It is almost midnight when I finally make my way to my room. Grandpa decided to stay behind in the workshop so he can work some more on the Graphein. Man, I don’t know where he gets the energy from to focus like that for such a long time. I only worked on it for a couple of hours and I am already beat. Maybe the happenings of today are finally catching up to me. I still can’t believe it all worked out in the end. For one second there I thought I would be stuck in that place and stuck with those people forever.

The thing about the Mage Disease though…

I always knew that there must be something wrong with me, but to have this be it…?

Does anything even matter now?

No. Let’s not think about that. Tomorrow. Tomorrow I will be a responsible adult and deal with that matter.

Just for one more night I want to remain oblivious for a little while longer.

Besides that, what difference will one night truly make?

It isn’t like me accepting that reality right now is gonna do anything, because if it is true… then there is literally nothing that can be done anyway.

Sighing, I walk up the stairs that lead to the hallway where my bedroom lies.

Because our house is located at the very top of the hills in this region I have a pretty good view of the city and the mountains and fjords surrounding it. And usually, if the air is not obscured by a thick layer of smog, I can even see all the way over to the Arctic Ocean.

During this time of the year most of it is covered by a thin layer of sea ice.

Isn’t it amazing how this frozen water spends its entire life in the ocean?

It is born in the ocean, it grows in the ocean, and once its time has come it melts back into it again completing its cycle.

It always knows where it has come from, where it will go, and where it will return to.

A simple, but clear existence.

In contrast, the life of humans is nothing but uncertainty and vagueness.

Take our origins for example.

Where does it lie? Is the sea? The stars?

We still don’t know.

Will we ever know?

I am not sure.

Normally I am quite happy with the view I have, but on days like this it isn’t the case at all. For even here, it is almost impossible to escape the reminder of its nature. So the first thing I do when I open the door to my room is to walk over to my window to close it.

I am not even halfway across it when the sounds of children laughing and playing, people drinking, dancing and celebrating with their family and friends, already reaches my ears.

As I am closing my blinds, I spot my neighbors walking down the street, holding hands together with their three year old daughter. They must be heading down the steps just like everyone else, considering its almost time for the Frost Flowers to bloom and the fireworks to begin.

If there is one thing I have learned after the incident is that things always look better from afar.

Take this city for example. From far above it looks absolutely ethereal covered with this eternal white quilt of snow. But the closer you get the more it becomes clear that the snow actually never is a true shade of white.

Sometimes it’s better to love something, to admire something from a distance. At least then you can keep the illusion of its beauty alive.

So when I look at the sight of my neighbors and their daughter I choose to ignore the shadows that they are casting onto the street.

I quietly finish closing my blinds, and turn around to take a look at my room.

My bed is in the same unmade state as I left it in this morning, and scattered around lie a bunch of dirty clothes. I grab some clothes that are closest to me and walk over to my bathroom.

Without flicking the lights on I quickly change into them. Then I cover the mirror that is hanging over the sink with the clothes I wore today.

After brushing my teeth I walk back into my room where I climb into my bed, pull the covers over my head and curl up unto my side.

After a few minutes of unsuccessfully trying to fall asleep I sit back up.

What should I do… maybe work on some designs?

I look over to my right, where piles and piles of unfinished sketches lie spread across my desk, and quickly decide not to.

I lie back down again and stare at the ceiling. I really am not into the mood to read or anything like that…

Wait…maybe they are still broadcasting the final of the Gravball World Cup Tournament game.

I throw my covers off and walk over to get my Magitek Device from my backpack that I left on the chair in front of my desk earlier.

Once back in bed I unlock it and go over to the home screen where I click on the icon that says ‘Gravball Live TV’.

A screen pops up in front of me.