The rain arrived without mercy; it lashed against the city like a thousand tiny whips, drumming on rooftops, splashing across windshields, and turning the sidewalks into shimmering rivers of gray. People hurried beneath their umbrellas, desperate to escape the relentless storm.Fred Harris ran straight through it as rainwater soaked his shirt until it clung tightly to his lean frame. His worn dress shoes slapped against the flooded pavement, sending icy water over his ankles with every step, yet he refused to slow down.His left hand shielded a small bouquet of white lilies beneath his jacket, while his right remained buried inside his pocket, gripping a velvet ring box so tightly that his knuckles ached.For three long years, he had skipped lunches, accepted endless overtime shifts, and saved every spare dollar he could find. Every sacrifice had been made for one purpose, and tonight was supposed to make all of it worthwhile.His phone buzzed.Chloe: Where are you? Ethan reserved th

The next morning brought another humiliation. Fred hadn't slept at all, he had spent the entire night sitting on the edge of the narrow bed in his tiny apartment, staring at the engagement ring resting on the small table beside him.Every time he closed his eyes, Chloe's cold expression returned, followed by the words that refused to leave his mind. "Love doesn't pay bills, Fred."The sentence echoed through the darkness until the first pale light of dawn finally slipped through the faded curtains.His alarm buzzed. It was 6:30 a.m.On any other morning, Fred would have jumped out of bed immediately, determined not to arrive late for work. Richard Stone had deducted half a day's pay from employees for being only five minutes behind schedule, and Fred couldn't afford another deduction.This morning was different; he simply lay there, staring at the cracked ceiling above him. For the first time in years, he found himself wondering whether there was any point in going to work at all.Re

The blue screen refused to disappear. Fred blinked once, then he blinked again, convinced that the strange image would vanish if he gave his eyes enough time to adjust, but it didn't.The translucent panel remained suspended in front of him, shimmering faintly beneath the dim afternoon sky. Raindrops passed straight through the glowing surface without creating the slightest ripple, as though the screen existed somewhere between reality and imagination.His head throbbed relentlessly. Blood trickled from the cut above his eyebrow and ran into his eye, blurring his vision. "I'm seeing things..."His voice was barely more than a whisper. The beating had clearly been worse than he had first realized.Using trembling arms, Fred tried to push himself upright. A sharp pain exploded through his ribs, forcing him to stop halfway before he gathered enough strength to continue. Every muscle in his body protested the effort.At the entrance to the alley, pedestrians hurried past without sparing

The automatic glass doors slid open.A wave of cool air washed over Fred as he stepped into the clothing store, carrying with it the faint scent of cedarwood, fresh fabric, and expensive cologne. Soft jazz drifted from hidden speakers overhead, creating an atmosphere that felt worlds away from the chaos waiting outside.For a moment, he simply stood there.His reflection stared back at him from a polished mirror near the entrance. His shirt was torn near the shoulder. Mud stained his trousers.His split lip had darkened into a deep purple bruise, and his rain-soaked hair remained disheveled from the beating he had endured barely an hour earlier.He looked less like a customer and more like someone who had wandered into the wrong place by mistake.The countdown timer floated silently in the corner of his vision.[Mission Remaining Time 00:20:42]The numbers continued to fall with relentless precision. Fred swallowed hard. Every instinct urged him to turn around and leave. Fifty dollars