I used to live on the 8th floor of ‘Dreamland,’ a place where everything was fancy and fine, bathed in pastel colours. It was a pleasant place, where everyone treated each other kindly. But as comfortable as it was, something was missing. Everything felt plain and predictable.

One day, I decided to break free from the monotony and took the lift to explore other floors that led to different worlds. By mistake, I got off on the 7th floor, immediately sensing a stark contrast. The atmosphere felt different, almost bleak. Despite my intuition telling me to turn back, a strange force compelled me to stay as the lift doors closed behind me.

As I looked around, someone tossed me a worker suit, signalling for me to start working. I felt a strong sense of alienation. I was a stranger amongst these unfamiliar faces. I quickly realised that on this floor, everyone was treated as nobody. Everything was enveloped in shades of grey, resembling the interior of a giant machine. Each person seemed like a cog tirelessly moving, fueling the machine’s unknown purpose. I questioned if this was worth sacrificing our lives for.

Then, two familiar faces caught my attention. My intuition told me they were my mother and grandmother from my previous life. Sitting beside them, it felt like the universe wanted us to reunite. They explained that this was their destiny, to toil ceaselessly throughout their lives, even across different cycles of existence. They carried their past memories to fit seamlessly into the great machine’s intricate workings.

In a sudden revelation, I realised that those without past memories were not meant to fit into the Great Machine. Instead, we were meant to experience life fully, to truly live.

Refusing to be another cog in the machine, I made a choice to break free from the confines of the 7th floor. I didn’t need a perfect world either. I ventured forth, to create my own world, to embrace my true self, weaving my own memories, emotions, and connections of this life.