My name is Baby.
I've always thought it sounded strange—like something too soft for a world that never really is. People laugh when they hear it for the first time, like it's a joke I'm still holding onto. But my mother used to say it like it meant something deeper… like I was meant to be protected by the world itself.
She was wrong.
The world doesn't protect people like me.
Still… there are moments when I feel like it tries.
Like today.
The wind was different this morning.
I noticed it the second I stepped outside our small house at the edge of the village. It brushed past my skin gently, almost like fingers tracing something only it could see. It wasn't cold, but it wasn't warm either—it felt alive.
And it whispered.
Not in words. Not exactly. But in a way that made my heart pause… like it was calling me.
"Baby!" my aunt's voice snapped through the air. "Stop standing there and come help me!"
I blinked, the feeling disappearing as quickly as it came.
"I'm coming!" I called back, though my voice sounded distant even to me.
As I walked toward her, I glanced back at the open field behind our house. The tall grass swayed slowly, but I could swear… just for a second… it moved against the direction of the wind.
Like something unseen had passed through it.
I shook my head. You're imagining things again.
That's what everyone always says.
Baby sees things.
Baby hears things.
Baby dreams too much.
Maybe they're right.
But sometimes… my dreams feel more real than this life.
By afternoon, the sky had turned a soft shade of gold. It was my favorite time of day—the moment when everything feels quieter, like the world is holding its breath before night falls.
I slipped away from my chores and wandered toward the river.
No one noticed.
No one ever really does.
The river had always been my escape. The water shimmered gently, reflecting the sky like a mirror. I sat on my usual spot—a smooth stone near the edge—and dipped my fingers into the current.
That's when it happened.
The wind returned.
Stronger this time.
It circled around me, lifting strands of my hair, wrapping around my wrists like invisible threads. My breath caught in my throat.
"Hello?" I whispered, my voice trembling despite myself.
Silence.
Then—
A soft glow flickered beneath the surface of the water.
I froze.
The glow grew brighter, pulsing slowly, like a heartbeat. My heart began to race in response, matching its rhythm without me even trying.
What is that…?
I leaned closer.
The moment my reflection touched the light—
The world shifted.
The air stilled. The wind stopped. Even the sound of the river disappeared.
And for the first time in my life…
I wasn't alone.
Something was there.
Watching me.
Not with fear. Not with danger.
But with something that felt almost like… recognition.
I pulled my hand back quickly, stumbling away from the water. The glow vanished instantly, as if it had never been there.
The wind returned to normal.
The river flowed again.
Everything looked the same.
But I wasn't.
My chest rose and fell rapidly as I stared at my trembling hands.
"…What was that?" I whispered.
No answer.
Only the quiet hum of the evening.
But deep inside me… something had changed.
Something had awakened.
And for the first time—
I felt like the world was finally about to answer me back.