Where am I? My breathing became erratic, causing my chest to contract with each breath, until I felt I was on the verge of death. It felt like a black tunnel had opened before me, and I was on my way down into it. I wondered what it would feel like to die. Would it hurt, and how much? I could only guess what would be on the other side, if there was an afterlife, but I knew without a doubt that whatever it was, I didn't want to be there. Not now, and not ever again. How could I allow my conscience to be wiped out, just so I could sleep? I was only a few minutes away from passing out again, and the last thing I needed was a repeat of that. As much as I hated to admit it, there was a very real possibility that I might very well never wake up again.
I felt a warm, pulsating sensation, and my heart began to slow. I forced myself to stop thinking, because it was too difficult to maintain. I could feel myself sinking deeper and deeper into a black abyss of nothingness, but there was a light, and it was growing brighter with every breath I took. It felt like a bright, warm sun was shining down on me. My eyes hurt so much that I had to squint to even try to look at it. I squinted harder, squinting so much that a sharp prickly pain shot up from my forehead. This was no longer a dream or a hallucination; this was reality, and reality was the one thing I didn't want to be. My heart was steady and calm now, and the heat was comforting, so I closed my eyes. I drifted further and further, until I felt like I was floating in the air, but I didn't mind. A warm, loving feeling surrounded me, and I was content to be in its presence.
I began to slowly open my eyes, but as soon as I did, the sharp pain went away. I didn't see anything. The light that was shining around me was too bright to look into. I wanted to get away, to leave this new world, but I couldn't find the door or any other exit. I turned my head to the side, and that's when I saw it. I hadn't seen anything at all in my entire life. It was a face, a human face. But not just any human. It was a dark, frightening face, and I knew right away that I would be terrified to ever come back into this world again.
I didn't recognize this woman's face, but she was beautiful. She had large brown eyes, full lips and a perfect complexion, not a single pimple in sight. Her hair was long, black, and straight, and it hung all the way down to her waist. She was stunningly beautiful, but that wasn't the only reason I'd stopped breathing. My mouth was suddenly dry, and a cold lump formed in my throat. I was scared of this woman. I could feel the fear coursing through my body, but I also felt something else, something warmer. It was a feeling that made my heart race, and my limbs vibrate in excitement. The other thing I didn't like was how happy she was. She was smiling, and her teeth were white. I noticed the rest of her teeth too, and they were as white as her teeth. The only thing she had that wasn't perfect was a small scar just under her right eye. I couldn't see it at first, because it was covered by her bangs, but then I saw it. It was shaped like a tiny mountain, and I wished I could reach out and touch it.
I watched her smile at me, and it felt like her beauty was radiating out in waves. This woman wasn't human. She looked like a goddess. As I watched her for what felt like hours, I began to relax, because she was still smiling at me, so it couldn't be that bad. My heart rate sped up, though, when she began to move toward me. What was she doing? I didn't want to let her get any closer, but I couldn't move, either. I could barely breathe, because my chest was so tight, and I felt like I was going to faint. I had to get away, but I couldn't make myself move. Why couldn't I? She wasn't going to hurt me. She couldn't. It would be wrong, and I wanted to be with her, and no one was going to take me from her. She was holding a cup in her hands, but I couldn't look at her. All I could see was her face. She was so beautiful, I couldn't help but wonder why anyone would ever hurt her.
She was so close to me now. Her beautiful face was inches away, and I could smell the scent of her perfume. It smelled like flowers, like the ones growing wild in the field back home. The scent was so intoxicating, and it made me feel relaxed. I'd been watching her, and it had taken me a while to realize she was looking at me, too. "You're just so beautiful," she said to me. She put the cup to her lips and took a small sip. I wanted to tell her that was rude, but the only thing I could do was look at her. I was still unable to breathe. I was terrified of her. The thing was, I didn't want to leave her. I felt like I was still floating, or even flying, up and up into the sky, but when I looked down, I noticed I wasn't in the sky. The roof of the roofless room we were in had just come into view. It had a rusty red roof, and there were cracks running down the walls. The walls were crumbling, and it appeared as though the ceiling could fall in at any moment. We were in a large barn, where the horses were milling around.
"How did we get in here?" I asked the goddess. She was still staring at me, smiling. She didn't say anything, but her eyes filled with joy. I wondered if she was thinking the same thing I was, which was why she was smiling. "How did we get here?" I repeated, this time in a whisper. She looked at me and took another sip from her cup.
"You'll see. Soon," she said. Her eyes were looking at me again, searching for something. I wondered what was in that cup. I was desperate to find out, but she was still so beautiful that I couldn't bring myself to ask. I was content to wait until she was ready to tell me. But I didn't want to leave without anything, but an answer. I looked around, I needed to see where we were and how we were going to get out. There were no windows in this room. I felt that my feet were stuck to the floor, and I couldn't move them. I tried, but I was still too afraid to walk. The goddess was still staring at me, smiling and watching me with those brown eyes. I couldn't stand it anymore, I had to ask her how we got in here.
"Please," I said. I wasn't sure how she would react, but I hoped she would understand. I looked up at her and waited for her to answer. She was still looking at me, and for some reason I had the feeling I wasn't going to like what she was going to say.
"Don't be afraid," she said, as though she could read my mind. It was strange, but I had the same feeling.
"I'm not afraid," I said, but that wasn't true. I wasn't afraid of her; I was afraid of what I was going to find out.
"I know what you are," she said. Her voice was soft, like that of a loving mother. She still hadn't taken her eyes off of me. I had never seen anyone look at me like this, but I also hadn't ever met anyone like her. I had no idea how to respond, so I just sat there quietly and waited for what she had to say. "Your mother is with me. I thought you should know." I didn't think it was possible, but her smile got even bigger. It was truly like the sun was shining right down on her, and it felt as though all of her warmth was radiating towards me. "We are in another world. We can leave anytime we want."
"What are you doing here?" I asked. I could barely even make out her features, but what I could see of her beauty was even more apparent. I could see her full lips and straight, white teeth, and I wanted to reach out and touch them. "Why did you come to find me?" I asked, but she just laughed. It was a wonderful, loving laugh, like that of a mother. "I came for you," she said, and then she gave me another warm, loving smile. "I was watching you, wondering what was going to happen."
"What happened?"
"You became such a naughty boy." Her voice wasn't the subtle whisper it had been before. She seemed almost disgruntled with me. Her beautiful face turned from loving to mean and her voice sounded like she was scolding me. It was a tone I'd never heard before, but I didn't understand it. "You know how much trouble you could get into, don't you?"
"I didn't do anything!" I pleaded. She was supposed to be happy, not upset with me.
"There is but one fitting punishment." She paused, "To work at Burger King."
"NOOOOOOOOO!!!" I screamed.