THE UNBREAKABLE PIECE (FIRST BOOK OF THE HIDDEN WORLD) English version

CHAPTER ONE: TRANSPARENT REALITY

                                                    ACT ONE

                                         IN THE DARKNESS

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New York, United States. 10 years later.

My legs moved quickly through the sweet lavender fields, in a vast meadow where I found myself, running for my life. A place worthy of fairy tales becoming real in the corner of my eye. And although I didn't really recognize it, my skin and bones seemed to find it familiar. The air that entered my lungs was pure and refreshing. My chest rose and fell rapidly, I was being hunted. I had to hide from him. I feared that if he caught me, this time I wouldn't be able to escape.

"Amity, stop running!" His voice sounded distant, but strangely close at the same time. As if it were an echo through me. Through my memories.

The sun was setting on the horizon, and we were starting to be prisoners of darkness. Chris hated darkness. I looked around hoping to find him, but he was no longer behind me. He no longer followed me. And I was alone once again. Alone with the wind, with the last rays of the sun, and my daisy dress.

I clenched my fists, digging my nails into my palms, and noticed for the first time how small my hands were. I wasn't seventeen anymore. I was a child again. Scared and chased by the memory of my brother.

"Chris, Christian..." I called out, trying to focus my gaze on something that would give me some indication that he was still there with me and hadn't abandoned me. "Please... I don't want to play anymore..."

However, my sobs were the only sound that seemed to return the breeze to me.

Fear took control of my body and slowly descended through my limbs. The only solution I saw to my problem was to sit on the ground, in the middle of the grass, getting drunk on the sweet scent of lavender and trying to forget that he had abandoned me once again. I didn't want to go home anymore. I wanted to stay there forever. I wanted to hear Chris's voice again.

"Amity..."

The touch of her hand and Gemma's sweet voice pulled me out of my dream, first slowly and then suddenly. And there I was, among skyscrapers and buildings, far from the meadow. I managed to focus my gaze and the first thing I recognized was my redhead friend's gentle smile. A bookshelf full of books stood behind her. Around us, some students began to gather their things in silence, focused on their own world.

"You fell asleep," she nodded, hoping that some of my dream remained with me. I didn't want to get rid of it yet. "The bell rang a few moments ago, I thought that would wake you up, but you sleep like a bear in hibernation. It's almost impossible to wake you up, for a minute I thought you had died."

"You probably had a whole dramatic act prepared in case of my apparent, but unlikely death."

I wrinkled my nose as if it were an implicit apology. I could totally visualize her screaming for an ambulance because her friend, who had barely closed her eyes the night before due to the strange and recurring dreams she had, had fallen deeply asleep on the library table.

"You insult me, but I accept it because I can't argue with the logic that you know me better than anyone."

I gave her a quick smile. I knew Gemma would feel better if she believed she had managed to cheer me up. I had known her for enough years to perceive immediately when I had one of those dreams. Those dreams that took me away from my present reality.