The end.

Those two words had slipped my mind for years as I typed away. I'd been up all night, the story rushing through me like a raging current from a broken dam. My fingers danced over the keys, sentences flowing out rhythmically.

I barely noticed the hours ticking by as the world outside dimmed, dirty clothes sprawled around my room being illuminated by the glow of my computer screen. The quiet hum of my thoughts carrying on.

When I finally typed those last two words, a strange sense of reality crept over my chair and onto me.

How many years has it been…

I leaned back, fingers hovering for a moment before they slowly set themselves down.

Since I was sixteen, I had been creating a world I loved, a safe-space for me of sorts- a sanctuary that offered refuge from the chaos of everyday life, a place where my imagination could run wild through different adventures. I filled it with people I adored and despised, each character embodying fragments of myself, my fears, and my dreams. Aspects of my life engrained and embodied into each word of the story.

Yet now… there was nothing left to write.

I wandered over to the fridge for a midnight snack, hoping the familiar dreary ritual would pull me back to reality. Then, clutching a few bites of cheese for comfort, I finally crawled into bed savoring it's squishy goodness. A small figure scurried through the darkness of the room, and lept softly onto the cushions of my bed. Coco pressed against me, warm and grounding, as though sensing the unease in my mind.

Is it really over? I thought, over and over, staring at the ceiling, my mind still tangled in the world I'd spent so many years building, looking for more words to add on. A new story to tell. I don't want to let go yet…

But there it was. The end.

My characters were moving on without me, their images flickering, waving goodbye from afar. Their hazy figures disappeared into a future I couldn't see.

If that world were real, maybe I could wave back. Maybe we'd even be friends. I'd have gone along with them.

Coco purred and nudged my chin, giving a gentle reminder she was there. Her name was short for Coco Puffs and was also based off one of my characters—a small orange cat that could talk, a loyal sidekick in my story's world.

That's right, a thought ran through my mind, I still needed to post the last chapter. Eight years of writing and uploading, with only 5 consistent readers. Why had I kept going?

I pulled out my phone and rushed to hit publish without looking twice at the words I had written.

With that I flopped down and dropped my phone, cushions squeaking as I landed comfortably. The void of my ceiling stared back at me.

"Is it time to sleep, Coco?" I murmured. Out of the side of my eye, I saw her give me a look that felt like an eye-roll. I shrugged and settled my brain down. She had a lot of sass for an animal.

"Yeah, let's sleep." I closed my eyes and drifted off into a deep slumber.

…

That night, I dreamt.

I manifested in a room so blindingly white I wasn't sure it was a room at all. It felt endless, no walls or doors in sight. I seemed to be floating, weightless and bodiless, a ghost so to speak. I squinted my eyes, unsure if they even existed, trying to make sense of the surroundings, when I heard a distant, indistinct voice.

As I focused into the white void, a figure came into view. A boy sat in the middle of this space, his white hoodie blending into the blinding background.

The hoodie reminded me of a straitjacket, with his sleeves wrapped around him, tucked into his pockets at the back. Blonde hair fell into his face, his skin almost as pale as the room, save for jagged blue lines that traced from the corners of his eyes. Drool seeped from his mouth—a strange, vivid blue that matched the scars. It was the only reason I had been able to see him at all.

"Excuse me?" I called out, though I wasn't sure if I'd spoken at all.

I hadn't been able to hear my voice but it seemed he did. He flinched a little as his eyes half opened. They were as blue as the scars pointing to them. "Oh... it's you." The boy mumbled drowsily.

"How'd you get here _%;#,*..?"

"What did you say?" I asked, frowning.

"Oh.. right. He said I couldn't talk to you.."

His eyes started to squint as he let out a sneeze, and then curled over to sleep again as if he was losing interest.

"Wait!" I called, reaching out.

"Huh.. what is it Dawn..? You have to go soon.. he's coming back."

My breath caught. He knew my name.

"Who's coming back?"

