WHEN THE FEAR AWAKENS

Alice never believed in dreams and their meanings until one time an inexplicable nightmare she dreamt of changed her perspective. A black nothingness flashes before her eyes. All sweaty with messy hair, the girl opens her eyes and looks around, disoriented. She's in her bedroom, but everything feels different. She can't shake the feeling that the dream she had just had was real, or at least a glimpse of something that could happen.

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For as long as she can remember, she has been dreaming the same dream over and over again. In it, she is walking down a long, dark hallway, with doors lining both sides. She knows that something important is behind one of the doors, but she can never find it. After a while of slowly walking through the hallway, she overhears some footsteps. The noise makes her more and more uncomfortable every minute as the mysterious creature hidden in the darkness of her own dream tries to find a way to get to her. It gets even gloomier and louder with every step she takes. Every door she tries to open is locked and her breathing gets quicker and heavier. She starts running all the way to what seems like an endless tunnel of locked doors and while rushing, she reaches for the doorknobs of every single door she passes. No luck. She finally reaches the end of the hallway and tries to open the last door. Suddenly, she freezes as she feels someone breathing on her shoulder. Her hands get shaky and she is too stunned to move now. The only thing she can do is turn around but that would mean… She feels a slight cold breeze going in through her entire body. When she is about to look the danger into the eyes she finally wakes up from this nightmare, frustrated and confused.

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But this time, it felt different. She had a sense of urgency like she was closer to finding what she had been looking for. She can't explain it, but she knows that she needs to keep searching. There is something hidden behind that last door and if she wants to find out what it is, she needs to face her fears and danger.

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With a sigh, she gets out of bed and starts her day, but with a renewed sense of purpose. Maybe it's time to start taking her dreams more seriously and see where they might lead her. 

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Working as a secretary may be a bit repetitive but it took a big place in Alice´s life. She arrived at her office and sat down on a chair. She turned on the computer and while she was waiting for it to load, she looked around the room through the large glass windows lining the room. She saw a woman heading right into her office holding a brown suitcase. The woman walked in, greeted her and gave Alice the suitcase. When she opened it, she found piles of money stacked in it. The woman told her to deliver it to her boss whose office is on a different floor. Alice agreed and when the woman left, she stood up from her chair and grabbed the package. She walked out of her office and took the elevator. When she heard a beep coming from it, she realized that she was there, on the fifth floor, and walked out of the elevator. She then found herself in an endless hallway. It was dark, quiet and uncomfortably cold there. Alice took a few steps and looked around. All of a sudden, she heard another beeping sound coming from behind her. The elevator door opened and a man appeared from behind them. He was tall, all dressed in black. The woman didn't pay that much attention to him because she finally discovered the way she must go to find the door she was looking for. She started walking forward with the suitcase still glued to her hand. She turned her head to the side multiple times to read the numbers written on each door. Still walking with the gentle yet surprisingly cold wind hitting her body, she realized the goosebumps formed on her skin. Something is wrong, she quickened her pace. She looked behind her. Even though she was nowhere near the elevator now, the man was still behind her following her tracks. Her breathing got immediately heavier and her eyes wider when she saw the man pulling a knife out of his pocket. She started running. Her whole life and memories flashed before her eyes as she passed all those doors. “This is it, I'm never going to make it out of here safely,” she thought. But she couldn't give up just yet. She was about to approach the very last door now. Now or never. Alice could feel the robber's presence right behind her. Her legs ran shakily and she had never been scared more before. She reached for the doorknob and with her very last will, she finally opened the door. The woman fell onto the floor with the suitcase landing near the desk. The man sitting on the fancy chair looked at her with confusion. He helped her to get up and he also got his suitcase back. And what happened to the robber, you may ask. Well, he ran off right when Alice opened the door. His black clothes and mysterious expression gave him away and he knew he couldn't win this.

 

Alice never had the same dream again.