Inhabitant of the Book | Weekly Short-Short Note

Every time I open a book, I forget reality just a little bit. But today's book was different. I felt as if someone was peering at me from deep within the pages.

"I finally found you."

A voice came from between the paper. The letters blurred, and the black ink transformed into a tiny silhouette. I tried to close the book, but my fingers wouldn't move.

"If you don't read us, everyone will disappear."

The silhouette said this in a trembling voice.

I thought I might have gone crazy, but the next moment, the bustle of the classroom had vanished. There were no desks or chairs; I was standing in a vast white space. All I held was the book. Inside its pages, a town on the verge of being swallowed by darkness and people crying out for help were depicted.

"The more you read, the longer everyone can live."

The inhabitant of the book pleaded desperately. Reading, they said, was the light of their lives.

I took a deep breath and cast my eyes on the first line. As I spoke the words aloud, color flooded into the white space, and the letters began to dance.

Reading is not an escape. It is a door to save someone.

When I realized that, I never again called reading "just a way to kill time."

(End)

I am participating in Tarahakani-san's project, "Weekly Short-Short Note."
This week's theme is "Reading Surgery."

Please take a look at this as well.