The boy wiped his drool on his hoodie, ignoring me as he turned over to slip back into sleep. I glanced around, searching for anyone—or anything—else in the room. It was empty, yet a presence lingered around, something was watching me. The feeling of being watched grew heavy, prickling the air with each 'step' I took. Then, just as I felt their presence coming closer, the room around me dissolved, shifting seamlessly into a new one, as I fell with a thud onto my butt.

This time, I was alone—it really was just me. I knew it, with that odd logic that comes in dreams. It felt like a rule, binding this world. The room I stood in was crafted from the pages of books, each wall lined with an incomprehensible amount of words. The whole space was no bigger than a simple apartment.

And there, surrounding me, I saw it over and over: The End. Those words I'd typed just a little while ago. They were everywhere, hanging from each page like taunts cast out by the sneers of a greater being.

Why was this story so special to me, that I was dreaming about it now? I had written it for so long, year after year, yet I never understood why it held such power over me. Was it because I was lonely?

The walls seemed to pulse like a heart, a faint tremor shaking through the pages.

Then, almost imperceptibly, the words "No" appeared, writing itself across the walls, over and over- reaching out to me.

...

It can hear me?

They vibrated again.

'Yes.'

My thoughts could be heard here, I guess it makes sense since it's my dream.

The words vibrated.

'That's not why.'

"You can hear me?" I whispered, feeling a little foolish talking to a wall made of pages as if it was seriously a separate being.

The pages quivered, "Yes." The answer echoed around me. My thoughts were laid bare—of course they were; this was my mind, after all. But then, the walls pulsed again, the words shifting, in a rushed and somewhat annoyed manner along the walls, pushing into each other.

That's not why.

"Then why?" Was I playing tricks on myself, a simple unsettling dream? But the question lingered, and I let myself ponder upon it, combing through memories of the story I'd poured myself into for so long. What had held me to it? Why did I dread the end? Why was it this wall and room made me question this?

Moments flashed in my mind—fragments of characters, scenes that had compelled me to write. And then it hit me. This feeling—it was familiar. I looked back at the walls, feeling a chill run through me as I lifted my gaze.

A mouth, enormous and gaping, had formed on the ceiling, crafted from curling and folding pages. It loomed over me like some greater being, an authority it carried gazed over me, one far larger than I'd ever written it to be. It had appeared in my story only briefly, a background presence, a minor character. And yet here it was, in the flesh—or rather, in paper and ink.

'...' the words shifted on the page as its mouth began to move

"If you can truthfully tell me why you love the story so much, I'll help you out."

The mouth spoke on its own now, releasing pages with each word, they slowly fell like leaves in autumn. It's words guided my efforts. Even if this wasn't real, I felt the urge to try—to face its challenge. In my world, cosmic beings like this granted powerful abilities to those who could meet their trials.

Each one held a truth or represented an idea, hidden within my story's fabric. This one felt vaguely familiar; I'd written it once as a throwaway character I'd never fully developed.

"Is it because I wanted to prove something?" I asked, unsure.

"No."

"For views? For fame?"

"No."

"Money?"

"No."

Damn. It could be anything. I paused, trying to think as the room waited, pages rippling in quiet anticipation.

"Alright… how about this?"

As I spoke, the words came out soundlessly, vanishing in the air. A grin spread across the mouth, unsettling yet strangely satisfied. It made it seem like it had already known the answer, and that all of my other answers had been lies I told myself.

'Yes', it whispered. 'I like this one.'

The room began to shake, pages scattering like debris in a falling building. It felt like an earthquake, and I stumbled, struggling to keep my footing. "What's happening?" I yelled toward the ceiling, feeling tremors ripple through me as the walls seemed to blur unsteadily.

'You're waking up.'

