A Solution

It's been six months since I came to Dhaka. I've spent most of the time indoors rather than going out. And for the past three months, I haven't set foot outside my room. I ordered everything I needed online. But finally… I touched some grass.

The grass is so dirty, though.

But wait… why is everybody staring at me like that?

Some people were yelling at him:

"You dumbass!"

"Is he a crackhead or something?"

"I don't know… looks sus to me, no cap."

Soon he realized — he was in the middle of a football field, and a match was going on.

The referee ran up and handed him a red card.

Noor left the field, embarrassed.

"My concentration has dropped significantly… I didn't even notice I ran into a football field during a match."

Noor arrived at his place.

"I need to talk to the landlord. I'll be leaving for my hometown. I already booked the bus ticket online, so let's take a nap."

NOOR! I REALLY DON'T WANT TO DIE!

YOU MONSTER!

NO, HE IS NOT MY SON!

YOU ARE NOTHING MORE THAN A CURSE!

Gasp!

Noor fell from the bed.

"Sigh… again. Ouch, my back hurts."

He glanced at the clock.

"Shit, it's 7 PM already! The bus leaves at 8:30 — I have to pack up first!"

Noor quickly started packing his belongings. After taking care of everything, he stretched his back.

"Finally, everything's packed. Let's head out."

Before leaving, he stared at his room for a few seconds.

"I know I won't be coming back here again… but this place was comfortable."

After handing the keys to the landlord, he headed outside, dragging his luggage. He called a taxi and soon arrived at the bus station. A cold wind hit him.

Goosebumps

"What was that? Is something going to go wrong? I have a strange feeling about this."

After collecting his ticket, he found his seat.

"Hmm, what should I do now? It's going to be a long journey."

Bonk!

A paper ball hit his face.

"Ouch!"

A little girl and her brother from two seats ahead giggled and hid.

"Sigh… kids these days."

Then everyone's attention shifted to the TV screen.

BREAKING NEWS — CYCLONE MAHAAN TO STRIKE CHATTOGRAM COAST:

"Most Dangerous in Bangladesh's History"

Chattogram, Bangladesh — 7:00 PM

The government has declared a National Red Alert as Cyclone Mahaan, a Category-5+ super cyclone, moves rapidly toward the southeastern coast of Bangladesh. The cyclone is expected to make direct landfall near Chattogram within the next 10 to 12 hours, bringing catastrophic winds, flooding, and record-breaking storm surges.

The Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) has confirmed that Mahaan's wind speeds have reached 320 km/h, with gusts up to 360 km/h, making it the strongest storm system ever recorded in the Bay of Bengal.

"This storm will be deadly. If you are in the impact zone, evacuate immediately. Do not wait,"

— a BMD spokesperson in a live emergency broadcast.

Further updates will be provided every 30 minutes via national news channels and official apps.

This is a developing emergency.

Everyone panicked.

"Seriously?! A super cyclone?"

"Should we cancel the trip?"

"Don't worry — looks like they're exaggerating again. Typical media, lol."

Noor was chilling in his seat.

"A cyclone? Who cares. Looks like the snacks I brought won't be enough. But the bus is already on the highway, they're not going stop for me."

"Let's try sleeping… but what if those nightmares…"

"Ah, I don't care. It'll take 14 hours to reach there — what more can I do than sleep?"

Noor closed his eyes. Some time passed.

"Everything feels silent. Wait… where am I? I was on the bus. What is this place?"

A voice called to him.

"Hey, Noor."

"Who's there?"

A boy around 15 years old stood in front of him.

"Whoa… wait, you look like me when I was 15 or something. I don't clearly remember."

"I am you."

"Hm. I see. This is a dream, right?"

"You don't seem surprised."

"Why should I be? I've been going through way bigger messes than this. Scary nightmares, same thing over and over again without any context. It's been so long since I've had something even slightly different."

"Wanna break from the ads?"

"…What?" Noor asked.

"No, I mean — wanna break from the nightmares?"

"Yes… I really want to sleep in peace. But you didn't explain who you really are."

"Let's say… I'm a part of you. The innocent part you abandoned long ago. For each of your wrongdoings, I've suffered. You abandoned your childhood memories too — and I am that.

Now, if you really want to get rid of these problems, there's only one thing you need to do…"

"Whoa, whoa — wait. What kind of bullshit is this? You expect me to believe that? This must be happening because I didn't take my meds."

"Yes, maybe I don't make sense. But that doesn't mean I'm wrong… does it?"

"What are you talking about?" Noor asked.

"Don't play innocent. You've done a lot of wrong things. Why don't you feel ashamed? You're running away from your mistakes, acting like you've done nothing."

"Huh? I don't understand what you're talking about. Just say what you want."

"I want you to go through your past again. If you can face and accept what happened — and what you did — your nightmares will go away."

"I don't want to do that. I've tried so hard to forget my past. I won't go back."

"So you want to suffer like this for the rest of your life? No medicine can help you with that."

"…No. But what's so special about my past? Why is it haunting me? I really don't understand.

But if you're telling the truth… then I'll take that risk."

"Well then — good luck reminiscing."

Suddenly, everything Noor had forgotten came rushing back to him.

Yes… I remember everything now.

11 years ago…