The Date above Their Heads

The Moment I Looked at Him

I don’t look at people for long.

That’s the rule.

Short glances. Controlled distance. Nothing that lingers long enough to matter.

It works most of the time.

Until it doesn’t.

I noticed him before I wanted to.

Not because he’s loud or obvious, but because he isn’t.

He moves through the crowd as if he belongs in it without trying. Like, he doesn’t need permission from the world to take up space.

That alone is dangerous.

I keep my eyes down.

Ignore him.

Continue walking.

That’s what I’m supposed to do.

That’s what keeps everything stable.

But then,

He’s closer than before.

I feel it more than I see it. A shift in space. A presence that doesn’t match the background noise of the city.

I shouldn’t look.

I already know that.

But something pulls my attention anyway.

Just for a second.

Just enough.

Our eyes almost meet.

Almost.

And that’s the mistake.

The moment I look at him properly,

The world changes.

At first, it’s nothing.

Just him.

Then,

It appears.

17.06.2028

My breath stops so suddenly it hurts.

The numbers hover above his head as they belong there.

But they don’t.

Not for him.

Not for someone who moves like that.

My chest tightens immediately.

No.

I stare harder, as that will change it.

Like that will make it disappear.

But it doesn’t.

17.06.2028

The same date.

Clear.

Stable.

Final.

Too close.

Way too close.

My fingers curl instinctively around my bag strap, grounding myself.

That’s not possible.

It can’t be today.

It can’t be soon.

People like him don’t,

I cut the thought of immediately.

People like him don’t know what?

Die?

Everyone does.

That’s the only rule that never breaks.

But something about this feels wrong.

Not the usual kind of wrong.

This is sharper.

Louder.

My gaze drops instantly, like I’ve been burned.

I take a step back without thinking.

Distance.

I need distance.

He’s still there.

Still unaware.

Still moving like time isn’t collapsing around him.

My pulse is uneven now.

I didn’t mean to look that long.

I never look that long.

That’s how mistakes happen.

That’s how,

My throat tightens.

I force myself to move.

Walk away.

That’s what I do.

That’s what I always do.

But his date refuses to leave my mind.

17.06.2028

Today.

My steps quicken slightly.

Not running.

Never running.

Just… leaving.

Because this is how it starts.

Every time I get involved, something breaks.

Something shifts.

Something gets worse.

And I can’t afford worse.

Not again.