After Andreas and Maddie arrived at the apartment, the aroma of the food prepared by Dedrick still lingered in the air. It was a blend of intense spices and golden-browned meat—a comforting scent after an exhausting day.
Dinner passed in an odd silence, broken only by the sound of utensils clinking against plates. Maddie ate quickly, as if afraid someone might snatch her food away, while Andreas chewed slowly, still feeling the adrenaline coursing through his body. Dedrick, on the other hand, seemed relaxed, savoring each bite with a satisfied expression, as if the tension of the night had never existed.
When they finished, the three of them collapsed onto the living room couches, exhaling almost at the same time. The dim lighting in the apartment made the atmosphere feel calmer than usual, though the shadow of what had happened still hung in the air.
“Well, what a day…” Dedrick muttered, stretching lazily before sinking more comfortably into the couch. With a nonchalant gesture, he turned on the TV.
“Yeah, it was…” Andreas sighed, sinking further into the sofa. His body still ached from carrying Maddie up endless flights of stairs. She sighed as well, feeling the burn in her legs as she remembered.
Dedrick flipped through channels absentmindedly until he stopped on a news broadcast. The screen showed an aerial shot of the "Dreams and Paradise" building, now in ruins, surrounded by flashing police and ambulance lights.
The reporter's serious voice filled the room:
“Tonight, the ‘Dreams and Paradise’ building, which operated as the headquarters of a dangerous criminal organization, has been secured by authorities. The leader of the group, known as ‘Kraft,’ was found dead. Preliminary reports indicate that his head was destroyed by the impact of a shotgun blast.”
Maddie felt a shiver run down her spine. She hugged her legs, staring at the screen with a lump in her throat.
“The members of his organization have been arrested and transferred to the Citadel, where they will be processed. During the operation, several women were found in deplorable conditions. Many showed signs of severe physical abuse and have been taken to aid centers for recovery. We will continue reporting as more details emerge.”
The news cut to commercials, but the weight in the room remained.
Dedrick rubbed his chin with a faint smile.
“Well, we’re in the news.”
Though his tone held a hint of amusement, his eyes said otherwise.
Andreas crossed his arms, not taking his gaze off the now-dark screen.
“Yeah…” he murmured, his mind replaying the gunfire, the blood, and the tension of that night.
A heavy silence fell over the room. Maddie lowered her gaze, once again feeling the cold of the cages, the whispers of the other prisoners, the metallic clink of chains against her skin.
Andreas noticed her tense expression and cleared his throat.
“Maddie… do you want us to turn off the TV?”
She slowly shook her head but said nothing.
Dedrick let out a sigh and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
“Listen…” His voice sounded less carefree than usual. “You don’t have to think about that now. It’s over. Kraft is dead, his organization is destroyed.”
Maddie closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath.
“I know… but I still feel like… like none of this is real. Like I could wake up and still be there… trapped.”
Andreas leaned toward her and gave her a light nudge on the arm.
“You’re not. You’re here, with us.”
Maddie looked at him and, for the first time that night, managed a small smile.
“Thanks…”
The tension in the air eased slightly, though the shadow of the past still loomed over their minds.
“Well…” Dedrick stood up and stretched. “I need a shower, and then I’m going to sleep like a dead. We’ll have time to talk about this tomorrow.”
“Good idea…” Andreas said, finally feeling exhaustion take over his body.
Dedrick disappeared into the bathroom, letting the hot water run. Andreas turned to Maddie, noticing her expression was still somber.
“Hey… that doesn’t matter anymore. All the girls that were with you are safe now… you’re safe.” He gave her a warm smile.
Maddie took a moment to react, but in the end, she returned the smile, though timidly.
“You’re right…”
After a few more minutes of conversation, Dedrick came out of the bathroom, and Andreas took his turn. The hot steam relaxed him, but his mind was still racing.
When they were finally ready to sleep, they realized a problem: there were only two furnished bedrooms—Dedrick’s and Andreas’s.
“Shiiiiiit… not again…” Andreas muttered, running a hand down his face, remembering what had happened with his car.
Just as Andreas was about to suggest a solution, Maddie swiftly walked past him and slipped into his room, slamming the door shut behind her.
“YOU CAN’T DO THIS AGAIN!” Andreas shouted, pounding his fists on the door.
From the other side, Maddie remained silent, leaning her back against the door as she steadied her breathing. Then, slowly, she let her gaze wander around the room.
Andreas’s room was tidier than she expected, though it still had a youthful feel to it.The walls were decorated with posters of old bands and models of flying cars. In one corner, atop a small table, was a collection of sunglasses and digital watches—some of which were probably stolen. The shelf next to the bed held several cans of energy drinks, some empty, others half-finished. The bed itself was unmade, with tangled sheets, and on top of it rested a black jacket with red details.
Maddie walked over slowly, running her fingers over the fabric of the jacket. It was thick, made of a sturdy material, but what caught her attention was its scent—a mix of leather, cologne, and a faint trace of gunpowder. It wasn’t unpleasant. In fact, it was oddly comforting.
Beside the bed, a small holographic device was displaying a slideshow of photos. Images of Andreas and another dark-haired boy, both smiling in different locations—a workshop full of car parts, a rooftop with the city skyline behind them, a street race with neon lights illuminating their faces. They looked happy.
Maddie focused on the last image. A much younger Andreas, holding a trophy with a wide grin, while the other boy had an arm draped over his shoulders. For some reason, she felt a small knot in her stomach.
A knock on the door snapped her out of her thoughts.
“Maddie, open the damn door! This is my room!” Andreas protested, frustrated.
She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.
