"Tell me this is a good idea."
Lyra looked at Kael, who was walking a few steps ahead of them.
"It isn't."
Kael continued walking with a smile.
"Then why are you here?"
Lyra took a deep breath.
"No. I just know that if we don't follow you, you'll definitely get yourself into trouble."
Kael shrugged.
"At least you're not bored."
"That's exactly the problem."
Elira pressed her lips together to stop herself from smiling.
When Cyra noticed, she lightly nudged her with her elbow.
"Don't laugh."
"What am I supposed to do? He's right."
Nera sighed.
"I'm already tired and we're just at the beginning of the road."
Kael turned around.
"Are you talking behind my back?"
Lyra answered without hesitation.
"No. We're talking right to your face."
Kael dramatically placed a hand over his chest.
"You broke my heart."
"You'll recover."
"You have no conscience."
"Neither do you."
Kael looked at Lyra for a few seconds.
"You're being really cruel to me today."
Lyra raised an eyebrow.
"Today?"
Kael didn't answer.
Cyra giggled.
"Got you."
Kael shook his head.
"All of you have teamed up against me."
Elira finally smiled.
"A little."
Kael immediately turned toward her.
"You're on their side too?"
"I didn't pick a side."
"But you laughed."
"Because you were funny."
Kael took a deep breath.
"Is nobody going to support me?"
Nera shrugged.
"I don't know."
"That's another way of saying no."
Nera smiled.
"Yes."
Kael shook his head as if he had given up.
"Okay."
A few seconds of silence passed.
Lyra spoke again.
"Now, a serious question."
Kael looked at her.
"I'm listening."
"Where are we going?"
Kael grinned.
"We're almost there."
Lyra rolled her eyes.
"That doesn't count as an answer."
"I count it."
"I don't."
"Then we disagree."
"We already disagree on everything."
Kael shrugged.
"And yet you're still with me."
Lyra sighed.
"Because we can't leave you alone."
Kael laughed softly.
"So you need me."
Lyra shook her head.
"No."
"Then?"
"We need to keep an eye on you."
Kael smiled and turned forward again.
"As I said..."
Lyra raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
"At least you're not bored."
Lyra smiled despite herself.
"Look at you..."
"What?"
"You're still trying to prove you're right while saying that."
"Because I'm right most of the time."
Cyra and Nera laughed at the same time.
Elira only shook her head.
"Kael..."
"Yes?"
"One day you'll really get yourself into trouble."
Kael answered without hesitation.
"And on that day, you'll come with me again."
The four of them went silent at the same time.
Then Lyra laughed and shook her head.
"Unfortunately... most likely, yes."
Kael continued talking.
"You know this Arven guy..."
At that exact moment, the sound of a thin branch breaking came from behind them.
Lyra stopped and looked around.
"Did you hear that?"
Kael shrugged.
"Probably a squirrel."
Cyra raised an eyebrow.
"A squirrel that makes a sound this loud?"
Kael waved his hand dismissively.
"Maybe it's a big squirrel. Anyway, don't interrupt me. Look, this is what I was going to tell you."
Lyra sighed.
"We would listen if what you're going to say was normal."
Kael raised an eyebrow.
"It is completely normal."
Lyra shook her head.
"That's the problem. Normal to you."
Kael shrugged.
"I could be right."
"You could also be wrong."
Kael laughed.
"Anyway..."
He cleared his throat.
"This Arven guy..."
Elira slightly raised her eyebrows.
"What about Arven?"
"That's the problem."
Kael shook his head.
"Nothing happens."
The girls looked at each other.
Kael continued.
"Everything happens to us. But Arven..."
He paused for a moment.
"I don't think he understands anything."
Lyra laughed.
"About what?"
"About anything."
Kael imitated Arven by nodding his head several times.
"I understand."
Lyra couldn't hold back her laughter.
Kael started laughing too.
"Then five minutes pass."
