Noah stood in front of the house where it all happened. Now the same beloved place was passing nothing but heaviness and it squeezed his heart with pliers harder and harder. Every happy memory has turned bitter, shifting into a sharp knife cutting to the bone every time he would think about it. Her silhouette on the ground was still visible, banging the doors to everything he struggled to forget so badly. As hard as he tried, the locked memories kept creeping out of the box in the back of his mind. The beautiful ghost haunted him every day, mercilessly remind of what he had lost. He couldn't escape them or hide - it became the worst kind of monster.

He tried to throw her out of his mind as she surely did. But she kept coming back every silent night. The struggle abandoned him assuring he will never get rid of it, but maybe he didn't want to. It was the only part of her he could hold on to. A part of him begged to let go, but how could he? She was and always will be an undeniable piece of him. And knowing it would never go back to that stang like a thousand knives. He had experienced the pain before, but nothing amounted to this.

Noah jerked to the side disturbed by a loud honk, shifting to an appearing dark vehicle. Mathias' hand was already waving from outside the window, letting painfully familiar music hit Noah. He felt obligated to squeeze at least a little appreciation smirk, pretending the tunes doesn't bring all the flashbacks he fought to forget. He placed himself inside the car and a loud palms slap announced an epic friends reunion.

"Hey, Mister Power Hits is back again," Mathias punched Noah's shoulder. "You have no idea how good it is to have you here."

"It's really great to be back," Noah's look was jumping from wide friend smile to the old forgotten neighborhood.

"You know, I almost believed you would never come back. All the radios announcing your success, predicting a bright future," Mathias couldn't help but fake overly excited voice while Noah's smile just widened.

"I question your patriotism for coming back though," Mathias slowly started to drive. "But still, the hype of the return is stronger at this point."

"Patriotism has nothing to do with a place being simply home. I would have come back at some point in time. Have some faith in me, man," both friends let out a row of laughter. "And still, I have some business to take care of here."

"If you're talking about school, forget it. It did not get even a little better. If I were you, I wouldn't bother going there again."

"I'm not sure I have a choice," Noah watched the disappearing houses. "I came back only a few days ago, caught up with family. Now it's friends' time and they are all in school. It's only fair at least to say hi. Not sure if I shall get on with all the official stuff though..."

"What do you mean?" cheerful Mathias tone went back to puzzling. "You're not staying permanently?"

Noah was observing all the familiar places that were passing with the speeding auto. He caught that warm flow in the chest that was slowly mixing with nostalgia that was never so bitter.

"Don't know yet. We will see how things escalate here. As for now, I don't want to think about it."

"Alright then, noted," Mathias expressively paused. "Let's make the best out of what we have today."

Noah's look kept examining passing buildings in the street maze that was as complex as his heart. He returned to the same town, same roads and homes of the same people, yet everything has moved in his absence. Perhaps it was foolish to think it would remain the same. Noah still memorized the details of the place: broken fences, silly garden statues, neat lawns, everything that before has given him a sense of comfort and belonging. It was the right place to be, where his breaths were full again.

"I would really prefer if you would turn it off," Noah noticed that his song was still playing in the car since he seated. It was silent, but he could recognize the rhythm anywhere. "It might sound weird but I'm tired of it. This place is the only one where I can relax and drop all the recording stuff."

"I get you, man," Mathias obeyed. "You don't need to feel like a star here, it's just good to have an old fellow back. And this definitely needs to be celebrated. To get you back on track here," Mathias turned to his friend and raised both eyebrows waiting for agreement.

"Yea, but it's weird to go drinking as the first thing," Noah mumbled frowning his face. "I thought I would start with something easier, like checking the..."

"Boring!" Mathias interrupted with an obvious irritation maneuvering the car between narrow roads. "The best way to fit yourself into this hole is to start with the thing we enjoyed the most."

The undeniable truth released giggles from their mouths as the flashbacks of epic past nights shifted through their minds. As for now, all the tension was physical and mental exhaustion and both friends urged for a gateway. Funny, how everyone glorifies prominent life until the shiny surface fades and only a lifeless skeleton endures. The life seemed to be in colors here, ready to be in Noah's control again.

They arrived at the spot shortly, still gossiping about England and schooling. Afterward, it was evidential that the gaping hole he had left healed up a long time ago and he had no part in their lives. But he was ready to jump back.

The muffled tunes already reached them as soon as they got out of the vehicle, sharing slightly confused gazes. The long bricked building, covered in graffiti and old posters was less than inviting. Noah prayed it would be one of those "poor-outside-but-great-inside" image cases. It was pulsing with vitality, as it found a blurry memory in his mind. But he couldn't succeed in recalling what it used to mean to him.

