Dissappear.

Things have been getting worse since Rhino disappeared. It started with Salmon. I didn't see him around this morning and I thought he was just absent. But that's not what it was, if you hear what Dread said.

"Hey, you promised to give me my money back today, right? Come on, hurry up and give it back," Dread said towards Salmon's seat. "What do you mean when? You borrowed it to buy a movie ticket the other day! Stop pretending to be dumb, fish."

I grimaced as I looked at him. He can't be talking to a seat, can he? So...

The next day, Dread was nowhere to be found. I tried to keep my cool, just like Mai had said. Panicking wouldn't do any good. I needed to stay focused and pay attention to my surroundings.

As I looked around, I saw Vodka talking to the new student and Rhino near the door. Suddenly, there was a loud argument between Salmon and Dread. Or at least, that's what it sounded like from Vodka's one-sided conversation.

There was one thing I wanted to try, something I hadn't done yet. I wanted to see if I could touch the new student. Or if now, touch one of them.

I knew I couldn't see or hear them, but I didn't know if I could touch them or not.

I steeled my resolve. From where Vodka was standing, I guessed one of them, whoever it was, was standing in front of the door.

Without hesitation, I stood up from my seat and took a deep breath. I started walking, increasing my pace until I was running, determined to break through to them.

But as I reached the door, I was disappointed to find that I had been able to pass through without any resistance.

I shared my discovery with Mai, but her response was simply, "I see."

I was taken aback. I had gone through so much trouble to check it out and that was all the feedback she had? It left me feeling a bit undervalued.

The next day, Ema and Vodka vanished together. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't have cared what happened to them. I might have even been happy about it. But considering the situation, and that two people had disappeared at the same time, I had a bad feeling. I immediately went to Mai to discuss it.

"I know," Mai said. "Right now, can you help me out a bit?"

"Sure," I replied, "What do you need help with?"

"Calm down. Seeing you panic all the time makes me annoyed."

I grimaced. Did I look that pitiful to make her annoyed? Even so, Mai still had a blank expression. So she was angry now? No difference in my eyes.

The next day, Mr. Johnson also disappeared. I noticed it when class had already started but my teacher was nowhere to be found. Once again, I tried to think positively. I thought he was just late or had some other business, but suddenly all my classmates greeted him.

"Good morning, Mr. Johnson."

I could only remain silent.

Being taught by someone I couldn't see? Sure, why not.

Besides Mr. Johnson, Salsa and Rara also vanished. And with three people gone, I couldn't even begin to express how I felt at this moment.

Since then, including me and Mai, only thirteen people were still visible.

I discussed this with Mai. Mai shared her thoughts.

"With the number of people who have disappeared, it seems like now it's not just the new student who can spread invisibility. The infected can also do the same. It's like a virus. The real question is, can we find a cure?"

Mai's explanation made sense.

"So what should we do?" I asked, hoping Mai had a solution to end all this madness.

"Pay attention to your surroundings, look for clues as much as possible," Mai said, as calm as ever.

"But I can't just sit here and watch my friends disappear one by one!" I exclaimed, my voice raising.

Mai glared at me. "Do you think I'm not doing anything on purpose? If I knew how to stop it, I would have done it a long time ago."

I sighed. "You're right. I'm sorry. My thoughts are all jumbled, I can't think clearly."

"Calm down. Eventually, we'll find something," Mai said.

But until now, we haven't found anything.

My steps felt dragged, half-hearted as I walked into the school yard. This place was no longer the same as I remembered.

At first, it was just one of the most boring places I had ever been, but now...I couldn't even find the right words to describe it.

How could I not, now almost everywhere in the school I saw people talking to themselves. Be it near the gate, in the hallways, in the cafeteria, and even in each class.

As I saw this, I couldn't express how I felt. I felt like I was no longer part of this world.

And the worst part was, even though I knew things were going to get worse, I couldn't do anything to stop it.

