"Now… you're coming with me."
The voice echoed as everything around me disappeared.
Darkness.
Complete.
Endless.
I couldn't see anything.
Couldn't feel anything.
Just falling.
Deeper.
And deeper.
"No… no, this isn't happening…" I whispered, my voice trembling.
But no sound came back.
It was like I didn't exist here.
Suddenly—
I hit the ground.
Hard.
Air rushed back into my lungs as I gasped.
I quickly looked around.
And froze.
I wasn't in my world anymore.
The sky above me was… broken.
Cracked like shattered glass.
Dark light leaking through the cracks.
The ground beneath me—
Cold.
Colorless.
Endless.
"What is this place…?" I whispered.
My voice sounded strange.
Like it didn't belong here.
A slow, distorted echo answered—
"Your truth."
My heart dropped.
I turned around slowly.
And there it was.
The shadow.
Standing right in front of me.
But this time—
It wasn't hiding anymore.
It looked exactly like me.
Same face.
Same eyes.
But empty.
Cold.
"You…" I whispered.
It tilted its head.
Smiling faintly.
"Me."
A chill ran through my body.
"No… you're not me," I said, stepping back.
It stepped forward.
Matching my movement perfectly.
"I am everything you refused to feel."
My chest tightened.
"I am every moment you ran away."
"That's not true," I said, my voice shaking.
"Then why am I here?" it asked calmly.
I had no answer.
Silence stretched between us.
Heavy.
"You think accepting it made you stronger?" it continued.
Its voice… my voice.
"You only opened the door for me."
Fear crept back in.
"No…" I whispered.
"Yes," it replied.
Suddenly—
The ground around us shifted.
Scenes started appearing.
Not like dreams.
Memories.
Real.
I saw myself.
After the accident.
In a hospital room.
Crying.
Alone.
"I couldn't remember you…" I whispered.
The shadow watched silently.
"I didn't forget on purpose…"
It stepped closer.
"But you still forgot."
Tears filled my eyes.
"I lost everything too…" I said.
The shadow's expression didn't change.
"Yet you kept living."
The words hit deep.
"And I didn't."
My breath stopped.
"What do you mean?"
It smiled faintly.
"I am the part of you that never moved on."
A heavy silence followed.
"I stayed in that moment," it continued.
"In the fear."
"In the guilt."
"In the loss."
My heart ached.
"And now…" it said softly,
"I don't want to be left behind anymore."
A cold realization hit me.
"You're not trying to destroy me…" I whispered.
It looked at me.
"You're trying to become me."
It nodded slowly.
"If you stay here…"
Its voice softened.
"We can be whole again."
For a moment—
Everything went quiet.
The broken sky.
The still air.
And my thoughts.
What if…
It was right?
What if staying here meant no pain?
No guilt?
No fear?
"You won't have to remember anything anymore," it whispered.
My eyes slowly closed.
It sounded peaceful.
Too peaceful.
And then—
A voice cut through the silence.
"Don't listen to it!"
My eyes snapped open.
"Aarav…" I whispered.
I looked around desperately.
But he wasn't there.
Just his voice.
"You're stronger than this!" he shouted.
The shadow's expression darkened.
"He doesn't belong here," it said coldly.
"But I do," it added.
My heart raced.
"I…" I hesitated.
The shadow extended its hand toward me.
"Stay."
For a second—
I almost reached out.
But then—
I remembered.
Aarav's smile.
His voice.
His warmth.
"You only lose me when you lose yourself."
My hand clenched into a fist.
And I stepped back.
"No."
The shadow froze.
"I'm not staying here," I said, my voice stronger now.
Its eyes darkened.
"You don't have a choice."
The ground beneath me started cracking.
The sky shattered louder.
Everything around me began collapsing.
"You're already part of me!" it shouted.
"Then I'll take that part back!" I yelled.
For the first time—
The shadow looked surprised.
And then—
Angry.
"If you leave…"
Its voice turned cold.
"You lose him forever."
My heart stopped.
"What…?" I whispered.
Silence.
Then—
A final whisper.
Choose.