Infectious

Late Night: 29th November 2025

A high school student sat alone at the beach, crying. Suddenly, his eyes drifted toward the sky, and he saw an asteroid hurtling straight toward him. He bolted, and the asteroid slammed into the ground.

As he slowly turned back to look at the impact site, he realized it wasn't a rock from space at all; it was a metallic pod, and it was time to call the police. Before he could make a move, the object hissed and cracked open. A strange, pulsating ball rolled out into the dirt, glowing faintly against the dark sand.

Drawn by an inexplicable curiosity, the boy reached out and touched it. Instantly, the orb morphed, turning into a slimy, liquid-like substance that molded to the shape of his hand. It began seeping into his skin, weaving through his veins and muscle structure like living mercury. He frantically tried to tear it away, clawing at his own flesh, but it was too late. The alien entity vanished completely inside his body.

He let out a blood-curdling scream as his eyes rolled back, turning entirely white.

30th November 2025

A boy lay sleeping in his bed. His father strode into the room, snapping him out of his slumber. "Kaito, wake up! You're going to be late for school."

Kaito groaned, pulling the blanket higher. "I am not going to school... If I go, then... I can't control myself."

His father crossed his arms, offering a piece of cold, gritty advice. "Listen, my son. If the joke is on you, you have to stay silent. But if it is on your friends, family, or anyone else, then you have to choose violence."

Kaito blinked, half-convinced his dad was joking. "But if I fight, the teacher will call you and complain about me."

"Let them complain," his father replied smoothly. "If they complain about you in front of me, I will scold you publicly so they feel satisfied, but only you and I will know the truth. You're right—now let's eat breakfast, we're getting late."

With that, his father set out a meager breakfast at the table, and they began to eat. Between bites, his father glanced up. "Today I have some extra work at the headquarters. I might come home late tonight, so take care of yourself."

After finishing, they both headed to their rooms to get ready. Kaito was a high school student in grade 9, and his father, Akio Akira, was a chief officer in S.W.A.T. Once ready, they climbed into the S.W.A.T. vehicle. Kaito's father dropped him off near the school gates, giving a final nod. "Take care of yourself and your friends."

"Thank you, Dad. Take care of yourself too," Kaito said.

As his father's car pulled away, Kaito absentmindedly scratched his head—and froze. He only had one minute left before the gates locked. He broke into a sprint, desperate to beat the clock.

When he finally burst through the gates and looked up at the school windows, he caught no sight of his friends. Suddenly, a chaotic roar of shouting echoed from behind him. He spun around to see a stampede of students barreling toward him—his friends had overslept, too, and were running for their lives to beat the deadline.

"Oh no! If I don't run, I'm going to be flattened by my own cavalry!" Kaito muttered, joining the frantic pack.

Standing at the main gate, a security guard checked his pocket watch, his face hardening as the final second ticked away. He reached for the heavy iron doors to slam them shut just as Kaito and his friends crashed toward the entrance. The guard tried to brace his weight against the push, realizing too late that trying to stop a charging horde of desperate teenagers was like standing in front of a freight train.

The doors gave way with a loud bang. The guard tumbled backward, sprawling onto the concrete as the mob trampled right past him, leaving him behind to curse into the empty air.

Kaito staggered into his classroom, chest heaving for air, and glared at the boy sitting nearby. "What the hell is wrong with you guys? Why were you running like the hounds of hell were on your heels?"

His best friend, Sinosuke, puffed out his chest defensively. "A stray dog charged at me, so I started running. Then these absolute fools saw me running and panicked, copying me blindly!"

The entire class burst into laughter. A moment later, the homeroom teacher stepped through the door, and the class scrambled to their feet. The teacher dropped a heavy stack of books onto the desk with a sharp thud. "Good morning, students. Sit down. Let's start the class."

As the lesson droned on, the teacher's eyes swept across the room and lingered on an empty seat near the window. He paused, tapping his chalk against the board. "Whose desk is this?"

Sinosuke raised a hand. "It's Higuruchi's desk, sir."

"Ah," the teacher frowned, adjusting his glasses. "I heard he has been missing since yesterday. Did he not return home after school?"

Another student chimed in from the back. "Teacher, I didn't see him in class yesterday afternoon."

Sinosuke nodded. "He left the school midway through the half-period."

Hearing this, a cold shudder ran down Kaito's spine. He leaned over to Sinosuke. "Do you have any idea what happened to him?"

"For the past few days, I've noticed a bully gang shaking him down," Sinosuke whispered back.

"Watari's gang?" Kaito asked, his eyes narrowing.

"The one and only," Sinosuke confirmed grimly. "Do you think they actually went through with it? Rumor has it they once beat a third-year student so badly he ended up in the hospital."

