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Twins

Lying on his back, Mikael opened his small blue eyes and was met by a dark purple sky bordered by thick, tall, swaying blades of grass. He listened to the soothing sound of the wind as it made the meadow dance back and forth, and he understood that he was no longer in Timmerlundaskogen. He remembered the shawl that he had tried to free from the rock wall just recently, and he also remembered how the shawl had cracked and tangled around his hand and that he had been unable to free himself. Then he woke up ...

somewhere else

He slowly sat up and noticed the shawl he was holding in his hand. Now it was back to being just an ordinary shawl again, and when he opened his hand, it slowly fell down and lay neatly on the ground. He grabbed the tall blades of grass and pulled them towards him. He couldn't imagine having seen anything like it before. The trunk was much thicker than ordinary grass, but still slightly flexible, and the top was adorned with a single large dangling ear of corn. The ground he was lying on consisted of a greenish-gray soil that he had never seen before. Yes, he was absolutely sure that he was no longer in Timmerlundaskogen.

He stood up and could see the rock wall behind him. It reminded him of the one the shawl had been stuck to, but still not. Here the rock had a completely different color and structure. Much darker, almost black and considerably coarser, a bit like the charcoal his father used at barbecues back home. He looked up at the sky again to observe the dark purple everything. The stars shone brightly in the sky and it was night, just like at home. As he stood there all alone and looked at the different night sky, he suddenly felt fear begin to creep into him. Only now did he understand that something very strange had happened and that he might never see his brother again. That from now on he would have to manage all alone, a little twelve-year-old boy without his very best friend.

His twin brother Peter.

Where no one wants to be

I heard Sanna's deep breath and realized that she had fallen asleep. Everything else was dead quiet. And that's when I heard it.

Knock, knock, knock.

It sounded like it was coming from the window. But I remember at first thinking that it might have been Mats knocking on the door. But when I was sure it was coming from the window, I had first thought that I must have heard it in my mind, or that I was asleep and dreaming it all. We lived on the top floor and it must have been impossible for anyone to get up all the way there from the outside.

I know today that everything happened after I fell asleep, that it was in the dream that he had come and nestled himself inside me. When it knocked for the third time, I felt compelled to get up to check. Could it be a bird? I got out of bed, carefully so as not to wake Sanna, then I walked over to the window and grabbed the blackout curtain and slowly pulled it aside.

I still shudder when I think back to it, feeling panic creeping into me again, the sight of the figure on the other side of the window, floating freely, leaning slightly forward in the semi-darkness outside. A man with a sweaty face and long, black, wispy hair licked along his cheeks. On his head was a funny black hat with small, sewn-on skeleton parts. He carefully lifted his hat as if in greeting, smiled a little crookedly with his mouth and winked with one eye. His previously false smile suddenly became beautiful and alluring, like the grin of a small child who wants nothing more than for you to play with it. Irresistible. His horrors disappeared in a tempting call of attraction:
"Come with me. Here is everything you have ever wanted. With us you will find everything that was missing from you. Come with me if you want to be reunited with those you love most."

It was impossible to resist, no matter how hard I tried. When I turned my head and looked at Sanna, I began to cry. I wanted so badly to stay with her, but I couldn't resist his allure. He had me hooked right away. Thrown out an invisible line with a hook that I couldn't get away from. Nested himself inside my brain and made me his slave. Used my greatest longing in this life to lure me into the world he called his. Damn it, I hate you, you bastard!

With trembling hands, I searched for the ring on my finger, the ring that only I knew was there, invisible to everyone else. I felt it, twisted it around my finger and remembered my father.

Then I opened the window and stepped out.

SOMNUN EXTERRERI

The very first snowflake of winter slowly descends from a pitch-black sky over the small suburb of Bergstad municipality. One by one, the stars have gone out as the snowstorm approaches. If this particular little snowflake had eyes and could see, it would have discovered a dimly lit community with scattered apartment buildings surrounded by villas in different styles and narrow streets that wind around the buildings below.

On its continued journey downwards, it would also see the lanterns in a park illuminating a small pond where overwintered swans lived safely together with families of ducks. During the day, the park is invaded by families with small children and pensioners to feed the birds with leftover bread, although at night the park is eerily empty.

The community that the little snowflake has below it is called Kolbro and a river flows through the community, which then continues its journey east through Bergstad to finally end its life in the sea. Kolbro is a beautiful small town nestled between high mountains and hills, and was named after the bridge that was once built to transport coal south. The bridge no longer exists, but the town name keeps the story alive.

When the snowflake only has about a hundred meters left on its journey, the wind carries it over a large black tin roof into an apartment building with a courtyard. The moment before it is about to end its short life against the black tin roof, it is saved by a gust of wind that carries it over the edge of the roof, up a short distance, and then falls back down along the wall of the house.
On the street below, a couple of cars are parked and leaning against the wall is an old, worn-out ladies' bicycle.
When the snowflake passes one of the windows on the third floor of the apartment building, it suddenly stops and finally sticks to the cold glass pane.

If the snowflake had eyes and could look through the window, it would see a man lying next to a woman in a bed. The man is tossing and turning, flailing his arms, tormented by an ongoing nightmare and wanting nothing more than for the nightmare to somehow end.

The woman who bought yarn to crochet a child

She turns around, looks beyond the bridge that led her here from the park with the eager birds in the pond, the beautiful spring-covered garden with all its colors and the playground with the wonderful, fine, lively children in it. Playing. Then she turns her gaze back to the alley again, which is still there. The alley that has never been there before. At least that she remembers.

When she squints and looks up at the end of the alley and sees a large sign with the text SURPRISE YARN, she can't take her eyes off it. She loves to crochet. Small, cute sweaters, pants and suits. And socks. She has lots of them at home in all shapes and colors. For the child she never had. And all the stuffed animals she has crocheted that she has arranged neatly on a shelf in the living room.

She slowly begins to move forward, with one hand outstretched in front of her. She wants to make sure she's not hallucinating, that's how certain she is that the alley wasn't there before. When she's level with the buildings on the side, she slows down even more and extends her arm to its full length. Nothing there, just air. She continues forward along the alley. There's a completely different light here between the walls of the houses, a wonderful light that gives her a perfect feeling throughout her body and she walks as if on clouds. She's back in Rome as a child again.

She looks up at the sky above, which now shimmers in a deeper blue than before. Following the wall of the house back down to the ground, she looks ahead at a majestic stone staircase lined with fantastic wrought iron railings painted in black and gold. A staircase that leads up to a massive dark brown oak door with a small bell hanging on the side. Above the entrance to the shop hangs the sign. A beautiful painted metal sign in winding letters with the text SURPRISE YARN. The woman continues forward.

She reaches the stairs and begins to walk up to the entrance. It's an easy climb, as if she were walking on level ground. Nothing difficult at all. She counts the steps as she goes up the stairs and when she has counted to ten she places her feet on the top step.

She looks at the beautiful, massive oak door. It must be really old, she thinks, but well maintained. Oiled and decorated with fine wrought iron details. As majestic as the stairs with their beautiful wrought iron railing. She glances at the bell and the small string attached to it. She reaches for the string and pulls. The bell makes a clicking sound. After that she stands completely still with her arms lowered to her side and looks straight ahead at the door, waiting for it to open.

A creaking sound is heard from inside. It sounds like a pair of shoes slowly moving forward towards the entrance. The sound gets a little louder, she sees the door handle turn downwards. The door opens slowly.

“Good morning my dear beautiful lady. Welcome to my fantastic shop. Step in, welcome. Watch out for the threshold, little one. Welcome in.”