The next morning the camp was covered in thick fog. This happened rarely. Usually the sun shone over the area, as if deliberately showing the children how beautiful this place was. But today everything was different.
A white veil hid the trees, paths, and fences. It seemed that beyond it nothing else existed. No cities, no roads, no outside world. Only the camp and rain.
In the office by the window stood a man in black. With one hand he leaned on the back of a chair, and in the other he held a cigarette. For some time he silently watched the fog slowly swirling between the trees.
Then he raised his hand and quietly said:
— Today should be bad weather. No… it shouldn't. It must be.
As if answering his words, thunder rumbled somewhere in the distance. A few seconds later the first drops of rain hit the glass. The fog became even thicker, and the wind outside shook the tops of the trees.
It seemed as if the weather itself had heard the command and obeyed it.
This was Tenebre.
Meanwhile the children were still asleep. Only some liked this kind of weather. Especially Vlad. Under the sound of rain he always wrote better. Maxim, on the contrary, liked to sleep longer on such days. The sound of raindrops on the roof worked better on him than any lullaby.
Vlad woke up earlier than everyone. It was about eight o'clock in the morning. He sat at the table, opened his notebook, and looked out the window.
The fog hid the whole world.
The rain rhythmically tapped on the roof.
For some reason today the camp seemed surprisingly calm. Safe. Quiet. As if beyond its borders nothing bad had ever existed.
Vlad took a pen and after a short hesitation wrote on the first page:
"Beautiful Lady".
The story came surprisingly easily. Words seemed to fall onto the paper by themselves.
In a prosperous kingdom there lived Lady Celeste. She was the embodiment of perfection. Her black silk dresses looked flawless, her manners charmed kings and diplomats, and her mind allowed her to solve the most complex state disputes in a matter of minutes.
When Celeste spoke, people listened.
When she advised — they agreed.
When she smiled — they began to believe that everything would surely be fine.
But behind her beauty there was something else.
Celeste hated chaos, mistakes, and the unpredictability of the human soul. She believed that it was emotions that made people unhappy. Love brings pain, hatred creates wars, and fear pushes people toward terrible actions.
Therefore she decided to create an ideal world.
She found an ancient spell called "Crystal Peace". According to legend, it could stop time and turn the whole world into one eternal perfect moment — without pain, fear, mistakes, or change.
For years Celeste controlled the royal council. She threatened no one and forced no one. People began to trust her on their own. After each conversation, her ideas seemed more reasonable, and her voice lingered longer in their minds. Even the king soon began to consider her the wisest person in the entire kingdom.
Only a young clockmaker, Luka, did not fall under her influence. Watching what was happening, he understood a terrible thing: people no longer made their own decisions. They simply repeated Celeste's words, as if her voice had settled inside their consciousness.
When the night of the ritual came, Luka climbed to the top of the main tower. Celeste was already waiting there. Storm clouds gathered over the kingdom, and below thousands of people stood in the streets and looked up at the tower.
— Have you come to stop me? — Celeste asked.
— No, — Luka answered and handed her a small box.
Inside were pocket watches of incredible beauty. Their case was decorated with silver and precious stones. But the most amazing thing was that instead of a second hand, a small living rose grew inside.
Celeste looked at the gift for a long time.
— They are beautiful, — she finally said.
— I know.
Celeste smiled and began to cast the spell.
The air around the tower trembled. The wind stopped. Birds froze in mid-air. Time began to stop.
But then something happened that she had not foreseen.
The rose kept living.
Kept growing.
Kept changing.
It did not obey perfect order.
The petals fully opened. One of the gears shifted, the mechanism changed, and in that same moment the spell collapsed.
A warm spring wind swept across the tower. The clouds began to disperse. People seemed to wake up after a long sleep.
Celeste looked at the rose and for the first time in many years understood her mistake.
Life is beautiful precisely because it is imperfect.
Because it changes.
Because it lives.
She closed the watch and looked at Luka.
— It seems that today I have lost.
— It seems so.
Celeste smiled slightly.
— Then let people choose their own future.
After that she left the kingdom.
No one ever saw her again.
When Vlad put the final dot, he stared at the notebook for several seconds. Then he reread the ending once more.
And frowned.
A happy ending.
He wrote a happy ending.
Usually his stories ended in death, madness, or something even worse. But now everything turned out differently.
Vlad tried to understand why.
But he found no answer.
For some reason this ending felt right.
As if someone had quietly pushed him toward this decision.