I rubbed my eyes. I think there's something wrong with my eyes. Not far in front of me, I saw a student from another class who appeared to be blurry. Slowly, their body started to fade and... disappear?

My heart was pounding fast. A chill as cold as ice flowed from my back to my entire body.

I stepped back with mixed feelings. Because I didn't pay attention to my surroundings, I bumped into someone.

I immediately turned around and saw a thin man with dreadlocks looking at me. I knew who he was. It was my biology teacher from grade one. Slowly, he too started to fade and disappear.

In a panic, I ran towards the exit door. A few times, I passed by other students who also started to fade and disappear, fade and disappear, making my heart race even faster.

I panicked, running as fast as I could through the school gate. I saw the gatekeeper also start to fade and disappear.

Speeding up my steps, I saw on the street people who were not related to my school also slowly start to fade. It seems that the spread has become much more widespread than I had imagined before.

I didn't care about any of that. Not now. There was one thing that I feared most before thinking about strangers. If someone who was the most important to me disappeared.

I clenched my teeth hard. And the worst part was, she had already met the new student.

My feelings were becoming more and more confused. I ran with all my strength towards home.

"Mom!" I shouted as I broke into the house.

She wasn't there. I ran to the kitchen, she wasn't there. I checked the other rooms again, she wasn't there. She wasn't there. She wasn't there. She wasn't anywhere.

I checked every room in my house but my mother was nowhere to be found. I have checked every room in my house but my mother is nowhere to be found. This can't be happening!

I run out. Turning, I check my neighbors' houses. No one is there.

Maybe my mother is just out shopping. I try to stay optimistic. Despite the bad thoughts creeping into my mind, I try to push them away.

I keep running and my eyes scan the surroundings.

Strange.

No one around.

Although it's morning, the shopping area has never been this empty before.

Cold sweat covers my body.

Cars are parked and not moving along the street. No one is inside. This place looks like a ghost town.

My body trembles, shivering at the thought. I shake my head hard, trying to get rid of that thought and start running again.

I feel relieved when I see someone standing far ahead. I quickly approach her. Once I'm close, I recognize her, it's Mai. She's standing frozen in front of the electronics store.

"Mai, thank God," I say relieved while catching my breath.

Mai, she doesn't react. Her eyes are fixed on the TV screen. I reflexively look at the TV behind the store's glass.

I recognize the background, it's a live news broadcast being aired by one of the private TV companies. Yes, just look at the TV logo, a combination of a triangle and a square in the top left corner. But there's no news anchor anywhere.

My blood feels like it stops. What if... how many people have disappeared?

"So that's how it is," Mai said with a small smile.

I couldn't believe it.

Mai's body started to fade right in front of my eyes. I couldn't even react before she disappeared completely.

No!

Why did Mai have to go too?!

My legs felt weak and the cold fear flowed through my body. Almost falling, I lean my body against the electronics store.

My heart was racing, it felt like it was going to explode. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself but it didn't seem to work. My hands were shaking as I reached for my phone in my pants.

I called more than twenty numbers. I called my uncle who lives in the next city, my old friends who were on a different island, even my brother who's studying abroad. I even called the operator. None of them picked up.

"Shit!" I threw my phone with frustration, causing the screen to crack.

As I looked around, my stomach twisted. There was no one. No one at all.

This is a nightmare.

This is a nightmare.

I walk slowly. My body is shaking hard, feeling weak, very tired, my head feels heavy and hurts. I collapse after bumping into a chair at a cafe. With almost no energy, I try to get back up.

It's so tiring... there's no one here.

The corner of my eye catches something in the large window of the cafe. There, I see a faint shadow of the table and chairs that I was leaning on. But...

My shadow isn't there!

I grab a chair near me and throw it with all my strength at the large window, shattering it. Accompanied by the sound of falling glass, I collapse, exhausted and hopeless.

It's enough... I can't take it anymore...

My vision goes dark. I reach for the glass shards on the floor. Without thinking, I press the sharp glass shards into my wrist and...

***