The chill of the late autumn breeze swept through the streets of Toronto and in through his bedroom window, nipping at Xelor’s face. He adjusted his blanket to cover him up well. Xelor was wide awake but still in bed. He couldn’t get his mind off the weird dream he had last night.

“Set me free”

He heard the voice again. The same voice from his dream, the same words. Xelor couldn’t help but feel there was an ounce of reality in his dream, or was his mind just playing the voice over again.

“Get up Xelor. You’ll be late for classes.” His mum, Navier, called from the kitchen where she was fixing breakfast.

She was right. He didn’t have time to worry about a silly nightmare, after all, that’s what the dream was… a silly nightmare. Xelor thought to himself.

“Probably a product of watching a horror movie late into the night.” He said as he got out of bed.

Xelor was a twenty-two years old college student. He lived in Toronto with his mother, Navier, since he was a baby. He didn’t know who his father was and had never even seen a picture of him before.

One time when he was in middle school, he asked about his dad but later regretted it when he saw the hurt on his mum’s face. Ever since then, he decided not to mention his dad to his mum.

Xelor was in his second year in law school at the University of Toronto. He had always dreamed of becoming a prosecutor. This dream wasn’t driven by anything special, just a movie he found cool as a child where the male lead was a very skilled prosecutor who caught bad guys and placed them behind bars. He was finally going to achieve that dream soon.

In fifteen minutes, he was dressed and ready to leave for school.

“Set me free…”

He heard the voice again. This time louder and clearer. Xelor froze. He looked around his room, there was no one there. He began questioning his sanity.

“Set me free Xelor..”

The voice echoed, louder and clearer. Xelor held his head, trying to shut the voice out.

“Xelor.. breakfast is getting cold.” His mum called again, snapping him out of the current state he was in. He rushed out of his room to join his mother at the dining table.

After taking a spoon or two, Xelor stood up, ready to leave.

“You barely touched your food.” His mum complained. Xelor smiled as he walked to the door.

“I’ll be late if I stay any longer. Love you mum.” He replied and walked out of the house heading for the bus station where he’ll get a ride to school.

After his three classes, Xelor stopped at his go-to café for a coffee break. Normally, the café would have been a place to relax and destress, but today was different. He couldn’t get the voice out of his head. It had been in there all day, calling out to him, leaving him distracted in all three classes.

Xelor sat by the window sipping his dark coffee and idly observing passersby going about their morning business. The source of the voice, a shadowy, blurry figure from his dream, shot into his consciousness as he took a sip. His heartbeat accelerated, and he placed the cup down while massaging his temples. What was causing him to feel this way?

The café door opened and she came in. A young woman dressed too lightly for the cool autumn breeze. Xelor looked up at her. Her long wavy hair dropped freely from her shoulders down to her waist. Her beautiful amethyst color eyes danced around the room and settled on Him. He looked away, but caught her smirk before walking to place her order.

Xelor turned back to the window, he didn’t want her to catch him staring.

“Mind if I sit here?” Her voice came, soft but steady.

“Sss..sure.” Xelor stuttered. Wait, what?!! He was stuttering, him, Xelor Javernick. That was strange.

“Thank you.” Kaylan smiled at him. Xelor looked up at her and their eyes met. Suddenly, he felt something, like a connection between them.

“Do I know you?” She asked the question he was just about to ask. ‘Maybe she felt it too.’ Xelor thought to himself.

“I’m..I’m thinking… I’m thinking so myself.” Xelor stuttered yet again. ‘Shit Xelor, what is wrong with you?’ He mentally scolded himself.

“Don’t worry, I don’t bite.” She laughed. ‘Even her laughter is beautiful’ Xelor smiled subconsciously. “I’m Kaylan, Kaylan Nierling” She introduced.

“Xelor.” He replied. The waitress served her order of a buttery croissant and cappuccino.

“Set me free.”

Xelor heard the voice again. His head throbbed and he was beginning to develop a terrible headache. He held his temple.

“Are you alright?” Kaylan asked as she touched him. He felt sparks, like something left her body to his. ‘What was all these?’ He wondered.

“Do you need to see a doctor?” Kaylan persisted.

“I’m fine..” He replied trying to act cool but his face betrayed him.

“Are you sure?” Kaylan pressed. “You don’t look too good.” She added.

Xelor smiled. ‘Why would she care so much about someone she had just met?’ He wondered.

“I’m fine Kaylan, I really am.” He said. Kaylan didn’t look convinced, so he added.. “It’s probably because I didn’t sleep well last night.”

Kaylan nodded. That was believable.

Xelor shivered, not from the cold, but from the weight of something unseen pressing on him. The air around them seemed charged, like a storm was brewing just beneath the surface of reality.

Kaylan leaned forward slightly, her amethyst eyes fixed on him. “Do you ever get the sense that... there’s something you’re supposed to be doing? Like there’s something waiting for you, but you can’t figure out what it is?”

Xelor’s breath hitched. The question struck too close to home. It was as if she had plucked the thought directly from his mind. He thought of the dream, the voice that had been haunting him. Set me free.

“All the time,” he said, his voice low. “It’s like... there’s something right in front of me, but I can’t see it.”

Kaylan’s gaze softened, and for the first time, her smile faltered. “Yeah... me too,” she whispered. “Like I’m waiting for something... or someone.”

Her words hung in the air, and Xelor felt the pull between them grow stronger.

As the minutes ticked by, their conversation turned lighter, touching on everyday topics like school, hobbies, and the city. But underneath it all, Xelor couldn’t shake the sense that their meeting wasn’t just a coincidence. The connection between them was too strong, too immediate, to be chance. Something—fate, destiny, whatever you wanted to call it—had brought them together.

Eventually, Kaylan stood, gathering her things. “It was really nice meeting you, Xelor,” she said, her smile returning, though there was still a flicker of something unspoken in her eyes. “Maybe we’ll run into each other again.”

Xelor nodded, though he felt a certainty in his bones that they would. “Yeah. I’m sure we will.”

As Kaylan walked out of the café, Xelor sat back in his chair, his mind buzzing with questions. The pull he felt toward her hadn’t faded. If anything, it had grown stronger. And as the cold wind blew through the open door, the voice whispered once more, as clear as ever.

“Set me free.”

Xelor closed his eyes, the words echoing in his mind. He didn’t know what they meant or why they had been haunting him, but one thing was certain—something was coming. And whatever it was, it had already begun.