For a kiss

Shining with white light, the silhouette of a woman walked across the lake.

In the middle of the forest, on a dark night, he approached with a flashlight. The moment he aimed it at her, it flickered, malfunctioned, and died.

In an instant, she was standing in front of him, slowly leaning in to kiss him.

Unsure whether this was a dream or something else entirely, still uncertain about what he had seen, he offered a trade after the kiss.

He pulled a map from his bag and asked for the secret of the mountains—the fountain of youth.

She studied the map and held out her hands. Between them, a ball of light formed, floating free.

The light stretched into a path for him to follow. When he began walking and touched it, everything around him started to change.

Every tree lost its color, becoming the same pale silhouette as the woman. When he let go of the light, the color returned.

In and out, he walked, playing with the light, until he reached a cliff where it spilled downward like a single drop from a waterfall.

As he climbed down, one of the rocks broke loose. He fell—and as he did, he touched the light again.

Inside this other world, gravity no longer existed. He placed his feet against the cliff wall and began walking downward.

At the bottom, he released the light and jumped to the ground. But one of his eyes remained trapped in the other world.

With every blink, his vision shifted—from color to white.

He covered one eye with a piece of cloth and continued walking toward the end of the light, where a wooden door stood closed.

When he opened it, the world inside was different: an endless reflection of mirrors.

Too many worlds, he thought, trying to open both eyes within the reflection.

In his backpack, the map began to glow. As he pulled it out, he heard her voice—and for a moment, there was only one world.