With the sunrise came a decision—I had to go back to the room.
It looked exactly the same, as though time had stopped there years ago. Pale light seeped through the small window, revealing dust drifting lazily through the air. Everything around me was far too quiet, too perfectly arranged. Not comforting. Unsettling.
But there was no quiet inside me.
Something heavy pressed against my chest, something deeper than fear. It felt like standing on the edge of a memory my mind had buried long ago.
I stepped toward the table and began searching through the old papers and boxes with tired eyes.
Then I stopped.
There was a sheet of paper I was certain had not been there the night before.
It was folded neatly and placed in the middle of the table, as if someone had left it there after I walked out.
Slowly, I unfolded it.
It was a map.
Thin black lines twisted through the mountains and forests surrounding the village, ending at a dark circle drawn at the very edge. Beside it, written in faded ink barely visible, was a single word:
Entrance.
Next to the circle was a small sketch of a cave hidden between rocks.
A chill crawled down my spine.
This was not just an old map.
It felt as if it had been waiting for me.
As if it knew I would come back.
And then I felt it again.
That same sensation.
The feeling that someone was standing behind me, watching in silence.
I turned around so quickly my neck hurt.
No one.
The door was half-open. The curtain moved slightly in the morning breeze. Sunlight spilled quietly into the room.
And yet, I was sure.
Absolutely sure.
A second ago, I had not been alone.
I folded the map quickly and shoved it into my pocket beside the bracelet. Then I left the room and closed the door behind me.
At that moment, I made my decision.
I had to find that cave.
I packed some food, a bottle of water, a flashlight, an old knife I found in the kitchen, and a few other things into an old backpack. I had no idea where the map would lead me, or how long I would be gone.
But something deep inside me kept whispering that I would not come back the same.
When I stepped into the yard, my grandmother was sitting in front of the house, holding a cup of tea and staring silently at the trees.
She looked up when she saw the bag on my shoulder.
"Where are you going, Kareem?"
I hesitated.
"What? Are you going back to the city already?"
I shook my head.
"No, Grandma. I'm just going for a walk. I decided to stay here for a few more days."
A small smile crossed her face.
"Good. But be careful." She let out a quiet laugh. "There are still evil things wandering around these parts."
I laughed too.
But something inside me did not find it funny.
"I know, Grandma. Take care."
I left the house behind and followed the path drawn on the map.
The farther I walked from the village, the thicker the trees became. The dirt path grew narrower and narrower. Every few minutes I pulled out the map, trying to figure out where I was going, but I was no longer sure if I was following the right path at all.
Then—
I saw it again.
Something moving between the trees.
My heart stopped.
I turned sharply, and this time I heard it clearly—a crackle of dry branches.
"Who's there?!"
No answer.
But something moved again.
I tightened my grip on the bag and slowly pulled out the knife. My hand was trembling despite myself. My mind raced in every direction.
Maybe it was an animal.
Maybe someone from the village.
Or maybe—
No.
I refused to finish the thought.
I took one step forward.
Then another.
My whole body was shaking now, and the small knife in my hand suddenly felt useless against whatever might be hiding there.
I raised it suddenly and shouted:
"Come out!"
"Are you trying to kill me, idiot?!"
I froze.
Layla stepped out from behind the trees, brushing dust off her clothes and glaring at me.
"Layla?! What are you doing here?!"
She put her hands on her hips.
"Following you, obviously. I knew you were hiding something. And this morning, I saw you carrying that old paper out of the room."
I let out an annoyed sigh.
"You shouldn't have come."
"Oh really? And you expected me to stay at home while you sneaked off alone like the hero of one of his old stories?"
Without answering, I pulled the map from my pocket. My eyes drifted to the bracelet still hidden in my hand.
But she noticed it.
Her eyes widened instantly.
"What is that?"
I hesitated, then slowly held it out.
"I found it in the room."
She stepped closer immediately.
"Oh wow… it looks amazing. Let me see it."
I pulled it away from her at once.
"No."
She blinked at me in surprise.
"Okay… fine. Be weird about it." She crossed her arms. "So where are we going?"
"We?"
She smiled, infuriatingly smug.
"Yes, we. Because you're not getting rid of me."
I sighed and looked back at the map.
A few moments later, I realized the awful truth.
I had no idea which way to go.
Layla noticed immediately.
"What? Don't tell me you're already lost."
"I'm not lost."
"Then why do you look like you're trying to read a recipe written in an ancient language?"
Before I could stop her, she snatched the map from my hands.
"Give me that."
"Wait… hmm…"
Then she burst out laughing.
"You seriously thought this map was going to lead you to treasure or something? It's probably fake!"
I held out my hand angrily.
"Give it back."
"No, wait—"
Then suddenly she stopped.
Her eyes were fixed on my hand.
On the bracelet.
"Kareem…"
"What?"
"Move it to the right."
I frowned, but I did what she said.
And suddenly, the black stone in the center of the bracelet glowed with a faint light.
We both froze.
I turned it in another direction, and the light vanished.
Then I pointed it to the right again.
The glow returned—stronger this time.
Layla slowly lifted her eyes to mine.
"Could… could that thing be a compass?"
I looked down at the bracelet, then at the path ahead.
"I think it is."
And without another word, we followed the light.
The entire way, the bracelet grew brighter the closer we got. The trees around us became darker, quieter. Even the birds were gone, as if the forest itself wanted nothing to do with that place.
Then we saw it.
The cave.
It looked exactly like the drawing.
A black opening between the rocks, wide enough to swallow us whole. A heavy shadow surrounded it, making the entire place suddenly feel colder.
The moment my eyes landed on it, everything inside me stopped.
I froze where I stood.
That same feeling from the dream came rushing back.
Only stronger.
Closer.
Too real.
It felt as though something enormous was standing inside, watching us.
Something I could not see, but could feel.
Something ancient.
Something waiting.
Sweat trickled down my forehead, and suddenly I could not move.
"Kareem!"
I didn't answer.
"Kareem!"
I turned to her suddenly, as though waking from a trance.
"What?"
This time, she looked genuinely worried.
"What's wrong with you? You look like you've seen a ghost."
I swallowed hard.
"Don't you feel it?"
"Feel what?"
"Like… something is waiting for us in there."
She was silent for a moment.
Then she looked toward the cave.
And the smile disappeared from her face.
"…Honestly? Yeah."
She looked back at me, trying to sound braver than she felt.
"But we're not turning back now, right? Not after all this?"
Before I could answer, she stepped into the cave.
"Layla, wait!"
I rushed after her.
The moment I crossed the entrance, I heard them.
Whispers.
Dozens of them.
Distant. Overlapping. As though countless voices were speaking at once from deep within the darkness.
"He's here…"
"He came…"
"At last…"
I stopped dead.
I didn't know whether Layla could hear them too.
Then, in the middle of all those voices, I heard only one.
Her voice.
The same voice from my dream.
Soft.
Close.
As if she were whispering directly into my ear.
"Oh… you finally came. I've been waiting for you, Kareem."