The first thirty minutes passed by in an instant, as I was still stuck in the vivid memories of last night. Seeing how I suddenly turned into a vegetable, Vic thought that I caught a cold, therefore took pity on me and skipped the first two classes this morning in order to, in his own words, ‘take care of me’. Unfortunately for me though, in his dictionary, that represents forcing me to drink over a liter of warm tea (which I almost drowned in), a heavy breakfast consisting of French fries with eggs and bacon (with enough fats to give me a stroke), after which a good ten hours sleep (that I was really-REALLY trying to avoid).

So, since all that sounds that I will end up in a hospital or worse, a looney bin, I refused. Or at least I tried… until he forced me to do it anyway since, ‘he knows better’. What more could I do, but play along until he left?

“Great… It’s not enough that my head feels as if it’s ready to burst apart like a watermelon any second now, but there’s a new stomach ache as well to complement it. I need a shower…”

Complaining silently about it while realizing how much I stank due to me transpiring worse than an athlete running a marathon, I decided to hit the showers. I was of course undecided between washing my very sticky and disgusting looking clothes I slept in, or simply purging them with fire. I fortunately decided on the first one, given that I don’t have a stable source of income and have to sponge of Vic’s sport bets…

“You don’t win if you don’t play, however, winning EVERYTIME you play shouldn’t be possible, right? How is he an exception!?”

Shaking my head at my uselessness and seriously considering dropping the college that I haven’t attended since the start of this year, I pondered how I would fare if I would get a job. Wandering with different thoughts passing through my mind, while naked throughout the apartment, I found myself contemplating my body in the bathroom mirror.

“Ugh… 404! Six-pack no longer found! Damn… I need to start exercising aga…”

But my useless banter was brought to a forced stop, as my line of sight was forcibly pulled in a specific area. With an increased heartbeat rate and rushed breathing, I kept staring at one exact spot. Touching it slightly with my fingers and tracing the skin, I swallowed a mouthful of saliva and noticed how my hands were shaking, ever so slightly.

It was the spot between the seventh and the eight rib on the left side. It didn’t feel painful, it wasn’t bruised… hell! It wasn’t even slightly red! But… I could vividly remember the feeling of the dagger piercing through my skin and plunging itself deeply into the heart, using that small gap.

Only then did I notice that my cousin’s ‘recipe for disaster’ didn’t help me much in forgetting about the dream. Rather, it helped me slightly ignore it and pretend that it didn’t happen. Now however, judging by the overly tensed muscles on my body and the bloodshot eyes… it didn’t work as much as I would’ve wanted it to.

“I had this dream for as long as I can remember. How did it change so drastically in one night and why!? For Reaper’s sake! There must be a reason!”

Turning on the cold water in the shower and enjoying the frigid feeling of water cleansing my body, I used my every available neuron to figure out some clues. The conclusion I’ve reached? ‘Fucked if I know!’

How the hell was I supposed to know what triggered this ‘patch’ for my nightmare. I was perfectly fine with Version 1.0 where I wake up seconds before the dagger hits me. Who needs all this extra Hitchcock-type horror effects?

“Is that really the only way? It sounds stupidly stupid…”

Sighing and resigning myself to my fate, I wiped myself dry, got dressed, wanted to drink a coffee to slightly procrastinate this stupid decision I was about to make and then realized that I was still full from the liter of tea forced down my throat, got dressed and… left the house.

Mhm! My stupidly stupid idea, was to re-trace the steps from the dream. That’s like… being in a horror movie and you hear some sort of sound coming from the woods at midnight, so you decide to take a lantern with you and explore the source of it alone. At least you have a lantern that you can use to either smash your own head in when the killer finds you, or it can even become the object the killer shoves up your ass once he catches your dumb-ass!

In my case though… I had no other choice. It was like something was actively preventing me from finding out anything. I had this feeling nagging at the back of my mind and it didn’t go away no matter how much I tried ignoring it… It felt as if I was forgetting something really important. Therefore, I ventured outside under the watch of the sweltering sun which was mercilessly cooking the loathsome couples enjoying the good weather.

