You recount the days before you were still and lifeless, but your eyes can only peer into the pitch black of your own skull. So much happens around you with little to no meaning anymore—noises and words from the outside muddle into a haze of sound without cause. The touch of people is indiscernible from the numbness that overtook you. You try to keep track of days, but with each attempt, the memory slips like the falling grains of sand in an hourglass between your fingers. Every passing moment bleeds together into one everlasting cycle of silent suffering.
Your body surrenders itself; all functions cease. Gently, it all fades until you reawaken to the feeling of grass on your skin. It has ended, you are now blissfully asleep.
- Wake Up.
- Wake Up.
- Wake Up.
Description
You found yourself within something vaguely familiar. This was as close to home as you could’ve gotten, though nothing could truly be perfect. Remembering specifics is hard, but things seemed almost as they should. Even with how difficult things were to remember, some things will never be perfect when you wake up. Your house might almost be in the right spot. The name of your street might nearly be correct. The spaces between the houses could be a meter wider or smaller than they used to be. Maybe the ground will feel different under your feet? Do you even remember the color of your own roof?
For once, your loved ones failed to greet you as you entered your home. Things felt just a little out of place again. The halls were never this compact. You couldn’t remember how many photos were on the wall in the living room. All the furniture was just a bit off-center. You called for your family, but the only response you perceive are vague… whispers and murmurs of their voices just out of reach. No matter where you went, their incoherent discussion moved from your grasp. It was impossible to listen in on their hushed words since nothing of what they said made any logical sense to you. The place you once called home felt like a hollow reminder.
The sun will never set in your paradise. A low fog will always keep you shaded and hidden from the dusty light of the sun peering through. You exited your home to go on a walk, but the neighbors weren't around to greet you. Their cars–if you could even correctly recall what they look like–were either gone or parked perfectly in their driveways. The more you went on, the more you felt uncomfortable in your own skin. The road never went on for this long, but as you doubted yourself, you spot the bend onto the next street. Homes appeared alien for a quick moment, though you soon caught vague reminders of what their features were. The route of your walk remained almost familiar to you.
You grew tired, but you continued to walk in your weary state. You shambled through increasing unfamiliarity. Home was lost, but turning back yielded no results. The further you pressed on, the more abstract the houses seemed. They were placed at haphazard distances, existed in strange proportions, displaying features that merely mimicked what you percieved of them to be. The gradual panic had set in, and you frantically fled with no destination. Your way home was lost, but you soon miraculously came across it, despite the unfamiliarity of the area.
Entering, the silence that had become standard greeted you once more. You’d eat, but you didn’t feel hungry. You chose to walk up the steps, gradually navigating the slightly incorrect hall to your bedroom. Things might've looked right, but you couldn’t recall anymore. You were unsure if your bed rested against the left or right wall. It wasn’t clear what part of the room your dresser was supposed to be located, but it was there at least. The covers carefully lifted to reveal your bed just as you remembered it. With it, you gently laid down and got comfortable. You are now blissfully asleep.
Description
You woke up in bed, but you still felt the aura of drowsiness, still tired. No one was around to disturb you, and the family still hadn’t appeared either. Things felt just about correct. It was unclear if your bed rested against the right wall, or the left one. You couldn’t quite recall where your dresser was supposed to be. The clock on your nightstand failed to alert you of the morning, though the time of day had never changed. Either way, it didn’t seem to be on in the first place.
Carefully, you exited into the hall where things almost felt correct. Slowly and cautiously, you began to go downstairs. The more you walked, the more you felt uncomfortable in your own skin. Things felt just a little out of place again. The halls were never this compact. You couldn’t remember how many photos were on the wall in the living room. All the furniture was just a bit off-center. The kitchen was set up, but it was hard for you to tell if this was the way things usually were. Inside the fridge though, you found all your favorite foods. Everything you could've wanted was in there. You reached in to take a loaf of bread from the fridge.
As odd as things were, you continued on with your routine. You used your favorite jam to make toast, bringing the plate over to the table. You didn't even recall ever putting your bread on the plate or toasting it, but it was there anyways. You took a bite of it, but you soon realized that it wasn’t jam you put on, it was mayonnaise. Perhaps you were making a sandwich and forgot. You looked inside the fridge and found all your favorite foods in there.
You reached in to take a loaf of bread, but you suddenly paused. When did you put the bread back in the fridge? When did you lay all these other things out on the counter? As soon as it became clear that something was wrong, you chose to put everything back in the refrigerator. You weren’t hungry anymore.
