Short Short: Killed by Numbers
My name is Toshiro Kushida.
My name contains the sounds of 'four' and 'nine' three times over. My mother said it was a lucky name, but to me, it felt like nothing but a curse.
In any case, I am terrified of numbers. 4 (death) and 9 (suffering) always bring misfortune when I see them.
However, the accuracy rate of encountering them is extraordinary.
I leave the house in the morning.
The apartment elevator is stopped on the 9th floor.
On my way to work, I order a cappuccino at Starbucks. My order number is 404.
I am a total liberal arts person and have chosen a life unrelated to numbers.
But just by walking normally, they attack me mercilessly.
When I glance at my smartphone, it is 9:04.
Last year, I was assigned a locker at the company I joined.
The number was 494
I couldn't help but scream.
“Are you okay?” A female employee passing by stopped.
I couldn't exactly say, “The numbers jumped out at me...”
That day, the rhinoceros beetle I was keeping died.
At this rate, I will be killed by numbers someday.
I decided to go to counseling.
“What happens when you see 4 or 9?”
“Bad things happen.”
"What exactly do you mean by that?"
"Like getting a flat tire on my bike, or waiting in line for an hour at a ramen shop only for them to sell out right before I get to the front..."
The doctor listened intently.
Then, he continued.
"It is not the numbers that are attacking you. You are the one looking for the numbers."
I understood.
I would stop looking at numbers.
I checked the time with an analog watch and stopped going near Starbucks.
One week.
I didn't see a 4 or a 9.
My manager praised the documents I had prepared.
My senior colleague even treated me to lunch.
This week is going well.
"I won...!"
I instinctively pumped my fist in the air on the street.
Suddenly, I looked up and caught sight of a large monitor on a building.
<<Today's Heatstroke Alert: 39.4°C>>
"You've got to be kidding me..."
At that moment, I collapsed on the spot.
A stranger passing by looked down at me and muttered.
"...This person. I wonder if it's heatstroke."
This time, I participated in Yoshimaru-san's [Goosebumps Championship].
This is my first time participating in a project with a specific theme like this.
I'm not sure if the content is hair-raising, but I personally have a number I'm not fond of. It doesn't bring me any bad luck, but I try to avoid it, haha.
But the more conscious I am of it, the more I seem to encounter that number. Whether it's the page number I open to or the number of likes I receive on an article.
That led to this story. I want to overcome that number too, haha. Thank you for reading this far!