Sample 001
Oddities

On their way to the hospital's polyclinic, Emile realizes Ethan's flat face. "Why your face, Ethan? Don't tell me you're heartbroken because Jade already has a fiancee."

"Don't just talk, I don't want anyone to hear it and be misunderstood" he said.

"Then, what's wrong with your face. If it wasn't for the heartbreak then what's his name?" Press Emile.

"I'm not heartbroken. There's something else I'm thinking about." Ethan answered firmly.

"what are you thinking?" The curious Emile asked further.

"Somehow I feel I've seen Jade's fiancee's face. But I forgot where I saw it." Ethan sighed in his explanation.

Ethan's mind goes back to when he was in the cafeteria, remembering how he couldn't read Jade's fiance diagnosis the same as it did with Black.

"Wait a minute" Ethan said suddenly, stopping Emile's steps.

He grabs Emile's hand and starts chanting Emile's full name, and Emile's hologram diagnoses appear clearly before Ethan.

Why didn't this hologram appear when I shook hands or touched skin on Chris and Black? Ethan was silent for a moment, his eyes staring intently at the hologram. He started to look. His mind floated in a puzzling question. Are their names true? the question is in the heart, while trying to string together increasingly complicated pieces of the puzzle.

Uncertainty further entangles Ethan's mind, he continues to ponder while holding Emile's hand unconsciously as they walk towards the hospital polyclinic. But suddenly, a gentle call from Emile broke the silence.

"Ethan" cried Emile as he pulled his hand, instantly shaking Ethan from his daydream.

Ethan flinched and immediately replied, "Em."

"You why? You almost made my heart stop when you grabbed my hand so suddenly." Emile smiles while being ridiculed when Ethan's gaze is on him.

"So, I'm sorry, Emile." Ethan said

Emile's heart was still pounding so hard that she even felt her cheeks meet red due to the unexpected incident.

But amid all the uncertainty, the moment gives a little touch of warmth between the two. The two of them continued on their way to the hospital polyclinic with a light conversation.

When Ethan arrives in his room, the silence of the room is broken only by the gurgling of medical equipment he has placed on the table. However, suddenly, Ethan's phone rang with a notification tone that was so loud.

There is one incoming message, Ethan put down his phone without interest to see what the message is about until curiosity finally defeats his disinterest.

Ethan opened the message and immediately frowned while reading the message.

[Don't trust anyone but yourself.]

Ethan looked at the unfamiliar number on his phone screen with a suspicious look. "Basic is unclear!" his grunts were frustrated.

Without hesitation, Ethan immediately deleted the message, trying to ignore its contents which made him even more confused.

***

Time passed quickly and Ethan had just finished his practice hours at 10 p.m. His body was tired and he decided not to go home to his parents and chose to return to the dormitory in the hospital not far from where he worked.

That night, Ethan decides to walk home to the hospital dorm after finishing his practice hours. The cool night breeze caressed her face and she enjoyed a moment of peace under the starry sky. His eyes were fixed on the stars that were shining so brightly.

However, when Ethan was about to stop by the nearest minimarket, the silence of the night was suddenly interrupted by the presence of a burly man who looked very drunk.

Ethan was stunned by the words of the stranger. He could only look at the man leaving with confusion engulfing his mind. While the man passes Ethan is still glued to his back which is getting away.

"Why did everything get so weird today?" muttering Ethan in a frustrated tone, he shook his head in an attempt to expel the sudden chaotic thought.

Ethan enters the minimarket with a list of groceries that have been compiled in his mind. He began to choose the necessary items and then he started walking towards the cashier when all the needs he wanted had been included in his shopping cart.

At the moment, Ethan was about to pay at the cashier, suddenly, a middle-aged man approached him.

"Son, can you please pay first?" The man asked in a weak tone.

Ethan looked at the old man holding the only groceries with a friendly expression and without hesitation, Ethan stepped back to budge.

"Please, sir." He smiled friendly.

The middle-aged man began to pay for his groceries with a heart-to-heart, then sincerely he thanked Ethan who had generously helped him.

Ethan only returned the remark with a friendly smile back, he was happy if he could provide such a small favor.

After paying for her groceries, Ethan continues on his way to the hospital dormitory. However, his steps came to a halt when he saw the previous middle-aged man standing by the roadside with hesitant steps, the man tried to cross the street.

Ethan's helping soul was moved and without a second thought, he approached the old man. "Sir, do you want to cross?" ask Ethan politely.

The middle-aged man only nodded his head with a blank look so Ethan swiftly led the man across the street safely.

However, when their skin came into contact, suddenly a hologram of health diagnostics belonging to the middle-aged man appeared clearly before Ethan. It makes Ethan surprised and his steps stop for a moment.

Ethan was surprised to see that the hologram of the health diagnosis that appeared revealed that the middle-aged man by his side was suffering from Alzheimer's Dementia, a type of dementia caused by an inherited gene mutation or the formation of plaques or protein clots in the brain.

The middle-aged man noticed Ethan's surprised expression what else they stopped in the middle of the road.

"What's up, son?" Asked the master's man, his remark pulled Ethan out of his reverie.

"There's nothing, sir." Ethan tried to answer lightly while trying to ease his discomfort. They continued their steps.

As soon as they arrive on the other side of the road, Ethan makes a sound. This time he spoke with caution. "Master, do you remember where your house is?"Ask.

The middle-aged man looked at Ethan's face he could see a full face of sincerity there.

"Of course I remember, thank you for being so kind as to take me across the street" she replied with a warm smile.

Ethan was so excited to see the old man. There's relief in Ethan's heart.

Although this grandfather had to struggle with a disease that affected his memory.But he still looks independent in his old age.

Ethan can only smile kindly in return, realizing that there is nothing strange in his actions. His helping soul had already grown from a long time ago even amid the increasingly confusing uncertainty in his life.

The mysterious night closes with relief, where Ethan always feels happy after sprinkling a kindness.

—tbc—