In a busy and noisy classroom, Ian looks outside the window, lost in thought, as he watches the leaves fall.

Suddenly, a slap to his shoulder came, instantly taking his attention. Jake stood beside him, smirking. "Daydreaming again, Ian?”

Ian glanced at Jake, one of his few friends. “Oh, it’s you again.”

Jake saw his face, almost instantly laughing. “Hahaha, what’s up with those eye bags? It’s larger than yesterday!”

“Shut up!” Ian grumbled, rubbing his eyes.

“Take a look of yourself in the mirror, are you becoming the new species of panda?” Ian sighed and shook his head, ignoring Jake’s teasing.

“Tsk, anyway, what’s going on?” Ian asked, trying hard to change the subject. Jake leaned in, still chuckling.

“No, nothing,” Jake said, still holding his laughter and chuckling. He took the seat next to Ian and pulled out his phone, sneakily taking a picture of Ian before playing a mobile game.

Ian noticed his actions and instantly moved to take Jake’s phone, but Jake instantly dodged it with a smirk. “Heh”

“You! Give it to me!” Jake laughed and held the phone just out of Ian's reach.

Suddenly, Mark one of Ian’s friends entered the classroom and saw them. He also saw the eye bags on Ian's face, just like Jake, he almost laughed out loud. “Hahahahahahahha what’s up with that geek? Cosplaying as a panda?”

“Very funny,” Ian grumbled, feeling the heat in his cheeks as another friend joined in on the teasing. But Jake who got his guard down, has his phone get stolen by Ian.

Ian moved very fast as if used to this kind of situation, deleting his stolen pics.

Just in time, the bell rang, signaling the start of class. The three of them took their seats before the teacher entered the room.

“Good morning class,” the teacher says as a usual morning greeting.

“Good morning teacher” the students responded.

And so, the class goes on as usual. But Ian who didn’t get enough sleep has slept in the entire class.

The teacher saw it and woke up Ian to solve the equation on board, but he may not look like it, he is one of the smart people in class. He easily solved the problem, yet instead of going back to sleep, he looked through the window again, lost in thoughts.

Just like that, the whole morning has passed, It’s finally lunchtime.

Ian walks through the canteen and gets his usual lunch, then he goes and finds a table to sit on and eat.

Ạ moments, He found Jake and Mark, and he decided to join them to eat.

While eating, Jake suddenly started a topic. “Did you know? There will be a new transferee in our class.”

But Ian doesn’t seem interested, his mind still preoccupied with eating his lunch. On the other hand, Mark seems quite interested in it.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

“So it is a girl or a boy?” Mark curiously asked, his eyes sparkled eagerly for an answer.

Jake shrugged, taking a sip of his drink. "No clue.” Hearing that, Mark shows a little disappointment.

“I think we will know it tomorrow or later,” Jake says, swinging his spoon.

After they finished eating, they left and returned to their classrooms.

The three of them chatted a little more before the start of the afternoon class again, the topic they had was random yet they were already used to it.

A few minutes later, the class starts again. They arranged their table and chairs, then the teacher entered the room.

That was then the start of the afternoon discussion.

In the middle of the discussion, Ian was so bored that he started doodling in his notebook and even counting how many seconds it took for a leaf to fall. He is in this state for several more minutes, until the lecture of the current discussion enters his ears.

“Dreams is a simulation created by the brain, or imagination in other cases. But, do you know? Dreams are usually based on your memories or recent imagination. Also, every dream has meaning some articles say.”

“According to some reports, in one in a million cases, some dreams are made from fragments of memories of your past life. Yet, it’s still not proven by science and it’s just a rumor.”

“So in science terms, dreams are just illusion or imagination your brain created….”

When Ian hears the contents of the discussion, he falls into deep thoughts. He continues to recall the dream that keeps repeating every night, he is thinking to find out the meaning behind the dream.

To his realization, it was already the end of the class. His friend, Jake shakes his shoulder and woken him from his deep thought. He looked around and found that almost all of his classmates already left the room.

Thus, the two exit the school. They are always going home together since both of their houses are just next to each other.

