Luke, a 17-year-old, was utterly bored in his small town. To escape the routine, he amused himself by teasing his classmates, eagerly watching their reactions with a hint of mischief. One day, he crossed paths with Léa, a notorious troublemaker at school. Intrigued by her rebellious side, he quickly fell under her spell.
But Léa, realizing she enjoyed making others suffer, decided to teach him a lesson. At a party, she poured a bucket of ice-cold water over him in front of everyone. Soaked and humiliated, Lucas became the target of mocking laughter. His classmates, delighted, took the opportunity to relentlessly torment him.
After years of bullying, Luke, exhausted by the situation, decided to change. He took up sports, spending long hours at the gym to strengthen himself physically and mentally. His transformation was impressive: he developed a powerful physique and inspired fear around him. Yet, despite this newfound confidence, he still hid his fear behind a shining armor. Who could have guessed his inner turmoil?
For a while, he had been delighting in watching a beautiful young girl every week in a field bursting with colors. Captivated, he could have admired her forever without ever meeting her gaze. Then one day, courage burned within him. He moved forward, trembling with emotion. But as he neared her, a palpable unease surrounded him. Like a powerful gust, she pushed him away, sending him flying several meters. Before leaving, he saw her collapse, and people who seemed to know her took her away.
Even after he stopped seeing her, Luke often thought about her. Yet, he began to feel increasingly heavy, and strange marks appeared on his body. Worried, he went to the hospital. The doctor, intrigued by these unusual marks, conducted several tests before sending the results to the country's largest medical center. He was then told that these marks came from a particular aura.
The next day, strangers knocked on his door. They took him to a vast mansion. Inside, he saw the young girl again. She whispered that her energy was poisoning him, slowly consuming him. But she was training, determined to master her power to save him. Gradually, their bond grew. From simple friends, they became inseparable. Eventually, she triumphed and healed him.
One day, Luke realized he had the young girl's diary in his hands. Embarrassment gripped him. He decided to return it to her. "Did you read it?" she asked, hope in her eyes. "No," he replied, although his mind had already plunged into her words. This shared secret brought them closer, slowly weaving the threads of a fiery love. Who would have thought that a simple diary could ignite such a flame?
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Nick advanced cautiously through this space—if not an entirely unknown world. It seemed utterly devastated, as if it had been prey to some catastrophe. Destroyed buildings, overturned vehicles, unusable roads and infrastructure; the scene before his eyes was one of complete ruin.
After a few steps, he had already forgotten the migraine that had led him there, until it reappeared. As the pain pulsed in his head, the apocalyptic landscape in front of him trembled as well, as if on the verge of collapse. The pain grew so intense that he could barely remain conscious.
Despite his state, he understood that what he was seeing—or thought he was seeing—was, in fact, despite the horror, merely a hallucination caused by the migraine tormenting him. He shut his eyes tight, denying the reality before him. Stumbling to the wall, he leaned heavily and sank down like a weary traveler. His head fell into his hands, wrestling with a pain that felt like a ghostly foe.
For a moment, his suffering seemed to ease, which gave him confidence. He stayed there, unmoving, for a few minutes. Seeing the migraine subside, he tried to stand up and continue his walk. As he rose, a dizzy spell swept over him, making him wobble like a leaf in the wind. Just when he teetered on the brink of a crash, a hand swooped in, wrapping around his shoulders. Panic surged—was this yet another mirage? In a flash, he shielded his eyes with his right hand.
Then he heard a voice from the person holding him. Recognizing it, he turned slowly and saw in front of him the one who instantly soothed his troubled mind—Maddie. At the sight of her, he let his hand fall in a gesture of surrender and thanked her, saying it had just been a slight dizzy spell. It wasn't exactly a lie, but not entirely true either. Maddie seemed to notice, as she ignored it entirely and was already guiding him to the infirmary. Naturally, he didn't resist.
After the nurse diagnosed a bit of overwork and gave him some medication, Nick remained on his bed, alone, lost in thought. Maddie had stayed with him as long as possible until the bell ending the break forced her to leave. She had evidently informed Dante, who also came by to ask what had happened but without much concern. It didn't bother him at all; that was simply how they got along.
Anyway, nearly an hour had passed since then, and he hadn't felt the slightest pain. Everything seemed fine. He began to think about his hallucination, not without some effort and wincing as he recalled the pain and terror he had felt. A strange shiver danced down his spine. Déjà vu tugged at his mind, but its origin slipped through his fingers like sand. He shrugged it off, fluffed his pillow, and drifted into sweet slumber.
He was awakened some time later by his friends Dante and Maddie, who wore disapproving expressions. He checked his watch: 3:37 p.m. He had once again missed an entire day of classes. One had to wonder how he managed to maintain his GPA in this state. He got up in silence and joined them to head home.
Just as they passed through the gate, someone he hadn't seen threw themselves at him. Startled, he turned around and saw it was his younger sister, Scarlett. His features relaxed for a moment, then, thoughtful, he looked at her first, then at the others, with a bewildered expression. They immediately began to smile—smiles filled with mischief. He stood there, speechless, for a few moments before letting his shoulders slump in surrender.
Scarlett's presence upon their return could only mean one thing: they were going to make a detour to the mall for some shopping, an activity he despised above all else. But he was always obligated to go, having to watch over his sister as their grandmother had asked him. At the same time, it gave him a chance to see all the things Maddie liked. It's a blessing in disguise, he thought, as they made their way toward downtown, not far from the school's location.
