There are some places…
that don't just exist in the world—
they exist inside you.
Even if you've never been there before…
they feel like home.
"I think we should go there," Riya said softly.
I looked at her.
"Where?"
She hesitated for a moment.
Then whispered—
"The road…"
My heart skipped a beat.
We both knew which one.
The same road.
The same place…
that kept appearing in our flashes.
"Are you sure?" I asked.
She nodded slowly.
"I don't know why… but I feel like…"
She paused.
"…that place has answers."
I didn't argue.
Because I felt it too.
That evening…
we stood there again.
The road.
Silent.
Calm.
As if nothing had ever happened.
But inside us—
everything was shaking.
"This is it…" Riya whispered.
Her voice trembling.
I looked around.
Same surroundings.
Same air.
Same strange feeling.
Like time had paused here once.
And never fully moved on.
As we stepped closer—
my chest tightened.
My heartbeat grew faster.
"Riya…" I said quietly.
"I feel something…"
She nodded.
"Me too."
And then—
it hit.
A flash.
Stronger than before.
Clear.
Painful.
A car.
Speeding.
Out of control.
A scream.
Her voice—
calling my name.
"STOP!!"
I stumbled back.
Breathing heavily.
Riya grabbed my arm.
"I saw it again…" she said, shaking.
Tears already forming in her eyes.
"This time… it felt closer…"
I looked at her.
"Because we're closer," I said.
"To the truth."
She slowly walked to the center of the road.
The exact spot.
Her steps stopped.
She froze.
"I was here…" she whispered.
My breath stopped.
"What?"
"I remember…" she said, her voice breaking.
"Not clearly… but I remember standing here…"
Her hand moved to her chest.
"And my heart was breaking…"
Suddenly—
she dropped to her knees.
"Riya!" I rushed to her.
She held her head tightly.
"It hurts…" she cried.
"Like something is forcing its way back…"
I knelt beside her.
"Riya… look at me."
But her eyes weren't seeing me.
They were seeing something else.
"You…" she whispered.
My heart froze.
"You were here…"
Her voice trembled.
"You… fell…"
Tears streamed down her face.
"And I… I couldn't save you…"
Silence.
Heavy.
Unavoidable.
I closed my eyes.
Because now—
it wasn't just feelings.
It wasn't just flashes.
It was memory.
Coming back.
"I think…" I said slowly,
"…this is where we lost each other."
Riya looked at me.
Broken.
"But why does it feel like…"
She struggled to say it.
"…we're about to lose each other again?"
That question…
sent a chill down my spine.
Because somewhere deep inside—
I felt it too.
Suddenly—
a cold breeze passed.
And that familiar presence returned.
That voice.
Soft.
But clear.
"You came back…"
We both froze.
Slowly—
we turned around.
And there it was.
The shadow.
Watching us.
Waiting.