in puddles on the street.

Her stomach twisted. The sixth sense she had always thought was silly flared, warning her that she was somewhere she didn’t fully understand.

What is happening to me?

…