They had been walking for a few minutes already, but Nick was already weary of how things were unfolding, trailing behind them with slow steps. Yet the mood was cheerful. Scarlett was having fun with Maddie, while Dante, trying to get noticed, often acted the clown. Watching him, he couldn't help but mock his best friend, as his attempts to approach the girl he loved were so pathetic.
Then he looked at his sister, always so cheerful. She laughed heartily every time Dante did something, but it was impossible to determine exactly what a girl was thinking. One of humanity's greatest mysteries, he thought as his gaze drifted toward Maddie. Each time he saw her, he discovered her as if for the first time—a delightful, delicate creature who seemed out of place among mere mortals.
While he was watching her, Scarlett turned and asked him to hurry up. Her remark prompted both Dante and Maddie to look back. The latter caught his gaze, and Nick felt deeply embarrassed, as he always did.
He then thought about how every time they looked at each other, she would start to blush. Is it a sign? he wondered to himself.
They had just crossed Delarue Boulevard and now found themselves on Shopping Street, a veritable bazaar where anything seemed possible. Nick, despite his disdain for shopping, couldn't help but marvel at the sight. How could one not be amazed by so much choice?
A whole cascade of colors and scents, with famous brands serving the entire continent and beyond—the very symbol of success. The late afternoon was setting in, but it was as if the stores were only just coming to life. The shops, with their bright facades, shone like beacons, ready to charm passersby.
The bustling street seemed to dance around them. Yet, making their way to their destination was child's play. Who would have thought the crowd could be so welcoming? They stopped in front of a massive building bearing the sign "GRADNSBERG Shopping Center."
Its structure seemed to overshadow all the surrounding shops, with its elegance, stature, and the crowds it drew. When they entered, they found a spacious interior, with aisles cleverly arranged to ensure optimal flow for shoppers. Hundreds of people were there. It felt almost like a miniaturized shopping street, offering everything from groceries to home appliances, accessories, and personal care products.
"Always so incredible!" Nick said as he looked up and around him. It was obviously not his first time there, but it always took his breath away. Suddenly, he stopped spinning. Something was wrong. He didn't know what yet, but he felt the atmosphere become heavy.
He suddenly had a bad, very bad feeling. He lowered his head and thought to himself, trying to figure out what to do when he eventually faced the problem he could already sense lurking. After a few seconds of reflection, which felt like hours, he finally decided to take action. With a tilt of his head, he searched for his friend Dante.
He found him next to him, pulling faces, grimaces that seemed to indicate something—but what? He glanced behind him and found Maddie and Scarlett giving him a… different look. He felt it immediately and understood that the inevitable was about to happen. For a brief moment, no sound emerged from them, as if frozen in time. The surroundings had fallen silent, despite the clamor of the place.
Suddenly, like a switch had flipped, the two girls looked at each other and burst into laughter. They laughed so loudly that people around them turned to look. Dante lowered his head, while Nick buried his face in his hands. It all made sense now—the atmosphere and his friend's grimaces.
"So, you think it's amazing?" his sister asked between fits of laughter.
Maddie, for her part, just wiped a tear from the corner of her eye, so unexpected was his reaction. Nick was known as someone who despised places like this, hated shopping, and preferred to stay in his dimly lit room playing video games.
No one would ever have expected him to feel any sort of admiration whatsoever for one of these places he hated so much. The shock and surprise had brought on uncontrollable laughter, and it was completely understandable.
After catching their breath, Maddie and Scarlett dragged them into the clothing aisle, and, as always, they spent hours trying on dozens of items, only to end up buying a few.
"Next time, remind me that no girl is worth this torture," Dante said to Nick on the way back, both weary and disgusted.
"You say that, but next time you'll still be up for this charade," Nick pointed out.
Dante just smiled, and they continued walking behind the girls, who were striding along cheerfully, apparently very pleased with themselves. By the time they left the store, it was already dark. There was still quite a crowd, maybe even more than before. Nick checked his watch with his free hand: 8:02 p.m. It was already very late, even for a shopping trip. His grandparents would scold him for being out so long. He then asked:
"Does anyone know a shortcut or something like that? It's getting really late."
Immediately, as Maddie turned at his question, Scarlett was already running toward him, overexcited.
"One of my friends told me about a road that leads directly to Grandavenue. She said it's in a little-used area, so most people don't know it exists."
"And you know where this road is?" he asked.
"No," she said, lowering her head. Then, as if remembering something, she raised her head suddenly. "But she told me where it is," she said, recovering her spirits. "Follow me," she added, already running toward this road only she knew about.
"I bet she's enjoying the situation," Dante whispered to Nick as he came closer to him. Nick sighed, and they set off after her. But as he looked up in the direction Scarlett had taken, he no longer saw her.
Showing no sign of agitation, he calmly looked around to see if she had changed course. He looked left, right, forward, behind. His calm demeanor was being tested. Slowly but surely, he approached Maddie and asked her:
"You wouldn't have seen where Scars went, would you?" It was, he knew, a senseless attempt. He knew full well that at the moment he had lost sight of her, Maddie had been turned their way, watching them. She didn't answer him, but her face did it perfectly well in her place. He could see that she had no idea.
Turning to Dante, he repeated his question, this time with a new tone in his voice, one he'd never been heard to use. It carried sadness and worry. His friend's negative answer didn't seem to shake him in the slightest.