This Is Ours
Country: Aurivelle
City: Auremont
Alvara
Auremont didn’t feel new to me anymore.
But it didn’t feel like home either.
It felt like a chapter I had already survived… now being revisited from a different page.
The van moved steadily through the city, and I watched it all with a quiet calm.
The glass towers.
The long, polished roads.
The familiar sharp elegance of a place that never really paused for anyone.
Beside me, Isabella leaned slightly toward the window.
She was quiet.
But I knew she was taking everything in.
Behind us… the real reactions were happening.
Leo was practically glued to the window.
“…Nah,” he muttered under his breath. “This is not a city. This is a movie set.”
Mom turned her head slightly.
“Leo,” she warned softly.
“I’m serious,” he said quickly. “Look at that building. Why is it shining like that?”
Isabella glanced back at him and smirked.
“That’s normal here.”
“That is not normal anywhere,” he shot back immediately.
Mr. Soren, who had been quiet for most of the ride, finally spoke from the opposite seat.
“Auremont is a beautiful city,” he said. “This isn’t my first time being here… but it still feels like my first.”
Leo shook his head slightly, still staring out.
“It’s too… structured,” he said.
The van moved deeper into the city.
And then I noticed the shift.
Not in the buildings.
But in the atmosphere.
Fewer people.
Wider spaces.
Silence stretching between everything.
Auremont slowly stopped feeling like a city…
and started feeling like layers of different worlds placed carefully on top of each other.
Isabella noticed it too.
“They really built everything around hierarchy,” she murmured.
I nodded.
“They always did.”
The name appeared ahead.
HALCYON MIRRORS
Even seeing it again made something tighten slightly in my chest.
Not fear.
Not excitement.
Something in between.
The van slowed as we approached the main entrance.
Security was already in place.
Not loud.
Not aggressive.
Just… present.
Controlled.
The checkpoint sat just before entry into the inner clusters.
A guard stepped forward, calm and professional.
“Identification.”
My passport was handed over again.
A brief glance.
Then another look…this time at me.
A nod followed.
And just like that…
we were cleared.
The gate opened smoothly.
No noise.
No delay.
The van moved forward.
Inside, the difference was immediate.
The roads widened.
The surroundings quieted.
No crowd.
No movement.
Just silence… and space.
Clusters of homes appeared ahead…each one privately enclosed.
Each pair set apart from the others.
Structured.
Intentional.
Exclusive.
Mom leaned slightly forward.
“Is this where we’re staying?” she asked carefully.
“Yes,” I Soren replied.
A small silence followed.
Then Leo leaned in slightly, lowering his voice
“…People actually live in places with names like that?”
No one answered.
The van turned into our cluster.
A private gate.
A shared entrance for just two homes.
It opened automatically.
And then…
we saw them.
Two identical mansions.
Facing each other.
Perfectly mirrored.
Separated by a shared, landscaped space that stretched quietly between them.
Still.
Balanced.
Like they were built to reflect more than just structure.
The van came to a stop.
We stepped out slowly.
Leo didn’t speak this time.
He just looked around.
Taking everything in.
The silence.
The scale.
The reality of it.
The driver began unloading the bags.
One by one.
No rush.
No conversation.
Just movement.
When everything was set down, he gave a brief nod and drove off.
Leaving us there.
Alone with it.
I turned slightly, gesturing toward the two houses.
“This is the one for the Sorens… and this is ours.”
Isabella's dad stepped towards me, taking my hand.
“Thank you very much for this, Alvara,” he said.
I shook my head immediately.
“No, I did nothing. We both contributed…we bought it together.”
“But Isabella said…”
“No,” I said gently. “Forget everything Isabella said. This is the truth.”
He looked at Isabella.
Then nodded.
Understanding settling quietly between them.
“So go settle in,” I continued, “and then come back for dinner.”
“Yes,” Mom added. “Mr. Soren, you should come over when you’re done. We’re neighbors now.”
He smiled faintly.
“Okay. We’ll definitely come back.”
“Bye,” Isabella said, already turning toward their house with her father.
We turned toward ours.
For a moment…
I just stood there.
Taking it in one last time.
Then I stepped forward.
The entrance panel lit up the moment I approached.
I entered the pin.
A soft beep followed.
Then…
a quiet click.
The door unlocked.
I pushed it open.
The sound echoed softly into the still air.
For a second…
I didn’t move.
I just stood there.
At the threshold.
Between everything we had left behind…
and everything waiting ahead.
Then I stepped in.
The house responded the moment we crossed the threshold.
Soft ambient lights came on automatically, spreading gently across the hallway like the space was waking up for us.
No noise.
No delay.
Just quiet precision.
Behind us, the door closed on its own with a soft, final sound.
Mom stepped in first.
She slowed immediately.
Leo followed behind her, already looking around…this time without saying anything.
I entered last.
And that was when it felt real.
The air inside was different…
Cool.
Filtered.
Almost untouched.
Like the house had been sealed in silence… waiting.
For us.
We moved forward slowly.
The living room opened up first.
Wide.
Expansive.
High ceilings stretching effortlessly above us.
Floor-to-ceiling glass panels lined one side of the space, layered with already-styled curtains that softened the daylight pouring in.
Everything was already in place.
Not empty.
Not staged.
Finished.
Intentional.
Ours.
Mom stopped just inside the living area.
Her eyes moved slowly across the room.
Taking everything in.
The furniture wasn’t basic.
It was custom.
Neutral-toned luxury pieces arranged with quiet precision… sculptural tables, soft textures, clean lines.
Nothing loud.
Nothing excessive.
Everything is balanced.
Leo walked further in, quieter than I had ever seen him.
