As my eyes rapidly opened, and I leaned forward restlessly, I started to notice something off about my surroundings. And when I say off, I mean incredibly wrong. Instead of the comfort of my bedroom where I could stare at my idol posters till I went to sleep, I found myself in an almost pitch-black room - the only thing visible being a grey bench under a lamppost. Understandably, I was freaking out, especially since I was fully conscious, which probably meant I wasn't dreaming. Now, I'm not very strong, both physically and mentally, so after realising the situation I was in, I just started breaking down into tears. Thankfully, my little episode was cut short by the deep yet soft voice of a man who's, all of a sudden, sitting on that grey bench mentioned earlier.
"Hello child, are you lost? So am I. We are not meant to be here, are we?"
I couldn't make out much of his appearance since the lamppost light was so bright. However, I did know that he was wearing a fedora and some kind of suit.
I was stunned, of course. I wake up in some pitch-black room with an empty bench and then as soon as I look away, some man is at the bench asking me if I'm lost. I didn't respond. I just sort of froze with fear. A couple seconds later, he continued.
"I know you do not trust me; this is all very strange to you. You went to sleep, did you not? And you awoke here. I can help you. You are scared and confused - as was I, but worry not, as it is my duty to help lost souls like you."
I don't know what did it. Maybe it was his soothing voice, but I was drawn in. I very slowly walked towards the man. Step by step. I was maybe a metre away from him when I began to make out some features. He was a brown man, maybe in his 30s, with a moustache that looked like a sideways C. Apparently, it's called a horseshoe moustache. He had a black fedora, accompanied by a dark green suit and pants, as well as leather boots. As soon as he noticed I was able to actually see him, he gave me a warm smile and asked me to sit next to him.
I hesitated. This entire situation posed a lot of red flags; again, I woke up in a creepy pitch-black room and there was just this man who told me to go over to him. I mean, what if he was some kind of shapeshifting demon lord that was drawing me in with his friendly aura? What if he bit my head off or something? The more I thought about it, the more stupid it sounded, so I gave in. I took a few careful steps and sat down slowly.
"I can help you child, what is your name?"
I gave no response. I mean, you don’t just tell random strangers your name!
"I understand. This world is unlike yours. I know how to escape, but I have never been able to do it alone."
After a couple moments of silence, I finally mustered up the courage to say something.
"What do you mean? Why am I here?"
And then, this man responded with the longest speech I have ever heard.
He said, “When one goes to sleep, they enter a different world. A world of imagination and endless wonder. That world is one’s dreamscape. It is mostly just a pitch-black room, just like this, but the human brain can control the contents of the room. It essentially hallucinates a world for you. To get to one’s dreamscape, one’s subconscious has to pass the barrier from the real world to the land of endless possibilities. Normally, the trip would be a quick and easy success. However, on some rare occasions, things can go wrong, and your subconscious cannot fully get past the barrier. Instead, it falls into an endless void of nothingness.”
Honestly, that was a lot to take in, especially since how most of it sounded like made-up baloney. But before I could say anything, the man gave a very unsettled look and just all of a sudden screamed, “Run!”
I jumped in a panic, and so did he. I was confused for a moment, till I heard the most blood-lusting growl from the distant blackness. It sounded like a coughing tiger (if you will - that is my best comparison). I started running far away from the lamppost and into the void. The man earlier was no longer visible, making things so much worse. I thought I was alone till I heard the man’s faint shout from the distance. It was difficult to make out what he said because of all the loud growling, but what I think he said was: ”Child! We don’t have much time! If you want to escape this place, you must enter the nigh-”
…
And then everything went silent. No more growling. No more voice. Nothing.
I was hyperventilating at this moment. I was lost in a strange pitch-black room with nothing but a lamppost and a bench. Everything had happened so fast just now, what was I supposed to do now? Whilst I was contemplating my situation, something else happened. A completely circular hole grew on the ground, and it led to what looked like some sort of forest. I eventually just gave up and decided to jump into the hole, because, well, what else was I supposed to do?
Ever heard of a red herring? I’m pretty sure it‘s when you think something is one thing, but it‘s actually something else. Well, that‘s what happened here. I landed not very gracefully and found myself in a room which was half a monotone, overgrown forest; and half a weird, creepy pink apartment building. Both options were honestly not very welcoming, but I would much rather wander aimlessly in a weird pink building rather than a forest. Besides, I like ghosts. I steadily walked toward the building, each step filled with caution, if that makes sense. There were cracks everywhere on it; it looked incredibly weathered. In front of it was some kind of courtyard made entirely of white cement - it was pretty empty, except for a not-working fountain in the center. The courtyard was surrounded by lush green plains, kinda like the Windows 95 wallpaper.
As I got to the entrance of the pink building, a strange sensation washed over me, a feeling of familiarity yet discomfort. Like I said, it was strange. At that point, I was about to have another panic attack, but I tried my best to pull it together. I entered the building by pushing open its rusty metal doors with my shaking hands, and I was terribly welcome to a sight that I never would’ve expected to see.
Turns out the pink building led directly to the monotonous forest. Basically, I was getting nowhere. With only a fragment of hope left, I pressed forward and went deeper and deeper into the forest. That was obviously a terrible idea, because the deeper I got, the more lost I became. The landscape got darker and darker till all I could see were my nightmares becoming a reality. I collapsed on the ground in disbelief, thinking about the fact that I would never get back home. With all the thoughts running through my head, a single tear fell down my cheek. And then something amazing happened.
As my tear dropped onto the soiled ground, it began glowing a bright blue and started floating in the air. Somehow, I wasn’t surprised, but I also wasn’t disappointed. All of a sudden, a new feeling washed over me, a feeling of comfort and warmth. That tear didn’t stay in the same place for long, it soon began to zoom forward. I’m not sure what it was, but something compelled me to follow after it. After running for what felt like half an hour, the tear stopped near a bed randomly in the forest. It was lit by the natural light caused by a hole in the canopy. Again, I’m not sure why, but something compelled me to lie in the bed. Maybe it was the thought that if sleeping got me here, it could get me out. If only I hadn’t realised that so late, it would’ve saved me all the trouble of getting here. Up until now, every moment I’ve experienced in this weird headspace feels like a blur, but that wouldn’t matter anymore, because I was about to leave and I could just forget about all this.
I got into the bed and pulled the blanket over my exhausted body. I closed my eyes gently, relieved that this would all be over.
As my eyes rapidly opened, and I leaned forward restlessly, I started to notice something off about my surroundings, and when I say off, I mean- wait a second…
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