"Dreams...Nightmares...The Past...The Present...The Future...Darkness...Void...Eyes...Children...This is what I cannot bear."

It was a deep mutter from Eve inside the dark void. She was sitting on that gray ground, with light shining above her head. She was like a captive bound in chains, while those hands were caressing her black hair. Eve was tired and could not lift her head.

For a moment, Eve felt a strange sensation, so she turned left and right, then looked ahead of her.

"I...I feel a strong energy around me...Is it...just my imagination?"

*****

In the morning, Eve was sitting on her bed, watching TV in her room. Unlike other children, Eve watched the news and did not enjoy cartoons. Otto entered Eve's room, surprised to see her watching TV at last.

"Finally...you turned on the TV...What are you watching?"

"News," Eve answered coldly.

"Usually, children watch cartoons...so why don't you watch them? Your parents bought you this TV hoping you'd relax...Eve...are you listening to me?"

"Sorry...I’m just...trying to find old news about the disappearance of children...or at least...information or statements...but I notice they don't talk about it...or rather...they forget about it...or avoid it...what do you think, Otto?"

Otto sighed and said as he took the remote and changed the channel, "Stop this, Eve."

"Hey...let me watch the news, Otto," Eve said in annoyance.

"Go ahead...watch cartoons instead...your brain is too small for these things," Otto said as he handed the remote back to Eve.

"Huh...fine," Eve replied, irritated.

Eve watched the cartoons, annoyed, but her mind wandered as she thought about that dream. She began to ask herself questions that might be illogical about it. What made it stranger to her was her recurring forgetfulness about some of her dreams, and the feeling that accompanied them, and most importantly, her distancing from reality.

"What’s wrong, Eve...did you like the show?"

"Don't play dumb, Otto...there's no way I'd like a show full of illogical things...I might even see a whale flying with wings now," Eve said sarcastically, only to actually see a whale flying with wings.

"Seriously...I should stop talking sometimes," Eve said worriedly.

"Sigh...you take things too seriously, Eve...It's just...a cartoon, though you have a wilder imagination than...ordinary children," Otto noticed something that made him change his tone.

"Wait, Eve...I'll go to the office," Otto said as he left the room.

"Wait...wait for me, Otto," Eve said, jumping off her bed to follow Otto.

******

Eve reached the office, and when she opened the door, she found Otto preparing some tapes and a recording device. Eve moved closer to the desk to get a better look.

"What are you doing, Otto?"

"Ah...I’m setting up the recording device...I used this device with Noun and Ethan only once...I recorded all the sessions with them...but I remembered something important in them...especially in the first recording."

Eve looked at the video tapes and said, "Otto...Have Noun and Ethan started forgetting some of their nightmares...or memories in this reality?"

"What?" Otto said in astonishment.

"Or...have they...started feeling...like they don't belong in this reality?"

"Eve...do you really feel that way?" Otto said, puzzled.

"Honestly...if that's how they feel...then my feeling is different."

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"What do you mean?" Otto suddenly felt concerned.

"What I mean is...I don't belong anywhere...I feel like my soul is...trapped...in that void...I feel a void within me...It was a recurring feeling...At one point, it made me want to...end it all." Eve's expression changed. Otto felt a chill when Eve spoke like this, her coldness during the conversation suggesting she wasn't just a ten-year-old girl.

Ignoring these points, Otto said, "Eve...don't say that again...Eve...this is wrong...Did you really think of trading your life for death?" Otto felt as though he had uttered words that were beyond Eve's comprehension, but Eve replied without hesitation, "No, no, Otto...it was because of the headache...though I tried once in the orphanage...but I realized it was wrong..."

At that moment, Eve remembered herself trying to jump out of the window, saying, "Damn world...I don't need to live anymore...goodbye." It was a dramatic scene, until Alice came and grabbed her hand.

'If Alice hadn't been there...I'd be a soul now, stuck in a grave,' Eve began talking to herself.

Otto was surprised that Eve didn't shy away from his words, so he changed the subject, saying, "Anyway...it's not time for the session yet...questions like these aren't conducted here...I'll explain everything now...and don't worry..."

"What...?" Eve replied, anxious and confused.

"I'll tell you the truth...this won’t remain a secret...so come on...there's no one in the hallway, so it’s okay to talk here."

"Alright," Eve replied, tense.

******

Eve was sitting on a chair in the office alone, waiting for Otto to return. Otto came in, holding a small mirror. He sat down on his chair and began to explain.

"I’ll liken this to a mirror. This mirror reflects your face...but your nightmares reflect the reality you hate...or your worst fears...This is normal...But this mirror...it could take on a new path...Imagine if this mirror were a gateway."

"A gateway?"

"Yes...You probably won’t understand me...since you don't usually watch cartoons...this gateway...imagine it taking you...to...another world."

******

The receptionist was organizing his papers at the front desk when someone called out to him in the voice of an older man.

"Good morning...I'd like to speak with you."