He waved his hand in the air.
"He asks the same thing again."
Elira smiled.
"Maybe he isn't listening to you."
"Exactly."
Kael pointed at Elira.
"That's what I'm saying."
Cyra crossed her arms.
"So you're not saying Arven doesn't understand anything. You're saying he doesn't listen to you."
Kael thought for a few seconds.
"Both could be true."
He paused.
"Although Arven is still better."
Lyra raised an eyebrow.
"Better?"
"At least he's quiet."
Then he frowned.
"But Taren..."
Lyra smiled.
"What did he do this time?"
"Taren is a completely different story."
"What's his problem?"
"He talks too much."
Lyra stared at Kael for a few seconds.
"You talk too much too."
"My talking has a purpose."
"What purpose?"
Kael seriously thought about it.
"...Giving information."
Lyra laughed.
"How much of the information you give is actually true?"
"All of it."
"One hundred percent?"
"One hundred percent."
"Really?"
Kael stayed silent for a short moment.
"...Maybe ninety percent."
Cyra and Nera started laughing too.
Kael shook his head.
"Okay, whatever."
They walked a few more steps.
"You can't trust Sorel either."
At that exact moment, a familiar voice came from behind them.
"Interesting."
Kael stopped walking.
The smile disappeared from Lyra's face.
Elira, Cyra, and Nera turned around at the same time.
Kael stayed still for a few seconds.
Then he slowly turned around.
Arven, Taren, and Sorel were standing a few steps behind them, looking at them...
Lyra raised both hands.
"I didn't do anything."
"You didn't warn me."
"I didn't know they were following us either."
Elira shook her head.
"We didn't know either."
Taren grinned.
"Good thing you didn't."
Kael frowned.
"Why?"
Taren shrugged.
"Otherwise, we wouldn't have heard this much."
Sorel smiled slightly.
"Especially the Arven part."
Arven looked at Kael thoughtfully.
"Do I really not understand anything?"
Kael hesitated for a moment.
"...Let's just end this conversation here."
Taren laughed.
"I think it was just getting started."
Kael took a deep breath.
"I won't talk around any of you ever again."
Taren grinned.
"I'm counting."
Kael rolled his eyes.
"Count."
"One..."
"Two..."
"Three..."
"Four..."
"Five..."
"Six..."
Kael couldn't hold himself back.
"Okay, but this is really the last time."
Lyra looked at Kael in surprise.
"You broke a record."
Kael smiled proudly.
"Thank you."
Elira said:
"The fact that you're proud of this is even stranger."
Kael shrugged.
"Everyone has a talent."
Taren looked at him with an amused smile.
"Yours is not being able to stay quiet."
"I communicate."
"You just keep talking."
"I think they're the same thing."
"They're not."
Lyra raised a hand as if stopping them.
"Okay, you two don't start again."
Cyra turned to Lyra with a smile.
"Are you always going to argue with Kael?"
She raised her eyebrows.
"Let us have a turn too."
Kael pointed at himself innocently.
"As if I'm doing it on purpose."
Taren chuckled.
"No, you're inviting it."
Kael opened his hands.
"I'm just talking."
Elira laughed softly.
"That's exactly the problem."
A short laugh rose again.
Kael shook his head.
"You guys are really hard to please."
"No."
Taren grinned.
"Actually, it's quite easy."
"How?"
"Just stay quiet for five minutes."
Kael took a deep breath.
"Don't come to me with impossible requests."
Lyra laughed.
"Just admitting that is already a big improvement."
Kael shrugged.
"Everyone has limits."
With light laughter, they continued walking.
The conversations slowly faded away on their own.
No one noticed how far they had walked.
The path was getting narrower, and the trees appeared denser than before.
The sound of the wind moving through the leaves became clearer.
Then suddenly, Kael stopped.
The others walked a few more steps before realizing he had stopped and turned back.
"What happened?"
Kael didn't answer.
He was looking around.
