chapter 3: the Frozen Prince reconnet

.I was back in the depths of the ocean. This time, I could feel the water. I could feel the weight of my own body. Am I alive? I

wondered.

Then I saw them again—colors floating in the water. But this time, they were golden, shining like pure gold. A soft voice came from the colors, whispering to me.

"Tell me, what do you really want? Have you made your choice?"

Usually, these colors only brought me pain. But today, they were asking a question. I closed my eyes.

"I don't want anything," I said. "I wanted to live, but maybe I don't anymore. I'm already dead. Even if you bring me back

, it won't change my life much. I've had my share of happy moments. Death is my final destination."

The voice sighed. "You are hard to understand. Is that really what you want? Go ahead, ask yourself one more time

."

Suddenly, a jolt hit me. I didn't wake up in my childhood this time. I opened my eyes inside a café. I was inside someone else's body.

"Let's see if you really want to live or die," the voice echoed.

In front of me, a woman was sitting with the man whose body I was inhabiting. They were talking.

"Let's get married," she said.

The man replied, "

I need to finish college first. Then I'll get a job, and then we can marry."

The woman got irritated. "Talking to you is useless. I'm leaving!"

I tried to talk to the man. Hello? Can you hear me?

But he couldn't. He just walked out of the café. I could feel everything he felt—the smell of the air,

the sound of people talking, the sun shining on the buildings. Everything looked so peaceful and happy.

Was this the world that voice wanted to show me? I wondered. But it didn't move me.

The man put on his headphones and started walking. Two kids passed by and waved

. "Hey, Uncle!" Everything was perfect. The air even smelled like roses.

Then, the jolt came again.

The sky turned into a nightmare. Dark, terrifying colors started swirling in the air. A heavy, scary voice screamed: "YOU ARE GOING TO DIE!"

Suddenly, I gained control of the man's body. My face went pale. My hands started shaking. I looked up and saw the sky shattering like glass.

A man was sitting on a chair nearby, and his own shadow rose up and started strangling him. I fell to my knees.

The air became thick and heavy. Within seconds, that man was dead, killed by his own shadow.

I ran. I ran as fast as I could, my breath hitching in my chest. Everywhere I looked, people's shadows were killing them. One shadow

turned and looked at me. It was pitch black with glowing red eyes that were literally dripping blood. It smiled at me.

My vision went blurry. I ran into an alley, but my own shadow crawled out and grabbed my throat. I fought with everything I had

.

"I don't want to die! I don't want to die!" I screamed.

Blood started leaking from my eyes, and then everything went black.

I woke up in an empty, void-like space. The voice returned.

"Humans are all the same. No matter what you give them, their desires never end. So, tell me... can we make a deal?"

I was exhausted. After everything I saw, my will to live had faded even more. Just set me free, I thought. I couldn't even speak;

I just thought it.

"You are difficult," the voice said. "I know you will keep changing your mind,

but I cannot lose you. Think carefully. Let me show you a secret, and then maybe we can strike a deal."

Suddenly, I heard a voice. It was my mother's.

I opened my eyes under a deep, starry sky. I

knew this place. It was a mountain. And right there, I saw my younger self. It was 2010

.

My mother, my sister, and I were there on a trip. I saw my younger self staring at the trees. The trees were whispering:

"Can you hug me?" The rocks were crying: "Please don't walk on us." The ground was begging: "Leave us alone."

Everything was crying, screaming, and begging for happiness. But my younger self just stood there, looking at them

, ignoring them all. I had seen and heard these things since I was a child.

Then, a little girl with pink hair and pink eyes ran up to him. Sara. She looked so beautiful.

"Big brother, come on! Mommy is calling!"

She grabbed his hand and they ran toward a woman.

When I saw that woman, my soul felt like it had been asleep for centuries and finally woke up. My heartbeat slowed down.

"Rio," she said softly. "You shouldn't talk to those strange things."

My mother always told me that, as if she knew me better than I knew myself. She pulled my younger self into her lap. "

Did you see anything weird today?"

"I saw a tree," my younger self said. "It wanted a hug."

"And what did you do?" she asked.

"I know everyone in this world is in pain," he replied.

"But I can't help everyone. So, I did nothing."

She smiled. "You did the right thing. It doesn't matter what others say.

Do what you feel is right. One day, you will be in a place where making a choice will be harder than death. In

that moment, do what your heart tells you."

I looked at her face. Her blue hair, her blue eyes... and that cold air coming from her. I

realized then—

the stories she told me weren't just stories. They were the truth.

I ran toward her, but the voice stopped me.

"Look, but do not touch.

That is the past. You cannot go back. If you want to enter that world again... you must make a deal with me."

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