Moving yourself to the living room, things seemed normal for just a moment. You tried turning on the TV and luckily your favorite channel came on. Finally, something felt just right. Intently, you gazed at the screen for so long that you lost track. It begins to dawn on you that you have been watching the same segment of the news on repeat. Your eyes darted around the room in fear as the murmuring of your family returned all around you. The noise of the incomprehensible mumbles causes great fear and anxiety. You felt the urge to flee.
Carefully, you walked up the steps, gradually navigating the slightly incorrect hall to your bedroom. Things might've looked right, but you couldn’t recall anymore. You couldn’t recall where around the room your dresser was meant to be. You couldn’t recall which wall your bed was supposed to be against; the left or the right. You couldn’t remember how many photos were on the wall, or who the people in them were. You began to crawl back under your covers, curling up in fear as you closed your eyes. It was difficult to settle and begin resting, but soon sleep set in. You are now blissfully asleep.
Description
You woke up, but you still felt tired. It had become hard to get out of bed these days. The room around you felt almost familiar, but you failed to recall why. Your clock’s alarm didn’t go off as it usually did, but maybe it just wasn’t set. You shambled through increasing unfamiliarity. You’ve begun gradually making your way down the stairs.
Feeling hungry, you began to make your way to the kitchen, but you found your way to the dining room instead. You could’ve sworn that this was always where the kitchen was, but you continued on and found it regardless. The fridge was stocked with all the foods you liked, and you took out a loaf of bread, though you looked past the fact that you’ve never kept bread in the fridge. You began making yourself some toast, but the harder you tried, the less you could control the shaking of your hands. You suddenly felt weak and gave up on spreading the jam. You never recalled taking the jam out from the fridge.
Opening the fridge back up, your tremoring hand reached to put the jar of strawberry jam away. Looking at the label, you remember that it was actually raspberry and not strawberry. You never bought raspberry jam. It became hard for you to tell which one you actually enjoyed, or even what you meant to put on the toast in the first place. The idea of what you were initially making to eat slipped your mind, but as you set the jar of jam down, something caught your eye.
You gradually reached and found a photograph in the fridge, but you didn’t understand why it was there. It was impossible for you to tell who was in it, let alone who had put the photograph in such an odd spot. You held it between both your hands, gazing into the unfamiliarity of it intensely despite how confusing it was. With some amount of care, you put it back in the fridge. You were no longer hungry, but you felt the urge to wash yourself off.
The sink gradually ran with water, and you washed off your face, gazing down into the unrecognizable features in it as you uncaringly turned and wandered off to the living room. You tried turning on the TV and luckily your favorite channel was on. Finally, something felt just right. Intently, you gazed at the screen for so long that you lost track. You were seated for hours and hours, but soon you got up to make yourself lunch. The kitchen was now soaked and a thin layer of water coated the floor. You forgot to turn off the faucet.
Gradually as you turned it off, the panic began to set in. The murmuring of your loved ones echoed in the distance, but it all felt malicious. You awkwardly navigated to the front door, exiting out onto the street. Even with how difficult things were to remember, some things weren’t the same. Your house might've almost been in the right spot. The name of your street might've nearly been correct. The spaces between houses could've been a meter wider or smaller than they used to be. The sun will never set in your paradise. The low fog will always keep you shaded and hidden from the dusty light of the sun peering through. Things looked right, but you couldn't recall anymore.
You grew tired and began to turn around in the middle of the desolate street. Gradually, you shambled back onto the front steps of the house, returning once more. Things felt just a little out of place again. The halls were never this compact. You couldn’t remember how many photos were on the wall in the living room. All the furniture was just a bit off-center. You called out for anyone, but all you heard were the distant conversations of people you vaguely felt familiar with.
You nearly forgot where you were. Where were you before this? How did you end up here? What led you to become like this? The questions passed through your mind as you wandered through the rooms of your own home, but you never properly acknowledged them. You forgot that you had photos hanging on the wall, but who were the people in them? Do you even remember when or if you took them?
Carefully, you walked up the steps, gradually passing through the hall to your bedroom. You couldn’t recognize it anymore, but that didn’t matter to you. You wandered past your dresser in a stupor. Your feet stumbled across the piles of clothes you forgot you had ever taken out. The covers smelled of must and body odor, but you peacefully laid in your drowsy state. There was a photo of people at your bedside, but you were never able to recall ever seeing it. Gradually, you drift off into a relaxing trance, your eyes growing heavy as your arms grew weak. You are now blissfully asleep. Wake up.