He ran his hand lightly along the back of the sofa.
“…This is actually insane,” he muttered.
Mom didn’t respond.
She just exhaled softly.
Not overwhelmed.
Just… absorbing it.
Like she was trying to understand how something like this had become her reality.
I stepped further inside.
The house responded again.
Soft lighting adjusted as I moved.
Subtle.
Seamless.
Almost like it was aware.
We moved toward the kitchen next.
The lights shifted automatically as we stepped in.
A warm glow settled beneath the cabinets.
The marble island stood at the center…clean, polished, flawless.
Built-in appliances were already installed, blended perfectly into the walls.
No clutter.
No gaps.
Everything is integrated.
“This…” Mom whispered, stepping closer. “I can’t believe I’m inside the kind of kitchen I always see on TV… it’s unbelievable.”
Her hand hovered for a moment before she touched the surface.
Real.
Solid.
Expensive.
But calm.
The system remained silent.
No announcements.
No interruptions.
Just presence.
We didn’t stay long.
We kept moving.
The hallway stretched deeper into the house, guiding us naturally.
Quiet.
Minimal.
Intentional.
We climbed the staircase next.
Mom had always said she wanted to know what it felt like to live upstairs.
Now she would.
We entered her room first.
Leo and I stepped in immediately…
But she paused at the doorway.
Just for a moment.
Then she stepped inside.
The room was spacious, but soft.
Neutral luxury tones wrapped the space.
Floor-to-ceiling glass panels opened the room outward, framed by long, layered curtains already styled into place.
The bed was already set.
Perfectly made.
The wardrobes were fully built-in.
Structured.
Finished.
Empty…but ready.
Waiting to be filled.
Not constructed.
She didn’t say anything.
But she didn’t need to.
She liked it.
“Alvara… this is too much. It must have cost a lot,” she said quietly.
“Yes,” I replied calmly. “It was expensive… but not too costly for us.”
“I never expected something like this,” she said.
I just smiled.
Then she pulled me into a hug.
“Thank you,” she muttered.
I held her for a second before pulling back gently.
“Start settling in,” I said softly. “I’ll show Leo his room.”
But she followed us anyway.
The last door on the corridor.
I opened it.
Leo stepped in first.
Paused.
Then he turned slowly.
“…Okay,” he said.
He walked further into the room, this time really looking.
The same structure.
The same quiet luxury.
Floor-to-ceiling glass.
Styled curtains.
A fully set bed.
Built-in wardrobes.
Everything is ready.
Nothing missing.
“Is this really mine?” he asked.
“Don’t you like it?” I asked.
He smiled, walking toward the bed, running his hands over it like he needed to feel it.
“I love it,” he said. “I never thought I’d have a room like this one day.”
I walked over and pulled him into a warm hug.
“You can now,” I said softly. “We can live in places like this now.”
He pulled back, looking around again, then laughed under his breath.
“It’s actually mine,” he said, like he needed to hear it out loud.
Mom leaned lightly against the doorway behind us.
Her expression had softened completely now.
“Yes,” I said gently.
“Yours.”
A small pause settled between us.
Then she spoke again.
“So… where’s yours?”
I glanced toward the corridor.
Then back at her.
“Follow me,” I said softly.
“I’ll show you.”
We stepped out of Leo’s room and continued down the corridor.
The hallway remained quiet.
Soft lighting followed us, steady and warm.
I stopped in front of the last door.
For a second, my hand rested on the handle.
Then I opened it.
I stepped in first.
The room opened up just like the others.
Same structure.
Same quiet luxury.
Floor-to-ceiling glass panels lined one side, softened by layered curtains that fell neatly to the floor.
The bed was set at the center.
Wide.
Perfectly made.
Untouched.
A sitting area rested by the glass…two chairs and a low table, arranged with the same careful intention.
The wardrobe space stretched along the wall.
Fully built.
Empty.
Waiting.
Just like Mom’s.
Just like Leo’s.
But it was larger.
Nothing about the room tried to outshine the others.
Everything matched.
Everything belonged.
But still…
It felt different.
Because it was mine.
Mom and Leo stepped in behind me.
They didn’t say anything immediately.
Just looked.
Taking it in the same way they had taken in theirs.
Leo exhaled softly.
“…Okay,” he said.
Then added, “So all the rooms are like this?”
I nodded.
“Yes.”
He shook his head slightly, almost impressed.
“That’s actually crazy.”
Mom walked further in, slower this time.
Her gaze moved around the room, not with surprise anymore…
But with understanding.
She had seen this already.
Accepted it.
“This is beautiful,” she said softly.
“Yes.”
She walked toward the glass panels, adjusting the curtain slightly before letting it fall back into place.
Then she turned to me.
For a moment, she just looked.
“You thought of everything,” she said.
I didn’t answer.
Because I didn’t know how to.
Leo walked toward the bed and pressed his hand lightly against it.
“Of course everything is the same,” he muttered. “No favoritism.”
I glanced at him.
“Do you want it to be different?”
He shook his head quickly.
“No. I like fairness.”
That made Mom smile faintly.
I walked further into the room, stopping near the window.
Looking out.
Then back at them.
“This is home now,” I said quietly.
The words settled between us.
This time, they didn’t feel new.
They felt… accepted.
Mom stepped closer and placed her hand gently on my arm.
“Yes,” she said.
“It is.”
Leo looked around one more time, then nodded to himself.
“Yeah,” he added.
“We’re starting a new life here ”
I let out a small breath.
We just stood there.
Not overwhelmed anymore.
Not unsure.
Just… present.
Inside a place that didn’t belong to one of us.
But to all of us.