Three

At first there was silence in the receiver, but after a short moment there was a strange rustle in it. Paul pointed out.

"Hello? Kiara, are you there? Can you hear me? I can't call you! "

"Paul ?! Where are you? Come back to us! Don't go away!"

"I'm not going anywhere, Kiara! Tell me, where did you all go? Come home with the girls too. I'm numb here …"

"Paul, what does it look like there? Are you safe there? Where are you, anyway?"

"Kiara! I am home! But where are you all ?! There's a dark forest around the whole house ... and I still don't have the courage to step in and follow you. I'll be amazed at how human cries and animal revolts are constantly heard from him."

"What forest? Are you serious, Paul? The girls are here with me. We hope you hear us and come back to us! Please don't give up and come back to us!"

Kiara began to cry, and in the background the girls could be heard reassuring their mother. Paul didn't understand at all.

"Kiara, please, where are you ?! Where should I go to see you? I'm home! I just can't get anywhere for the awful forest that's all around. I can't stand it anymore!"

Suddenly there was silence on the phone, and Paul feared that Kiaru would no longer hear. He was still desperately trying to connect with her.

"Hello! Kiara! Call me! What should I do! Where to go! Where are you!"

He received no answer, so he hung up. He panicked, for all he wanted was to see Kiara and his daughters. By evening, the old phone hadn't rang once. Even an unknown man no longer contacted Paul over the phone. Paul was completely clueless. Occasionally he went out into the yard and stared at the tall trees in front of his house. He didn't know what to do. He wondered how vast and dense the forest that surrounded it could be, and whether or not it should enter. He knew nothing at all. Then, in the middle of the living room, he knelt on the floor and twisted into a blanket to warm up at least a little. The clock on the wall still showed the third hour, or stopped at exactly three o'clock. So Paul had no idea what time it might be. But it was already evening, and the terrifying darkness gradually spread its black robe. Thick snow was still falling outside. Paul, sitting in the middle of the room, watched through the window, still thinking. He didn't have many options. If he stays on the floor in the living room, he may never get out of the house again. If he decided to go looking for Kiara, he could get lost in the woods. If that happened, he might die of winter and starvation. But if he doesn't, if he doesn't take the risk, he'll be trapped in the house forever. Each of the possibilities terrified him. He went to the window and focused on the white, not entirely clear contours of the trees created by the constantly falling snow. He wondered if if decided to go looking for his family, he must necessarily prepare a weapon. He turned and went to the back of the house. He entered a small room with various tools. He reached for the hoe and pushed the metal part out of it. A clean club remained in his hand. He thought about how to improve it. On the grinder, he worked the stick into the tip so that he actually created a sharp copy from it, which could be used to hit and hit the target. But he could also use it more comprehensively, he could defend it and drive away attackers and animals. When he had a copy ready, he entered the hall and dressed warmly to keep going in the harsh winter. He opened the front door and stared at the forest for a moment. He sought courage and kept saying that he had no choice. He has to try, because otherwise he will stay in this house forever. And so a turning point came. It was dark, but the white snow still illuminated the forest. Paul didn't know where to go, but he was still determined to enter. He came out of the main gate of his land and slowly closed it behind him. He looked at his dark house and watched for a moment as white snow covered it. Then he turned away, looked into the dark forest, and thought, Well, now I can't back down ... There was no visible sidewalk in the dark forest. Paul took the first steps into the unknown ... At first he saw no movement, he saw neither man nor animal. He added slowly to his step and felt the snow creaking beneath his feet. He soon heard the screaming of birds. He looked up and directly above him he saw some big birds flying from one tree to another. He didn't even realize that his legs were already running. He trotted through the trees, his adrenaline energizing. Suddenly he heard screams in close proximity. He stopped and took a deep breath to calm himself. He held his spear in his hand and was ready to fight. He looked in all directions, but saw no one. At that moment, someone came from the treetops and angrily reproached him with remorse: Miser! You're a disgusting miser! Disgusting Paul! You're a disgusting self! I hate you! Paul tried to find out who it was, but he didn't see anyone. Everywhere he looked, there were only trees and heavy snow. He took a slow step further, though he had no idea where he was going. His only goal was to cross this forest, get out of it, and find his family. Suddenly he heard a male voice. When I meet you, I will beat you like rye! You're an ordinary coward! Paul did not respond verbally to these shouts, but ran again. The screams increased and they constantly attacked Paul. See?! That is him! Paul! An egoist and an arrogant monster! He's a disgusting man! Soon, screams began to be heard everywhere. Birds screamed in the treetops: Paul, the coward, the ugly weasel ... and Paul no longer looked around, just ran and ran for his life. While running, he kept listening to curses at himself. The whole forest was already cursing at him. Suddenly he saw a light in the distance. At first it was just quite small. He dropped his handmade weapon and aimed it at the light. The light gradually increased. When he got close enough to the light, he noticed that it shone in an oval shape. After a while, he ran up to him. He was captivated by its unusual light-white color and realized that it was illuminated by a tunnel. Behind him, he could still hear insults and insults. He stood looking at the glowing tunnel, not knowing what to do. Then he approached carefully step by step to examine it. When he was quite close, suddenly something pulled him to the bottom. As soon as he found himself in the tunnel, an unknown force pulled him up. Suddenly he felt an immense peace he had never known in his life. He felt love, security and peace. He could no longer hear the screams that had haunted him before. He got into the unknown, he had no idea where he was being drawn by an unusual force, but he was not afraid. On the contrary, he felt very comfortable. Soon he was floating in a large space in which he saw his dead relatives around him. They were happy and they all looked much younger than when they died. A boy stood by his right side, staring at him. When Paul noticed him, the boy decided to baptize him with remorse: "You are evil Paul! Very bad man! I'm still scared of you!"