Then his eyebrows slightly furrowed.
"...Wait a second."
The others stopped and looked at him.
Lyra raised an eyebrow.
"What happened?"
Kael examined the surroundings for a few seconds.
Then he shrugged.
"Nothing. It's nothing."
Taren looked suspiciously at him.
"You looked pretty serious just now."
"For a moment, I didn't recognize this place."
Elira looked around.
"I'm here for the first time anyway."
Cyra laughed lightly.
"We're all here for the first time."
Kael shook his head.
"Okay, okay."
Then his eyes moved toward a narrow path stretching to the right.
The path was narrower than the others.
Tree branches almost covered the entrance.
Kael pointed there.
"Have you ever been there?"
Everyone looked in that direction at the same time.
Lyra shook her head.
"No."
Taren shrugged.
"Me neither."
Nera quietly studied the path.
"I don't think anyone uses it."
A curious smile appeared on Kael's face.
"Then let's see."
Elira immediately turned to him.
"Kael."
"What?"
"Every time you say 'let's see', something ridiculous happens to us."
Kael smiled innocently.
"You're exaggerating."
Taren laughed softly.
"No."
"She's just giving statistics."
Kael sighed.
"One day, trust me."
Lyra smiled.
"We trust you."
After a short pause, she added:
"But we don't trust your curiosity."
Everyone laughed quietly.
Kael shook his head.
"You're all very hurtful."
Despite that, he was the first one to take a step forward.
The others followed him.
When I got home, the house was quiet.
My father still wasn't there.
He had probably gotten held up at work. While I was changing my clothes, I received a message on my phone.
It was from Kael.
You're coming over tonight. No objections accepted.
I closed my phone.
At least I wouldn't have to cook dinner.
I quickly put on my black outfit with red flowers. Since the weather was extremely hot, wearing something short felt like one of the best choices I could make today. After tying my hair up, I grabbed my bag and phone, put on my thin jacket, and left the house.
When I stepped outside, the air was still warm. The sun wasn't too high anymore, but the heat could still be felt.
After walking a few steps, I took out my phone and checked the time.
I wasn't late.
Walking to Kael's house usually took about fifteen minutes. Since I had never gone there by car, I didn't know how long it would take. Besides, I had always walked there until now.
There were two roads leading to their house.
I almost always used the first one.
I had heard that the second road was shorter, but I had never tried it before. The first road was familiar. I knew where it started and where it ended.
The second one was quieter, but it saved a few minutes.
Normally, I would have chosen the first road without thinking.
But this time, I turned onto the second one.
The only reason wasn't curiosity.
Everyone was waiting for me at the table, and arriving a few minutes earlier didn't seem like a bad idea.
The road looked quite similar to the first one I usually took.
There were a few houses around. Two people were talking in a corner, and a child passed by the side of the road on a bicycle.
I continued walking without thinking too much.
After all, I had a dinner waiting for me.
After a while, the houses started becoming fewer.
The road became narrower, and the sounds around me slowly faded away.
I looked back a few times, but I couldn't see anyone.
I took out my phone again.
Kael had sent another message.
Where are you?
I smiled and replied.
I'm coming.
I put my phone back into my bag.
I looked ahead.
I should have reached their house in a few minutes.
Then I heard footsteps behind me.
At first, I ignored them.
As I walked, they walked too.
I sped up a little.
The footsteps sped up as well.
This time, I turned around.
The road was empty.
I frowned.
Maybe they were coming from another street.
I turned forward again.
Just then, someone grabbed my arm.
Before I could understand what was happening, I tried to pull myself back.
I wanted to scream, but someone appeared in front of me.
Everything happened within seconds.
My phone fell from my hand.
I heard the sound of the screen hitting the ground.
Then everything went dark.
But I hadn't even eaten dinner yet.
At least they could have kidnapped me after I ate.
When I opened my eyes, the first thing I felt was the pain in my head.
