Factory Reset | ✓

reawaken

When I opened my eyes, it felt like I was born again.

I rose from my bed, pulling the warm blanket aside. My dreams escaped me but I felt safe and protected — like I could take on the world and do whatever my mind put itself to.

But where was I?

I looked around, hoping that something in the room would be familiar. That it would remind me of who I was and where I was going in life, but I couldn't find anything like that.

The room was far emptier than I expected. Other than the bed I woke up in, it was completely empty. There was no door in sight either but there was a giant window just a few feet away.

Finding myself drawn to it, I walked over. It was so dark outside I could hardly see anything. Just the silhouette of trees. There was no moon outside. It must've been the night of a new moon.

I closed my eyes, searching my mind but came back with nothing. My mind was as empty as my room was, but was that such a bad thing? I could always fill it with new things — new ideas.

This room was just a stepping stone — a temporary place to rest while I got ready for bigger and better things. I wasn't sure how I knew that but I wasn't scared of being here. I felt content.

The universe had bigger plans for me than just existing in this human vessel. I knew it.

My future would reveal itself in its own time. All I had to do was wait and embrace the journey. Sleep. The word filled my mind, and I decided to give into it. What better time for it than now?

I lay back down on my bed and stared up at the ceiling, half-expecting it to talk, but that was silly to even consider. Ceilings weren't living and ceilings most certainly did not talk back to you.

Even if a ceiling could talk, what would it say?

▬▬▬

I was woken up by vibrations beneath my pillow — each buzz waking me up more bit by bit.

Was it morning already? A quick glance towards the window revealed that it was. Even from my spot on the bed, I could feel the warmth of the sun. It felt so nice that I felt like sleeping more.

Before I could entertain the thought of more sleep, the buzzing continued in my ear. Unfortunately for me, more sleep wouldn't be in the cards. It was time for something else.

I reached under my pillow and pulled out the thing responsible for all the noise — a smartphone. It wasn't one I remembered seeing before, but it must have been left there for me.

"Good morning, Aura," the text bubble on the screen said. "It is now breakfast time."

As if on cue, my stomach began rumbling. It was like the word breakfast activated it, and now, all I could think about was food. What could be in store for me? Eggs? Waffles? Pancakes? There were so many options — all of them equally delicious. Maybe if I was lucky, I'd get multiple.

Speaking of food, when was the last time I—

The thought dissolved from my mind before I had the chance to finish it. Whatever it was, it probably wasn't important enough to occupy space in my head. All that mattered was eating now.

I swiped the message away and once it was gone, the phone's screen dimmed as well. That was signal enough to me that I was done with it for now. I returned the phone to under my pillow, mentally reminding myself to remove it the next time I slept. Interrupted sleep was never fun.

And then, I looked around the room, wondering how food would arrive without a door. Though, there was a window and that was always an option of bringing things inside. As impractical as it seemed, there was no other way. Unless there was a door hiding somewhere.

I turned my attention back to the window, focusing on what I could see.

In the distance, if I looked hard enough, I swear I could see the ocean. The faint outline of the horizon was small but it was there. I felt drawn to look at it like a moth to a dying flame.

Suddenly, the window glitched and everything disappeared — the ocean, the sand, the sun, all of it. All of the sunshine, all of the warmth, it was gone just like that. Like it had never existed. All that remained was an empty void in the wall made of black so dark it almost burned my eyes.

I reached my hand towards the void, wondering if it was an illusion or if there really was a gaping hole in front of me, but before I could reach it with my fingertips, it changed again.

In its place, what looked like the inside of a shelf appeared. The shelf itself was all white but what stood out to me was the tray of food sitting on it. On the tray, there was scrambled eggs with a slice of toasted accompanied by a small cup of orange juice. I grew hungrier just looking at it.

A small note next to the food read "Aura". Was all of this for me? Was this what the message on the phone meant by breakfast? I was pleasantly surprised by the spread of food. It was almost too good to believe as true. Before it could vanish, I grabbed the tray of food with both of my hands.

As soon as I sat down with the tray of food on my lap, the window glitched again and the sunshine returned. I could feel the warmth, but my focus returned back to the feast I had.

I sat down and started to eat my food. The way I devoured it, it was as if I hadn't eaten in forever and maybe I hadn't. Or maybe this food was so delicious I couldn't help myself.

Either way, I lost myself in the taste of the food and that was all I wanted.