I didn't sleep that night.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw it again—the glow beneath the river, pulsing like it had a heartbeat of its own. And that feeling… that strange, quiet awareness that something had been looking back at me.
Not something.
Someone.
I sat up on my bed, pulling my knees close to my chest. The room was dark, but the moonlight slipped through the window, resting gently on the floor like it belonged there.
"…I'm not crazy," I whispered to myself.
But the silence didn't agree.
Morning came too quickly.
"Baby! Are you still sleeping?" my aunt's voice rang out again, sharp and familiar.
"I'm awake!" I replied, forcing myself up.
My body felt heavy, like the night hadn't let me rest. Still, something inside me pushed forward—an urge I couldn't ignore.
The river.
I needed to go back.
I waited until the chores were done.
Until the sun climbed high enough that no one would question where I went.
And then… I ran.
The path to the river felt shorter than usual, like the earth itself was guiding me. My heart beat faster with every step, not from exhaustion—but from anticipation.
Fear and curiosity tangled together inside me.
When I finally reached the river, I stopped.
Everything looked normal.
The water shimmered under the sunlight. The breeze was soft, ordinary. No glow. No strange silence.
For a moment, I felt foolish.
"See?" I muttered under my breath. "You imagined everything."
Still… my feet moved closer.
One step.
Then another.
Until I was standing at the edge again.
"Why did you come back?"
The voice wasn't loud.
It wasn't even close.
But I heard it.
Clear.
Right behind me.
I froze.
My breath caught in my throat as my fingers curled slightly at my sides.
Slowly… I turned around.
And that's when I saw him.
He stood a few steps away, like he had always been there.
A boy.
No not just a boy ….
A very young looking handsome man with a seductive eye
There was something about him that didn't belong to this world.
His eyes were the first thing I noticed—deep, calm, and impossibly bright, like light was hidden inside them. His hair moved slightly even though the wind had stilled, and his presence… it felt like the river itself had taken human form.
My heart skipped.
"Y-you…" I stammered, my voice barely working. "Who are you?"
He tilted his head slightly, studying me.
Like I was the strange one.
"I could ask you the same thing," he said softly.
His voice…
It felt familiar.
Like something I had heard before without realizing it.
"I'm Baby," I said, before I could stop myself.
Why did I say it so quickly?
Why did I feel like I needed him to know?
He repeated it slowly, like he was testing how it felt.
"…Baby."
The way he said my name made my chest tighten.
Not in fear.
But in something softer.
Something warmer.
"You didn't answer me," I said, trying to steady myself. "Who are you?"
For a moment, he didn't speak.
His gaze shifted past me—to the river.
And then back to me.
"I don't have a name you would understand," he said.
That didn't make sense.
"What does that even mean?"
"It means…" he stepped closer.
I didn't move.
I couldn't.
"…I've been waiting for you."
My heart stopped.
"Waiting… for me?"
He nodded once, his expression calm, but his eyes held something deeper.
Something ancient.
"You heard it yesterday, didn't you?" he asked. "The call."
The wind.
The whisper.
The glow
"…Yes," I admitted quietly.
Silence fell between us.
But it wasn't empty.
It felt… connected.
Like something invisible was tying us together without asking for permission.
"What are you?" I whispered.
This time, he didn't look away.
Instead, he held my gaze, steady and unafraid.
And then he said—
"I'm the reason you've never belonged here."
The world seemed to pause again.
Just like yesterday.
But this time…
It wasn't the river that changed.
It was me.