The following morning…
The group woke up with pale, hollow faces,
a heavy silence draped over them,
as if a single word could summon last night's hell back into existence.
No one dared to mention the mirror…
the one that had swallowed someone forever.
Tala sat beside Mazen, staring into her cup,
while he forced a broken smile,
his gaze unfocused, his chest weighed down by one question:
"Was it me?
Could a word I wrote… really lead to death?"
Majed was the first to break the silence.
He walked toward Mary,
his fingers cracking anxiously...
a habit everyone knew meant he was unsettled.
But no words left his lips,
he simply sat down beside her.
And when she felt his presence,
she let her head rest on his shoulder,
as if whispering without a sound:
"I'm here… I won't leave you,
just don't leave me."
Across the room,
Mazen tried to look away from them,
pretending not to care…
yet every now and then,
his eyes betrayed him,
stealing quick glances filled with questions he couldn't silence:
"What's between them?
Regret? Admiration?
…Or something more?"
Farther away,
Farah lay curled on the ground, unable to sit up,
silent tears streaming down her face like an endless wound.
Mustafa knelt beside her, his voice soft, hesitant, yet warm:
– "I don't know what you've been through…
but I want you to know we're all here for you.
You're not alone anymore."
She lifted her gaze to his,
her eyes drowning in sorrow,
but her lips remained still…
as though pain itself had locked every word inside her heart.
Mary couldn't bear seeing Farah drowning in her sadness anymore.
She moved closer, sat quietly beside her.
No questions, no words…
because she knew nothing she said could fix that kind of pain.
So instead, she started tossing out little jokes,
forcing a shaky laugh,
trying to bring a tiny flicker of light back into the moment.
Mustafa understood what Mary was doing.
He leaned in, exaggerating his expressions,
twisting his face into the silliest shapes,
raising his eyebrows comically,
making goofy sounds that didn't even make sense.
Mary giggled softly, playing along…
and finally, a small laugh slipped out of Farah's lips.
It was quiet, hesitant… but real.
A fragile piece of sunshine breaking through all the darkness around them.
Tala's eyes followed Mazen from across the room.
Sadness clung to him like a shadow,
his gaze lost,
as if he was still trapped in last night's nightmare.
He sat in the corner of the apartment, silent, unsure where to even begin this new day.
Meanwhile, Mustafa and his group were laughing, teasing each other,
like they were on a vacation,
not in a game designed to kill them.
Tala wondered, how can they act so unbothered… as if nothing happened?
She quietly made a cup of coffee,
then set it down in front of Mazen with a soft, deliberate smile.
"Hey… what if we head toward the mountains today?
Maybe we'll find something useful."
Mazen lifted his eyes to hers, his voice sharp but steady:
"If we go, we can't go alone.
The more of us together, the safer we'll be."
Tala tilted her head, pretending to think it over.
"Then we take everyone… and split up later if we have to?"
He nodded once, firm.
"Better if we all stay together."
A sly, triumphant smile tugged at Tala's lips.
He'd agreed.
She'd caught his attention...just as planned.
Yet her eyes drifted, searching for Mary… but Mary was nowhere in sight.
Mazen gathered the group, laid out the plan Tala had suggested.
No one objected; they needed a distraction.
Soon, knives, water bottles, and backpacks were ready,
and they were marching under the blistering sun.
The mountains seemed to taunt them...
small in the distance, but growing taller, more menacing, the closer they came.
Majed's grin widened as he looked around, taking in the wild scenery.
Sawsan groaned dramatically:
"We're still sooo far from our area… guess we're sleeping on the mountain tonight!"
Mazen's eyes landed on a low, rounded hill to the right,
covered in thick grass, a tiny oasis of green among the rocks.
"See that hill? Looks like a good spot to camp for the night."
Mustafa's voice rang with determination:
"Perfect idea! Let's do it."
Mazen smiled, though his heart thudded uneasily in his chest:
"Alright… if you all agree, let's go."
They climbed the hill,
a quiet, secluded patch of nature waiting for them,
a rare refuge in this merciless game.
Waseem, Jawad, and Zain went off hunting, their eyes alight with primal hope...
finally, they'd eat something real.
They returned with a large deer.
The fire crackled, sending sparks into the night sky.
Laughter, stories, and teasing filled the camp as the smell of roasted meat drew smiles all around.
Mazen sat apart, pretending to focus on the flames,
but his eyes kept betraying him,
stealing glances at Mary...
how she laughed with Farah,
how she playfully annoyed Majed,
how alive she seemed, even here.
And each time, he forced himself to look away,
afraid someone would notice.
Tala noticed.
Her jealousy simmered, sharp as glass,
until she couldn't help blurting out,
"Why are those three always off on their own? Don't they know how to join a conversation?"
Mouayad shrugged lazily:
"Leave them be. They're probably used to each other by now."
Sawsan snickered cruelly:
"Yeah… the idiot, the airhead, and Farah...might as well call them the weirdo squad!"
Mazen's glare sliced through the firelight,
a silent warning aimed at Sawsan: Enough.
Tala flashed an innocent smile,
"Come on, lighten up. Let's just dance, make the mood better."
She grabbed Abeer and Katy's hands, pulling them into a playful circle,
dancing to nothing but their own voices and clapping,
trying to keep the laughter alive.
The night wrapped around them,
some drifting to sleep under the stars,
others staring at the sky wide-eyed,
as if the constellations might hold the answers they desperately needed.
Morning came.
They walked back to the apartment with tired legs but lighter hearts,
the warmth of last night's laughter still clinging to them.
Mouayad clapped a hand on Tala's shoulder with a grin:
"You've gotta keep giving us ideas like that.
Best trip leader we've had so far!"
Tala giggled, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear,
pretending to be shy....
but inside, she was glowing with quiet victory.