Chapter 6 – Strange Glitches
1267 Words
Evie woke up that morning feeling like she'd been run over by a truck.
Not physically—no.
This pain was the kind that came from every fragment of last night slicing through her mind again and again.
She lay in bed for a long moment, eyes open, staring blankly at the ceiling. The sunlight slowly crept into her small apartment, brightening the room, but nothing inside her brightened with it.
The image of Aiden Cross standing there, cold and distant—his voice sharp enough to cut—still echoed in her head.
"Stay away from me."
Evie swallowed. Her throat felt raw.
"I didn't mean to… it wasn't on purpose…" she whispered to herself, though the words felt empty.
And yet the thing that haunted her even more than Aiden, more than the fan chaos, more than the humiliation—
—were the images.
Those flickers of memories that did not belong to this world.
Just before dawn, when she'd finally drifted into a shallow sleep, she saw—
A larger apartment.
A brighter office.
The golden logo Global Daily on the far wall.
A young girl's voice laughing, calling out: "Evie!"
Then an explosion—
A scream—
And darkness swallowing everything.
Evie bolted upright, lungs straining for air, her heart thudding out of rhythm. Her hands trembled against the bedsheets.
She could feel a death that wasn't hers.
A version of her that no longer existed.
"Okay… okay… it's just stress," she told herself, though her voice shook so much it barely sounded like her.
She slapped her cheeks lightly, trying to ground herself, then forced her body to move.
She needed the one place that might keep her sane.
Work.
She had to go to the office.
If she didn't… she would crumble.
The newsroom — chaos waiting for her
The moment Evie stepped into the building, she knew something was wrong.
People shifted aside as if she carried a contagion.
Some lowered their heads to avoid her gaze.
Others watched her with a mixture of pity and suspicion.
Her desk… was a mess.
Papers piled up as if someone had dumped everything onto it in a hurry.
Her computer screen flashed with dozens of notifications.
"This is bad…" Evie murmured.
Every step she took drew whispers.
"That's her. The coffee girl."
"Didn't know she'd go that far for attention."
"Fans of Aiden are tearing her apart online."
"She deserved it."
Evie gripped her bag tighter.
She wanted to say she wasn't that kind of reporter.
That she never once used cheap tricks to get stories.
That she hated scandals.
But no one would listen.
The office door opened, and her editor, Harris, stepped out. His expression was tired. Worried. Resigned.
"Evie… come in."
When the door closed behind them, Evie felt the floor shift under her feet.
Harris placed a stack of printed emails on his desk. His hands were visibly trembling.
"I'm sorry, Evie. Truly. But we can't keep you here."
Evie froze.
"It's… because of last night?"
"Not just that." Harris let out a long sigh. "Your address was leaked. Fans showed up at the building this morning. They threatened us. Said they'd ruin this magazine if we kept you."
Evie's stomach dropped.
"But I didn't—"
"Evie, we're a small company. We can't survive this storm."
Everything inside her collapsed.
She opened her mouth, but no words came out—just a shaky breath.
Finally, she forced herself to speak.
"I… understand."
She packed up her things slowly, carefully—almost reverently.
Every pen, every notebook, every old draft—each one held memories of long nights chasing leads, confronting corruption, fighting for truth.
It wasn't just a job.
It was a piece of the life she had lost.
A piece of the Evie who used to exist.
A tear fell onto the lid of the cardboard box. She wiped it away quickly.
But when she walked out of the newsroom with her belongings in her arms, the whispers followed her like ghosts.
"She ruined everything for herself."
"She should've known better."
"Serves her right."
Evie didn't look back.
If she did, she might break.
The bus ride home — and the glitches get worse
Evie sat by the window on the bus, staring outside, trying to hold herself together.
But the world outside didn't stay still.
For one terrifying second, the buildings blurred—
faded—
shifted—
into another skyline entirely.
The streets changed.
The signs changed.
It was the neighborhood where her original office had been.
Evie jerked upright. The vision vanished.
Her pulse raced.
"Just tired… just stressed…" she whispered, though she didn't believe it anymore.
Then the bus turned—
And her mind split open.
A flash.
White.
Blinding.
Like someone had ripped open her memory.
She saw herself
—the other her—
running out of the Global Daily building.
She heard the screech of tires.
A scream—
Evie covered her mouth.
Passengers looked at her with startled eyes, but she turned her face away.
Her heart hammered against her ribs.
"No… no… I saw it. That was—"
Her death.
In another world.
The realization hit her like ice water.
Evie pressed her palm against her forehead, shaking violently.
If that Evie died…
then who was she living for now?
Home — but not safe
Her apartment felt colder than usual.
Evie locked the door, set her box down, and sank onto the sofa, drawing her knees to her chest. She tried to breathe slowly. Steadily.
But the memories flashed again.
The scream.
The impact.
Darkness.
She pressed her hands to her eyes until stars formed behind her lids.
"I'm living in someone else's place… someone who isn't here anymore," she whispered.
She didn't know what to believe.
Or what she was supposed to do now.
Or why she kept seeing things that didn't belong to her.
Her phone vibrated.
A message.
From an unknown number.
Evie unlocked it—
And her blood turned to ice.
"Lost your job yet?"
"Serves you right, bitch."
"Get out of this city."
"Aiden doesn't need parasites like you."
Evie dropped the phone as tears streamed down her face.
Not loud.
Not sobbing.
Just quiet.
Unstoppable.
"Please… just leave me alone…" she whispered, voice cracking.
But the world didn't care.
Meanwhile — Aiden
In his penthouse, Aiden Cross stood in front of a large monitor, his expression darkening by the second.
His assistant spoke cautiously:
"We investigated her background. Evie Hart. Journalist. Reputation for being… bold. People say she'll do anything for a story."
Aiden's jaw clenched.
"The type who creates a scandal on purpose?"
"It's possible."
Aiden glanced at the photo of Evie in the file.
Those tired eyes.
That pale face.
She didn't look like someone manipulative.
But irritation pulsed in his chest anyway.
"I don't believe in 'accidents.' She tried to get close to me. Now everyone's talking about it."
He picked up his phone, scrolling through the chaos online.
"She's not getting near me again. Ever."
"Yes, sir."
Evie had no idea she was being crushed from all sides.
She didn't know Aiden saw her as a threat.
She didn't know she was living the life of someone already dead.
The only thing she knew—
was that she was losing control.
And the glitches—
those flickering memories—
were growing clearer.
Longer.
More vivid.
As if another life…
another fate…
was forcing its way into her mind.
"What… is happening to me…?" Evie whispered.
And deep down, she already sensed—
This was only the beginning.
- Writer
