The hospital corridor had fallen silent once again.
Both men remained seated opposite one another, yet neither seemed aware of the people occasionally passing beyond the glass doors. Their conversation had drifted far beyond the house, beyond the strange dust that had invaded Juson's home. It had reached a place neither of them had expected to revisit.
Juson sat quietly with his hands resting against the chair, his thoughts refusing to remain still. Ever since Hakiten had spoken Genido's name, fragments of memories had continued surfacing inside his mind without warning. A handful of blue sand resting inside a glass container. Another container filled with red grains. Genido standing before them with an unreadable smile. A room. A demonstration. Pieces appeared for only a second before slipping away again, dissolving before he could understand how they connected.
The harder he tried to hold onto them, the faster they disappeared.
It felt like trying to catch smoke with his bare hands.
Across from him, Hakiten remained unusually quiet. His eyes had drifted toward the hospital floor, though it was obvious he was looking far beyond it. His shoulders appeared heavier than before, not from his injuries but from something he had been carrying for years. There was exhaustion on his face, yet it was not the exhaustion of sleepless nights. It belonged to a man who had spent too long protecting truths that no longer wished to remain hidden.
After several moments, Juson finally broke the silence.
"What happened to me?"
Hakiten slowly raised his head.
The question sounded different from every question Juson had asked before. There was no confusion in his voice anymore. No panic. Only determination.
Hakiten looked at him for a long moment before releasing a quiet sigh.
"A lot."
The answer only deepened Juson's frustration.
"What does that even mean?"
Hakiten rubbed his forehead as though searching for words that refused to come.
"I expected this day," he murmured. "Eventually."
His gaze lowered again.
"Just... not today."
Not after the house.
Not after Wanna.
Not after the memories had already begun returning.
Several seconds passed before he finally spoke again.
"There are things you've forgotten."
"I already know that," Juson replied immediately.
Hakiten nodded.
"But those aren't ordinary memories."
His voice became quieter.
"They're memories you were supposed to forget."
The sentence settled heavily between them.
Juson frowned.
Supposed to forget.
Not naturally forgotten.
Not lost with time.
Taken away.
Hidden.
Someone had wanted those memories erased.
His heartbeat quickened.
"Who?"
The question escaped before he could stop himself.
Hakiten closed his eyes briefly.
He had known that question would come.
Unfortunately, answering it meant opening every door he had spent years trying to keep shut.
Genido.
The experiments.
The sand.
The house.
Everything.
His eyes wandered toward the hospital window. Afternoon sunlight reflected faintly across the glass, but all Hakiten could see was his own reflection staring back at him. Older. Tired. Carrying far more regret than he ever imagined he would.
For a brief moment another memory resurfaced.
The deserted park.
The black car.
Three mysterious containers resting inside its trunk.
Genido's smile.
"A gift."
Hakiten's stomach tightened.
That night had changed everything.
Not only for him.
For every one of them.
Slowly, he leaned forward until both elbows rested against his knees. His hands remained clasped together for several seconds before he finally looked directly into Juson's eyes.
"Do you trust me?"
Juson blinked.
"What?"
Hakiten repeated the question without changing his expression.
"Do you trust me?"
It should have been an easy answer.
Years of friendship should have made it effortless.
But recent events had complicated everything. Strange memories. Hidden conversations. Half-finished explanations. Every answer Hakiten gave seemed to create two more questions.
Even so...
Juson answered without hesitation.
"Yes."
Hakiten nodded once.
That single word seemed enough.
He drew in a slow breath before speaking again.
"Whatever is happening to you..."
His voice slowed.
"...isn't entirely bad."
Juson remained silent.
"The memories returning..."
Hakiten continued.
"The things you're beginning to remember..."
"They're dangerous."
His eyes lowered briefly before meeting Juson's once more.
"But they're also necessary."
Juson listened without interrupting.
For the first time since entering the room, Hakiten sounded completely certain of every word leaving his mouth.
"As long as those memories are returning naturally..." he said quietly, "...don't fight them."
Juson frowned.
Hakiten offered no further explanation.
Instead, he slowly pushed himself upright from the hospital bed. His body still protested every movement, reminding him that his injuries had not fully healed.
Juson instinctively stood as well.
"Hakiten."
Hakiten raised one hand.
Stopping him.
Without another word, he walked toward the window.
His reflection greeted him once more.
He remained there silently for several seconds, staring through the glass but seeing something much further away.
Finally, he spoke.
"There's something I haven't told you."
Juson immediately looked toward him.
"What?"
Hakiten did not turn around.
"Everything we've talked about today..."
"The house."
"The sand."
"The memories."
He paused.
"None of it is the biggest problem."
Juson's eyebrows slowly narrowed.
His chest tightened almost instinctively.
Then what was?
Hakiten finally turned around.
The expression on his face had changed completely.
There was fear.
Not panic.
Not confusion.
Not uncertainty.
It was the quiet fear of someone who already knew what was coming but had long accepted that it could no longer be avoided.
Juson noticed it immediately.
"What do you mean?"
Hakiten looked directly into his eyes.
For several long seconds neither of them spoke.
The silence itself seemed to grow heavier.
Then Hakiten answered.
"It's bigger than the house incident."
His voice remained calm.
"Bigger than Zerre."
Another pause.
"Bigger than your memories."
Every instinct inside Juson warned him that whatever came next would change everything he believed he understood.
Even so, he asked.
"What is it?"
Hakiten lowered his head for a brief moment before lifting it again.
His face had become completely expressionless.
Strangely, that frightened Juson even more.
Because there was nothing left hiding behind it.
Nothing softening the truth.
Hakiten spoke one final time.
"The question is wrong."
Juson stared at him.
"What?"
Hakiten's voice remained steady.
"It isn't what the problem is."
The room suddenly felt smaller.
The air seemed heavier than before.
Hakiten took one slow breath.
Then completed the sentence.
"It's... who."
Silence followed.
Not the ordinary silence of a hospital room.
A silence that carried the weight of everything left unsaid.
And somewhere deep inside his mind...
Before Hakiten could even speak the name...
Juson already knew it.