I don't hit the ground.
There's no impact.
One second I'm falling
and the next, I'm standing.
For a moment, I don't move.
I just stand there, trying to catch up to my own body.
My chest rises too fast.
The air feels thick, like I have to force it in.
I press my hand against my ribs, grounding myself, waiting for something to make sense.
Nothing does.
The corridor is back.
Same walls. Same lights.
But it feels… stretched.
Like everything has been pulled just slightly out of place.
The ceiling is higher than it should be.
The lights flicker softly, uneven, casting shadows that don't quite match where they should fall.
The smell hits me next.
Antiseptic.
But sharper.
Metallic.
Like blood.
I swallow hard.
I don't remember landing.
I don't remember stopping.
I just… exist here now.
"Luna?" I call.
My voice doesn't carry far.
It feels like the space absorbs it, swallowing the sound before it can echo.
I try again, louder this time. "Luna?"
Silence.
The kind that presses against your ears.
I take a step forward.
The floor feels solid, but there's a slight give beneath my weight, like it's not entirely real.
I stop.
Listen.
Then.
"Emma?"
Everything in me reacts at once.
My jaw dropped.
That's her.
It's faint, weak, like she's been crying or hasn't spoken in a while.
But it's her.
Relief hits me so suddenly it almost hurts.
"Luna?" My voice comes out breathless.
"Where are you?"
I look ahead.
And I see her.
She's standing a few metres away.
For a second, I can't move.
It's like my body forgets how.
She looks wrong.
Not in a way I can explain straight away.
Just… wrong.
Pale. Too pale.
Like all the warmth has been drained out of her skin.
Her lips are dry, slightly parted.
Her eyes are red and swollen, like she's been crying for hours, maybe longer.
Her hair hangs messily around her face, strands stuck to her cheeks.
She looks exhausted.
Broken.
"Emma…" she whispers.
Her voice trembles.
Something tightens painfully in my chest.
"Luna," I breathe, taking a step forward without thinking.
"What happened to you?"
She flinches.
A small movement, but sharp.
Like my voice hurt her.
"Don't… don't come closer," she says.
Her voice shakes.
I stop immediately.
"Why?" I ask.
"Are you hurt? Did something happen?"
She shakes her head slightly, but it's slow. Uncertain.
"I can't get out," she whispers.
"I've been trying… I can't find the way back."
The words hit me harder than they should.
I know that feeling.
Being lost.
Not knowing where you are.
My chest tightens.
"It's okay," I say quickly.
"I'm here now. We'll figure it out together."
I take another step.
And another.
"Emma, wait"
A hand closes around my arm.
I flinch hard, my body jerking.
Dr. Margareth.
She's right beside me.
I didn't hear her come.
Didn't see her arrive.
She's just there.
Her grip is steady, firm enough to stop me.
"Don't go to her," she says quietly.
I frown, pulling slightly. "That's Luna."
"I know what it looks like," she says.
Too calm.
Too certain.
"She's not okay," I insist. "Look at her."
"I am looking."
Her voice doesn't change.
That unsettles me more than anything.
I glance between them.
Luna stands there, shaking, barely holding herself together.
Dr. Margareth stands beside me, composed, controlled, like none of this is surprising.
"Emma," Luna whispers again.
I look back at her immediately.
"Please… I don't want to be here anymore."
Her voice cracks.
And just like that, something inside me breaks a little too.
Because that's exactly what she would say.
That's exactly how she sounds when she's scared.
A memory flashes in my head.
Luna laughing earlier.
Complaining about the hike.
Rolling her eyes but still smiling.
This doesn't match.
But it still feels like her.
"I'm going to help her," I say quietly.
Dr. Margareth's grip tightens.
"No."
I turn to her, frustration rising.
"You don't understand. That's my friend."
"And you don't understand where you are" she replies.
Her words land heavily.
I hesitate.
Just for a second.
Then I look back at Luna.
She hasn't moved.
Not closer.
Not further.
Just standing there.
Watching me.
"Luna," I say more carefully.
"Can you come here?"
A pause.
Too long.
