Chapter 14: Loop 1.132: Petrichor
Rain poured down in sheets, soaking the streets and breaking the silence with its endless drumming against the pavement. Luna sat alone at the bus stop, the place deserted except for her.
She was still in her school uniform, now slightly damp. Her golden blonde hair clung to her face, wet and messy, and the blue ribbon she always wore hung limply—faded, like her mood.
The streetlights cast dim reflections on the wet asphalt, painting a gloomy, melancholic atmosphere.
Luna stared into the distance. Her blue eyes looked empty, her thoughts drifting far away.
Her face, usually bright and full of energy, now seemed tired—like she was carrying a burden too heavy for her small shoulders.
Each drop of rain hitting the shelter above her sounded like a whisper, echoing sadness and loneliness.
Luna shivered, not just because of the cold, but also from the waiting—the endless, hopeless kind. The kind that made her feel stuck.
She was waiting for a bus that never seemed to come, trapped in the middle of the rain and silence that blanketed the late afternoon.
"Did you know there's a smell after the rain? It's called petrichor," a voice suddenly said.
A boy appeared beside her—his brown hair messy and dripping wet, his face hidden in shadows. He had no clear facial features.
Luna jumped slightly in surprise. She raised an eyebrow and turned to look at the boy. But when she saw him, her expression softened. As if she recognized him.