Chapter 1All Passengers Gone, Agent Said the Train Never Left

The express train pulled out of the station. I’d just come back from the restroom, and over a thousand passengers had vanished.

I refused to believe it, frantically dialing the station’s help line. The agent on the phone insisted that due to a severe blizzard, Express Train G404 had been canceled. It never left the station.

But I was sitting right there, in the warmth of a first-class seat.

Even more terrifying, when I tried to call my mother, the number came back as disconnected.

And the world outside the window, once a snowy landscape, had dissolved into a colorless, gray void...

When I opened my eyes again, I was screaming in a psychiatric hospital. The doctors increased my dosage, even subjected me to electroshock therapy, all to make me forget the train.

During an exercise period, I threw myself from a tenth-story window.

And now, I was back. A second chance, on the same day of the holiday rush.

“Attention passengers, the train is now approaching the platform…”

My head snapped up. I stared at the crimson letters on the departures board.

“Train G404, now boarding.”

I pinched my thigh, hard. The pain was sharp, real.

This time, I would find out the truth, even if it meant dying on this train.

…

I looked down at the sweat-dampened blue ticket in my hand.

Train G404, Car 05, Seat 12F.

Grabbing my suitcase, I bolted for the gate. I tumbled through, luggage and all, just a second before the barriers slid shut.

The white bullet train sat silently on the tracks.

With a trembling hand, I reached out and touched its cold, steel skin.

The frantic beating in my chest finally slowed.

It wasn't a hallucination.

I dragged my suitcase toward car 05. Shoving my way through the crowded aisle, I finally reached my seat. A man in his forties, his clothes worn from labor, was sitting there, peeling an orange, just like the last time.

He looked up as I approached, awkwardly pulling his woven duffel bag closer to his legs. “Sorry, miss. Got a lot of stuff here. Let me make some room for you.”

I stared at him for three long seconds. Then I reached out and patted his arm. It was warm, the muscle beneath his sleeve firm.

He was a living person.

“It’s okay,” I said, my voice steadier than I felt. “A little crowded, but it’s cozier that way.”

I let out a long breath, heaved my suitcase onto the overhead rack, and sank into my seat. I glanced out the window. A platform attendant was waving a green flag.

A sharp beep sounded. The doors hissed shut, and the train began to move.

I pulled out my phone, opened my map app to track our GPS location, then leaned back and closed my eyes.

Just three more hours, and I’d be home.

“Water, miss?”

The man beside me offered a bottle of water, his smile kind. “You’re sweating. Must be in a hurry to get home for the New Year, eh?”

I took the water, a warmth spreading through my chest. “Yeah. In a hurry. My mom’s waiting.”

“Heh, me too,” he said, his eyes crinkling into a smile. “Been working all year. This is the day I live for. My little girl wanted cherries, so I got her a whole crate.”

I twisted the cap off the bottle but only took a tiny sip.

This time, I wasn't going to the restroom. I would hold it until we arrived, no matter what.