— Strange… — he muttered and closed the notebook.
Outside the window the rain kept falling.
Meanwhile, Alex slept the worst.
After yesterday, his head was filled with thoughts about Denis. About their first kiss. About what their parents would say. What relatives would say. What friends would say.
How would they react to his orientation?
How would they react to the fact that he wanted to stay in the camp?
These thoughts had not left him in peace since morning.
They will be furious, Alex thought. Only he knows how to draw. Without him the others have almost no chance of escaping.
But every time he thought about escape, the thoughts seemed to get stuck in an invisible fog. It became harder and harder for him to imagine the way outside. Instead, the camp somehow seemed like a more cozy and correct place.
That thought scared him the most.
By ten o'clock the rain intensified. Now a storm came with it. The sky turned almost black, and thunderclaps echoed over the camp.
When the children went to the dining hall, the rain hammered the windows in a steady, soothing rhythm.
Alex sat next to Denis.
Vlad — next to Elizabeth.
For a while everyone ate porridge in silence.
— How are you? — Denis asked.
Alex sighed.
— Shit. I keep thinking about yesterday. I guess I'm ashamed...
Denis frowned slightly.
— Ashamed of love? When did love become something shameful?
Alex shrugged.
— I don't know.
He put a spoon of porridge into his mouth and lowered his gaze.
Nearby Elizabeth turned to Vlad.
— Vlad, let's make up a story today.
Vlad thought for a moment.
— Wait.
He stood up from the table and went to his room.
A few minutes later he returned with a notebook.
— Look.
Elizabeth began to read.
With each page her eyes grew wider and wider.
Finally she reached the end and looked up.
— You wrote a happy ending?
— Yeah.
— Why?
Vlad scratched the back of his head.
— I don't know. I just felt like it.
Elizabeth looked again at the last pages.
The answer seemed very strange to her.
Vlad himself thought so too.
But he couldn't explain it.
When breakfast ended, Alex and Denis were unexpectedly called for a conversation.
Outside the windows the storm was still raging. Rain continuously struck the glass, and heavy clouds covered the sky.
In the office Roman and Lilith were already waiting for them.
Denis sat on the chair and looked questioningly at the adults.
Roman spoke first.
— Boys, tell us honestly, do you love each other?
Silence filled the room.
Denis simply nodded.
— Yes.
Lilith sighed heavily.
— You must understand that you are both boys. Look how many beautiful girls are around. It is wrong to love your own sex. It is not ideal.
Alex felt an unpleasant tightness inside.
He was about to object, but the door of the office opened.
Tenebre entered the room.
In his hand he held a cane.
For a few seconds he silently looked at those present.
Then he walked to the table and suddenly hit Lilith on the arm with the cane.
Not hard.
But enough to make her fall silent.
— Boys, come with me.
His voice was calm.
So calm that somehow it didn't feel like arguing.
Alex and Denis stood up and followed him.
They went up to the top floor of the camp.
The corridors here were almost empty.
Their footsteps echoed loudly off the walls.
When they entered Tenebre's office, Alex immediately looked out the window.
The fog still covered the camp.
The white veil swallowed paths, trees, and buildings.
It seemed that beyond it nothing else existed.
On the table stood three cups of hot tea.
— Sit down, — Tenebre said.
The boys obeyed.
For some time there was silence in the office.
Only the rain quietly tapped against the glass.
— Don't listen to them, — Tenebre finally said. — They don't understand anything. I will understand you. In the camp no one will judge you. Here you can be yourself. And the outside world is much harsher.
He spoke calmly and evenly.
As if he were telling something obvious.
Alex took a sip of tea.
The drink turned out to be surprisingly warm.
A pleasant warmth slowly spread through his body.
— People are afraid of what they don't understand, — Tenebre continued. — But here no one will force you to pretend.
Alex took another sip.
His thoughts began to feel heavy.
Anxiety slowly faded away.
Even thoughts about escape seemed less and less important.
— Here it is safe. Here no one will harm you. Here you are understood.
The words settled into his mind with surprising ease.
As if he had heard them many times before.
Denis put the empty cup on the table.
— Strange...
He tried to stand up, but immediately lost his balance and fell.
— Denis!
Alex jumped up after him.
However the room immediately started to blur before his eyes.
He took a step forward and also collapsed to the floor.
Tenebre calmly rose from his seat and approached them.
There was no surprise or worry on his face.
He knelt down and patted both of them on the head.
