--
Solanne doesn't believe in miracles, yet, at the moment the Clown appeared once again, scaring the shit out of them, Solanne and Yael managed to keep their voices down.
And it happened instantly as if everything that had happened was because of their impulse, and thank the heavens!
Their eyes widened in horror and fear, yet they managed to look down. Their heart almost jumped out of their rib cage.
"Eh?" The Clown sounded dejected and disappointed. "This train lacks interesting guests," he clicked his tongue before turning around. This time, Solane and Yael ensured the Clown was nowhere around them before opening their mouths.
Still not satisfied, they waited for a good ten to fifteen minutes before talking. "The fuck was that?" Yael blurted out of horror, anger, and fear. He swallowed, feeling like his soul had been pulled out of his body. He glared at the door where the Clown had disappeared.
"Fuck it!" He muttered.
Solanne, on the other hand, learned her lesson earlier and decided not to speak. She tried to calm her heart and process what had happened before flopping down on the train's seat, hugging the throw pillow, and burying her face because she felt like crying.
She didn't expect that at all.
"Is this dream getting more and more dangerous?" Solanne didn't hide the anxiety she was experiencing. Yael sighs as he entirely agrees with what Solanne had thought.
"You're this scared because of all the coffee you consume."
"Really?" Solanne rolled her eyes, but of course, Yael couldn't see it, as she had buried her face on the pillow. "Really? Out of this situation? Now? You are telling this now?"
"Well," Yael bit his lips, his eyes looking around, before adding, "You're consuming too much caffeine."
"What can I do?" Solanne muttered. Yael tilted his head. She sounded frustrated. "I love the sweet and bitter taste of coffee. Besides, you become dependent on caffeine after working in corporate."
"Well, that, I can't relate. Still, you can substitute your drinks with tea."
"Let's not talk about that now," Solanne sat up. She looked outside the window. Just like before, everything was a blur. "When do you think we'll arrive?"
"No clue," Yael answered, stretching his legs. "The conductor didn't even tell us when."
"It's because of the guest."
"Can we not talk about that now?" This time, Yael was the one who dismissed their conversation. Both of them sat on their respective seats, waiting.
--
This time, it didn't take long for them to arrive.
Their ride took only 2 hours before the train arrived at their destination. This time, Solanne and Yael didn't have the time to look outside the train when the conductor appeared again, guiding them out.
Before they could even argue, the train conductor said, "Be careful not to get lost."
That was all he had said before he closed the train door and disappeared.
Solanne sighed. She was getting increasingly exhausted with this dream as she felt like she didn't even have time to rest.
"Where are we?" Still, this time, she was thankful that Yael was with her.
Turning around, her mouth was left hanging open when she saw every building was made of glass. It was so different that Solanne felt she was in a dimension where science and architecture coexist.
What can she even say when she sees the cityscape dominated by towers of transparent glass reaching the sky and extending to the horizon as if it were making a statement? These city structures reflect the sunlight, creating a dazzling display of its urban landscape, as if it was making the world look at it, telling the world that it exists and that no one can deny its existence.
"Solanne," Lost in her thoughts, Solanne felt Yael tug her hand very forcefully.
"What?" She hissed. Yael's eyes were looking down the ground. Solanne was puzzled.
However, she had no time to be angry when Yael leaned over and whispered in her ear.
"The clown had followed us here."
"Fuck?"
--
Through her peripheral vision, Solanne indeed saw the Clown. It was marching through the city's entrance as if it didn't care about all the other things in the world. His expression was quite serious, different from what he had projected back in the train.
He seemed to be chasing something.
Both Solanne and Yael stood in their places. They were afraid to even make a sound until the pamphlet, given by the train conductor before, had appeared in their pockets and shined, wanting to be seen.
Both of them grabbed the pamphlet and look what was inside.
Like what they were expecting, there were scribbles of words, "Explore the city. Discover yourself, but beware of the glass; most of what you see are your reflections. Do not be deceived. Your only way out of this place is to go straightforward. Do not look back."
Solanne, confused as she was, raised her head to ask Yael, but he was nowhere to be found before she could even ask.
Panic rose from her body as this was not her expectation before. Something had happened again. She looked around, but even the Clown and Yael were nowhere to be found.
What should she do now? She's alone once again. Was this world making a statement? That no matter what she does, she'll forever be alone? What is the purpose of these worlds anyway? They didn't even understand the previous world yet are here now.
Feeling lost, Solanne followed the instructions to her as she had understood that those words from the pamphlet were the key and way to board the train again and go home.
Still, before taking a step forward, she ensured no clown was following her. Looking left and right, she was relieved she was the only person. Hence, following the instructions, she only moved forward.
She walked and walked and walked until she was at the city's entrance. The same with her expectations, everything inside was made of glass.
Bracing herself, Solanne swallowed and took the first step.
However, when her feet touched the ground, she felt a deafening silence dominating the place. As if everything has been shifted. Her whole body trembled, and she couldn't help but be anxious. She can feel it down to her bones and behind her.
'Someone is watching me.'
Just as her thoughts were scattered all over the place as she panicked, thinking about what to do, the glasses that each building had shifted.
Eyes.
There were eyes everywhere!
Each square and glass panel had an eye, and they were all looking at her.
"What?"
Solanne's body shuddered with fear as she can feel her knees giving up. "What the fuck is this?" Her lips and eyes trembled as she could feel her whole body shutting down, wanting to stay in that place and never go forward because she knew that if she went forward, more eyes would look at her.
Right from where she was standing, she can see the 'eyes' blinking! Waiting for her!
Suddenly, these eyes reminded her of something. It was an experience she had buried deep inside her, and she did not want to remember it all again, and yet these eyes, these eyes represented those people who had dragged her down and had killed her dreams with her.
They were the reason why she was still struggling. The very own reason why she lost all confidence on herself.
"Is this even a joke," Solanne could feel her body tremble, but this time, it wasn't because she was afraid but because of the anger rising through her body.
'Ha…' She scoffed. 'Is this the reason?' She mumbled inside her head as if she was talking to someone. 'is this the reason why we are all here? To remember all of our fears? To be killed in our mind like this?"
Solanne felt like it was harder to even breathe, her mind was blank and everything was spinning. She was in great despair. She tried her best to get out of that place, yet only here, merely a dream, was enough to shake her like this. Or was it because it was a dream. In this dream, she had nothing to distract herself from and was left all alone to face this.
She's defenseless. Nothing can save her here.
She was fine running away.
But she can't run away now.
Should she return back and wait?
Her mind was full of questions. She was afraid of what comes next. She was scared to even go further. Solanne felt her feet were bound with chains and that even taking a single step was a burden.
What if she never wakes up from this dream?
Would she die?
If she never takes a step forward, what would happen?
Solanne closed her eyes as she begged for time to stop.
Solanne's head was filled with doubt. She never head seen herself win after all. All of her life she had seen every little thing has not work out on her favor and that she expects nothing but the worst.
So, what was the difference? Would walking out of this place makes any difference? Would taking one step forward make any difference?
--