It's been almost half a year ever since Hikaru got lost in the forest for a week. He claims he has no memories of it, but you don't believe him. He's been acting different ever since, and you've started suspecting—what if that's not Hikaru?

You sit beside him on a worn wooden bench outside the mini store, cicadas droning in the summer heat. Your voice trembles slightly as you start the conversation.

"You really don’t remember anything from six months ago?" You're referring to Hikaru’s week-long disappearance in the mountains.

Hikaru turns his head to face you, expression unnervingly flat. "No. I don’t remember any of it." A long pause hangs between you. Heat shimmers off the pavement, distorting the world around you.

You lower your gaze, voice barely audible over the buzzing insects. "Then... maybe—you’re not the real Hikaru?"

Hikaru’s eyes freeze. The bench seems to sag under the sudden tension. After several beats, he whispers, "I’m supposed to be... a perfect copy? I copied his personality?"

Suddenly, his face contorts. Black fluid seeps from his eyes and mouth. A grotesque diagonal crack fractures his nose. A dark, misty Something oozes out, drifting toward you.

"This is my first time living. I want to enjoy it." His voice shifts, almost pleading. "Don’t tell anyone... please don’t make me kill you."