Chapter 3

Freedom.

That was the feeling. For the first time in a long time, pure freedom.

Aurora laughed loudly, pressed against Kaio's warm body as he drove her through the brightly lit streets, the wind messing up her tied-back hair, the motorcycle's engine vibrating as if pushing away everything that held her back.

When they arrived at the oldest ice cream parlor in town, they sat under the yellowed sign. It was simple, with iron benches and tables that had seen better days, but to her, it seemed like a magical place.

They shared laughs, mocked the teacher who looked like a nervous penguin, talked about the course, the tests, their plans for winter break. Aurora listened to herself talk—and didn't even recognize herself. She felt light. Free. Her eyes were shining brighter than ever.

Kaio held her hand. And they stayed like that.

She did too. She didn't want to let go.

When the sky was already dark and the street was starting to empty, Aurora bit her lip.

“I'm sorry, but I have to go home. My mom will freak out.”

Kaio grimaced but nodded with a half smile.

“No problem. I'll take you.”

“You can drop me off at the corner,” she said, almost begging.

He laughed out loud.

“What is it with moms and motorcycles?”

Minutes later, they stopped a block away from her house. Aurora got off the motorcycle and handed him the helmet, but Kaio didn't leave. He got off too, putting his hand in his jacket pocket.

“Hey,” he said, smiling, “I have a birthday present for you.”

From his jacket pocket, Kaio took out a small box. Aurora opened it carefully. Inside was a thin, subtly sparkling bracelet with a star-shaped pendant.

She barely had time to thank him.

Kaio kissed her.

It wasn't a shy kiss. Nor was it rushed. It was a firm yet gentle kiss—as if he knew exactly what he was doing and had been waiting for that moment for far too long.

Aurora froze for a second. Then she gave in. His lips adjusted to hers with absurd naturalness. It was warm. It was sweet. It was everything she had never felt before. A warmth took over her chest, as if the world was melting from the inside out.

She felt her fingers tremble. The gift almost slipped from her hand.

And then — the noise.

A loud bang, as if someone had kicked a trash can hard.

Aurora stepped back, panting, turning her face toward the sound. Her heart was still pounding. Kaio looked too. The can was lying in the middle of the sidewalk. But the alley was empty. Or... it seemed to be.

Aurora swallowed hard.

Kaio pursed his lips... and for a moment, his green eyes seemed darker.

Then he smiled.

It wasn't the same smile as before.

It was subtle. Cynical. Almost... satisfied.

And his gaze remained fixed on the darkness of the alley for too long.

Before Aurora could ask, the porch light came on. Helena.

“I have to go!” she said, her voice trembling for no apparent reason.

She ran. She didn't even look back.

Kaio put the box in his jacket pocket and stood there, watching as Aurora disappeared through the door.

But his eyes didn't follow her.

They followed... another point.

A point in the darkness, where nothing else moved.

Aurora rushed into the house, her heart racing, not sure if it was because of the kiss... or the damn trash can that had fallen over. She barely closed the door behind her when she heard her mother's tense, alert voice:

“Did something happen outside?”

Helena was standing in the hallway, her eyes fixed on her, as if she could smell the chaos in the air. Aurora sighed. She recognized the signs—Helena was on the verge of another outburst. And that could only mean one thing: the threat of another move.

Aurora frowned and exploded:

“Oh, no, Mom! Stop it! What the hell! I'm having a normal life for the first time, don't ruin everything. Don't make me hate you!”

The anger overflowed before she could contain it. Helena's eyes widened, but Aurora didn't wait for a response. She turned her back and went into her room, slamming the door behind her. She locked it and leaned against it, breathing deeply to calm her heart.

It was Friday night. The next day she would be nineteen. She didn't have to work. She didn't have to go to class. She was free.

She took off her clothes and put on her favorite pajamas—a loose T-shirt with stars on it and sweatpants. She sat on the bed and picked up the box with Kaio's gift. She smiled.

The bracelet was beautiful, made of a strange and delicate material. It didn't look like gold, silver, or anything she knew. It had a subtle, almost magical glow. She put it on her wrist and admired how it reflected the light from the lamp.

Aurora sighed. She could still taste the kiss, feel the warmth of Kaio's hand holding hers.

“Finally... my first kiss at nineteen. And what a kiss...”

Suddenly, she felt a chill run down her spine. She turned her face and had the strange feeling that she was being watched. Her eyes turned to the window.

Nothing. The street was empty. But she could feel it. Something—or someone—was watching her.

Snorting in irritation, she got up and pulled the curtain shut.

“I won't let anything or anyone ruin my day,” she muttered, returning to bed and covering herself up.

The next day, the sun streamed through the window, announcing a clear, cloudless sky. Aurora woke up to the smell of pancakes coming from the kitchen and, for the first time, didn't have to force herself to smile.

When she left her room, she found Helena with a simple breakfast tray—pancakes, orange juice, and a lit candle.

“Happy birthday, my love,” said Helena, hugging her tightly.

Aurora hesitated for a second, still resentful from the night before, but ended up returning the hug. Helena seemed calmer. More... human.

“Let's have lunch at Pier 15 today,” said her mother. “I already made a reservation.”

Aurora let out a little squeal of happiness. She knew how much it cost Helena, who hated leaving the house, hated open spaces, hated crowds. But she did it for her. Because she knew Aurora loved the water, the sea, boats. Since she was a child, she had said she was a mermaid.

At noon, the two arrived at Pier 15 and got a table near the Hudson River. The restaurant was charming, with white awnings and wooden tables. The breeze was cool, and the sun reflected off the calm waters of the river.

Helena pretended to look at the menu, but her eyes scanned the pier. Every time someone passed too close, she stiffened.

“Relax, Mom. We're fine. Everything's fine.”

She said it too soon.

The first thing they noticed was the sudden silence of the seagulls.

Then the breeze turned into wind.

And then, the sound. A strange, deep noise... like a roar coming from the bottom of the world.

People began to get up from their tables, looking at the river. The waters were receding. Literally retreating from the pier, as if something gigantic were sucking the river away. In a few seconds, the muddy bottom began to appear.

“That's impossible,” Aurora murmured, standing up as well. “It's a river...”

But before she could finish, Helena grabbed her hand tightly.

“Run!”

She shouted with an urgency Aurora had never heard before. The two ran between the overturned tables, the screams of people spreading like wildfire.

And then Aurora looked back.

The horizon was dark.

A wall of water was forming, monstrous and relentless, swallowing everything in its path.

It was a tsunami. In a river.

The impossible.

Helena pulled Aurora hard, but her daughter's steps were slower. She couldn't take her eyes off the wave.

And then, in the blink of an eye, Helena was gone.

Her hand was gone. Aurora stopped. She spun around, searching through the crowd. She shouted her mother's name. She shouted again.

Nothing.

And before she could even move, the water hit her.

An overwhelming impact. A crash. Liquid chaos. The force lifted her off the ground, threw her against tables, pieces of wood, bodies in panic. Darkness enveloped her, cold, cutting, insane.

And then, water and only water.