Tracks in the Snow
I saw two strangers walking together. One of them carried a rifle, while the other carried a bag. I immediately followed them.
“Can I come with you?”
The man carrying the rifle only nodded.
I walked behind them. The armed man continued walking calmly. Meanwhile, the person beside him walked faster.
I glanced at his face, but it could not be seen. We did not speak to each other. There were only boot prints left in the snow and the sound of the cold wind.
Something moved quickly beside us, almost blending into the snow. The armed man stopped, then the person beside him stopped as well. I stopped too.
Silence.
Bang—
The armed man shot at something.
The bullet hit the white rabbit’s tail, and blood began to appear on its fur.
The rabbit screamed in panic, its ears pressed tightly against its body as it tried to run away.
I instinctively chased after it. It jumped high.
For a moment, I almost lost sight of the rabbit. When I thought I could catch it, I saw the rabbit hiding, curled up in pain. Fresh blood flowed against the white snow.
Its ears were still pressed backward. My hand reached out to catch it, but it ran again.
The longer I chased it, the more unfamiliar its shadow became.
*A white... peacock?*
My feet immediately chased after the creature. Was it really a rabbit or a peacock?
How long has it been? My breathing began to grow ragged. The exhaustion had already reached my legs.
My steps became shorter.
My boots felt heavier.
The creature never slowed down.
And strangely, I never lost sight of it.
Was I really running this fast?
The vapor from my breath began to form as I ran.
The air I breathed felt dry. My body was sweating, and my lips were cracked.
Thorns pierced through, tearing my clothes and then my skin. Like being cut apart.
I no longer felt the pain from the scratches of these straight, tiny thorns. Even though they were still there. I was tired of pulling them out.
I looked across from me. There was a shadow of someone familiar.
*Huh?*
...
My steps stopped. I froze. Wasn’t that the armed man and the person who was always beside him?
It was green over there.
A lush mountain. Not like the mountain I was standing on.
And a house.
...
*Why?*
How could this damn snow not exist on the other side? As if being there was something forbidden.
A wire fence was the only thing separating me from them. Why couldn’t they see me?
The man still held his rifle like always, still calm. His figure remained invisible even though I was this close to him.
*What was wrong?*
I felt my body stiffen, cut apart, and skinned. As if those thorns had entered my body and were slicing me apart.
*If I screamed, would they hear me?*
My head turned to the side.
A view of white, snow, cold, and thorns everywhere.
And then I realized.
*Ah... I can’t go home.*
*Again.*
