Whispers and Smoke
288 Words
“You ever wonder if your dreams mean something?” Kairo asked casually, leaning against the old stone bench outside school, where Luna sat sketching in her notebook.
She looked up, blinking. “Like… dreams dreams?”
He shrugged, smiling just enough. “Sometimes they’re more than dreams. Sometimes… they're memories. Hidden ones.”
Luna frowned, gripping her pencil a little tighter. “Why are you asking that?”
Kairo tilted his head, dark curls brushing his forehead. “You’ve been... different lately. Like something’s waking up in you.”
A chill passed through her.
Luna looked down at her drawing, another unconscious sketch of the crescent moon sigil. She flipped the page quickly.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she muttered.
Kairo sat beside her, tone gentler now. “Hey. I didn’t mean to freak you out. I just… I get it. Not knowing who you are. Feeling like there’s something inside you, clawing to get out.”
She looked at him.
There was sincerity in his eyes, or at least, something she couldn’t quite read. Maybe sadness. Familiarity?
“I see you, Luna. More than anyone else does. I know what it’s like to wear a mask every day and hope nobody notices it’s cracking.”
Her heart thudded. She couldn't reply.
That night, she couldn’t sleep. His words echoed like whispers through her room.
I see you, Luna...
Maybe your dreams aren’t just dreams...
There’s something waking up in you...
She dreamt again.
Dark trees. A burning pyre. Screams she couldn't place.
And in the center of it all, a woman who looked just like her, eyes glowing silver, hands outstretched in fury.
When Luna awoke, her room smelled faintly of smoke.
- Writer
