I still couldn't believe it. Melissa was here, back, after so much time. The feeling of seeing her again was overwhelming, but at the same time, a whirlwind of emotions stirred inside me. When I left her at her childhood friend's house, the longing had already begun to gnaw at me. I felt an immense emptiness, a hole opening inside me. "Focus, Zarte, focus," I thought, trying to push away the thoughts that overwhelmed me. The need to be strong, to keep my mind clear, drove me. But at the same time, a part of me wanted to give in to that whirlwind of feelings. I couldn’t, not now. I needed to pull myself together.

How is my family? The memory of their move to the Congo surfaced with a pang of longing, a sense of distance made even stronger by how far apart we were. "When I have some time, I’ll pay them a visit," I thought, trying to comfort myself with the idea that, at some point, I’d be able to see them again. What had changed in their lives during this time? I didn’t know, but I felt that the world around me was distorting in ways I couldn’t understand.

As I made my way back home, something strange started happening. My body felt distant, as if it were disconnected from the reality around me. It was a sensation hard to describe, as if I were in a place between sleep and wakefulness. My body didn’t seem to obey me, a strange lightness took over me, as if I were floating away from the ground. I existed in another dimension, but my physical form was still trapped in this world, in my street, in my house. "It must be exhaustion," I thought, trying to rationalize that disturbing feeling. The day had been intense, full of emotions and reunions. I needed to rest, catch my breath, but that sensation wouldn’t go away.

Finally, I arrived home, and the relief of being in a familiar place enveloped me. My street, a quiet dead-end road, was surrounded by a dense forest reserve, far from the hustle and bustle of other areas of the city. I’d always liked this isolation, this peace that seemed to counteract the chaos of the outside world. It was a silent refuge, and being there brought me a sense of security I couldn’t find anywhere else.

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I did the household chores mechanically, in no rush. Each movement felt like an automatic ritual, an attempt to occupy my mind with something tangible. But even so, I couldn’t escape the exhaustion. My body and mind were drained. Finally, I threw myself into bed, hoping sleep would find me. But the relief of rest didn’t come.

Instead, I was consumed by a nightmare. I didn’t know if I was sleeping or awake, but somehow, my body was immersed in a reality I didn’t recognize. I was in a devastated city. Ruins, ashes, and destruction everywhere. The scene before me was like something pulled from the worst nightmares. Everything around was covered in a thick layer of ash. There was no sign of life. "What caused this?" I thought, horrified. The devastation was so complete, so absolute, that only something of nuclear proportions could have caused such destruction. What had happened to those people? Where were they? How did this begin?

As I walked through the ruined streets, trying to understand what had happened, the feeling that something was wrong intensified. It wasn’t just the destruction that unsettled me. It was as if the city was alive, as if each piece of it was trying to tell me something. The winds carried with them whispers, nearly imperceptible murmurs, as if the earth itself were in lament. I couldn’t understand the words, but they seemed to be calling me. With each step I took, the weight of that ruined city seemed to grow, and I felt as if I were being swallowed by the very darkness.

The nightmare was intensifying, and I knew that, somehow, it was linked to what was to come. I didn’t know what it meant, but I felt that this destruction wasn’t a coincidence. Something bigger was in motion, something crawling in the shadows, and I was about to discover what it was.