“It was. Now it’s mine.”
“You can’t just claim it like an abandoned car!”
“Why not? It worked last time.”
“THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT BOTHERS ME!”
Maddie chuckled and flopped onto the bed, burying her face in Andreas’s pillow. It was surprisingly comfortable.
“Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of it.”
“That doesn’t reassure me at all!”
She turned onto her side, hugging the pillow with a mischievous grin.
“Your room is… interesting.”
“I don’t care about your opinion—I just want to sleep here!”
Ignoring his complaints, she continued scanning the room. A small wooden box caught her eye. Inside, she found an old star-shaped pendant. It looked worn, as if it had been carried around for a long time.
Andreas, outside the door, seemed on the verge of exploding.
“Maddie, if you don’t come out right now, I swear I’m going to—”
“Who’s the boy in the photos?” she suddenly asked.
Silence.
Maddie waited, but there was no immediate response. She sat up, staring at the hologram still projecting the images.
“You two look close… is he your brother?”
“No.” Andreas’s reply was immediate, but his tone had shifted. It wasn’t angry anymore—it was… restrained.
Maddie frowned.
“Then who is he?”
A pause. Then, finally, Andreas spoke again.
“My friend. Gabriel.”
Maddie repeated the name in her mind. Something in the way Andreas said it made her feel it wasn’t just any friend.
Outside, Andreas huffed in frustration.
“Maddie, open the door!”
Nothing.
“You don’t even sleep here! This is my room!”
Silence.
“At least give me my pillows!”
Nothing.
Andreas banged his forehead against the door and muttered to himself:
“I swear, one day I’m going to have a heart attack because of this girl…”
He turned around and marched to Dedrick’s room. He knocked several times insistently until the door finally opened, revealing Dedrick with half-closed eyes and still-damp hair.
“What is it…? I was already asleep…”
Andreas raised his arms in frustration.
“Maddie stole my room!”
Dedrick blinked slowly, processing his words.
“Huh… what a surprise.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?!”
Dedrick shrugged.
“Come on, it’s not that hard to understand. She barely knows us. She’s right not to want to share with us, don’t you think?”
Andreas huffed.
“But it’s my room! MINE!”
“And yet, now it’s hers.”
Andreas shot him a deadly glare.
“You’re such a bastard.”
“I know.” Dedrick gave a lazy smile.
“I can stay in your room to slee—”
“No.” Dedrick shut the door in his face before he could finish his sentence.
Andreas took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
“I can’t take this anymore…”
He turned around and walked to the living room, throwing himself onto the couch with a long, resigned sigh.
“At least I hope she lets me in tomorrow…” he murmured before closing his eyes.
Andreas finally shut his eyes and began to drift into sleep.
Meanwhile, Maddie remained seated on Andreas’s bed, watching the hologram of photos still projecting images of its owner and the dark-haired boy. They transitioned slowly from one to another, showing moments of his life that felt so distant from what they had just experienced.
She hugged her knees and sighed. There was something about those images that felt… strange. She didn’t understand why, but seeing Andreas smiling like that—so carefree, almost childlike—gave her a feeling of foreign melancholy. As if that happiness no longer existed, as if it had been trapped in those photos.
“Gabriel, huh…” she murmured softly, testing the name on her lips.
She turned her head and looked at the wooden box she had opened earlier. Carefully, she picked it up and opened it again, taking out the star-shaped pendant. She held it between her fingers, noticing its light weight and the worn texture of the metal. There was something engraved on the back, though the marks had faded over time.
“Why do you keep this here…?” she whispered to herself.
She lay back on the bed, holding the pendant above her head, watching it spin slightly under the room’s dim light. Something inside her told her she shouldn’t ask Andreas about this. Not yet.
Lowering her hand, she placed the star on the nightstand next to the energy drink cans. Then, she turned her head and looked at the black jacket with red details. She recalled the scent it carried and couldn’t resist bringing it closer to her face for a few seconds. It had a peculiar smell—a mix of leather, gunpowder, and something else… something that simply smelled like Andreas.
“You have terrible taste in colognes…” she murmured with a small smirk before letting the jacket go.
She sat up again and let her eyes wander around the room once more. Small details gave her more clues about who Andreas was. In a corner, a shelf held several miniature car models, well-kept but dusty, as if he had stopped collecting them a long time ago.
The hologram shifted to another image. In this one, Andreas was with the same boy as before, but the scene was different. Andreas’s smile was dimmer, and Gabriel had a hand on his shoulder, as if trying to cheer him up.
“What happened to you, Andreas…?” she whispered without realizing it.
A soft knock on the door sounded again, but this time it wasn’t as insistent.
—Maddie… —Andreas’s voice sounded more tired than annoyed—. Just give me my pillows and a blanket, please…
Maddie smiled in amusement but didn’t respond right away. She took her time, as if considering his request, though she had already decided what to do.
She stood up, grabbed one of the pillows from the bed, and tossed it against the door with a dull thud. Then she picked up the blanket, rolled it up, and dropped it the same way.
—There you go, now let me sleep —she said with a teasing tone.
Andreas sighed heavily from the other side.
—I’m going to get revenge for this, I swear…
—You’ll have to catch me first. —Maddie flopped back onto the bed with a grin.
The sound of his footsteps fading away confirmed that he had accepted his defeat. She stared at the ceiling for a moment, her expression relaxed. It had been a long time since she felt like this, with the freedom to joke around with someone without fear of the consequences.
She turned onto her side and hugged the pillow, closing her eyes. Maybe, just maybe, this place could become something like a home.
And with that thought, she slowly drifted into sleep.