His baggy eyes wouldn't listen to him.
Open! OPEN!
He could feel it on his leg.
OPEN!!!
His body wouldn't move, not an inch. It was drenched in a cold sweat, seemingly sticking to the duvet.
OPEN!!!... please...
It crawled further up his leg, pulling, grabbing, twisting on his limbs in an effort to drag him away.
OPENNN!!!!!!!!
His head snapped back, his body violently jerked and...
He was awake. Alive. Free. Awake...
But who was he? That was unmistakably his face in the mirror in front of him, however it wasn't him, not his face. Nor was this his room, or even house, or even city. The man staring back at him with sullen eyes was around his mid twenties and dressed casually in jeans and shirt. However, the man didn't like what he was wearing, it made him uncomfortable: the jeans stuck to his body like glue and his shirt was baggy, reaching his mid thigh in length. His face was clean shaven and his hair was slicked back full of grease with a few strands dangling in front of his face.
He wiped his brow clean of sweat then took a look at his surroundings. The room was illuminated in a dirty yellow hue, the bed laid out underneath, centred proportionally to the box of a room. It's decorations only added to its unnerving atmosphere; the old wardrobe and drawer were peeling, with dark rotten mold accumulating on the surface.
The man searched through the room's draws and wardrobe only to find nothing; not a trace of his or even someones existence; not even clothes. However, tucked into a pocket of his jeans, there was a crumbled piece of paper that could hold the answer he was looking for. Unfolding the piece, a letter addressed to an Colin Hemmingsworth was revealed, the name sparking a hidden feeling within the man. This must be his name, this must be what he was and is now. Although, upon inspection of the letter, the contents of it had been obscured by a large patch of blood coagulating on the surface. It was fresh. The words Colin could make out were incomprehensible without the context he so desperately desired.
Without any other information to continue on, Colin slowly opened the bedroom's door unveiling a dark, damp, decrepit hallway that seemed to endlessly drift into the darkness. He strained his eyes, hoping to make out shapes in the darkness to no avail.
Colin felt for a light switch. His hand eventually bumped into one and he flicked it. Nothing happened. He turned it off and on to make sure. Still, nothing happened. Reluctantly he stepped forward, hands spreading out, feeling the lumpy wallpaper beneath his fingertips, tracing the wall to keep himself from falling into something. His eyes were strained, peering into the boundless darkness, trying to make sense of his surroundings.
Minutes passed, with no sign of the hallway ending. Colin contemplated heading back but decided nothing would be achieved if he left, he could only march on into the night, the black swallowing him whole.
Another minute passed and nothing had changed, his eyes had become more adjusted to the lack of light, able to see further down the hallway, however there wasn't anything to see. He continued.
Another minute passed. A noisy hum suddenly erupted from the silence, the sort of hum of a generator being switched on or a bathroom light. It seemed the end was not too far. He continued.
Another minute passed and Colin started to hear muffled voices echoing, bouncing off the claustrophobic hallway walls. People. There were people ahead. He continued.
Another minute passed. The voices grew clearer, the humming grew louder, as he reached a line of light spreading from a crack in a slightly ajar doorway. The noise was bellowing from the gap, welcoming the man back into society. He could make out words in the overlapping voices of door.
'It's his own fault.'
'Goodbye old friend.'
'I'll miss him.'
'He should of never listened to that girl.'
And he continued.
Throwing the door open, Colin entered with a smile on his face only to be met with silence. Nobody was there. The room was empty.
A million different questions ran rapidly through his mind at once, overwhelming him.
Where had everyone go-Who did I hear-What did I hear-How was this possi-
What is going on?
The door gently closed behind him with a click, forcing him to assess the situation and the box he was in.
The room in front of him was an average British living room; a television mounted on the wall, facing a couple of sofas with an armchair off to the side; a bookshelf lined with books and board games stood against the far wall and window to the left of it, peering out in the cold dark night. Outside street lamps cast light on the road which was cramoed tight with parked cars all lined up in one direction. An analog clock hung near the television displaying the time to be 9:46pm. Everything was tinged in the same sickly yellow as the room Colin woke up in.
But something was missing.
Colin scanned the room once again, unable to find anything out of the ordinary. Then it hit him.
Where was the door?
The door behind him was gone, replaced with a small antique wooden desk, holding a lamp which was shining a new yellow into the room. A vibrant yellow-green. The sort of colour you expected sick to be.
Colin turned to the room once more. There was no other door. He instead found his only option be the window which was two stories high up. A street lamp stood still like a queen's guard close to the window, almost beckoning him outside to climb it down. Well it's not like he had a choice in the matter.
Bracing himself, Colin pushed open the window and hung himself off the edge with his hands. The floor wasn't too far down but the man didn't want to risk any injury, so he climbed back up to calculate the distance between the ledge and street lamp. It wasn't too far: just enough to catch onto if he jumped. With one deep inhale Colin leaped toward the lamp, almost missing, and barely latching onto the pole with his fingers, pulling himself to hug it tight.
That wasn't so bad.
As Colin descended, he saw the light around him flicker then extinguish, plunging the street into Infinite darkness. He was back in his original predicament with the hallway.
The darkness was suffocating, he could tell what his surroundings look like from when the light was on but just couldn't see it. He though best to sit and let his eyes adjust to the dark, opening and closing them furiously in hope's of being able to see the tiniest bit better.
Seconds passed that felt like hours as his eyes steadily adjusted to the pitch black. More of his surroundings changed from a giant swirling hole to a coherent black shape. He could soon see much further along the street, almost down to the end.
Click.
What was that?
Click.
It came from behind him.
Click. Click. Click.
Footsteps.
'Hello? Is someone there?' Colin asked the night.
Click. Click. Click. Click. Click.
It was getting closer.
'Look mate, I'm not in the mood for these games.'
Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click.
Even closer.
Colin stared in the direction the sound was coming from unable to make out anything.
'H-hey, no need for the s-silent treatment, ay?'
Click. CLICK. CLICK. CLICK. CLICK. CLICK.
The sound stopped about a foot in front of him yet Colin still couldn't see anyone in the dark, despite seeing further than a few feet.
'You don't have to h-hide, I'm not gonna hurt you.' Colin said softly with a tremor in his voice.
He was frozen.
CLICK. CLICK. CLICK. CLICK. Click. Click. Click. click.
The footsteps passed without contact, leaving as quickly as they came.
Colin breathed a sigh of relief, thanking all the Gods that nothing happened.
BZZT!
'ARGH!' He jumped.
Suddenly the street lamps flickered back to life, blinding Colin who had only just gotten used to the lack of illumination.
Well at least now he could see properly.
But what was that thing? The sound of shoes clicking along the pavement? Or was it a person? Or something else entirely?
Anyway where was he to go now?
He was free but how free?
Colin once again checked his surroundings; he was in the middle of the road, lines of conjoined houses on either side running down the hill into a large shopping centre that he could see in the distance. The houses looked empty and cold all lined up with their lights out.
There wasn't a single soul in sight. Not anybody who he could share his thought or his fright with. However the lights in town were shining bright, presumably because there were people there.
Colin headed in the direction of the town centre hoping to find some sort of salvation and answers over there...