“Why are in dazed during the whole class?” Jake asked Ian, he noticed the state Ian was in. “Are you alright?”

Noticing his concern, Ian just shrugged it off. “Yes, of course.”

“Alright, if you say so.” Jake sighed, he knew that even if he continued asking, his friend Ian would not tell him. “Anyway, did you already read the latest chapter of ‘The Downfall Of Intermundium’?” He has no choice but to change the topic.

“Yes of course! That chapter was fire!” Ian's eyes lit in anticipation since he has read that novel since its first serialization. “Especially during the....”

The two talked as they walked down the street, and finally, a few minutes later, they reached their houses. And, they say goodbye before they enter their house.

After he greeted his mother that is cooking in the kitchen, Ian walked straight to his room just as usual and placed his bag before lying on his bed immediately.

Lying in his bed with his back facing the ceiling, Ian let out a long deep sigh. Even now, he is still thinking of the same dream that keeps repeating every night. But a few moments later, he got bored and decided to disregard those thoughts and read some novels on his phone.

Onto the next day.

Just like yesterday, Ian woke up with a haggard face while his eyebags got even larger.

“Damn it, that dream again. Just who are you?!” Ian mutters to himself as he tries to remember again the face of that woman in his dream.

After he finished his breakfast, he washed up and got ready for school. Ian says goodbye and leaves the house.

Coincidentally, his friend Jake catches up to Ian after he sees him on the road.

“Hey Ian!” says Jake, as he places his arm over Ian’s neck.

Turning his head to Jake, Ian said. “Oh, Jake...hello.” his body is in low spirits, Ian stares at his friend with eyes that are like a deadman’s.

Jake saw his face and went on another round of laughing, he leaned against the wall as he touched his stomach. “Hahahahaha, a panda in the wild!”

“Stop it, Jake!” Ian grumbled, trying to hide his embarrassment. His cheeks flushed red as he glanced at his reflection. “It’s just a little black under the eyes. I didn’t sleep well.”

Jake wiped away a tear, still chuckling. “A little? You look like you’ve been wrestling with insomnia for a week straight! Well, you indeed did.”

Ian shot him a glare, crossing his arms. “Keep it up and you’ll be the one needing sleep after I’m done with you.”

Jake grinned, straightening up. “Alright, alright, I’ll stop. But seriously, man, you should try getting some rest. You look like a real-life cartoon character.”

Ian muttered in a low voice, “It's because of that dream.” Jake happened to didn't hear it and asked, “What?”

“Nothing..” Ian shakes his head and flashes his middle finger. “Just f*ck you!”

Before they realized it, they finally reached their classroom. Both of them walk towards their respective chairs and seats.

It also happened to be the start of the class, a few minutes later, the bell rang and all the students arranged their chairs. The teacher entered the room and did the usual greeting routine.

“You may come in now,” the teacher said, looking toward the door.

The door opened, and a girl with long hair, fair skin, and glasses entered the room. The students were impressed by her appearance, but Ian felt something more intense.

His hands trembled as his mind raced—she resembled the woman who had haunted his dreams for so long. The image of his dreams merged with the girl standing before him.

Jake tapped Ian on the shoulder. “That’s the new transfer student I told you about.”

“Y-yeah…” Ian muttered, still distracted.

Jake glanced at him, noticing his unease. “What’s up with you?”

“N-nothing,” Ian replied quickly, regaining his composure as best he could.

They turned their attention back to the girl. She walked to the blackboard, picked up a piece of chalk, and wrote her name.

“My name is Yoona Wilson. I’m from Korea, and I’ll be joining you for the next few years.”

Ian let out a quiet sigh of relief. “They look alike, but at least their names are different.”

“You may take the seat near Ian,” the teacher instructed Yoona.

As Yoona approached her seat, their eyes met briefly. In that instant, Ian was hit with a wave of nostalgia, as if he was being pulled into a memory only he could understand. He stared, lost in thought, trapped in the feeling, while Yoona quickly shook off the sensation.

Ian, still dazed, unconsciously whispered a name unfamiliar to Yoona. Hearing it, she almost faltered but managed to keep her composure. “Impossible,” she thought to herself, though she made sure not to let it show.