"I'm gonna guess you don't remember this place because of that idiotic face expression. Don't worry, it will come back to you the minute we step in," Noah only smirked at the insulting replica following the friend towards the single metal door. "I should warn you though, this place now has theme parties accordingly to music. You know, techno, pop, rock and so on. Today is latino evening or something."

"Latino evening?" it sounded more than hilarious but Noah was willing to take the chances, "Is that even a thing? It seems like a stupid excuse to involve more young girls."

"Well, they did succeed because the place is loaded with them," Mathias stick out his tongue and pushed the friend through the doors.

The hallway floor was already vibrating with the base as they passed a few chatting couples and soon reached the filled dim hall. The room was nothing like classical clubs: no smoke, no bright flashing lights, no shaking ground. It took some time to adjust to the music. They struggled a little to keep moving through one headed moving monster towards the distant bar.

The hot bodies kept crashing into them: it felt like the unsynchronized moving mass was injected with liquid adrenaline. It wasn't so strong to make them freakish, but enough to forget everything around and surrender to the rhythm. The movements lacked grace and coordination, yet it was hypnotizing to watch the crowd and be a part of it for a minute. No one was willing to show off or keep the attention on their skin, rather mutely talk to each other with the language words alone could never attain.

As soon as they reached the oddly uncrowded lounge, a few stairs led them to an overly tan bartender. When the order was placed, the drinks came way quicker than expected. The small lifted the whole platform opened the view to the river of colorful thin fabrics flowing to the tempo: both friends took the time to observe it, carefully scanning the surroundings.

"I guess it could be worse," Mathias shouted to the friend's ear raising his drink.

"Cheers to that," the bottles clung, pouring the bitter sensation down their throats.

Noah couldn't help but occasionally catch highly motivated Mathias's face, jumping from one girl's group to another. Noah couldn't blame him: they embraced the music and in return music took control, bringing them in a different world without a struggle. It wasn't the moves that made it so intimate. It was the connection between two passionate people, making their partner the only one in the room. The rhythm was pulsing into them as their consciousness was drunken on the tunes, still maintaining intense eye contact as an essential part of the wordless conversation.

Noahs' look shifted towards the center of the dance floor. It was gripped by the grinding couples, making all the magic abandon the air around them. Only one couple in the ocean of swinging hips and floating arms caught his attention and completely locked within seconds. The girl hugged by a white flowery dress moved in such a gentle way it made her stand out immediately, causing the partner not to leave her sight for a second. Noah stood there wondering, how something so simple can trap him so easily: her body moved slow, matching the right tunes, neglecting everything behind. As everyone around was caught in beautiful chaos, she was only one along in control of it and it made her almost divine.

Noah couldn't stop himself from searching for her image in his memoirs: her distant slightly blurry face was raising his heartbeat, but not in a new exciting way, but suffocating. It was annoyingly banging to the dusty door locking the past memories, identifying that tiny spot he thought was dead a long time ago. As her image stepped out of the shadows, it stole Noah's breath, stopping the pulsing in his chest.

It took control over his body and dragged him by the invisible chains, moving everyone out of the way so she doesn't disappear from his sight. With each step, the music went mute until he could hear nothing but his uneven breathing. Her clear, very much alive picture mixed sadness, anger, and happiness altogether. Noah could feel each small explosion in his blood, as she was coming closer. He desired to touch her, inhale her oxygen as his own, just to bring some reality in this slow chaos.

She looked happy. God, she looked so happy...Noah gasped for air when realization kept hitting him until the body could move, freezing closer to her as expected. He was bedazzled by everything she resurrected in him, yet he still didn't have control over it. All he knew, was a vital desire to reach out for her.

Others kept crashing into his petrified torso, as Noah tried to move forward. His mind tried to discipline the body to obey, naively hoping it would make a change. Even if it wouldn't, the blame he already carried would only grow until he wouldn't be able to lift it anymore. As she was twirled around by the partner, her presence was so close he breather her in. It took only seconds for her body to slightly hit his, making her face the stoned figure in front. She awkwardly stumbled, escaping the rhythm and making the partner confused.

The same pair of dark ocean eyes were enchanted for a second in view of someone who managed to transform the kind and soft look to arrows of fire. Nevertheless, Noah took the opportunity to observe the extraordinary beauty in front. Even if it meant him being burnt. Their locked, terribly contrasting gazes left them alone in the room, as only one word flew in the air.

"Gabrielle?"