"Evelyn…" A strange but familiar voice whispered into her ear. The voice didn’t sound like a woman’s or a man’s; it was like the echo of a spirit. "You… have forgotten who you are."

"Who are you?" Evelyn asked, her voice echoing. She couldn’t even recognize her own voice. Everything was blurry; she didn’t even remember how long she had been in this world.

The voice spoke again: "Find the truth. The light will guide you…"

Evelyn was about to ask something when everything began to slowly fade into darkness. A light in front of her started to flicker, as everything disappeared, leaving her with a strange feeling of fear and curiosity.

Evelyn woke up in a panic, drenched in sweat. After taking a few deep breaths, she realized it had only been a dream. But she had never experienced a dream like this before, and it felt so real. Evelyn took a deep breath and lay back down in bed.

Morning came, and Evelyn slowly got out of bed. She couldn’t shake off the dream from the night before, and even worse, she couldn’t fall back asleep after it. After getting dressed, Evelyn left her room. Everyone else was going through their usual morning routines. Everything seemed normal, just like always. But there was a strange unease inside Evelyn. She couldn’t understand what it was. Could it be related to the dream she had? "Maybe I’m just overthinking it," Evelyn muttered to herself as she went to join the others for breakfast.

When Evelyn couldn’t find Shin around, she went to Serena.

"Where’s Shin? Is he still asleep?" she asked.

"He left before any of you woke up. He said he had some work to do."

"Oh... I see."

"Come on, breakfast is ready."

Nobody spoke at the table. There was a strange tension in the air. Noticing that everyone was silent, Selena decided to start a conversation.

"So... do you guys have any special plans for today?"

"Huh? What kind of plans?"

The twins asked, their curiosity piqued. Serena smiled slightly and replied,

"Like hanging out with your friends after school."

The twins, Lucian and Evelyn, shook their heads in refusal. Selena let out a small sigh.

"You’re all so reclusive. Most kids your age would spend the whole day hanging out with friends."

"Yeah, but we’re not exactly normal people..."

Lucian said in a low voice. Marcus, irritated, tightened his grip on his fork and spoke sharply.

"What does that even mean? We’re probably more human than those who set forests on fire and kidnap kids!"

Lucian flinched at Marcus’s strong reaction and fell silent. Selena quickly intervened, shooting Marcus a stern look.

"You know very well that’s not what he meant! Don’t yell at the kid!"

"I’m not yelling! I just want him to stop seeing himself like that, that’s all!"

Marcus raised his voice even more. The children, watching the argument, exchanged worried glances.

"Oh? So you think yelling at him will help?!"

"I’m not yelling at him! I’m just trying to help!"

"And you’re clearly failing at it!!!"

Their voices grew louder as they continued arguing.

"...Stop fighting already..." Noah, one of the twins, said in a trembling voice. Marcus and Serena both looked at the children, realizing they needed to calm down. Serena quickly tried to ease the situation.

"We... we argue almost every day, you know. You don’t need to worry about it..."

"Yes, but you’ve never yelled at each other like this before..." Nora said, speaking hesitantly.

"No... I mean..." Serena was searching for an explanation when Marcus suddenly stood up.

"Come on, Shin isn’t here today, I’ll take you to school."

No one said anything else, and they all prepared to leave. The entire ride to school was silent. After dropping the kids off, Marcus headed to the auto repair shop where he worked. As he arrived, a girl suddenly stepped in front of him. Marcus jumped back in surprise, taking a few steps away. The girl started giggling cheerfully.

"You got so scared. You used to act all tough."

"...Emma? What do you think you’re doing?"

Emma kept giggling.

"You were pretty out of it while walking here. Looks like you’re not in the best mood today. I just thought I’d cheer you up a little."

"You have such strange ways of doing things..."

Marcus blushed slightly and turned his head away. Without noticing his blush, Emma entered the repair shop. As she kept laughing, an older man walked over, sighed, and looked at her.

"Cut it out, Emma. How many times have I told you not to bother Marcus while he’s working?"

"Yes, Dad, but he just got here, so he’s not really working yet, right?"

"It’s fine, boss. Emma doesn’t bother me."

Marcus picked up his tools and started inspecting a customer’s broken car. After a few minutes, he glanced back at his boss.

"So, what do you think? Can I fix this car by this evening?"

His boss looked at him seriously.

"The car doesn’t have any major issues. I can fix it in a couple of hours."

"Good. The customer has been saying it needs to be ready by tonight. Emma, make sure not to distract Marcus today, okay?"

"Alright, alright. You’re just giving Marcus all the work. I wouldn’t be surprised if he quits one day."

After saying this, Emma grinned and quickly walked away. Marcus watched her for a few seconds, then smiled lightly and got back to work.

Here is illustration of Evelyn:

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