— You will stay in this camp. Whether you want it or not.
Consciousness was slowly slipping away.
Tenebre's voice became quieter and at the same time closer.
— It is safe here. Here you are understood. Here you are well.
The last thing Alex heard before sinking into darkness was the words:
— You will want to stay here.
When Alex came to, it felt to him like only a few minutes had passed. But his body told a different story — his head was heavy, his thoughts moved slowly, as if through water.
He didn't immediately understand where he was.
The ceiling above him was familiar, but felt foreign. Nearby Denis was quietly breathing, still asleep.
Alex turned his head and for a few seconds just looked at him. And at that moment a strange calm spread inside him. Not anxiety, not fear — just a warm feeling, as if everything was finally in its right place.
He carefully wrapped his arm around Denis's waist.
Denis mumbled in his sleep:
— Five more minutes, mom...
Alex chuckled quietly.
— I'm not mom.
And gently kissed him on the forehead.
Denis slowly opened his eyes. For a few seconds he just stared at the ceiling, as if trying to remember how he got here. Then he turned to Alex.
— Why are we sleeping next to each other?
Alex shrugged.
— I don't know. But I don't see any downsides.
Denis gave a weak smile.
And at that moment, somewhere deep inside, the thought of leaving the camp felt strangely distant. Almost unnecessary.
As if it didn't belong to him.
On the edge of his consciousness something strange flickered — a voice, words, a feeling:
"You will want to stay here."
Denis frowned, trying to catch the thought, but it quickly dissolved like a dream after waking up.
He sat up, rubbed his face, and looked at Alex.
— Well… everything is weird.
Alex didn't answer. He also felt it was strange. But not unpleasant.
Meanwhile, life in the camp continued as if nothing had happened.
The children were already playing, laughing, and running through the corridors despite the rain and heavy sky.
And only Sasha noticed Alex's absence.
At first he just looked around the table.
Then again.
Then shrugged.
— Strange…
He walked up to Rio, who was sitting by the window watching the rain.
— Hey. What's your name?
Rio turned.
— Rio. And you?
— Sasha. Listen, let's play something.
— Like what?
— Hide and seek. We'll gather everyone.
Rio nodded.
And within a few minutes the cаmp was again filled with children's voices.
No one asked unnecessary questions.
No one remembered Alex and Denis.
As if their absence was something normal.
Something that didn't require attention.
As if the camp itself gently pushed those thoughts aside.
Soon the children gathered in the big corridor.
The seeker was Estel.
He stood by the wall, closed his eyes, and began counting:
— One… two… three…
The children instantly scattered.
Despite the rain, they agreed they could also hide outside.
Laughter spread through the corridors, mixing with the sound of rain.
The camp came alive.
As if nothing else had ever happened.
Vlad hid in the library between tall bookshelves, where the smell of dust and wet paper lingered.
Elizabeth hid in the girls' bathroom, pressing herself against the wall and trying not to make noise.
Rio crawled under the stairs.
Kirill hid in a storage room.
The other children scattered through buildings and corridors, choosing the most unexpected places.
Outside the windows the rain still raged, and the fog did not leave — it only grew thicker, as if watching the game.
Sometimes someone felt like there was a figure standing in the white veil.
But as soon as they blinked — it disappeared.
Estel finished counting and went to search.
He walked slowly, carefully, opening doors one by one.
The game went calmly.
Too calmly.
He found Lilith first — she was standing in the corridor as if she had simply ended up there.
Then Egor.
Then Rio.
Then Kirill.
The children returned to the game with smiles, as if nothing unusual was happening.
And no one remembered that two participants were still missing.
As if the very understanding of that fact didn't fully reach them.
As if the thought of the missing ones simply couldn't stay in their minds.
When Alex woke up fully, the day had already moved on.
The light in the room was gray, diffused, like everything around them.
Denis was sitting next to him, already fully awake.
For a few seconds they just looked at each other.
And again — that strange calm.
Not joy.
Not anxiety.
Just the feeling that everything was as it should be.
Alex gave a slight smile.
— Looks like we overslept everything.
Denis quietly huffed.
— Or it was just… not important to wake up earlier.
He himself was surprised by his words.
But they didn't feel wrong.
Somewhere deep in his memory again flickered:
"You will want to stay here."
And this time Denis didn't ask any questions.
He just stood up.
Alex followed him.
Outside the window the rain kept falling.
And the camp, hidden in fog, lived as if it had always been the only world.