Wishing them many strokes, I navigated throughout the sea of people aimlessly.

“How can I feel so parched after drinking that much this morning!?”

Feeling like a dry fish on a sandy beach, I tried to find reprieve in a nearby bar or terrace. To my utmost lack of fortune though, I obviously let me wallet at home, making the corners of my mouth twitch in annoyment. Since there wasn’t any chance for me to buy myself a proper drink, I decided to go for a free one.

“…but did I really had to re-trace my steps all the way here though?”

Unbelievable enough, I was standing in front of some really high walls which still couldn’t hide the towering trees behind them. Looking towards a specific spot, I could vaguely remember a certain creepy-stalkerish schoolgirl watching me blend in the crown, while so scared that I was worrying about my underwear.

Patting myself on the back for a really well done job, I entered the park and waited in line with the other 7 years old to drink some water. With my thirst quenched, I found the bench on which I previously feel asleep inside my dream and… well, sat on it.

Then, the most predictable thing happened. I fucking feel asleep, even if I tried my darn best not to. Realizing that it was already night now that I was awake again, I nervously turned my head towards the lightpole near my bench.

“Ooooooh, fuck yeah!!! It’s still working! Thank Reaper…”

And just as predictably, it stopped working almost instantly after. My words and/or curses, remained stuck in my throat, unable to form any proper sentences, followed by my head turning like a really poorly oiled door knob… almost creaking.

“You’ve gotta be shitting me…”

There she was! The creepy schoolgirl was watching me intently with a wide smile on her face.

[Hey!] – she greeted me

“Hey…” – I once again, involuntarily answered

[You've been sleeping for quite a while. Are you okay?]

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck! I almost forgot how worse this question sounded the first time. Hearing it again, it’s even worse!

“Yes, thank you for your concern. My name is Michael. May I inquire yours?”

Hell yeah, baby! Breaking the pattern! Exactly what are you going to do about it, huh!? Exactly! Nothing! I actually tried it this morning with Vic as well and just as I thought, my actions change the obvious pattern I dreamt about.

But judging from her confused expression, something was amiss…

[This… why is this conversation so familiar?]

“Eh!?”

Pattern my ass! What the hell does she mean? That’s not something that was supposed to happen… Obviously, now that I was already slightly panicking, my eyes were already opened as wide as possible, in the hope to catch a glimpse of her… just in case she starts dashing towards me with a fucking hatchet in hand.

And once more, predictably enough, the lightpole under which her bench was blinked and in that split second, she vanished.

“What the fuck!? Where did she go?”

Already scared shitless, I was doing 360’s with the hope that I will be able to see her before she appears directly behind me. To my misfortune, when the lights return to my lightpole, she fucking materialized right out the fucking nether and appeared right in front of me.

Before I could fall on my ass like the disgrace I knew I was, her hands caught a hold of my face, while her feline-like eyes looked deeply into my own. A perfume similar to a combination of freshly mowed grass, oranges and mint filled my nostrils, as her fingers caressed my face.

[So that’s how it is… I really dislike being used like this… Little boy, you might want to wake up soon, or else… Hehe! Don’t blame this lady for not warning you.]

What happened next? She flicked my forehead, I winced because of the sudden pain and closed my eyes, only to open them again and find her gone again.

“Since I’m re-tracing my steps, how about I bolt out of here once more…”

And so I did, this time blending in the crowd without even looking behind. Little did I know that the same lady from before, was sitting on the same spot, playfully swinging her legs back and forth, with a wide grin on her face.

[To actually try to use this lady, you poor taste bastard know no shame! Hmpf! You actually think it’s that easy to erase one of Khrone’s descendants? Pfft! You overestimate your worth, demon scum! This lady is bored, therefore will watch your performance. Seeing you fail will surely amuse me greatly. Hahaha!]

As her serene laughter echoed throughout the night, the sky itself shuddered for an almost impossible to see fraction of a second. Then, the moon brought silence to everything once more.