What came into view was a television. The TV cabinet and the little things arranged around it all gave the room a lived-in feel.
As a hand entered my field of vision, I saw a selfie stick and a phone screen.
A livestream interface was open on the screen, showing a rugged face.
The man looked to be in his twenties or thirties. He was scruffy, with a half-long head of hair, and looked rather unkempt.
He made an exaggerated expression of astonishment at the phone screen, which was pretty funny.
On the screen, I could see the night sky behind him. Fireworks of every color burst across the darkness, blossoming into dazzling flowers.
The booming fireworks sounds came from the phone.
I noticed the little picture in the lower-right corner of the screen. It showed the same man, but with a white wall behind him.
As the phone moved and captured the sofa the man was sitting on, the large and small screens showed completely different images. The big screen showed a ridiculous behind-the-scenes shot, while on the little screen, the man was putting on a baffling little performance.
I understood at once. The man had turned on a special effect in the livestream app, which was why the night sky and fireworks appeared in the background.
I shifted slightly, separating from the man, and took note of the time displayed on the phone.
Seven in the evening.
Had this happened several hours ago?
This man...
I stared at him for a while before recognizing his face. He was the amateur streamer the skinny guy had casually watched earlier that day.
I looked at the screen again.
There were only a dozen or so people in the room. Judging by the comments and chat, they seemed to be his