Wenalin Pov
After surviving the “Allowance Wars” downstairs, I retreated to my room with my merch, changed into my favorite strawberry-print pajamas, and set up camp at my study table.
Now, if my mom peeked in, she’d think I was hard at work, catching up on school assignments or revising for exams. The truth? My laptop screen was filled with the glorious faces of the Ace of Victory! volleyball team.
Homework: 0% complete.
Anime rewatch: 100% complete.
I clicked play, and there they were—Tsuyoshi towering over the net like an absolute wall, Kenshin casually setting with the precision of a robot, Kurato smirking like he knew I was watching from another dimension.
“Ugh, Kurato, you smug legend,” I muttered, hugging my Levin plush.
From my study table, the perfect anime-watching survival kit was laid out:
A cup of instant ramen (beef flavor, obviously)
A pile of Pocky sticks
My phone open to a group chat with Mika, who was also rewatching from her house and live-commenting every scene.
Mika: “WHY DOES BOSUKE’S HAIR LOOK EXTRA FLUFFY THIS EP”
Me: “PROBABLY SHAMPOO COMMERCIAL SPONSORSHIP”
Mika: “STOP—”
The hours passed in a blur of spike shots, dramatic slow-motion scenes, and background music that made me feel like I could win a volleyball championship even though I can’t even catch a ball without flinching.
I reached for my ramen, only to realize I’d eaten it thirty minutes ago without noticing. My Pocky stash was almost gone too, and my eyes were starting to feel heavy.
On screen, Rin was giving an inspirational speech about teamwork.
“Preach, Rin,” I mumbled, propping my chin on my hands. “You’re the reason this team doesn’t fall apart…”
My eyelids fluttered. I shook my head, trying to stay awake. I still had two more episodes left in my rewatch marathon, and you can’t just stop before the season finale. That’s anime law.
But the warm light from my desk lamp, the soft hum of my laptop fan, and the faint scent of strawberry fabric softener from my pajamas… it was a dangerous combo.
One second I was watching Tsuyoshi block the ball with enough force to break the laws of physics.
The next second, my head was sliding forward onto my arms.
My last blurry thought before sleep took over was:
“Tomorrow, I’m going to rewatch the OVA too…”
And just like that, my marathon ended with me passed out at my study table, surrounded by empty snack wrappers and the comforting presence of my merch army.
...----------------...
.
When I woke up, my neck felt like it had been folded into an origami crane from sleeping at my study table. I groaned, sat up, and blinked at my surroundings.
Something… was off.
I blinked again.
No… something was missing.
My walls looked strangely bare. Not empty, but… different. I rubbed my eyes, thinking maybe I was still half-dreaming, but when my vision cleared—my heart nearly stopped.
Where was my Tsuyoshi poster?
Where was my wall of Kurato prints?
Where was my limited-edition Levin plush display shelf?!
Instead—
Oh no.
Oh no.
Every inch of my room was plastered with glossy posters of… K-pop idols.
Perfect hair. Glittering stage outfits. Charismatic poses. Half of them were winking. The other half were glaring like they were about to break into a dance break. My desk was covered in lightsticks, photo cards, and glittery slogan banners in Hangul I couldn’t even read.
I spun around to my bed—where my Levin plush should have been—and instead found a giant pillow shaped like some guy’s face.
“What… the… anime hell… is this?”
I stumbled to my laptop, hoping maybe this was just a prank. I opened the lid and—bam!—the wallpaper was a K-pop group photo. The folders were named things like “COMEBACK STAGE” and “Bias Pics,” and even my browser was open to a fan café page.
“This is witchcraft,” I whispered.
Panic surged through me. I did the only logical thing—
I screamed.
“MOOOOMMY!”
I bolted out of my room, down the hall, and straight into the dining room where my mom was sipping coffee.
“WHAT DID YOU DO?!” I accused, pointing dramatically toward my bedroom.
She blinked at me over her mug. “...What?” Raise an eyebrow
“My anime room! My merch! My boys! They’re all gone! And now—now—” I threw my hands up, “—I’M IN SOME KIND OF K-POP DIMENSION!”
