The Numbers Above Us - The Number

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ExL0f2Anl

When I woke up, I thought it was a dream.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjzaGf0HKqK

Not the kind that fades the moment you open your eyes—

the kind that lingers, pressing against reality like it belongs there.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl76gn9vGvo

There was something above me.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvi6GAHwcd2

At first, I ignored it. My room was still dim, the curtains barely letting in the morning light. Everything looked normal.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWgmdHGaSxY

But that feeling…

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLVfOqMWXCK

That something wasn’t right.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡORKdog37ql

I blinked slowly, then looked up again.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW8upDoMoka

And that’s when I saw it.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxbPjBztDCc

A number.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ17wVaexhMD

Floating.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0c4EeCumbe

Perfectly still.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjAncdmqFGI

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeTC66Yl6AM

My breath caught in my throat.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ52INyiUhe1

I sat up too fast, my head spinning slightly as I stared at it. The number didn’t move. Didn’t flicker. Didn’t disappear.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFZKzvp2aa1

It just… stayed there.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzsYQTsLe8E

“Okay…” I whispered to myself, my voice dry. “Not real.”

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDvjq4M0xyh

I rubbed my eyes hard. Once. Twice.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiWk2Nn9SL1

When I looked again—

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwPzMeDo0FO

It was still there.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnLkNc9TPz1

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKvxLlBW9NY

A chill crept down my spine.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoGsf9Cgue1

This wasn’t normal. This couldn’t be normal.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFjIpm5mBwk

My phone buzzed violently on the nightstand, making me jump.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT4Mxt0e5vD

I grabbed it quickly, almost dropping it in the process. Notifications flooded the screen—messages, missed calls, alerts piling on top of each other like something urgent was happening.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡowEJ6mRuik

Group chat: Do you see it too??

Unknown number: What number do you have?

News Alert: Global Phenomenon Reported—Unexplained Visual Markings Appearing Worldwide

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCrpKrlBGBb

My stomach tightened.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1x7LnMrmSt

Slowly, I opened the camera.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnDXHLMW4Qe

My hands were shaking now.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqGX1LRDmsm

I flipped it to front view.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJLCEIPQE2R

For a second, everything looked normal. My face. My room behind me. Nothing unusual.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKMIJjH4Kci

Then I saw it.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx4QIuXVlek

Above my head.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA2iNbs54l0

Clear as day.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaeThYgpOhR

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg5C6MzUjxL

My heart started pounding.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6gCZrjRf8f

“This is… this is some kind of filter,” I muttered, even though I wasn’t using any app.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyWw9Nk9vdW

I turned my head sharply.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8j4Ps70RC6

The number moved with me.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHSTF3oxGiL

No delay. No glitch.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkBo9o7PTTY

Like it was attached to me.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKARDxHYSK3

Another notification popped up. This time, it was a video.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPFtFUzECp4

Live news.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTUrYXEXVKu

I tapped it.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwDeZs0O7GJ

The reporter looked pale. Shaken. Behind her, people were running—some crying, others staring at each other in confusion.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ58BWXes8Up

“…we are receiving reports from across the globe,” she said, her voice unsteady. “Every individual appears to have a number visible above their head. Authorities are currently unable to explain the phenomenon—”

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH7lTf4EMpq

The camera shifted suddenly.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh66Q42QOpR

A man in the background grabbed another person by the shoulders.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHduR75OXf6

“Check mine!” he shouted. “What does mine say?”

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKPWnr67jwj

The other person froze.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0zaO1Jb15G

His face drained of color.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIJqlap2jUd

“…zero,” he whispered.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5AgeA8Qio5

For a brief moment—everything went still.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlJr1VWeGBg

Then the man with zero collapsed.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7JW2wSuGEs

Just like that.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2SdnAJHMui

No warning.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG8fBRWDmve

No struggle.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGZAKYEFZdF

One second he was standing—

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIIp40gOoD8

The next, he was gone.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtFLx8CxrFe

The broadcast cut instantly.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnI4o58Mx2t

My phone slipped from my hand and hit the bed.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcX1bGSqQR3

I couldn’t move.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo3b3luewu1

Couldn’t breathe.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡphz2wHTfpX

My mind replayed what I had just seen over and over again.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDXJxbmR4Ft

Zero.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM9qjFhyMml

Dead.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDJGpDwGNHQ

Slowly—very slowly—I lifted my eyes back up.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCfA5sBYDrj

The number above me flickered.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1IJLD6kukl

My heart nearly stopped.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSLz8ZGexN7

It changed.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4GHrZ4sWm3

27… 26

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdMu9WL19Wn

A cold wave of fear washed over me.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsqve2SkdE9

It wasn’t just a number.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP4PipPEyph

It was counting down.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡka35rIfTcO

And for the first time since I woke up—

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuy16jXExlr

I realized something terrifying.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡklkvgbfmYz

I had no idea what would happen when it reached zero.

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvbrswoSfbe

139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbPHy32WMY7
ns216.73.217.61da2

Reading Theme:

Font Size:

Line Spacing:

Paragraph Spacing:

Load the next issue automatically