Then
"No…" she whispers.
My chest tightens.
"Why not?" I ask.
She doesn't answer immediately.
Her head lowers slightly.
Then tilts.
Just a little.
Something about it feels off.
Too slow.
Too deliberate.
It's like I'm dreaming.
Like she's thinking about how to move instead of just moving.
A small chill runs down my spine.
"Emma…" she says again.
This time, I focus on her face.
On her mouth.
The sound comes out first.
Then her lips move.
A fraction too late.
My stomach drops.
No.
That's not…
I take a step back without realising it.
Dr. Margareth notices.
"That's not her," she says quietly.
I shake my head, even though I'm not sure anymore.
"It looks like her. It sounds like her."
"That's how it works."
Her words sink in slowly.
"How what works?" I ask.
Before she can answer,
Luna moves.
One step forward.
Slow.
Unsteady.
Like she's learning how to walk again.
"Emma… please…"
Her voice overlaps slightly now.
Like there's something else underneath it.
Something wrong.
My hands start to shake.
I don't know what to believe.
I look at Luna.
Then at Dr. Margareth.
Then back again.
Luna looks like she's about to fall apart.
Dr. Margareth looks like she's been here before.
"Why should I trust you?" I ask suddenly.
The question slips out before I can stop it.
Dr. Margareth doesn't react immediately.
Then she says, "You shouldn't."
That makes me freeze.
"But you should trust what you notice," she adds.
I frown slightly.
"What do you notice?" she asks.
I look back at Luna.
Really look this time.
"She's… not moving," I say slowly.
"And?"
I swallow.
"Her voice…" I hesitate. "It's not matching."
Dr. Margareth nods once.
"Anything else?"
I stare at Luna.
At her face.
At the tears.
At the way her expression doesn't fully change with her words.
"…she feels wrong," I whisper.
Saying it out loud makes my chest tighten.
Because I don't want that to be true.
Because if it is.
Then where is the real Luna?
"Emma," Luna says.
Stronger now.
Clearer.
"Why are you listening to her?"
I flinch slightly.
That's new.
Her tone changed.
Less weak.
Less desperate.
More… direct.
I look at her again.
Her expression flickers.
Just for a second.
The sadness slips.
Like it was placed there, not felt.
"You came to find me, didn't you?" she says softly.
My throat goes dry.
"Yes," I whisper.
"Then come here," she says.
Another step forward.
This time smoother.
More natural.
Behind her, the corridor looks darker now.
Deeper.
As if it leads into an abyss with no end.
But, it's opening up.
Like something is waiting behind her.
Dr. Margareth's hand tightens around my arm.
"Don't."
My heart is pounding so hard it hurts.
I feel pulled in both directions.
Luna.
My friend.
The person I came here for.
And Dr. Margareth.
The only one who seems to understand what's happening.
"What happens if I go to her?" I ask quietly.
Dr. Margareth doesn't answer straight away.
That scares me more than anything.
Finally, she says, "Then you won't come back."
My chest tightens.
"And if I don't?" I ask.
She looks at me.
Really looks this time.
"Then you might still have a chance to find the real her."
The words hit me like a punch.
Might.
Not will.
Might.
I look back at Luna.
She's closer now.
I don't remember seeing her move.
"Emma," she says softly.
Her head tilts again.
That same weird angle.
"Don't you trust me?"
My chest aches.
Because I do.
Or at least, I want to.
I take a small step forward.
Dr. Margareth's grip tightens sharply.
"Emma."
My name sounds different this time.
More urgent this time.
I freeze.
My whole body is tense.
Caught between them.
Between what I feel…
and what I'm starting to understand.
I close my eyes for a second.
Trying to think.
Trying to remember.
Luna's laugh.
The way she talks.
The way she moves.
The way she looks at me.
I open my eyes again.
And for a brief moment.
just a split second.
The thing in front of me stops pretending.
The sadness disappears.
Completely.
No hesitation.
No emotion.
Just something empty…
watching me.
Waiting.
And I realise,
this isn't about choosing who to trust.
It's about choosing…
what I'm willing to lose.