When I wake, I move out from under the red tree. I’m going to walk home, walk away from this place, when something stops me.

I don’t know what it is. I don’t know what’s happening. But I know that something is drawing me back to that red tree, a sort of invisible thread wrapped around me. I stand behind some bushes, watching.

A little girl runs up to the tree, full on into the trunk. She bounces back, unfazed, as she pulls along another girl—her older sister? by the hand.

Kneeling down, she picks up a handful of the vibrant red leaves that have fallen to the ground, letting them sift through her fingers until there’s only one left. She caresses it in her hand, and holds it up to the light. The red light spreads all over her face, which is lit up by a smile so wide, you wonder what she’s thinking.

She doesn’t know about all the science behind what she’s seeing, I think. She just sees it for all the magic there seems to be.

“Eva! Come on!” A voice calls, and the little girl leaves me standing alone.