That night, I couldn’t sleep. Which was also pretty strange, since sleeping might as well be a superpower of mine at this point. I kept rolling around in my bed, thinking of what had happened. The fight, the victim,...the ghost.
This was strange.
Was I feeling…sad?
I wasn’t involved in that. I didn’tt even know any of the people there! And, worst of all, I stopped feeling emotions a long time ago…Why was it working now?
All these questions revolved around my head, like sharks circling their prey before going for the kill. The headache and confusion eventually did lull me into sleep though.
Except, it was a strange type of sleep…
It didn’t feel like anything.
In fact, it didn’t feel like sleep at all.
I felt as if I was being pulled away. I could still feel my body lying on my ragged excuse for a mattress, but it felt as if my soul was being…replaced.
Then, all those feelings came to a sudden stop.
I panickedly opened my eyes, trying to shake off the nauseous feeling.
But I wasn’t in my bed anymore.
I was in the school field.
Hanging.
The bully’s hands gripped tightly around my neck…
God damn it.
I couldn’t feel his giant hands clasping around me, only the burning sensation somewhere in my upper body, my head ringing like a school bell-no, not even that. It was like a piercing scream in desperation to the gods above to have mercy on me to have a quick death. I couldn’t really “feel” anything- only the slow pull of death dragging me towards him. Suddenly, a burst of memories flashed before my eyes. Memories that weren’t mine.
I saw my frien-no, someone’s friends sitting beside them, laughing with them at some stupid remark they made. I saw them happily and eating together, occasionally trading food and making jokes. I usually didn’t have friends, so this was a completely alien experience to me. a tinge of warmness flickering from inside the depths of my heart. Huh. Emotion. That was something I haven’t experienced for a while.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
I saw a girl, around my age, walking beside me on the playground, talking passionately about particle accelerators as I looked deep into her eyes.
Her eyes.
They weren’t anything special.
Just… alive.
They moved when she spoke, widening when she got excited, narrowing when she thought, flickering with tiny sparks of amusement at her own terrible jokes.
They were the kind of eyes that made you forget you were supposed to respond.
Her hair was slightly messy, strands falling out of place no matter how many times she subconsciously tried to fix it. It bounced when she walked, catching the sunlight for brief moments before falling back into ordinary existence.
She didn’t seem to notice.
It seemed like she didn’t have a care in the world- so passionate about whatever she was talking about.
There it was again. A twang in my chest. Why the hell am I experiencing these emotions? They definitely weren’t mine-like I was turning into someone else-someone apparently vulnerable to emotions and their own memories. Yuck. I always thought those kinds of people were wea-
My survival instincts kicked in, forcing the forged memories (and my thoughts) to blur, cracking to reveal the actual depressing situation I was in. The playground, the crowd of students, the bully,... They all came back in a sudden rush. Welp. I guess I had a good life. I forced my eyes shut and limped my muscles, preparing myself for my inevitable end. Well-at least, I tried to do it. A mysterious force stopped me from accepting my death. It was those memories again. A rage of emotions suddenly overwhelmed my mind as I (involuntarily) thought back to those images in my head. Hundreds of thoughts and questions flooded my mind, overwhelming the initial thoughts of death. Eventually, those hundreds of thoughts all lead back to one: “I can’t die. Not now. Not here.”
Maybe it was the emotions
Maybe it was me
Maybe it was whatever supernatural event was happening
I didn’t think-it was like my body was acting all by itself. I reached out my hand-and punched the bully in the face.
Uh oh. I could clearly see his face, flushing red and scrunched up with anger. I said “clearly” because his face was now inches from my face, letting me feel the heat emitting from his frustration. He whispered to me sharply, being careful not to let anyone hear(which was a surprise because I didn’t think he had the mental capacity to breathe).
“I think you have a death wish. I see. Let me help you.”
I was going to get at least a sarcastic remark in before- his grip tightened further around my neck, and I could hear the cracking of my bones shattering like pieces of glass, biting into my flesh from the inside. I could feel the blood flowing from my neck, dripping down on my shoulders pathetically. I collapsed, the life completely removed from me. I could feel the world around me blurring, darkening as the pain in my head fades away. In a desperate rush, I tried to claw at the ground, screaming, anything that would delay my end. But my body didn’t listen. It couldn’t listen, for had already gone completely limp. I scanned the crowd of students, taking in a last view of my surroundings. That was when I saw it. Him. A boy, crossing his arms and looking at me in a mix of disgust and disappointment, muttering to himself quietly. That boy was me. He seemed so distant now, so alien, that I couldn’t bear thinking that was me, just a few hours ago. He gave one final disappointed shake of his head before stepping away, leaving me alone on the cold cement ground. I found a bitter taste in my tongue. It could be from my current situation, or from the dirt I swallowed on my descent to the hard floor. With no motivation left for me to cling on, I closed my eyes, accepting the warmth of death’s embrace.
Huh? I wasn’t dead. I could still hear my heart beating, my breaths now short and quick-but they were still there. I opened my eyes. I was in my bed again. I hurriedly sat up and drew the curtains. It was still dark. I checked my watch. 10pm - around the same time I decided to go to sleep. Phew. It was just a dream. Still-it was such a strange dream. And it was so real, like I was actually there, or rather, in someone else’s body. Exhausted, I fell back to sleep-a peaceful, dreamless sleep- one where I wasn’t being pushed to the verge of death and experience memories that didn’t really exist.