TWO WORLDS
There were houses everywhere.
Three houses stood between mine and the very last house in the row. Their walls stood close together, forming a narrow little world of windows, balconies, rooftops, and quiet streets.
My house was somewhere near the end.
And from my terrace, if I looked beyond the houses, I could see something completely different.
A park.
It wasn't a crowded park.
There were only a few people there, scattered between the trees. There were no thick bushes or tangled paths—just open ground, a few trees, and a quiet stretch of beauty.
Beyond the park was the sea.
And beyond the sea was the sunset.
The sun seemed to be sinking slowly into the water, turning everything on that side of the world golden.
But my side was different.
It was night.
Darkness covered the houses while that distant place remained warm and bright, as if two different times of day existed at once.
And between them floated tiny lights.
I didn't know what they were.
They looked almost like little pieces of brightness that had escaped from the sunset.
I reached toward them.
One floated close enough.
I pretended to catch it between my hands.
Then another.
I smiled.
Maybe if I caught enough of them, I could make my own little piece of that beautiful place.
Across from my house, a boy stood near his front door.
He had his phone in his hands.
And he was watching me.
