Chapter 3 - Y/N

Another weird nightmare.

I've been having those quite often lately, sometimes even repeatedly through the night. And as much as I try different things to alleviate them, nothing seems to help. I've tried different types of tea, medication, CBD oils, everything and anything that I came across online that supposedly works with nightmares. 

Even meditation, which I just can't seem to see the point. Maybe it doesn't work for me because I get distracted, and then I feel bored.

Nothing. seems. to. fucking. work.

I feel exhausted at work, add up the fact that I keep feeling like I'm being watched. Sometimes I catch myself feeling paranoid even at home, but it gets worse at work. I try to keep myself busy with school and stuff, but my lack of sleep and anxiety are getting on my nerves. I genuinely don't want my mind to break... again.

I just hope that I find a solution soon, cause I don't know what I'm gonna do. At this point, I'm desperate.

At first, the nightmares were the same, over and over. Me running in the woods towards the street, to freedom, while holding a cam recorder. The steps however, felt like they were getting closer and closer. I was still scared of looking back, because whatever it was that was following me didn't *feel* human.

I was always confused as to why I was holding an old camera, I've never owned one. It felt like I was in some sort of Blair Witch Project, but just by myself.

That happened for a couple of nights, then I started having a different nightmare.

In this one, I was camping with my best friend from high school. Mind you, I haven't talked to her for years. We were recording ourselves and being silly in the woods. The firepit was suddenly out cold, my surroundings consumed in darkness. I couldn't see my friend, but I could hear her heavy breathing and then screams. Blood chilling screams that pierced your brain like an ice pick. My friend begging for mercy, begging whatever it was to leave her alone to stop the pain.

I couldn't see anything, everything was pitch black and my anxiety was through the roof. My head started to hurt and I felt dizzy. I could hear voices around me, voices I couldn't recognize. Whispers in the dark, telling me awful stories of trauma, murder, deceit, rage, suicide... I could almost feel their cold breaths on my skin, going around me and taunting me.

Once again, after a few days the nightmare changed. This one however, this one was different.

I was in the woods, but sitting in a clearing and playing around with the fireflies. I didn't feel safe, it felt cold, and alone. Yet, I couldn't stop playing around the clearing in the middle of the woods, talking to myself.

You know that feeling of uneasiness you have in dreams, where you can't quite understand why you feel anxious? Well, that. That's what I felt.

In a blink, the fireflies were gone and I was alone in pitch black darkness. I started shaking and I felt like I couldn't get enough oxygen in my lungs. Every breath a struggle to survive. I started looking around the clearing for any sign of light or a path that could take me back home.

Suddenly, I saw glowing yellow eyes out of the corner of my eye. Feeling scared, I tried running away. As much as I felt like I was freaking out, I couldn't scream. I would open my mouth and no sound would come out.

My feet didn't move though, so I looked down and saw yellow glowing strings that bounded me to the ground. I noticed the same strings bounding my wrists too. I could feel how it burned my skin. 

With not much else to do, I turned around and found the body those yellow glowing eyes belonged to.

He wore a long coat, a hoodie and a beanie. He had coal black hair, which laid messily over his shoulders. The weirdest thing weren't his eyes or mouth, no, what weirded me out the most were the strings coming out of his fingers.

His face was cold, but there was worry and confliction in his expression. He gave me a feeling of familiarity, like I've seen him before. Almost like a dejavu.

"He's coming... Y/N. He sent them. Run" is all I heard in my head before I woke up.

I woke up panting, sweating on the floor next to my bed. My wrists and my feet were tangled in the blanket.

Sitting up, still shaking from the fear of that nightmare, I glanced at the clock. 2 PM. 'Ok, I'm alive. It was just a... dream?', looking at my wrists while rubbing them I saw a faint reddish color around them. 'The blanket maybe... I don't know, it felt real, too real'. Standing up and putting the covers back on the bed I tried to shake the knot in my stomach.

'Just a dream, Y/N. Come on, we're 23, we're too old to be scared of a dream'. I took some deep breaths to calm myself down and walked over to the kitchen to get a glass of water. I was spacing out a lot, feeling distracted and almost as if I was losing time.

I sat down with my glass of water to watch some T.V, trying to distract myself from the feeling that was obviously still affecting me. 'Right, I could watch (Favorite Show). That always does the trick'.

After a while I turned off the T.V and went to my bedroom to get ready for work. Even if I wanted to call in sick, I can't. I have bills to pay, and rent. So with a defeated stand, I looked over my closet for one of my uniforms and went to the bathroom to take a shower.

"Last day before my day off. I really, really need it... this fucking nightmares are making me restless", I told myself while picking up my sneakers and putting them on. "You know what, I'll wear my (F/C) apron today. Because why not".

A couple hours later, I got to the diner feeling much better. Watching T.V earlier really helped me calm down.

'It's just a dream after all, it's not real. I'm probably just stressed out'. I shook the thought away, I didn't want to get anxious again. 'The less I think about it, the better'.

Some guys sat down at one of the tables and I went to get their orders.

"Hi, welcome to the Midnight Diner. What can I get'cha?", I said with a polite smile, 'god, I hate this'.

"Why, hello gorgeous..." one of the guys said with a sly smile, "you can bring me anything you want". While talking, he raised a hand towards my waist. To which I casually just moved a bit out of his reach, so that his hand was left hanging.

Trying to keep my cool, I kept quiet and turned around to the other two guys sitting with him instead. 'I need this job, I need this job, I need this job... I wanna stab that guy in the fuckin-'

"Stop being such an asshole, James. I'm so tired of your shit", one of the other guys said. To which "James" just rolled his eyes.

"Please bring us coffee. All the coffee you have...", he added with exhaustion in his tone.

I waited a moment for the last guy to speak, but he just kept face down over the table. 'Jeez, they're exhausted alright'.

Turning around to bring those guys' coffee, I took the opportunity to glare at the guy they called James and left.

While getting the coffee pot, I heard the front door open. Out of instinct, I turned to see the new customers, 'wait why are they wearing mas-'.

Before I could finish my thought, one of the guys took out a knife and stabbed the couple near the front door. Letting out a cackle that could chill your bones to the core he moved on to the other table near the door.

I was shocked. I always thought about what I'd do in an emergency, I've even planned what to do if the diner got robbed. But this was real, and I just stood there, half not believing what was happening and half screaming internally to run out the back door.

The other two guys ran to stab, and chop up the other people in the dining area. All hell broke loose, and I started hearing the screams and swearing of everyone inside. This finally triggered my mind to react, and I finally ran like hell out the back door. The coffee pot breaking and splashing everywhere behind me. A few droplets of hot coffee and small shards hurt the back of my legs. It didn't matter though, I was dead set on leaving the fuck out of there.

'Shit shit shit shit shit, I'm too out of shape for this SHIT'. Everything hurt, my legs hurt, my lungs hurt, my mind hurt.

I didn't even bother checking what happened behind me, the image of the carnage I managed to witness was enough. I just ran, and ran, and ran trying to get away from the diner. I didn't even think what I was doing, my feet just kept on going.

Soon enough I took a second to breathe. Checking my surroundings I noticed I had entered the forest, and dread washed over me like ice cold water.

'Oh no, oh nononononono I'm FUC-'.

Darkness.