January 1, 2009 — Kingdom of Eva — Paradise Beach.
Fireworks explode across the night sky, spreading patterns that seem to come alive.
The canvas that was once reserved for the stars now gains new tones. The gathered people pop their champagnes, hug, kiss, smile in the hope of a new beginning, of a new stage in their lives, why not a new life?
A flock of small birds called Alígeiros, already accustomed to this day, fly through the night sky over the wall of the chosen. Moving away from the louder noise, they reach a small district.
Outskirts of Eva — Zone 47.
Almost the entire population of the region gathers around a small lake to behold the spectacle shining in the sky. Except the rich who think themselves too good to mix, even being from the outskirts. The sick and elderly forgotten in hospitals, homes and asylums are also not there. As for the antisocial, they prefer to stay at home.
And there are those who are simply too lazy and prefer to sleep, if it is even possible to sleep with so much noise. No dogs are seen nearby, poor creatures frightened by the commotion, in fact, no animals are seen around except humans.
In front of a martial arts gym located a little away from the lake, there is a bicycle tied to a post. At this hour, it should already be closed, but lights can be seen inside, and some noises.
A punching bag swings. Along with it Sarah, completely sweaty, delivers a mid-height side kick, followed by a right straight punch.
Her hands grip the bag as if they were grabbing an opponent. Taking advantage of the proximity, a knee strike followed by another and another are delivered. After a quick and short step back, she gathers all her strength into her right fist and delivers a fast strike that pierces the target. Upon pulling her hand back and relaxing her body, the sand begins to fall onto the mat.
"I am screwed."
The memory of the gym owner's warning resurfaces in her mind:
"If you burst another one of my equipment, I will ban you from here! It does not matter your money. You do not even fight in competitions." Júlio holds a torn glove while speaking. "You come at night whenever you want, and when I arrive in the morning, I find this." He even raises the glove higher for her to see. "I will not tolerate it anymore!"
With a nod of her head she answers, agreeing.
Now, looking at the sand on the floor, she sighs deeply, goes to the cleaning supplies room and grabs a dustpan, a broom and a trash bag. After cleaning all the sand from the mat, she places the punching bag in the corner, lying down with the hole facing upward. Beside it, a folded sheet of paper with money inside and a note.
After taking a shower, she puts on a gray hoodie, loose sports shorts that reach the knee and running shoes. She turns off the lights and locks the gym with a padlock. She takes the phone from the backpack to check the time, unlocks the bicycle and begins to pedal west.
Almost 12 minutes of pedaling, and she reaches her refuge.
About 5 minutes of climbing and what before was a still environment without wind now becomes a fresh atmosphere with a strong breeze. Everything is quiet at first, the fireworks are gone, the people too, only a few drunk ones insist on remaining in the streets.
In the sky, the full and silver moon stands out imposingly. Some stars that move in straight and crooked lines, and others that scribble the sky, also present themselves in the painting. All reflected in her contemplative gaze.
After a while she lies down without the hood to appreciate every second of the scenery, and of the wind that touches her face.
Some hours of admiration and distant thoughts pass. Her eyes close. The visual stimulus now gives way to sounds that were not clearly perceived before.
A car passing on a nearby street, another a little farther, and another. Now the sound of a truck climbing a seemingly steep street. A very powerful motorcycle at full speed. Dogs timidly barking in different corners almost as if they were talking at a distance.
And even the Fai-Fai are singing, which awakens a smile in her.
For a few moments, that instant seems frozen in time, until suddenly her eyes open as if she had remembered something.
The song of the Fai-Fai now bothers her. Looking at the phone her concern is confirmed. In a hurry, she wraps the towel around the phone and puts it back inside the backpack. She approaches the edge of the platform and throws it down from above. She goes to another corner and turns her back to the ladder.
Taking a deep breath and then releasing the air, she jumps.
A very slight jump backward, enough to fall onto the arch that surrounds the ladder. Then she holds onto one of the metal bars, and little by little begins to release herself from the ladder. Each time she repeats this action, four bars are advanced.
In a controlled descent that took less than two minutes, she finishes going down already heading toward the backpack.
Street after street, she maintains full speed. It does not even seem that she had just trained intensely for three hours. Going down stairways, crossing a park through the middle, without stopping at any traffic light, the route she usually does in fifteen minutes is completed in six.
Arriving home, she opens the garage door. To her relief, her father's car is not there yet. She drops the bicycle in a corner and with quick steps goes up to her room.
Before lying down, she notices that she is all sweaty and decides to take another shower. When she goes to grab the towel from the backpack, she makes a grimace upon feeling the stench. She soon throws it into a basket behind the bathroom door, along with the training outfit. She takes a clean towel, removes the clothes from her body and throws them into the basket as well.
Nothing occupies her mind, only the high perception of things. The temperature of the water and the sensation of it hitting her forehead, running down her body and leaving it relaxed while filling the environment with steam.
As she walks toward the bed, she takes the opportunity to throw the towel into the basket after drying her hair. Falling naked onto the bed, her arms open in a relaxed way, her body begins to sink into the mattress.
After a few minutes, she hears a knocking sound on the door.
"Sarah! Are you awake?" Her father knocks on the door.
"WAIT!" She shouts.
In a jump, she gets up and puts on a loose shirt and sweatpants.
"Hi! Dad, what is it?" She asks him after opening the door.
"I saw the light on... I thought I would get home and you would already be asleep." He explains.
"I just got home dad, I was going to sleep now. By the way! I got here before you!" She quickly lets out a small smile along with a short laugh.
"Just like you..." He says while taking a quick glance around the room from where he stands.
"Hey! What was that?" She looks at him strangely. "Do you think there is someone here? Seriously..." She finishes with a sigh.
"It is just that you are already an adult, that would be normal... to find someone here." He looks at her. "You do not need to do things in secret anymore, you are already responsible for yourself. Even living in my house. You have freedom."
"Are you drunk? To be saying that. Do not worry! If I bring someone, you will be the first to know."
She looks away for a moment and then back.
"And another thing, I have been thinking about what we talked about. It has been seven years since I finished my studies, I enjoyed a lot this time you gave me to relax and decide what I wanted to do."
Sarah relaxes her shoulders a little before speaking.
"I want to travel! See the monks in the Mountains of Redemption and if possible, live with them for a while."
"Daughter..." He looks at her for a few seconds.
"Go take a shower and sleep dad! Go!" She pushes him away.
With a face of someone about to succumb to sleep at any moment, he heads toward his room leaning on the walls. Sarah lies down on the bed and quickly falls asleep.
Hours pass and the day reaches its peak, yet it already feels like late afternoon. Cloudy weather, strong wind, the trees sway as if they wanted to fly through the sky. Some birds dare to confront the forces of nature to enjoy their freedom on this New Year's holiday.
And even with the weather about to collapse, it is possible to see some barbecue chimneys working as fast as possible. The sun even tries to stand out, but the dense black clouds soon take over the scene, the wind increases its fury to a level it had not reached before.
Sarah turns to one side, then to the other, a discomfort hovers over her.
Dreams?
Nightmares?
Memories...