Ayan reached out and called to the star.
The moment he did, the star began drifting toward him. As it came closer, it slowly started shrinking, until it was no bigger than a small ball of light floating in front of his face. Ayan focused, listening carefully.
Then he heard the boy's voice inside it.
Through sobs and desperate screams, the boy cried, "God, please take away our suffering. Give all of us a chance to live a peaceful life. Ever since you left us, everything has changed. Every single day has become a struggle just to survive. God, please come back to us."
Ayan couldn't understand the language he was speaking, but he understood enough to know one thing.
The boy was in danger.
And whoever he was calling out to… it was a god.
After a moment, he waved his hand, pushing the star away. As it drifted farther from him, it slowly began returning to its original size. The more distance it gained, the smaller it appeared, until it looked no bigger than a normal star seen from the ground.
Ayan stood there, stunned.
"F**k… am I a god or something?" he muttered to himself. "If I'm not, then why the hell is that kid's prayer reaching me?"
Whatever the truth was, the feeling was intoxicating.
It felt damn good.
"And look at this," he went on, half laughing to himself. "I can hear prayers, I can control stars. I'm definitely not human anymore. No normal person can do this kind of sh*t."
He paused, a crooked grin forming on his face.
"And even if I'm not a god… who cares? This feels f**king amazing."
Out of nowhere, it hit me. Tomorrow is my girlfriend's birthday. I had a perfect f**king chance, and I missed it, simply because I did not even know how to get out of this place. The thought burned in my head.
When I had prayed to God earlier, something strange had happened. Somewhere, deep inside, my consciousness slipped into a dark, unfamiliar space. I was not fully aware, yet I could feel it clearly. My body was moving on its own. I was not deciding each step, not guiding myself forward.
And still, I walked.
That was the only explanation. Otherwise, how the hell did I end up near the waterfall at all?
The moment the thought crossed his mind, his eyes turned completely black again. Ayan slipped back into his subconscious.
There, in that inner darkness, he saw a faint, blurry figure before him.