A soft wind blew against my face, causing to squint my eyes as my bangs fluttered against my forehead, subtly filtering my vision as I stared ahead with squinted eyes pulsing with pure, unadulterated joy.
My lips stretched into a sweet smile.
It was a familiar place.
My heart recognized this place. And so it pulsed softly, distributing a warm feeling around my body.
The pleasant and familiar jasmine scent that trickled into my nose, the ever-present warmth that always reminded that I was loved, the green grasses that I stood on barefoot, the surrounding fields, and the fresh air that soothed my skin.
I recognized them all.
I was..
—’The last one to get back ho is a rotten egg~!’
A familiar figure finally ca into view, erging from the mist that curled at the far end of the fields.
My squinted eyes widened.
She was bathed by the golden glow of the sunset.
Margie.
She looked younger. The sa age she was the year dad died.
She playfully ran toward , giggling with a small toy in her hands.
Behind her, a tall, brown-haired male figure followed. And beside him, a blonde female ran, with wide, beautiful smiles present on their face as they giggled along with Margie.
Mom. Dad.
—’Co on, big bro~!’
Margie beckoned to with her soft words, inviting to run with them.
—’Yeah, co on, Dustin. Run faster!’
Mom supported.
With the smile still present on my lips, I moved my legs to walk forward and run with them.
Suddenly, I froze. And my smile faded instantly as they ran past .
Huh?
What just happened?
I turned my neck, staring at their backs as they ran farther away.
Hey, I’m right here!
I tried to yell. I couldn’t.
I faced forward.
My eyes widened imdiately as I spotted another figure erging from the mist.
I recognized the figure very well.
The figure... was myself. My younger self.
Ah.
I see.
The world around began to blur.
A bitter smile surfaced on my lips.
This is a dream.
Tears tugged in my eyes.
Of course it is.
—’Co on, Dustin. Faster."
They aren’t referring to .
They can’t see .
—’Dustin...’
Even if it was a dream, seeing dad just one more ti...
I gazed at Dad.
He’d run past , along with Mom and Margie, toward our forr mansion.
The younger ran sluggishly. Obviously cringed out by the occurring events.
That was so .
But... you’ll regret it when they’re no longer here, kiddo.
Very soon, they’ll be gone forever.
All of a sudden, Dad turned his neck. And his eyes focused on , peering directly into mine.
I flinched.
What?
Is he staring at right now?
—’Go, omnia. Take it all.’ He said.
My brows furrowed.
Dad’s eyes glead strangely. A radiant golden glow shimred in his pupils. It made my spine tingle.
I can’t move.
—’Dustin?’
Margie kept calling out to the younger .
I tried to reply, even though I knew it wasn’t . But I couldn’t speak.
—’Dustin?’
She kept calling.
My heartbeat tracked off rhythm, pounding against my chest as my breathing lost its stability.
I tried to hold my forehead, but I couldn’t.
Dad still stared straight at . And as he noticed my frantic expression, his lips widened into a... warm smile. A strange, bittersweet smile. Then he faced forward and continued giggling with Mom.
My head felt woozy, and my vision blurred even more as the world around spun.
—’Dustin?’
I struggled to breathe.
—’Dustin?’
"Dustin!" A loud voice erupted, dragging my consciousness from the sea of dreams.
I jolted awake, imdiately sitting up as I gasped for air.
Huff– Huff–
Buckets of sweat slid from my forehead down my shirtless body. The sweat stung my groggy eyes.
I blinked, scratching my eyes as my chest rose and fell along with the rhythm of my breath.
The various, unending stream of murmurs raging from the crowd trickled into my ears as my senses finally woke up. And my senses waking up ant... the heat and the sll began to attack too.
I scrunched my nose.
"Dustin?" Jericho called out, his voice barely above the distant noise. "Are you okay?"
As he asked, he tapped my shoulder and my forehead.
I didn’t look up at him.
I let out a quick exhale, removing his hands. "Yes, I’m fine, Jerry. Good morning."
"You’re fine?" Marcus interjected. "You don’t look fine to . You were quite literally quivering in your sleep."
They both stood in front of . Although Jericho crouched to get a good look at .
They both woke up before ?
"I said I’m fine," I said, looking up at their faces as I spotted thin traces of excitent in their bright expressions. I narrowed my eyes. "What’s up with you guys anyway?"
As I asked, Jericho smiled dryly and turned to look at Marcus. Marcus also smiled and nodded.
Jericho looked at , his blue eyes twinkling with unfiltered excitent.
"You won’t believe this," Jericho said.
I furrowed my brows. "Believe what?"
Jericho sighed. "Let tell you."
I nodded. "Go on."
He nodded. "You see, while I slept at night, my body felt weird. It felt like sothing... moved or stirred up within . It was a slithering feeling.. like a snake made of liquid crawled through my veins toward my heart. I dismissed it as it might’ve been a.."
I raised a brow.
"Tiredness-induced hallucination." Jericho’s smile widened, and he shrugged.
"Right~" Marcus said sarcastically as he chuckled.
"So..." Jericho grunted a little as he sat beside .
I looked straight at him.
"I had a dream. A really, really weird dream." Jerry said in a lower voice. "In that dream, I was in a.. dark space. All alone, I couldn’t see anything. I couldn’t even move. I was just suspended in space."
And so?
"Then a loud voice echoed in that dark space. The voice felt eerily ancient. Like an old British man speaking aloud. But then again, I don’t think the voice of any normal old man could make shiver as much as I did when I heard it. It shook to the core of my bones. That voice.. it wasn’t human. It called out my na. And then it told , ’Elusia chooses you. Shine forth your light, phos.’"
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