The receptionist looked up and said, "Alright...Oh...Mr. and Mrs. Addis...I didn't expect your visit...how can I assist you?"

"We’d like to speak with you privately," said Mr. Addis.

"Alright...please follow me...there's a room where no one is, follow me."

******

Bill and Maria entered a private reception room...it had two modern sofas and a wooden table.

"Please, have a seat."

"Alright."

Bill and Maria sat on the sofa, and then the receptionist sat down and said, "I suppose you didn't come to visit your daughter...so why are you here?"

"Sir...there's a danger to our daughter...right now,"** Maria said, concerned.

"What?".

"Maria...you rushed it...I know you're worried...but calm down," Bill said, reassuring Maria.

"What exactly...do you mean?" the receptionist replied cautiously and anxiously.

"Sir...our daughter...is at risk of disappearing."

"What?"the receptionist exclaimed, shocked.

"My wife's brother, when he was young... and our son... they both suffered from these nightmares... and after a while... they disappeared from their beds... people searched for them... but... to no avail... But... I bet Otto... knows Eve's condition well... He has encountered some of these mysterious cases."

"What?" said the receptionist, shocked.

*******

Eve was stunned for a moment and said, "This is impossible... do you mean..."

"The mirror that became a gateway to the Mirror World... it's like the nightmares that became... a threshold... to the World of Nightmares... If you don't believe me, listen to what I didn't tell Non and Ethan... What makes you special... is that your mind is almost like an adult's... the way you talk... deep thinking... even your patience with my continuous lying... Non and Ethan couldn't handle knowing I was hiding something from them... but you didn't... Listen carefully," Otto began explaining to Eve, but this time, in a serious tone.

*******

《The human mind is a mysterious enigma... endless, Eve... Delving into it is like staring into a dark abyss with no known bottom... It is said that the mind hides great secrets... it is the engine of everything we do... every step... every heartbeat... But... sometimes... a mere disruption occurs, what science calls a tumor... This is what gnaws inside you, Eve... A tumor in your brain. This tumor is the source of the pain that grips your head... the nightmares that haunt you... But it's not just a tumor... it's a key... A key buried deep in your mind... and in the minds of all children... If you seek liberation from this torment... you have no choice but to cross that threshold... to where the unknown awaits you, Eve... Your eternal rest lies there... Isn't that right?... Zero.》 Among 1223 nightmare patients, Eve was the only one Otto was honest with and told her the full truth. Eve's pupils contracted in shock; what she had seen and heard was a truth hard to believe. She realized then that her nightmares were another world.

Eve felt a disturbance in her head and began screaming, clutching her head with both hands, saying, "Otto, you're lying... lying... lying... No... worms... worms in my head... worms in my head... I don't want them to devour it... no." Eve collapsed to the ground, thrashing as if someone were torturing her. Otto tried to hold her, but he couldn't.

Otto felt that he had made a grave mistake. He tried in every way to calm her down, but he failed.

*******

Bill, Maria, the receptionist, and nearly the entire medical staff working near Otto's office heard Eve's screams. Everyone, including the three mentioned earlier, rushed to the source of the noise. Just before they arrived, the screaming stopped. When they looked inside, they found Otto injecting Eve with a syringe, which seemed to be a sedative. Eve, in that state, was like someone who had experienced the throes of death—saliva dripping from her mouth, tears flowing incessantly, and eyes with bloodshot veins.

People were shocked by this scene. Otto turned toward them, his expression devoid of emotion. He stood up, carrying Eve in his arms. The doctors approached him, asking what had happened. He replied that she had suffered from a headache, and her medication didn't help, so he gave her a sedative.

Everyone stepped back, giving Otto space to leave. He was heading to Eve's room. Suddenly, the receptionist called out to him, and Otto turned to see Maria and Bill with him.

When Maria and Bill saw their daughter unconscious, they were shocked.

"We would like to talk to you, doctor," Bill called out to Otto.

"Now is not the right time... We'll talk later."

*******

At night, Otto was sitting in his chair, looking at Eve as she slept. Otto regretted telling Eve the truth in such an unethical way, as if he were threatening her. He felt like one of those conmen who had studied with him about these nightmares. Otto looked at the recording device and started to stare at it. Slowly, an idea came to his mind.

*******

Otto went to his office, turned on his laptop, and edited all his tapes. Then, he went to Eve's room carrying some CDs. After entering the room, he set up the CD in a special player, connected regular headphones to it, and placed them on Eve's ears.

"I think... this is the only way... to make Eve... experience what Non and Ethan did... Ah... wait... Non... she asked me to call her by that name... because the word 'Non' means 'no one'... because she felt comfortable when I called her that... But Eve didn't feel comfortable when I called her Zero... wait... 'the Fearman' gave Eve that name... Could it be... that Fearman gave Non this name... huh... what do I know... maybe she liked me calling her that... a deep sigh... I got so used to calling her that... I almost forgot her name."