"Take a deep breath and exhale. That concludes our session," the mentor instructed the class.
"How was it? Any good?" Tina asked.
"Yeah, I was feeling a bit uneasy when I came here, but now I'm feeling fine. I'm finally happy for some reason," Nora smiled.
"That's right. It's way more relaxing. I'm pretty sure if we shared our experience, everyone would just squint their eyes and brush us off," Tina said, packing her belongings — a bottle and a yoga mat.
"Are you describing me?" Nora made a cute angry face, raising her eyebrows slightly but smirking at the same time.
"You caught me!" Tina laughed, turning over to pick up her bag.
"We still have two more days left. Maybe I should give Zuv a call," Nora said.
"You should wait till tomorrow. Tonight they said they'll unlock your powers. They mentioned you have more abilities and that you should stay calm and not get distracted," Tina reminded her, recalling why Nora had been asked to stay away from her phone.
"True. I'll call him first thing in the morning. Remind me if I forget," Nora said as they walked toward the exit.
"If you're there—" Tina started, then froze and corrected herself. "I mean, you'll be the new you. You might even want to go phoneless till the end of this." She smiled awkwardly.
"I lost interest after the first day anyway. People know we're safe, so it's fine to go off-grid. Or is that weird?" Tina asked, looking at the floor.
"No, even I don't feel like getting distracted. You see, Zuv's been really upset — his girlfriend was stalked by his friend, who was obsessed with him. He's been down ever since. I just want to check up on him," Nora shared.
"That's awful. I'll remind you tomorrow," Tina nodded.
Around 11 p.m., each person at the retreat was called one by one to the healing room. They were categorized according to the amount of power they held and healed accordingly. There was only one main building with indoor rooms for night stays, while all daytime activities took place near the riverside in a cleared forest.
As the night grew darker, both Tina and Nora were separated into different groups. One after another, people entered the tent and were then guided to the next spot.
Loud healing music played — live musicians praying and dancing with tears in their eyes, their faces filled with bliss.
The last member of her group was Nora. She was guided to a second healing place, where a soft bed with comfortable sheets awaited her. Water poured gently over participants' foreheads. Nora took a quick look around before she was placed in the same position.
It took only a few minutes for her to relax. The sounds helped her sink deeper, each drop of water on her skin making her more alert and aware — every sensation vivid, the scent of jasmine etched into her mind.
The water was infused with flower petals and freshness, as if it came straight from a waterfall. Slowly, she began to disassociate from the people around her, until it was just her — only her — in a space that existed entirely within her mind. The sounds, the smells, and the sensations combined to create her own personal heaven.
Somewhere deep within, though, a part of her wanted to leave that place. She heard herself calling out — a familiar voice, Allan's voice — urging her to snap out of it. But everything felt distant, muffled, fading into the background.
Still, she turned away from the noise, walking toward the light. Nothing else mattered anymore. Nothing indeed.