I don’t believe it.
A story this convenient?
No way.
I had to doubt it. Again and again.
It’s coming. Any second now.
I could feel it.
The hallucination was about to break.
Because it had been over a day since I last used anything.
I braced myself.
I would not be disappointed.
I refused to be disappointed.
The figure in front of me wavered.
Like a screen full of static, distorting.
As I inhaled, cold sweat dripped down my back.
"Heh."
I smiled.
At Shihu.
Or at the hallucination.
"I know it’s not real."
I reached out.
Shihu flickered.
Overlapped.
Something shattered.
And then, I was alone again.
Or maybe not.
If I kept using, I could see this hallucination again.
Again and again, as many times as I wanted.
"No."
Shihu spoke.
Or maybe I had just whispered to myself.
Shihu pulled me into a hug.
I felt warmth.
But it was probably just my own body heat.
"This is a hallucination..."
The symptoms had gotten worse.
That was the only explanation.
Even with my vision completely distorted, I was still seeing things.
Everything was blurry.
Ah, maybe it was just the tears in my eyes.
A brief silence.
Then, Shihu spoke.
"—A long time ago."
A long time ago?