For a while, I couldn't understand where I was.
I stared at the ceiling.
Then I looked around.
I was in a wooden room.
The air felt heavy.
The smell of damp wood filled my nose.
It felt like this place had been closed for a long time.
I tried to move.
My hands weren't tied.
But my mouth was covered.
I started breathing faster in panic.
Then I noticed someone moving on the other side of the room.
Then a second person.
A third.
A fourth.
There were four people.
All of them were men.
When they looked at me, I froze.
One of them stepped closer.
I tried to move back.
The man stopped.
One of the others said something, but I couldn't understand what he was saying.
I looked around the room.
There was a door.
No windows.
No other exit.
I had no idea where I was.
Kael came to my mind.
My father.
My home.
Everything suddenly felt like it was very far away.
Two of them left the room while talking.
The door closed behind them.
Only two people remained.
I watched them for a while.
Then I closed my eyes.
I pretended that I was still trying to recover.
One of them looked at me.
I didn't move.
After a while, he looked away.
I slightly opened my eyes.
The door.
It was only a few steps away.
I waited.
The moment one of them turned his back, I stood up.
I ran to the door.
I turned the handle.
It opened.
Seriously?
You kidnap someone, lock them in a room, but don't even lock the door?
And then you're surprised when the girl escapes.
There were four big guys in the room, and I still managed to get away.
Honestly, what I was thinking about wasn't even my escape.
It was their intelligence.
I ran into the hallway.
Shouts came from behind me.
They were only shouting now.
Great timing.
I mean, what was I supposed to think?
Four large men were chasing me after kidnapping me, and somehow I was still questioning their planning skills.
I started running.
Amazing.
As if being kidnapped wasn't enough, now they were chasing me too.
But my thoughts were still the same:
Did these people seriously not know how to make a plan?
I had no idea where I was going.
I only tried to get as far away as possible.
The voices behind me grew louder.
At the end of the hallway, there was another door.
I opened it.
I stepped outside.
The sunlight hit my eyes.
For a moment, I froze.
Then I heard the sounds behind me and started running again.
I entered the forest.
Branches scratched against my arms.
My feet sank into the soil.
But I didn't stop.
I didn't know how long I ran.
Eventually, I couldn't hear them anymore.
I stopped when I was out of breath.
I looked around.
Trees.
Silence.
Earth.
And a familiar-looking structure in the distance.
I froze.
The building from yesterday.
I didn't even have time to wonder why it was here.
A branch snapped behind me.
I immediately ran toward the building.
I opened the door and went inside.
The hallway looked exactly like yesterday.
Moss had spread across the walls.
In some places, vines hung down from the ceiling.
The inside was even quieter than outside.
I tried to make my footsteps as quiet as possible.
I was trying to remember the rooms we had entered yesterday.
I passed one door.
Then another.
Finally, I found the room I had seen before.
I opened the door and stepped inside.
I stood there for a few seconds.
I didn't know where to hide.
Then I heard a sound from the hallway.
Footsteps.
I immediately moved beside the door.
I pressed my back against the wall.
I held my breath.
The footsteps were getting closer.
One.
Two.
Three.
Then they stopped.
I realized there were two people right outside the door.
The first voice was low.
"Are you sure she's here?"
The other person didn't answer for a few seconds.
Then he spoke.
"She was here a moment ago."
"Did you see her?"
A short silence followed.
"No."
I covered my mouth with my hand.
My heart was beating fast.
Then the first person moved closer.
"Then why did we come here?"
The other person's voice was quieter this time.
"Because she doesn't know where else to go."
They both fell silent.
And I stood there without moving.
They both fell silent.
I stood there without moving.
I tried to breathe as quietly as possible.
Then the door handle slowly moved.
My whole body tensed.
The door was about to open.
I stayed completely still.
The two people outside were still there.
The first voice spoke again.
"Are you sure she's here?"
A few seconds passed before the other person answered.
