In the silence and emptiness of the void where white reigns supreme, stood a beautiful girl. Her long black hair swayed as she surveyed her surroundings. Her face bore a complex expression, uncertain of how to proceed. Unaware of her location, her mind was consumed with confusion. "Is this a dream?" That was the first thought that crossed her mind. However, as she was about to confirm it by inflicting pain upon herself, the corner of her eye caught a silhouette.

Far in front of her, a striking black figure emerged. In an all-white place without any crevices seen, that figure caught the girl’s attention immediately. She squinted her eyes, attempting to focus her gaze. Although the distance between them could not be clearly measured, the girl seemed to be able to see a bit of that figure. Apart from the dominating black color, there was also something like black flames flickering. These flames enveloped the mysterious figure whose face remained unseen.

“Hello...?”

The girl attempted to call out, hoping for a response. However, the figure remained silence and transfixed, standing in place without acknowledging the girl's calls. The girl once again uttered a greeting. And once again, no answer reached her ears. The girl then scratched the back of her head, wondering what to do next. She was sure that the sound she produced earlier echoed. But she also wasn't sure if her ears could be trusted. Doubt, anxiety, and other unpleasant feelings enveloped her heart. If this were a dream, then it was one of the strangest dreams she had ever experienced in her entire life.

The girl decided to take a step forward, one step at a time. Slowly, she maintained her gaze, never letting go of the black figure she intended to approach. The more she moved forward from where she started, the more she could feel the pounding in her chest. The figure remained motionless, never moving an inch even when the girl blinked. Its fixated form seemed to wait for the girl to come closer until the distance between them was no longer vast.

Tap. The last step had been taken. The distance between the two of them was now closer than before. But not close enough to touch each other with an outstretched hand. The girl still feared the black flames that shrouded the figure. However, from her current distance, she felt no heat nor warmth. The hairs on her neck remained cold, overwhelmed by a sense of fear.

“Excuse me... can you... hear me...?”

When the word was spoken, the flames seemed to respond by blazing upward. Startled by this, the girl instinctively looked up. As she lowered her gaze again, her eyes were surprised to see the figure engulfed in black flames becoming somewhat clearer.

It was a girl just like her. Her body was wrapped in a long black dress that reached the ground. She also has a long black hair like the girl but longer. However, the height of the figure did not surpass the height of the girl. From their distance, the girl could estimate that the height of the girl in black was equivalent to the level of her chest.

The girl's face still wore a look of confusion, unsure of how to respond to this odd situation. Then, as she was about to reach out, attempting to approach the figure, she abruptly halted her action.

The form she believed to be the head of the figure, which had been looking downward, slowly raised. At that moment, their gazes met. Instead of feeling a sense of understanding about the situation, the girl became even more restless. The eyes she gazed into were brightly red. That gaze felt like it pierced her fragile soul. The figure's face was charming, resembling that of an adorable child. Her pale skin almost matched the whiteness of the world they currently stood on. Her lips were straight, without any lines depicting a smile. Flat, devoid of emotion.

Suddenly, as the girl gulped hard and mustered the courage to address the figure once more, the figure's hand lifted, and from its palm emerged a gleaming sword. The sword's tip pierced through the girl's chest in an instant. She had no time to react; the girl could only gasp. She lowered her head, observing a thick black line that had truly penetrated her torso. Stiffly, she raised her head again, straightening her gaze to see the figure once more.

Unexpectedly, the figure's face greeted her with a smile. A twist that indicated the figure was ready to delve deeper into understanding the girl.

After a few seconds, the hand holding the handle of the sword withdrew the blade from the girl's body instantly.

***

A white ceiling.

Unlike the seamless white world she had just stepped into, the girl was familiar with the white ceiling that was the roof of her own room. Her eyes that opened wide seemed to pull her soul back from all the nightmares.

A dream?

The girl then rose from her bed. The blanket that enveloped her slid down, revealing the upper part of her body clad in sleepwear. Her room remain concealed in darkness; it had become her habit since elementary school to sleep with the lights off. She took off her blanket, directing her feet to touch the floor. Standing up, she unfastened each button of her sleep attire. Her steps led her toward the mirror placed across the bed, in the corner of her room. Once all the buttons were undone, she turned on a small lamp which had a low brightness but enough to clearly see the upper front of her body which was currently only covered by a blue bra.

Examining her front body, the girl's thoughts became increasingly filled with lots of question marks. If what she felt earlier was a dream, the sensation seemed eerily real. However, she also did not have a strong basis because she had never been stabbed in her life, let alone in the chest. She pointed the fingertips of her right hand in the direction where she had been stabbed in the dream. This time, reality seemed to say that it was only her finger that touched her cleavage. There were no traces of a stab wound, only a white skin that had accompanied her since birth.

“That was... a strange dream,” The girl muttered as she smiled wryly.

Then, she heard someone's voice from outside her room, calling her name.

“Ellie. I’m leaving first. Don’t forget to eat your breakfast. It’s also raining outside, so be careful on your way to school,” said someone with a firm tone and also implied a sense of worry from outside the room of the girl named Ellie, her daughter.

“Yes, Mom,” Ellie replied briefly.

She then fastened each button of her shirt again, turned off the small lamp, and opened the curtain that covered her room from the view outside. The first thing Ellie's eyes caught was her bedroom window covered with raindrops and some of its streaming down, forming a line that fattened upon colliding with other droplets. Beyond the window, she could see the figure of her mother, dressed in a formal office uniform. Her left hand holds a plastic bag filled with her heels, and her right hand holds an umbrella to protect her in the rain. Judging by the raindrops, it doesn't seem to be very windy. Thus, Ellie's mother didn't need to worry about the lower part of her knee which is exposed due to not covered by skirt but only by stockings, getting wet. And hopefully, the sandals she wore wouldn't splash the surrounding water way too much.

Staring at her mother's back which was covered by the office bag as she moved farther away, Ellie closed her curtain again. The girl then left her room and prepared to go to school. The clock above her door showed a quarter past six. Realizing that, Ellie didn't feel the need to rush.

However, her thoughts were still filled with the strange dream she had just experienced. Ellie then hoped that all those events were truly just a dream and would be washed away with a warm shower.