November 2023
It was already late at night, and the sky over the river was covered in deep darkness. Only a few distant streetlights cast a warm glow amidst the gloom. Noah walked slowly, holding a small, crumpled farewell letter in his hand. He could feel the weight of the words he had written pressing down on his heart, but he didn't have the courage to read them. He knew everything was about to end.
The water in the river seemed cold and unfriendly. The wind tugged at the tree branches, carrying with it the scent of rain. Everything around him was cold and silent, like a world that had abandoned him. Noah no longer had the strength to fight for himself. Too much pain, too much suffering—it had all reached the limits of his endurance.
He stopped for a moment at the edge, looking at the water that only reflected the dark outlines of the trees. His thoughts wandered through everything he had lost—his family, his inability to cope with his own mind. When he lifted his head, he noticed movement in the distance—a figure approaching him.
Noah recognized him instantly.
"What are you doing here, Daniel?"
The man walked up slowly. There was something strange in his eyes—maybe pity, perhaps compassion.
"I'm not Daniel. I'm his twin brother."
Noah didn't say anything for a moment. He just stood there in silence, watching him.
Daniel's brother finally came close enough for Noah to hear him speak in a low, cold tone:
"I'm not going to do it. I'm not going to kill you."
The blond boy shivered. Instead of feeling relieved, he felt the pressure in his head intensify. Deep down, he knew this man may not have come here to kill him, but that knowledge brought no comfort. What Daniel's brother said next shook Noah to his core.
"Your stepfather ordered it... He wanted you dead. Afterward, everything was supposed to look like suicide."
Noah felt the ground vanish beneath his feet. Everything he thought he knew, everything he believed to be true, crumbled. He couldn't understand it. Chaos filled his mind.
"What are you saying?" he finally choked out, unable to believe what he was hearing.
"It's the truth. Mason doesn't know, but it was his father. He gave me the job of killing you. Afterward, it would all look like you took your own life. But I couldn't do it. Not like this. I know you were the only one who stood by Daniel—you were and still are his true friend. Like him, you're a victim of the rich."
Noah felt a surge of adrenaline rush through his veins, but what he felt wasn't relief—it was pain and emptiness, spreading across his chest. He had no idea how to respond. He had no control over anything happening. And suddenly, at that moment, he felt like a child again—lost, wounded, and unsure of what to do with this whole reality.
"So... what am I supposed to do now?"
Daniel's brother avoided his gaze. He swallowed hard and closed his eyes for a moment.
"I'm sorry I even considered going through with it. Your stepfather paid me well, and I need the money—just got out of prison. But now... presently I know it would've been a mistake. If you want revenge, take it out on him, not on me, Noah…"
"How am I supposed to get revenge on my stepfather? On all the people who hurt me?"
"Let's fake your death... I'll hide you, at least for a while, to keep you safe. Otherwise, I suspect your stepfather will just hire someone else to finish what I didn't."
Daniel's brother looked into his eyes, as if trying to see whether Noah understood. He wanted him to believe what he was saying. And Noah felt something inside himself—a new strength, a new beginning. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. Suddenly, he realized he no longer knew who he was—the person who had wanted to end it all, or the one who now had a chance for something more.
*
Noah sat by the riverbank long after Daniel's brother—Ariel—had left in silence, leaving him with a truth that burned away everything that lingered from the past. The water before him was no longer a symbol of death—it had become a mirror of a new beginning. He wasn't sure what he felt. Anger? Relief? Vengeance? All of it at once.
The night swallowed the city, and the stars faded one by one, as if the world had lost faith in their light. Noah folded the letter and hid it under a rock, placing it on the bench. He left his shoes beside it.
Now, he had a purpose.
The next few days, he spent in hiding. Ariel smuggled him food and clothes. Noah vanished from the map. Officially, he had died that night by the river—that was the version spread among family, the university, and friends. The body was never found, but everyone agreed—there was no way he had survived.
Daniel's twin knew the rules. He knew that if anyone found out the truth, he'd disappear too—so even his brother knew nothing. But something in Noah's eyes made him decide to save him. Maybe because, for the first time, he didn't see a victim—but someone who deserved justice.
Noah hid in an abandoned cabin on the edge of an old forest. There, he had time to think about his life. He analyzed the relationships between his friends and family.
What was supposed to be his end became a beginning.
Each of them had something to hide. Each of them had a moment when they failed.
Winter was approaching. And with it—the end of one story.