"She was here a moment ago."
"Did you see her?"
Silence.
"No."
I covered my mouth with my hand.
My heart was beating faster.
They were looking for me.
I was sure of that.
But I didn't know why I was here or why they were following me.
"Then why did we come here?"
The other person's voice became quieter.
"Because she doesn't know where else to go."
They both became silent.
I stayed beside the door without moving.
I tried to slow down my breathing as much as I could.
Just then, another sound came from the hallway.
The two people outside went quiet.
I tried to understand what was happening, but for a few seconds, there was no sound at all.
Then several footsteps echoed through the hallway.
The sounds slowly moved away.
I waited.
They could still be there.
Maybe they were only pretending to leave.
Minutes passed.
Eventually, the hallway became completely silent.
Slowly, I approached the door.
I reached for the handle, but I didn't open it immediately.
I waited for a while.
No sound came.
I took a deep breath and opened the door.
The hallway was empty.
Nobody was there.
Only the silence of the old building remained.
This was the same old building we had seen today.
But a few hours ago, it was just a place I was curious about.
Now, I had to hide here.
Just then, my phone started ringing.
The sudden sound of the phone in the silence made me jump.
My heart started beating faster.
For a few seconds, I only stared at the screen.
Kael.
I answered the call.
"Elira? Where are you?"
Hearing his voice made me feel slightly calmer.
"Kael..."
He immediately noticed the change in my voice.
"What happened?"
For a moment, I couldn't answer.
"I... I needed to go back home."
"Why?"
"I realized I forgot something. I'm going back."
There was a short silence.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine."
Lying wasn't easy.
"Okay. Are you still coming?"
"Yes, I am. You can start eating. Don't wait for me."
"Elira..."
"I'm really fine."
Kael was silent for a few seconds.
"Okay. But tell me when you arrive."
"I will."
I ended the call.
But my hand was still shaking.
You were kidnapped.
That's a normal reaction.
Okay, I was the one telling myself that.
I had started talking to myself.
Great.
What was next?
Answering myself?
I finally took a deep breath and decided to leave the building.
When I stepped outside, it was starting to get dark.
As I walked through the trees, I looked back several times.
Nobody was there.
But the uneasy feeling inside me still wouldn't disappear.
Today, I had only left home to go to Kael's house for dinner.
Now, I had been held somewhere I didn't even know, escaped, and was left alone with countless unanswered questions.
I tried not to think too much while walking.
But every time I closed my eyes, I remembered that room, those people, and the conversation I had heard.
When I arrived at Kael's house, I waited a few seconds before knocking on the door.
I had to act normal.
Or at least try to.
When the door opened, Kael was standing in front of me.
The moment he saw me, his expression changed.
"Elira?"
I could hear the surprise in his voice.
"I'm late. I know."
Kael looked at me for a few seconds.
"Something happened."
It wasn't a question.
I looked away.
"Can I come inside?"
Kael immediately stepped aside.
When I entered, I noticed everyone was looking at me.
A few hours ago, I had been thinking about having dinner here.
Now, everyone was trying to understand why I was so quiet.
"What happened?" Kael asked.
For a while, I couldn't answer.
Because the moment I started explaining, I would have to accept that everything I had experienced was real.
Finally, I took a deep breath.
"When I was coming here..."
Everyone focused on me.
"Someone followed me."
The silence in the room suddenly changed.
The expression on Kael's face became serious.
"What?"
"Then..." I continued. "They kidnapped me."
For a few seconds, nobody spoke.
It was like they were trying to understand what I had just said.
"Elira, are you serious?"
I nodded.
"Yes."
Kael took a step closer.
"Who were they?"
I lowered my eyes.
"I don't know."
My voice was quiet.
"But we need to find them."
Kael looked at me.
This time, there was more determination on his face than fear.
"First, tell me everything."
At that moment, I realized that telling them what happened was harder than experiencing it again.