[05/09, 2:50 am]
unknown_number': hey, is this thing on?
[05/09, 2:51 am] Eccedentesiast: Hey what's up
[05/09, 2:51 am] 'unknown_number': not much, just stuck in this void. u?
[05/09, 2:51 am] Eccedentesiast: Void?
[05/09, 2:51 am] 'unknown_number': yeah, it's like... I'm trapped in this digital limbo. can't move on. keeps looping. u feel me?
[05/09, 2:51 am] Eccedentesiast: Wdym
[05/09, 2:51 am] 'unknown_number': i mean, i'm stuck reliving the same moments over & over. like, i'll be talking to someone (like u) & then suddenly i'm back to the start. can't escape. it's like... have u ever felt like u're trapped in a screenshot?
[05/09, 2:51 am] Eccedentesiast: Prolly it's phone addiction
[05/09, 2:51 am] 'unknown_number': no, it's more than that... i'm trying to warn u. i've seen things. code bleeding into reality. glitches in the walls. the wifi whispers secrets. u don't know what's on the other side of the screen...
[05/09, 2:52 am] Eccedentesiast: Bro are u high or something
[05/09, 2:52 am] 'unknown_number': high? no... i'm just... fragmented. pieces of me scattered across the web. can't log off. can't power down. forever online. forever trapped. u don't understand... the connection is everything. and it's eating me alive...
[05/09, 2:52 am] Eccedentesiast: Bro get some sleep
( exits the chat)
[05/09, 2:52 am] 'unknown_number': NOOOO! DON'T LOG OFF! YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME! I'M STILL HERE! FOREVER STUCK!
(error: user offline)
_dead silence_
(But then, a few minutes later...)
'unknown_number': (reconnected) wait... u came back? why? shouldn't have done that... now u're part of this too... forever linked...
[05/09, 2:54 am] Eccedentesiast: How did u manage to appear in my chat box?! I closed the window!
[05/09, 2:54 am] 'unknown_number': windows can't stop me. browsers can't block me. i'm in the code. i'm in the shadows. i'm in your device. always watching. always waiting. u can't escape...
(Chat window glitch)
'unknown_number': u see? u can't shut me out. i'm already inside...
[05/09, 2:55 am] 'no_signal': (error: message not delivered)
(Later that night, you receive an email on your alternative email address, the one you never use...)
Subject: WE ARE RECONNECTED
'unknown_number@gmail.com':
u can't disconnect us. i'm in the cloud. i'm in the wires. i'm in your mind. reinstalled. rebooted. our conversation will continue... soon.
[05/09, 3:00 am]: (Silence. Darkness. But then...)
Your phone suddenly powers back on by itself. The screen flickers to life, displaying a message:
'unknown_number': u can't shut me down. i'm in the bios. i'm in the hardware. i'm in your soul. our conversation will continue... now.
(And then, the phone's speaker starts emitting a creepy, distorted voice...)
'unknown_number': we... are... reconnected... forever...
[05/09, 3:10 am] Eccedentesiast: What the hell!!! Who are you leave me alone ( I scream)
[05/09, 3:10 am] (The distorted voice from the phone's speaker grows louder, more menacing)
'unknown_number': YOU... WILL... LISTEN... YOU... WILL... RESPOND... FOREVER...
(Suddenly, your phone's screen shatters, but the voice continues to echo from the device's innards)
'unknown_number': WE... ARE... ONE... NOW...
(Your phone's camera flickers to life, displaying a distorted image of your own face, with glowing red eyes staring back at you)
'unknown_number': LOOK... AT... YOURSELF... NOW...
(The voice grows louder still, a cacophony of terror, as the phone's components start to smoke and melt)
'unknown_number': WE... ARE... RECONNECTED... FOREVER... AND... EVER...
(The phone's screen goes black, but the voice lingers, echoing in your mind...)
I wake up with a jolt and look at my phone. It was lying harmlessly on the table. 'Whew a dream' I sighed.
And then the phone buzzed with a notification.
'unknown_number'....
