In shadow and light: waltz of souls

Bright sunlight flooded the city, saturating its streets with warmth. Leticia stood in the midst of a bustling metropolis where hundreds of lights illuminated enormous, colorful displays that shimmered against the glass facades of towering stone buildings. All around her, life pulsed—people in strange yet surprisingly practical-looking clothing hurried about with small rectangular devices in hand. Their faces betrayed no anxiety—only haste, only a calm certainty that the world before them was organized and familiar.

Metal carriages with no horses zipped along the roads, their bodies gleaming in the sunlight, leaving long trails of light in their wake. And off in the distance, between the buildings, rose a peculiar metal structure: slender but sturdy, as though it tied the sky to the earth.

What is this place? Leticia wondered, her heart pounding.

She didn't need long to realize—this wasn't her world. It was Aya's.

She looked around and suddenly noticed a familiar silhouette in the crowd. A girl with golden hair and blue eyes was walking down the street, leading a group of people Leticia had never seen before. They were laughing, speaking in a strange yet comprehensible language. The world around them was bright and alive, but a faint sense of dread settled in Leticia's chest.

The scene shifted.

Now she stood in a spacious room. Tall windows allowed sunlight to pour in, creating a cozy, almost serene atmosphere. Students in matching uniforms sat at their desks, bent over their textbooks. But Leticia's attention was fixed on one figure—Aya. She sat by the window, her gaze turned outward, focused on the clear sky. Everything about her posture suggested longing, as if she were dreaming of being somewhere far away.

Behind her, three classmates whispered.

"She thinks she's special just because she's half foreign," one said sarcastically.

"Look at her with her hair down—she probably wants everyone to notice her," another snickered.

Aya's fingers clenched, nails digging into her palms. She couldn't respond. She couldn't show any weakness. But each harsh remark felt like a knife to the ribs. Her chest tightened, her breathing grew labored, yet she continued sitting there like a statue, hoping that by staying quiet enough, she might become invisible.

But the girls didn't stop.

"I bet she thinks everyone will fall in love with her just because of those blue eyes!" the third one said, giving Aya's hair a sharp tug.

Anger flared in Leticia's chest. She wanted to shout, to intervene, but no sound came out. After all, this was only a dream—Aya's dream.

Another sudden shift.

Now Leticia sensed motion, anxiety. The city streets surrounded her again, but this time Aya stood motionless. Hot air weighed on her chest; the urban bustle merged into a single pulse of chaos. People on the sidewalks turned their heads in confusion, not understanding what was happening.

Fear.

Helplessness.

Something was approaching—something inevitable. Leticia turned around.

Two bright flashes of light tore away from the brilliance of the sun.

A harsh blare.

Impact.

Pain. Then emptiness.

Leticia's eyes snapped open. Her breathing was ragged, her heart thudding. That dull thud of metal colliding with flesh still echoed in her ears, ripping through the air.

"No!" she cried, bolting upright in bed. Sweat clung to her skin, and the room felt too dark, too constricting after the wide-open brightness of that dream.

But it wasn't just a dream. They were memories.

"You…saw it, too?" Aya's voice was muted, as though her very consciousness quivered.

"Yes," Leticia whispered, her hands trembling. "That was your world…your life…"

"I saw yours," Aya replied quietly, her voice so soft it was barely audible. "I saw your father…your family… And…I saw how you died."

Both of them froze, realizing they now shared not only a body but memories and pain as well.

Leticia pressed a palm to her chest, trying to steady herself. She could still feel the residual fear lingering inside her—fear that wasn't hers, yet was undeniably real.

These aren't just dreams…they're an exchange of memories, she realized.

Before, their connection had been limited to sharing a body. Now, they could glimpse each other's pasts. Would they soon feel each other's emotions too? Influence one another's thoughts? The notion made Leticia's fingers curl into a fist.

"We both saw something we weren't meant to see," Aya finally said.

Leticia nodded slowly.

"Now we're connected by more than just a body…but also…" She didn't dare finish her sentence.

This bond was growing deeper than she'd ever imagined. But what if this was only the beginning?

She took a deep breath, reached for her observation notebook on the nightstand, and opened it. Turning to a blank page, Leticia began writing down everything she'd witnessed in the dream.

When she finished, she set her pen aside and got to her feet, her legs still weak from the aftermath of that vivid vision. A dull heaviness lingered in her chest.

She headed to the kitchen, where the soft sounds of cooking drifted through. Her mother stood by the table, stirring something in a pot, lost in thought.

"You're up early," her mother said without turning around.

Leticia was about to answer when a knock came at the door.

They both froze.