Awake

“Hello?”

You look up, looking around the room, wondering if someone had spoken, but your family around you were all busy with their own things. Your mother was cooking, your father was helping your brother with his homework, and your baby sister was sitting on the floor playing with a few toys. But none of them looked like they had spoken to you exclusively. You turned back to your computer in front of you, returning to the task you had previously been so focused on.

“Hello?”

For a moment, you thought that maybe someone had put on Adele, but the music didn’t continue, so that thought fell out as soon as it came. You looked around again, maybe one of them was playing a trick on you? If so, it wasn’t very funny.
Sighing, you ran your fingers through your hair, trying to focus on the write-up you were working on.

“Are you there?”

Alright, this wasn’t just you. It couldn’t have been. Nothing was playing on the television, no one looked like they’d spoken, nor heard anything strange. It was like a phantom voice.

You could have laughed. It was funny how the mind goes straight to ghosts and other supernatural life forms, rather than focusing on the perfectly logical answer that there obviously was. Obviously.
Or maybe it was just you? You’d watched enough of those sorts of shows to know how to fight again a ghost. At least that’s what you hoped.
It was silly, there’s no such thing as ghosts! It was silly and a waste of time to focus on things like that, when there were much more important things to do. That’s what your teachers always said anyway.

You shook you head, almost like. You were just procrastinating. Making up things in your head that would get you out of working.
Turning around once more, you concentrated.

That night, after dinner and after the movie that your family always watched, you were laying in your bed. You had previously been scrolling on your phone, looking through social media, checking in with friends, doing the normal things you did. After that, you’d shut the lights off and closed your eyes.

“Hello? Hello!"

What?

"If you are seeing this you’ve been in a coma for almost twenty years due to a reason we are currently investigating.”

You’re eyes snapped open. The words had appeared on the backs of your eyes lids, like words on the pages of a book. But they were gone when you blinked. You flicked your bedside lamp on, blinking against the sudden light. Colors mixed behind your eyes, reds, yellows, oranges and purples, but no words.
You thought back to what they looked like. The blocky font they had been in, the words themselves seemed rushed, like someone who was trying to quickly scribble something down as they were running to something.

‘It was just a dream.’ You told yourself. A cool dream at that, but just a dream.

In a way, you were disappointed. The thought of leading a thrilling life in your own adventure story was a thought that had always excited you. The idea that there was more to the simple life that you lived, something beyond the cream walls and white picket fences. There had to be more to the bland neighbors and boring jobs. The idea of living your own story, one filled with fantasy and adventure what one that thrilled you as a child and still did to this day.
You reached your hand over to the lamp, turning it off as you laid your head back down on your pillow, letting out a slow breath as you closed your eyes again.

“Are you there? Sorry about that, our connection broke off.”

Okay, you hadn’t imagined that one. You swore that words had been printed out on the insides of your eyelids, burning hot. But you didn’t open your eyes this time, you kept them closed.
For all you knew, this could still be a dream, but it was a nice dream, nice enough at least and you didn’t want to give it up so quickly.

Although, the more likely reason you didn’t open your eyes, was because a part of you wanted this to be your beginning.

“We’re trying a new technique. We’re communicating with you through the subconscious part of your brain. You’ll only be able to hear this when you’re asleep, or close to it.”

Images flashed in your vision. Images of a white room, filled with people in weird clothing. Another image of a person standing above you, flashing a light into your eyes. Then there was a man, with a strange machine, little wires hooked up to your head and a note pad in his hand. He kept glancing up at you, then looking back down at his notes.
The images suddenly changed. The room became darker and the people got fewer.
An image came up of the room you were in, the white walls covered in something red. On the walls themselves there were little bits of pinkish colored things.
Then there was a face in front of yours, covered in scratches and bruises.

“We don’t know where this message will end up in your dream, but we’re hoping we’re getting through.”

Pictures flashed in front of your eyes, varying from the horrific ones that you’d just seen, to the softer, more peaceful ones. The flashed and changed so quickly that they became mixed in with each other, creating a horrible, mixed picture.

“Please wake up.”
The words burned, a hot burn, but a cold burn at the same time. Your felt like there was sand in your eyes, and water in your lungs. You felt like choking, but your kept breathing.

“Help us.”

Then you woke up.