The woman changed the question.
The child was visibly taken aback.
It seemed the sudden change of subject had caught him off guard.
After a while, he nodded.
"Mm."
"I was talking to the old man just now."
"I got home late because I was talking to the old man."
The woman's expression grew even harder to describe.
So did the old lady beside her.
She had noticed the child even before his mom did.
When she saw him, he was clearly alone, yet acting as though he were talking to someone.
It was almost like...
A mime performance.
But a mime performance onstage was amazing.
A mime performance in real life...
Made you feel like you were breaking out in goosebumps.
Not the kind of goosebumps you got from being awestruck.
These were brought on by an intense sense of unease.
"The old man was just here..."
The child couldn't help looking around again.
"How did he disappear...?"
"Mom."
He looked at the woman. "Did you see the old man?"
"When you called me just now, he was right beside me."
The old man was so noticeable. Mom should have been able to see him...
The child's innocent expression held a hopeful certainty.
The woman actually found herself trying to recall the moment, prompted by the child's expression...
But nothing had changed.
She hadn't seen anyone beside the child.
Much less someone so distinctive... an old man with green hair and green skin.
The woman looked at the old lady.
The old lady seemed to sense her gaze and looked back.
A second later, she understood what the woman meant and shook her head.
"I didn't see anyone."
If she had, she wouldn't have gone out of her way to find the child's