‘This nightmare will never end,’ Helmut thinks as he watches his comrades reuniting with their loved ones, each embrace only sharpening the ache of his own loneliness.

For years, he’s tried to fill that emptiness, pretending it doesn’t exist. But it always finds a way back, sneaking up on him when he least expects it. With a sigh, he runs his fingers through his tousled brown hair.

No matter how hard he pushes forward, he still feels like a speck of dust drifting aimlessly through the air, weightless and detached. He hates it. He forces himself to keep walking, determined not to dwell on the feeling.

But as he moves, he collides with someone. “Damn it, watch it, will you?” he grumbles, looking up—only for his eyes to widen. She looks... familiar.