“Am I dreaming?”

***

The streets are filled with a thick smog, making it impossible to navigate. Annie covers her mouth and eyes with her tattered shirt and stretches out her arm, making her way to the nearest turn.

In the dimly lit alley, the little girl drags herself forward, each movement an exhausting battle against fatigue and dehydration. The acid stench of smoke fills her senses, mingling with her own labored breaths. She collapses against a grimy brick wall, closing her eyes for a moment against her better judgment.

When she opens her eyes, though, a hazy silhouette kneels in front of her, a familiar hand on her shoulder.

“Tom?” She asks, her voice rough from disuse. She blinks away the dust and smoke, but he’s still here. With a smile he nods, pulling her into his arms.

Annie burrows her face in the crook of his neck, breathing in the smoke and sweat of her brother alike. He’s just like he was all those months ago. Maybe years.

Tears stream down her cheeks as she clings to him, her voice choked with emotion. "I miss you," she whispers, standing on the tips of her ripped shoes.

But as she holds him, a sorrowful expression clouds his face. He gently pulls away, and her eyes widen in desperation. "No," she pleads, her voice cracking, "Please, don't go." Her brother's form begins to fade, like smoke slipping through her fingers. The world around her darkens, and her cries become more desperate.

"I need you!" she screams, her voice raw with anguish, tears flowing freely now. "Please, don't leave me. Please!" Her outstretched hand grasps at the vanishing figure, her fingers trembling, but her brother continues to fade away until he's nothing more than a distant memory.

Alone once more in the shadowy alley, the little girl collapses to the ground, her heart shattered, and her sobs echoing through the emptiness. “No!”