Mom slowly put her cup down. “K-pop… dimension?”
“Yes! There are boys with microphones and sparkly jackets everywhere! My room is like a concert venue exploded!”
She stared at me like I’d grown two heads. “What are you talking about… you’ve been a K-pop fan for years.”
I froze. “…What?”
“You have albums, posters, and go fan meetings! You cried when that one member enlisted!”
My jaw dropped. “I have never cried over a boy in my life. Unless he was animated!”
Mom frowned, genuinely confused. “Wenalin… you haven’t watched anime since middle school.”
I felt my brain short-circuit. “...This is a joke. A prank. Hidden cameras somewhere, right?”
She shook her head slowly, sipping her coffee again. “You should eat breakfast before you say more nonsense.”
"No! I'm telling the truth mom!I know your mad at me for buying some anime merch but you don't have to....." I didn't finish because mom glare at me.
mom:"Stop and eat already!"
But I knew the truth. Something was very wrong. And if my anime life was gone…
Where did it go?
...----------------...
I didn’t even finish breakfast.
The moment Mom started acting like my anime obsession had never existed, I grabbed my bag (now apparently covered in K-pop pins—ugh) and stormed straight to school.
Every step toward campus, my brain was screaming.
This doesn’t make sense. I’m fine with alternate universes in anime, but not when it happens to me!
By the time I reached the classroom, Mika was already in her seat, munching on bread and scrolling through her phone. The moment I slid the door open, I stomped up to her like an angry chibi character.
“Mika.”
She looked up mid-bite. “...Why are you glaring at me like I owe you money?”
“Something’s wrong.”
Her eyes narrowed, suspicious but also mildly amused. “What did you do now?”
I slammed my hands on her desk. “Do you know all my stuff of Ace of Victory was gone!”
Her expression was pure confusion. “Ace of… what?”
I blinked. “…Ace of Victory!The volleyball anime. Tsuyoshi, Kenshin, Kurato—”
“Bless you?” she said, like I’d just sneezed.
My eye twitched. “Dont bless me I'm serious Mika, I’m talking about the anime we obsessed over! You remember yesterday We went merch shopping yesterday at Otaku Haven! You hugged a Kenshin pillow like it was your child right”
She laughed—laughed—like I’d told a joke. “Wenalin, you’re mixing up your worlds again. The last time I watched anime was… I don’t know, middle school? We’ve been K-pop fangirls since forever.”
when I heard that I was shock
I stared at her, my heart pounding. “What are you talking about?No. You love anime bruh. You even roasted me for buying that Kurato mug because you wanted it first!”
“Kurato?” She tilted her head. “Is that the new rapper in EXO?”
I gawked at her like she’d just committed a federal crime. “HE’S A CAPTAIN! OF A VOLLEYBALL TEAM! NOT A—” I stopped mid-yell, because people were starting to stare.
Okay. Breathe. Focus. Prove it.
I yanked my phone out of my bag, typed “Ace of Victory anime I'll show it to you it's seems that your head bump into the wall or your just pranking me right now” and I search Ace of Victory into the search bar, and hit enter.
Nothing.
Not just “no results”—it was like the title didn’t exist at all. No wiki pages, no fan art, no merch listings. Just random news about some baseball team from another country. What's going on
“This… this can’t be real,” I whispered.
Mika leaned over to peek at my screen. “You seriously searched for an anime that doesn’t exist?” She grinned. “Girl, you’ve been staying up too late watching comeback stages again.”
“I HAVEN’T WATCHED A SINGLE—” I stopped, my voice cracking. This wasn’t a dream. This wasn’t even a prank?.
It was like someone had hit the “delete” button on my entire otaku life, replacing it with K-pop… and I was the only one who remembered what was supposed to be there.
Mika went back to eating her bread, humming some idol song under her breath. I just stood there, clutching my phone, feeling like the floor might open up and swallow me.
WHAT'S GOING ON!!!!!
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