Choices are made in brief seconds and paid for in the time that remains

Mattia's voice no longer stirred anything in his stomach, but he was aware of the idea of him and always would be, as the only true benchmark for everything that had come afterward.

With a little effort, she could get up by herself

In fact, they didn't talk much at all, but they spent time together, each in his own abyss, held safe and tight by the other's silence.

It was strange to find them here, still alive, with their shared bits of past that suddenly counted for nothing.

Mattia thought that he and Alice were like that, twin primes, alone and lost, close but not close enough to really touch each other.

The scene was set. All that was required was an action, a cold start, instant and brutal as beginnings always are.