Eternal Existence

The dancing full moon glowed with a deathly light. It illuminated the dark, cloudy forest and the thin path that ran along its edge.

I buried my head in my arms. Despite it being summer, it grew cold after dark.

I walked. The gravel of the path crunched under my feet. My destination, and probably not my only one, was the city disco. I could already hear the wild techno rhythms shaking the neighborhood. I felt sorry for the elderly residents living nearby. Even though I wasn't from here, I knew about the loud parties every Saturday. It was

pure paradise.

At least not for me. I came here solely to relieve stress.

At the entrance, a particularly muscular ticket agent showed some interest in my ID, insisting that the photo wasn't me, so he'd better leave me alone, the brat from the disco. Unfortunately, I had to explain the whole situation to the large crowd that had gathered. I expressed my quiet doubts about the ticket agent's competence, though not with harsh words. It ended with me opening my wallet.

Well, money rules the world.

Without stopping at the cloakroom, I headed for the dance floor. I sat against the wall, sipping a Pepsi through a straw.

I began my hunt.

My eyes were immediately drawn to a beautiful girl, leaning against the walls much like me. I was surprised to find her alone. I expected some handsome guy to arrive with a glass of wine at any moment.

I wasn't wrong.

A broad-shouldered blonde man jumped up from the next table. He exchanged a word with the girl and then (with a sour expression) returned. Had she brushed him off?!

She could have been waiting for someone. Girls like that aren't alone. They always have a dozen guys clinging to them.

What the hell, I thought, one goat death! I lightly walked toward her. I smiled. She responded in kind. My legs gave out because she was gorgeous. Her triangular face was framed by a storm of raven curls, cascading fancifully over her shoulders. Her small lips were full of joy. They contrasted sharply with her pale complexion and large violet eyes, which showed pain.

We started talking. Surprisingly, we got along well in the din. Her name was Julia. It perfectly matched her dreamy gaze.

Thanks to my irresistible charm, we instantly struck up a friendship. I asked her to dance.

I watched with fascination as her body was transfixed by the techno rhythm. Her eyes were half-closed, her expression focused, her lips slightly parted, trembling. Her hair was deliberately disheveled, like the wings of a bird of prey.

The world spun. Only she existed.

After a moment, we left the venue together. The weather had improved somewhat, but it was still cold. Playing hero, I handed Julia my brown leather jacket. She wrapped herself in it, and I saw a tear in her eye.

Or was it just my imagination...?

We sat on a bench. We watched the stars to the beat of techno. I squeezed Julia's hand, and she rested her head on my shoulder. I felt a wonderful warmth. At the same time, I knew it wouldn't last forever.

Around midnight, she rose and kissed me on the cheek. She left only an address. I followed her away with dreamy eyes.

When she turned one last time to wave, I realized that apart from her address, I knew nothing about Julia...

Julia. A twinkle in bright violet eyes.

Then I noticed a small, inconspicuous handbag beside me. She'd forgotten it.

I grabbed the silver clasp and opened it. Something happened to me

. Before my eyes was an endless desert. Sand, sand. Everywhere, above it, the sky. The sky was purple. Jagged clouds rushing by so quickly. So quickly...

A figure. A girl dressed in a black coat. Around her, out of nowhere, a hundred ravens take flight. Majestic flaps of wings, the newcomer's cape dancing like a bird of prey.

Silence. The ubiquitous silence of death.

The girl raises her hand in greeting. Blood flows along her hand, along the lifeline.

"A person's senses can be deceived..."

A low voice echoes in my head.

A whisper?

The hood falls. The wind ruffles raven curls. My eyelids lift, revealing wild red eyes.

A fall.

I woke up. I rubbed my hand across my face. Despite the cold, I was sweating. Julia had taken my jacket. I'd forgotten she was wearing it. Wanting to hold onto the image from my dream, I realized I was holding a bag full of sand.

***

Before noon, I stood in front of Julia's door. I knocked.

"Come in!" I heard a muffled voice from inside.

The kitchen was nicely furnished. Modest, but beautiful. The sound of running water echoed in the bathroom.

"I'm taking a shower. I'll be out soon!"

Waiting for the lady of the house (I deduced her gender from the tone of her voice), I surveyed the interior. I

froze .

Before my eyes was nothingness and...

the same, familiar black-haired girl suspended in a dark abyss. She stood erect, her arms raised. Not in the least in a gesture of greeting or triumph. Her black cloak quivered. Tiny fish nibbled at the cheeks, lips, and absentmindedly at the violet eyes of the girl from the dream. A rope ran down her neck, with a huge stone tied to its end. Above it all, the sun was breaking through the water's surface.

"What happened?" asked the woman standing in the kitchen doorway. She was drying her hair with a towel.

I shook my head. I forced myself to look again at the wall that had triggered this...dream?

A huge painting hung on it. It depicted a desert and a girl with a raised hand.

Ravens and blood on the lifeline.

"It's my daughter's painting," the woman explained. "It makes an impression on many. But I don't like it. It's terrifying. "

I nodded. An awkward silence fell. I broke it by introducing myself.

"Did I find Julia?" I asked. The woman looked at me with very sad eyes.

"Is this a joke?

" "Excuse me?" I asked, surprised. "I brought Julia her purse, she left it at my place..."

She sank into a chair. She gulped down the glass of wine on the table.

"My daughter's dead.

" "WHAT?!

Her words made my legs buckle under me.

"How do you mean..."

"Three years ago, at a local disco, some psychopath raped her and drowned her in the river. "

I froze. The woman looked at me with sympathy.

"Every year on our anniversary or a few days after, boys come to me saying they'd seen my daughter. She usually left something behind. Earrings, her purse... I got used to it. Over time...

I stared at the painting in silence.

"She painted beautifully, didn't she?" she continued. "She studied. She had talent. "

Silence.

"She lives. She lives in me. Forever. Do you understand?

I understand. I will never forget that face.

" ***

Julia.

***

We immediately drove to the cemetery. I calmed down. I knew Julia for one day. I know that despite this, she is with me. I feel her presence. Existence...

A quiet smile, a sad look.

Eyes. A glint of violets.

We stopped at a new, well-kept marble tombstone. On its edge, next to fresh flowers, lay my worn brown jacket.

Thank you.