"Won't you tell me why you were running?"
"Exercise…" I answered briefly.
He looked up at the sky, which had turned into a moonless black page.
"At this hour?"
I nodded.
He didn't seem convinced—but he had no other choice.
Anyway—
"Why are you here?" I asked, shifting the conversation toward him instead of me.
"I came to pick you up."
Then his eyes drifted to the wound on my hand—the one left by my fall.
He turned his head away, then whispered words I never expected to hear:
"Mariam… I'm sorry."
"Huh? What's this now?" I was confused by the unexpected apology.
He took something out of his pocket and placed it in my palm.
It had a cold, metallic texture, dim beneath the streetlight, surrounded by a blue rubber frame.
Three rotating wings.
It was the spinner.
I looked at him in surprise.
"What was it doing with you?"
"…I thought after you woke up, you'd forget about it. I even considered throwing it away. But in your current state, I think you need it."
"Why would you throw it away? Do you know how precious it is to me?"
"You were becoming obsessed with it… more than necessary," he said, staring into my eyes.
'That's not true.'
"And now tell me… what were you running from?"
'How did he know?'
I looked at him in surprise.
A faint smile appeared on his face, a dimple forming on one side.
"Don't look at me like that. You're spinning the spinner. I know you don't do that unless you're scared or nervous. Did you see things again?"
"It was a dog… you know I'm afraid of dogs."
"I see," he said in a tone that suggested he was only playing along with my lie.
As soon as I stepped into the yard of the house, I received a call from Nuha, asking if I had reached home safely.
—"Oh, Mariam, by the way… you and your brother don't resemble each other at all."
"Excuse me? But I don't remember you ever meeting Zain before, Nuha."
—"Wasn't he that person who kept looking at our table? He came with you and left right behind you. I think he was worried about you going out alone after just waking up. What a caring brother!"
"…"
'What did she just say?'
Did I mishear something?
So the man in the café was real!
And the shadow on the ground… wasn't an illusion.
I turned back in terror—but the shadow had already left with its owner.
A scream of fear crawled up my spine.
—"Hello… Mariam?"
"Sorry, Nuha. I just got home. I'll hang up now."
I didn't wait for a reply and ended the call quickly.
Now the spinner was spinning wildly—like a helicopter blade preparing for takeoff.
"What's wrong?"
My brother had noticed.
'Should I tell him that someone is stalking me and I don't know his intentions?'
No.
If I did, he would just mock me and tell me it was all hallucinations.
Also, the fact that he came and left with me doesn't prove anything.
Maybe it was just a coincidence.
'I could tell him that Nuha saw him too!'
No. That would only worry him and my parents for nothing.
Why would anyone be following me in the first place?
I quickly pushed the incident into a dark corner of my mind, trying to ignore the creaking of the gate that rang with danger—
Just as the tree in our yard looked more terrifying than ever in the darkness.
I feared the stalker might emerge from behind it.
"There's something I want to tell you…"
Zain cut through my thoughts.
"Just what I needed," I muttered in annoyance. I wasn't in the mood for conflict.
"My leave is over. I'll be traveling… the day after tomorrow at the latest."
"What? Traveling?"
"Why are you surprised? Did you think I'd stay in our parents' house forever?"
'That's true, but… if you leave, what will I do about the owner of the shadow?'
I had just been thinking of making him accompany me—to scare off the shadow's owner like now!
"Don't be sad… I'll call you often."
He didn't know that my sadness wasn't because he was leaving—
But because the safety he provided would leave with him,
leaving me alone to face the shadows.
When we returned home, the house was preparing for Zain's departure.
He packed everything into his suitcases, pulling the zippers shut with force—determined to leave.
The house began to empty itself of his presence.
Even the wind conspired with his departure, carrying his scent away.
He told me that my awakening from the coma had, fortunately, coincided with his presence at home.
But the call of work and duty does not wait—
And it didn't grant me even a single day to clear the misunderstanding between Huda and me from the previous day.
My eyes followed her as she helped with the packing.
Something inside me began to stir.
Every time I looked at her, I felt uncomfortable—
especially her silky black hair.
It dragged unpleasant memories to the surface.
Throughout the following day—along with the house being turned upside down in preparation for my brother and his wife's departure—
our relatives came in groups to bid farewell to the traveler…
and to visit the patient—
which was me.
Honestly, they were a little late in visiting me.
I later learned that they already knew my brother would be leaving soon, so they killed two birds with one visit—
Meaning, I was the last to know about his trip.
The exhaustion of a long day filled with visits, greetings, and endless arrangements finally came to an end.
And just as everyone was preparing to sleep early that night—
One final guest knocked on our door.
"I'll get it."
Since almost everyone was busy except me, I volunteered to open it.
When I opened the door to see who it was—
I froze in place.
He was standing right in front of me.
With a crooked smile and a sharp voice like a whistle—
"Hello. Is Zain here? I hope I'm not too late."
It was the suspicious man who had been staring at us in the café.
The one who followed me all the way home.
The owner of the shadow on the road.