Mr. Misty-Eyed | Josh Dun

dream sequence | nineteen

A light snow drifted down from the overcast sky while tree branches creaked and moaned as gusts of wind swayed them from side to side. Steam filtered up into the atmosphere as my heavy breaths sounded out through the quiet forest.

For the first time ever, I could feel the sun as it pushed its way through the clouds and bounced its rays off the snowdrifts that surrounded me. I squinted my eyes, shielding them from the bright warm light I wasn't used to in my dreams.

A thin layer of snow covered the gravel pathway I walked down, the ice particles crunching with every step I took. My brain was on high alert as my eyes shifted from the left side of the road and panned right in search of anything menacing. But I was alone and for once I was all right with that.

I continued on the same path, trudging forward toward an unknown destination. Something red stood out to me in my peripheral vision and I stopped dead in my tracks as I squinted through the bright white light.

My knees shook and my heart started to pound in my ears as I made my way toward the red stained snow. I swallowed hard, my eyelashes fluttering in anticipation the closer I got. I waited for a metallic smell to hit my nostrils, but as I finally made it down the icy incline to where the deep red was splattered across the snow I knew something was off.

I hesitated as I reached my hand out. My eyebrows furrowed as my fingertips ran over the wool material. It was a soft fuzzy fabric and as I clutched it in my hand and pulled it from its smothered position partially under the snow, I realized it was a scarf.

I held it out in front of me, inspecting it with concern. The red fabric looked so inviting, as though it's embrace could be the warmth I had been in search of.

A branch snapped and echoed through the forest, my entire body going rigid at the sudden noise. I turned quickly to my right to see my shadow peering out from behind a nearby tree, watching me like he always seemed to do. I clutched onto the scarf as though it was my lifeline and took a step away from him.

He reached his hand out, grabbing at the thinning air between us. "Wear it."

My jaw clenched tightly as my eyes went from him to the scarf and back again. Was he teasing me? I could already feel the fabric leaving my hands as it slipped from between my fingers.

"It's for you." He laughed as though he knew something I didn't. "Wear it. Wear it."

The red scarf that had seemed like a gift had turned into a dark omen, hinting at something that I knew would turn my stomach. It fell from my hands back down onto the snowy ground and I began to back away from my shadow as he stepped out fully from behind the tree.

He laughed yet again, he deep voice sounding like nails on a chalkboard. I winced in pain as I took another step away, ready to turn and run. But before I could escape he was right in my face, bright white teeth grinning like a madman. They reminded me of the snow that surrounded us.

I let out a loud yelp, slipping on a patch of ice. I gasped as I fell back against the frozen ground and shut my eyes tightly. The sight of my shadow hovering over me was the last thing to hit my vision before my world turned dark.

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