…

I jolted upright in bed, reaching my hands out in a panic to stabilize. heart pounding, as Coco let out a startled meow. She'd been up perched on my chest. I watched as she was flung to the foot of the bed, clawing at the sheets to steady herself. Blinking in confusion, I took a shaky breath, piecing together what had just happened through jumbled thoughts. Then I quickly scooped her up, holding her to my chest in an attempt to comfort myself and apologize.

"I'm so sorry, Coco. I was just having a bad dream. Please forgive me."

She hissed at me, eyes narrowed, as the entire apartment began to shake, I could hear glass shattering from outside my room.

"Yeah I bet you did lady, all this shaking has been going on and you still wouldn't wake up. Sheesh." Coco's voice dripped with sarcasm.

Oh my god. Why is my cat talking?

I panicked, fumbling with her in my hands, tossing Coco across the room as I tripped and stumbled out of bed, making a dash for the door. Bursting out of the bedroom, I slammed the door shut behind me and pressed against it.

I felt the building rumble as I held the door shut tightly. My breath hitched as I shook, head against the door.

"Dawn, relax, I didn't mean to scare you. I mean, I'm not really used to this either. You usually just drag me around as I meow at you for stuff you won't give me."

What the fuck.

"Can you stop talking?" I questioned politely through the door.

Silence came from the other side. I hesitated, then cracked the door open to peek through. Coco squeezed through the gap, her slim, puffy figure brushing against the doorway. We stared at each other for a moment as I took a few deep breaths, willing my heartbeat to slow. It felt uncanny— almost as if this has happened before.

"Do you know why the apartment's shaking?"

Another tremor rumbled through the floor as I asked, but Coco remained silent.

"You can speak again."

Coco sighed, flicking her tail dismissively. "Go see for yourself." She padded into the living room, slipping around the corner without another word. I followed cautiously, stepping around shards of broken glass from a fallen picture frame.

The living room was in a state of chaos, strewn with cushions and shattered glass. But my eyes drifted past the mess, landing on the balcony. My eyes locked with the view. Outside, the world had transformed into a familiar state as I looked toward the skyline.

An ocean stretched across the sky, shimmering with sunlight that filtered through the clear water. Inside, schools of fish swam freely across the horizon, and shadows of whales and sharks passed through like drifting clouds. The light caught fragments of coral and kelp on impossibly tall buildings that pierced up into this "sky-ocean".

I leaned over the balcony railing, taking in the new city view. Some buildings twisted sideways, connecting with others in strange new forms, while others were cloaked in thick, climbing vines. One small building had morphed into a rolling sphere, pushed along by elephants the size of city blocks. And everywhere, the streets were filled with enormous animals—lions, tigers, bears. Although they soon scattered, some into nearby buildings and others into deeper corners I couldn't see my form balcony.

Vegetation sprouted and crept along walls as if it had a life of its own. I couldn't look away; each glance revealed something new, strange, beautiful, or terrifying.

This wasn't Earth anymore. It was an Arcane Realm—a setting I had created in my book had come to reality, ruled by a single, dominating presence.

An exciting world.

I bolted back to my room, stepping over shards of glass as I ran. My heart raced as I grabbed my phone from the bed, fingers shaking as I turned it on.

12 missed calls

53 unread messages

11 Instablam notifications

I swiped through them, scanning social media. Has this happened everywhere? My thoughts spiraled as I scrolled through the trending tags.

#We'reFucked

#NewWorldOrder

#Skyfish

It was global. My mind spun as I tried to piece it all together, unsure how to feel. Should I be happy about this?

Just then, Coco padded into the room, her tail swaying smugly as she took a seat at my feet, watching me with that unsettling, knowing gaze. I lowered my phone, meeting her eyes. It was even worse knowing she would most likely speak at any moment. I waited in anticipation.

She blinked, her expression unclear,

"Shall we go?"

My hands trembled as I shoved the phone into a bag nearby. If my story was really coming to life, then I had to be prepared for anything. There's no time to think about the small details of how this had come about, or how I felt about it.

"Yeah," I whispered, steadying my resolve.

"Let's go."