"Wait—what? You think they actually hurt him?" Kaito asked, shock lacing his voice.

"Yes, but I'm not entirely sure they crossed the line this time," Sinosuke muttered.

At that moment, muffled laughter drifted in from the corridor. The voices were gloating, loudly recounting how they had cornered and beaten someone the day before. Kaito snapped his head toward the hallway window and recognized the faces instantly—it was Watari's inner circle strolling past without a care in the world.

The teacher lecturing the class slammed his book down and marched to the doorway. "What do you think you're doing in the corridor during instruction time? Get back to your classroom!"

Watari, the gang's leader, didn't even flinch. He sneered at the teacher, flipped him a slow, deliberate middle finger, and sauntered off.

A dark rage ignited in Kaito's chest. He decided he was done letting things slide. He raised his hand, asking for permission to use the restroom. The moment the teacher gave a dismissive nod, Kaito bolted out of the room, tracking Watari down the corridor.

He spotted Watari's tall frame far down the hall and decided to tail him stealthily. The gang wound their way toward the under-construction wing of the school—a forgotten, dusty zone far from the eyes of faculty. Kaito slipped behind a stack of drywall sheets to watch.

They had cornered a helpless student against a concrete pillar, raising a heavy metal baseball bat like a pendulum.

Seeing the bat start to descend, Kaito felt whatever thread of restraint he had snap completely. He charged out from the shadows.

Watari heard the footsteps, turning around just in time to stammer, "Who the h—"

Before he could finish, Kaito delivered a brutal, lightning-fast kick straight to Watari's jaw, sending him crashing backward into the dirt.

Watari's crew froze in absolute disbelief for a fraction of a second before two of them lunged forward to avenge their leader, while the rest swarmed Kaito from all sides.

Weapons flashed in the dim light, but Kaito moved with unnatural speed, dodging blows effortlessly and counter-attacking with brutal efficiency. Just as he managed to drop two more members, Watari scrambled up from behind, gripping a heavy metal fire extinguisher. With a vicious swing, he smashed it directly into the back of Kaito's head.

Kaito dropped to his knees. The world tilted sideways, his vision blurring into a haze of static as a high-pitched, deafening ringing filled his ears. He collapsed face-first onto the concrete.

The gang swarmed him, boots raining down in a flurry of vicious kicks. "Thought you were a hero, didn't you?" Watari snarled, spitting blood.

Suddenly, a blur of motion cut through the dust. A girl lunged forward, snatching the dropped fire extinguisher from the floor and slamming it square into Watari’s temple with terrifying force. He crumpled instantly.

The remaining thugs blinked in shock before abandoning Kaito to turn their wrath on the girl.

Kaito groaned, forcing himself up onto one shaky elbow. Seeing his chance, he reached into his pocket, pulled out a metallic pen, and clicked it open. He sprang forward, driving a swift kick into the nearest attacker's knee while sweeping another’s legs out from under him.

The girl didn't waste a second either; she pulled a roll of heavy-duty packing tape from her pocket, pinning the groaning gang members against the concrete pillars with lightning-fast wraps. Kaito finished off the stragglers, helping her secure the bindings until the entire gang was securely mummified against the concrete.

Chest heaving, Kaito looked down at his unexpected savior. "Who are you, and why did you jump into this mess?"

The girl wiped a smudge of dirt from her cheek. "I am Akari Hoshino... and I came here to settle a score."

"What kind of score?" Kaito asked, raising an eyebrow.

"A blood debt for my younger brother," Akari said, her voice trembling with restrained fury. "They murdered him. He stumbled onto something dark they were doing and threatened to go to the police, so they silenced him permanently."

Tears finally spilled over her lashes. Kaito softened instantly, stepping closer. "Don't cry. You're tougher than you think. You saved my skin back there when they were turning me into a punching bag. Thank you."

Akari sniffled, wiping her eyes, and nodded. "Let's go find the principal."

Minutes later, Kaito and Akari returned to the construction wing with the principal in tow. When they stepped into the clearing, the principal froze in absolute horror. Blood spattered the pillars, and the only figure moving was Watari, who was just beginning to stir.

The principal spun around, his face pale with panic as he pointed a trembling finger at Kaito. "Did you do this?"

"No, it wasn't me!" Kaito protested, holding up his hands.

Before anyone could blink, Watari lurched to his feet with a guttural, inhuman snarl. His skin was pale, his eyes shot through with dark crimson veins, and his face was covered in grotesque, self-inflicted claw marks. Drooling thick, dark saliva, he lunged straight for Kaito's throat, snapping his teeth like a rabid animal.

To Be Continued...