Paul asked in surprise, "Who are you and why are you afraid of me?"

The boy turned and moved away, slowly disappearing into the white light.

"You're evil, Paul! I hate you!"

Shouted the boy at Paul. After these boy's remorse, the white light also began to fade, and all the dead people in it. Paul pulled some unknown force all the way up. There was silence and darkness. Paul realized he was looking at himself from the ceiling. He saw his wife Kiara and his two daughters sitting by his hospital bed. The attending physician explained something to Kiare, and Paul heard his every word.

"I'm sorry, but it's been a long time. After two months of coma, the chances of Paul coming to life decrease. But whenever you're with him, you can tell him something, maybe he'll hear you. There are cases where a person in a coma has heard every word. Paul's severe car accident is one that has caused such trauma that there is little chance of his return. "Paul shouted at the doctor and at his wife as he reigned."

I'm here! I hear you! How come you can't see me ... God, give me a chance! Please give me a chance and give me back my family!"

Paul opened his eyes and at first recognized only light and a kind of fog. For more than hours, he just listened to the sounds around him. He didn't work hard, just breathing for now, but realized he had a chance to return. He was given a second chance at a new life and correction. He knew very well what he would have to do, how to fix what he had gone wrong. After a week, he slowly sat down on the bed, but he couldn't talk for long. Gradually he began to walk and in less than a month he did released from the hospital. The day he returned to his house, he was overjoyed.

"Kiara, where's the dark forest?"

Is the heating in the whole house already working?

"Kiara looked at Paul in astonishment and replied to his strange questions. We live on the outskirts of the city by the river Laborec. It's impossible for there to be a forest."

Paul stood against the wall in the living room, staring at the old telephone on the wall. He noticed that the phone didn't even have a cord to work at all. It served only as a decoration and a souvenir. It was impossible to make any phone calls from him. The first day at home was like a rebirth for Paul. Every day he became more and more attentive to his family and to all the people around him. Kiara really didn't recognize him at all. He was no longer attached to the material world. Much more important for him was the spiritual, the emotional ... Everyone liked this different Paul and everyone started to like him very much. About two months after returning home from the hospital, Paul picked up a small travel bag and told Kiare he had to leave for two days.

"I'm leaving Košice from Norway tonight at eight o'clock. I'll be back soon. I have to fly away, it's very important to me because it's an unresolved part of my life."

He kissed Kiara with a smile and said goodbye to the girls. He promised them an early return home. When the plane landed at Oslo Airport in Norway, Paul nervously checked the necessary documents. Outside in front of the terminal, he nodded for a taxi and was taken to Brynsveien Street. When he got out of the taxi on the desired street, he stood in front of the ground floor house. He knew exactly where he was. Before that, he found out all the details of where the person in question lives. Uncertain and full of remorse, he approached the door and rang the bell with shaking hands. Immediately, the woman opened the door and looked at Paul incomprehensibly.

"Who are you?" She asked in English.

"You can speak Slovak in peace. I'm Paul from Michalovce City. I came to see your husband. I would like to see him. I won't be long."

"I'm glad, Paul,"she shook his hand.

"My name is Erika. All right, I'm going to call my husband, please wait a minute," she said with a smile.