The man’s surprise at Adam’s reaction was obvious. His posture remained rigid but the slight tilt of his head suggested he was processing this unexpected turn of events. He was silent for a long mont.
Then he looked down at the broken phone in Adam’s hand. The screen was a spiderweb of cracks. The main body was a dead piece of plastic.
"Your phone is completely broken," he stated. His voice was flat. It was a simple observation of fact.
Adam forced another smile. It felt like his facial muscles were made of wood. There was a profound sadness in the gesture. "It’s okay," he said.
"I’ll get it fixed. You don’t need to worry sir. You can go to your work." He just wanted the man to leave. He wanted to be alone with his disaster.
The man seed pleased by this response. His tense posture relaxed. A genuine smile touched his lips for the first ti.
"I’m quite impressed with you boy," he said. His voice was warr now.
"It’s been years since I t soone like you. Even though you won’t admit it I know this was my fault. I was in a hurry. I had to check sothing and that’s why I didn’t see you."
Adam glanced up at the man. He was significantly taller than him. His own head barely reached the man’s shoulder.
Adam quickly concluded that the height difference was the reason the man had not noticed him.
He was insignificant. A small obstacle on the man’s important path. Adam just smiled again and said, "It’s okay sir."
Before he could say anything else the man interrupted him.
"I’m very pleased with you so please accept this gift from ." He reached into the inner pocket of his expensive suit. He pulled out a phone. He held it out toward Adam.
Adam stared at the phone in the man’s hand. He froze. His mind stopped working. The phone the man was holding was the exact sa model as his own. His gaze darted from the new perfect phone back to the shattered pieces in his own palm.
Then he looked back at the man’s offering. They were identical. It was like looking at a perfect copy of the phone he had just lost.
He instinctively tried to refuse. It was a reflex. He did not take gifts from rich strangers. It felt dangerous.
"Sir, I can’t..."
The man did not listen. He stepped forward. He forcefully placed the new phone into Adam’s free hand. The cool smooth surface of the device felt strange and alien against his skin.
"I’m in a hurry now," the man said. He was already turning to leave. His business with Adam was finished. "Maybe we’ll et again in the future."
With those words he turned and walked away. He rged seamlessly into the river of pedestrians. He moved with a purpose that separated him from the crowd.
Within seconds he was gone. He was swallowed by the city.
The people walking past did not give the exchange a second glance. It was just another brief unimportant mont. It was two strangers talking on a sidewalk. It ant nothing.
Adam stood there. He was stunned into silence. He could not process what had just happened. The man had appeared like a ghost. He had destroyed his phone. He had given him a new one.
And then he vanished. It all happened in the span of a few minutes.
He looked down at the new phone in his left hand. It was pristine. It had no cracks. He looked at his right hand. He expected to see the broken pieces of his old phone.
His hand was empty. The pieces were gone.
As he stared at his empty palm a faint trail of light appeared in the air. It was no thicker than a thread. It was a pale white light. It flowed from the tips of his fingers on his right hand.
It stread directly into the new phone he was holding in his left. The light was absorbed into the device in an instant.
[Legacy Data Synchronizing...]
[Transfer Complete. System Rebooting.]
Adam saw the words flash on the new phone’s screen. The text was a sharp bright green against the black background. Then the screen went dark. A mont later it lit up again with a welco screen.
He was so shocked he physically recoiled. He pulled the phone away from his face as if it had burned him.
"What... what is happening?" he whispered to the empty air. His voice was a dry rasp. He could not understand. He could not speak beyond that single hushed question. He looked around wildly.
He searched the faces in the crowd. But no one was looking at him. No one had seen the light. They were all just walking. They were focused on their own destinations.
He took a deep shuddering breath. He tried to calm his racing heart. I need to go ho, he thought. The thought was a lifeline. I have to go ho and figure out what this is.
The image of his old phone dissolving into light was burned into his mind. It was impossible. It did not make sense. He could not comprehend it here on a public street with people everywhere.
Taking another deep breath Adam turned and began walking. He did not run. He walked with a steady deliberate pace. He put one foot in front of the other. His gaze was fixed forward. He did not look at the people or the cars.
He finally reached his apartnt building. It was a plain brick structure that always slled faintly of damp.
He went inside and climbed the stairs to the second floor. The hallway was narrow and poorly lit. He walked down the hall to his door, number 21.
He reached into his pocket for his keys. His hand felt unsteady. As his fingers closed around the cold tal he heard a click from the apartnt next to his.
The door of number 23 opened. A young woman stepped out into the hallway. Adam paused. His hand froze midway to the lock on his door. His attention shifted completely to her.
Her na was Sophia. He had seen her many tis. He saw her leaving for work in the morning. He saw her coming ho at night. But they had never spoken more than a few words.
A simple "good morning".
He wanted to talk to her. He wanted to say sothing more. But a knot always ford in his stomach when he saw her. He was acutely aware of his worn-out clothes.
He was aware of his financial situation. He was aware that his father had thrown him out of his house. A heavy sense of inferiority kept him silent. He felt he had nothing to offer her.
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