Another Life, Another World, Another Ending

Monday morning was different.

Daniel felt it the moment he opened his eyes.

His body was in his bedroom, but his mind—his mind was somewhere else. Somewhere scattered, fragmented, like the pieces of a shattered mirror reflecting glimpses of forgotten lives. The weight of something lost pressed against his skull, aching like an old wound he couldn't quite touch.

For the first time since the dreams began, he woke up remembering more than just the last world.

Not just Elena.

Not just Casner.

There were others. Lives he hadn't thought of until now. A dozen faces, a hundred moments, flickering in and out of focus like a radio trying to find the right station.

A woman in a white dress, standing in the rain, smiling at him.

A boy with freckles, tugging at his hand, calling him "Dad."

A city made of glass and gold, burning as he ran through the streets.

A voice, his own, whispering a name he couldn't quite grasp.

It was overwhelming. Disorienting.

Daniel sat up, pressing his hands to his temples.

Breathe. Focus.

Something had changed.

The man in the cabin. The warning.

"You need to remember what you've forgotten."

That wasn't just a message. It was a key.

But to what?

*****

"Are you even listening?"

Daniel blinked.

He was sitting in math class, staring blankly at his open notebook. Equations blurred in front of him, meaningless.

Marcus was beside him, nudging his arm.

"Dude. I've been saying your name for like a full minute."

Daniel swallowed, shaking off the haze. "Sorry. Zoned out."

Marcus narrowed his eyes. "No kidding. You look like you saw a ghost."

Daniel hesitated. How could he explain that "ghost" wasn't far from the truth?

Instead, he reached into his pocket and pressed his fingers against the coin. Still there. Solid. Proof that this was real.

"Did you try bringing something back again?" Marcus asked, his voice low.

Daniel shook his head. "No."

Marcus frowned. "Then what's up?"

Daniel hesitated. Then, in a hushed voice, he said, "I'm starting to remember more."

Marcus's brow furrowed. "More dreams?"

"No. More lives."

Marcus stared.

Daniel took a slow breath. "I think… I've done this before. Not just the dreams. All of this. Waking up. Forgetting. Remembering." He tapped his temple. "This cycle. I think it's happened before. And I forgot."

Marcus ran a hand through his hair. "Okay. That's… a lot." He glanced around, then leaned in. "So what? You're caught in some time loop?"

Daniel shook his head. "Not time. Something else. It's like… I'm supposed to forget. Like something is making me forget. Every time I wake up, I lose pieces of myself. But now… it's starting to come back."

Marcus exhaled sharply. "Dude. I don't know whether to be excited for you or scared."

"Both," Daniel muttered.

By the time lunch rolled around, Daniel felt like his brain was overheating.

The memories wouldn't stop.

They weren't full dreams. Not yet. But flashes. Echoes.

He was walking through the cafeteria when, suddenly—

A marketplace. Stalls lined with strange glowing fruits. The air thick with the scent of spices and burning incense. The sound of merchants haggling, the distant hum of music from an instrument he didn't recognize.

Then—

Snap.

He was back in the cafeteria, gripping his tray so tight his knuckles went white.

His heart pounded.

It had felt real. Not a memory. Not a vision.

For a moment, he had been there.

The cafeteria noises felt wrong now—too loud, too sharp. His breathing was uneven. He turned, scanning the room.

And then—

A face.

A girl sitting at the far end of the cafeteria.

She looked… familiar.

Dark hair, tied in a messy braid. A scar just above her left eyebrow.

Daniel's chest clenched.

He knew her.

From where? Which life? Which dream?

His vision wavered. The memory was so close, just out of reach. If he could just—

"Daniel?"

Marcus's voice snapped him out of it.

Daniel blinked rapidly, realizing he had been standing still for too long.

He forced himself to sit down, gripping the edge of the table to steady himself.

Marcus frowned. "Dude, you look like you're about to pass out."

Daniel exhaled slowly. "I saw something."

Marcus stiffened. "Like… dream-saw?"

Daniel nodded. "For a second, I was somewhere else. A market. And then…" His eyes flicked back to the girl. "I saw her."

Marcus followed his gaze, spotting the girl at the far table.

"Okay," he said carefully. "And you know her from… where, exactly?"

Daniel clenched his jaw. "I don't know. That's the problem."

Marcus let out a low whistle. "Dude. Either you're having the trippiest déjà vu ever, or you just saw someone from one of your dream-worlds here. In real life."

Daniel's stomach twisted.

If Marcus was right…

If she was real…

Then what did that mean?

*****

For the rest of the day, Daniel couldn't stop watching her.

She was real. She wasn't glitching, wasn't flickering like the worlds when they collapsed. She existed, here, in his waking life.

But how?

The final bell rang.

Daniel stood at his locker, gathering his books, when—

"Hey."

He turned.

The girl.

She stood a few feet away, arms crossed, studying him like she was the one trying to place where she had seen him before.

Up close, she looked even more familiar. Her gaze sharp, intelligent. Like she was waiting for him to say something first.

Daniel's throat was dry. "Uh… hey?"

She narrowed her eyes. "You've been staring at me all day."

Daniel winced. "Right. Uh. Sorry. I just—" He hesitated. How could he say this without sounding insane?

"I think I know you," he said finally.

She tilted her head. "Yeah," she said. "I think I know you too."

Daniel's breath caught.

She didn't sound confused.

She sounded certain.

Like she had been waiting for him.

Like she had been through this before.

Just like him.

Daniel's pulse pounded.

Who was she?

And more importantly—

What did she remember?