I woke up and didn't know where I was. "Hello?". I said, thinking someone would reply and say 'Hey, Cody! How have you been?'. I would've seen them. All I could see for miles was sand and dead grass. I was wearing black pants with winter boots, and a black jacket over a white shirt. I don't know how I got into these clothes, they're not mine. Last thing I remember, I was getting in bed with Shay, and now I'm here. I hope she's okay and not in the same situation as me. I went to reach for my phone, but it wasn't there. "Shit! Who would've stolen my phone?", I said out loud. I was looking around, trying to see anyone or anything. I took a deep breath, "Okay, maybe this is a nightmare. I'll wake up and make me and Shay breakfast.".
I decided to start walking into the sandy abyss, maybe I'd see someone who would help me out of there. "Someone here!" I scream helplessly into the sky. "Please be a dream.", I said, covering my face with my hands. I could feel the heat on my clothes, I felt like I was going to die. I started stumbling through the sand, tripping on all the dead roots from old, dead trees and yellowing grass. I saw someone walking on a low dune. I felt my legs were weak, but I had a slight feeling that they would help me. A smile was slowly forming on my face. "Maxx, is that you?" I knew Shay wouldn't do anything like this to me, so it had to be Zach or Maxx. "Okay, I'm sorry for what I and Zach did on your birthday but, jeez man, this is a bit much! Where's Zach?". She turned around and it wasn't Maxx or Zach, it was someone I'd never seen before. She was wearing a silky gray dress under a black winter coat and holding a black, melted candle. Two other women wearing the same dresses and coats emerge from behind her. My smile slowly faded, "Fuck no! I'm not dealing with this!" I yelled. I felt one of them try to pull me back, I pulled my arm forward to get away from them. The numbness in my legs melted away and I was in a full sprint. I didn't know where I was going. I just ran into nothing.
I felt like I had been running for hours, but it was only a few minutes. I was only on my feet for a few more steps before I started dragging my feet. I fell to my knees out of exhaustion and started hitting the sand. I was tired of seeing it. I was tired of the brightness of it, the heat, my mouth was dry. I was tired. I wanted to go home, see Shay, and tell her 'I love you' again. I crawled to the nearest dune and sat down, waiting for night, it would be colder than ever. I looked around to see if the witches had followed me and if Shay, Maxx, or Zach had come to save me from this terrible nightmare.
"Hey! Cody!", a voice I didn't recognize said. I looked over, it was a vendor, with what I can only describe as burnt, dried-out skin. "Do you want a watch, you need to keep time here," He had a high-pitched, yet scratchy voice. "You'll go crazy like everyone else!". I looked at him, he had a vicious smile on his face. I said as calmly as I could, "I don't need a watch, I just need a ride home.", I said, pushing him away. I was turning away when he pulled me back to face him. He was almost screaming at this point. "Look! You're going to go insane without a watch!" He shoved it into my hands, it was a silver one, and there was nothing special about it. I looked away from him to look down at it and he was gone.
I looked around, "What the fuck is going on!?". I threw the watch into the sky out of anger. I started walking around, thankfully, I could feel my legs a little more now. I wondered if this was all just a nightmare, I felt everything, how does that happen in a nightmare? If this was real, where are Zach and Maxx? Zach wakes up early in the morning and Maxx almost always texts me. Did they do this? "God, I'm going insane!", I said, grabbing my head. Maybe that crazy vendor was right. I bumped into something, "What the hell?". I looked up and there was nothing.
I put my hand out and it was glass, somehow, there was a wall of glass. I started hitting the wall, that was all I thought to do, I was angry at everything I wanted out of this living hell. My hands began stinging so I sat down, they were breaking from the dryness of the air and the thickness of the glass. I screamed to let some of my fear and anger out, but it only made it worse. I turned around and started punching the wall, letting everything out. I slowly saw blood form on the glass, but I didn't care. There was a pool of blood on the wall and at my feet. I looked down at my blood and then back up at the glass wall. I felt small and worthless. I walked away and accepted my fate, I just walked until I fell to my knees to crawl.
My chest was getting heavy, I was dying, and I heard wheezing with every exhale I took. I laid on my back to rest, I knew it wasn't going to ease any of the pain I was in. My bones hurt, more than joint pain, even more than scoliosis. It felt like they were breaking, slowly cracking, slowly turning into sand. A shadow that blocked the sun, the shade eased my surprisingly not sunburned skin. I looked up slowly, "Please," I begged, "Leave me alone.". He shook his head and handed me a picture. He had circular glasses and a winter suit on. What's with everyone having winter clothes on? As he gave me the picture, I saw that his arm had scales on it. The picture was of a decrepit city tinted blue. I looked up to see him. "What do you want me to do with this?". I screamed.
