" A glimpse of the future"

In the heart of the city, among the towering skyscrapers glowing under the evening lights, there was a luxurious restaurant located on the top floor of an upscale building. The walls were adorned with modern paintings, the dim lighting added an air of elegance, and the glass windows revealed a breathtaking view of the city's shimmering lights. In one of the quiet corners of the restaurant, two young men sat at a round table, exchanging smiles.

Aurelius spoke enthusiastically, raising his glass filled with a fruity drink, then turned to the man sitting across from him—a man with wavy black hair and sharp features, smiling confidently. Their laughter rose above the soft music and the hushed conversations of the other patrons.

"Didn't I tell you? Success always attracts more of it. This deal was just the beginning!" Aurelius said, placing his glass back on the table with a smooth motion, while the two women sitting with them—both colleagues from the same company—exchanged glances, enjoying the lively atmosphere.

The other man leaned back in his chair comfortably and said, "And the best friends are the allies who make success even more enjoyable." Then, jokingly, he added, "But I believe I was the one who pushed this deal forward, don't you agree?"

Aurelius laughed and pointed at him playfully, as if acknowledging only half the truth. "I won't deny you were an important part of it, but don't underestimate my brilliance."

Laughter filled the table, and the waiter arrived, setting down carefully arranged dishes before them. Everything in this place exuded sophistication and luxury, as if the world contained nothing but success and prosperity.

Aurelius picked up his fork, took a small bite, then gazed out at the city through the glass. This was where he belonged, where he felt at the top of the world, where nothing could drag him back to the past. But he did not know that somewhere else, far from these dazzling lights, there was someone looking at him with an eye full of rage.

In a narrow cell with gray walls, where there was nothing but a worn-out iron bed and a small, filthy table, sat another man, staring at the wall with a single eye, while the other was covered with a dirty bandage. It was Vitus. He was no longer the boy who once ran to his friend, swearing eternal friendship.

His hands were clasped together in front of him, his fingers moving slowly as if he were planning something in his mind. Prison was not a place of mercy, but he had learned how to endure. How to fight. How to survive.

A sudden scream echoed from the other end of the corridor, followed by the sound of a body crashing against something hard, then a muffled groan. He didn't care, didn't even turn his head—violence here was just a part of daily life, and he had participated in enough of it to know that the weak did not survive.

He glared at the cold food before him—a piece of stale bread and something unrecognizable on a metal tray. There was nothing appetizing about it, but he picked it up and started eating, chewing slowly, as if the bitterness he felt didn't come from the food alone.

He leaned back against his creaky bed, which groaned under his weight the moment he touched it. Then, placing his hand over his injured eye, he smiled bitterly.

"What a fool I was... I still can't believe how I trusted you, how I believed you and called you a friend. If I had stayed alone, if I had cut the rope back then, I wouldn't be in this cell today. Aurelius… of all the bad things that have happened in my life, you are the worst."

There was a time when he believed the world might offer him another chance. That there might be a way out. But not anymore. Not after everything he had lost. His eye, his freedom, the life he once knew.