When It Hits You

           It was on the 18th of December when it happened. 2017. That day, a piece of our world came crashing down on us. A fragment of our reality flipped on its head.

She saw it. Well, she didn't see it coming. But she saw it. In a dream.

The walls were white. The rooms were white. The floors were brown. A man passes by.

"I'm so tired." He places flakey crumbs on a pan and turns the burner on. The crumbs are black, and they leave smudges on his fingers.

"What are you doing?" The man doesn't hear her. Doesn't turn around. He simply goes to his bedroom and lies down. "Hey!"

He opens his eyes and looks at her.

"Help me."

When she wakes, she goes to him right away. It was an early night, and the stars glittered in the sky. The waning moon was a tiny sliver of light, its rays blocked out by dense clouds.

"Where are you?" she asks. The wind blows, and she looks down its invisible path. She follows it after a while and ends up in the room that had appeared in her dream. She's quiet for a second.

"...Hello?" When she finds him, he's lying on the bed. Just lying there. She tries to speak and manages only a sort of squeak. He shifts slightly, and sits up as if rising from a sort of shell or cocoon...it's an eerie sight. One that she isn't used to yet. When he looks at her, she instantly recognizes him.

"You...you're-!" he blinks, stares at her.

"I'm sorry..." he says. "Who are you...?" She now realizes why she was sent here, but it doesn't make it any easier. "Are you-?"

"No," she says before he can make any assumptions. "No, I'm not. I'm...another."

"What are you here for?" he asks her.

"You don't know?"

"I feel like I should, I...I can't really remember."

"That's alright," she says. "Take your time." He does.

"Am I...?"

"...Yes," she replies. He looks away from her.

"And you're here to..."

"Yeah." she looks at the clock on his bedside. The hand stopped moving. 6:00 pm. "I guess I am..."

"You don't know?" he asks. He's smiling.

"Not really," she replies. She smiles too. "I'm not always...told why I'm being sent to others."

They're silent for a bit before she speaks again. "So...should we go?"

She isn't used to this yet, normally just handles messages. He doesn't reply. "What's wrong?"

"...I don't know," he says. "...I can't move."

"...Is there...someone you want to see?" he hesitates.

"Yes."

"...Would you like to visit them before we go?"

"...Yes." The setting changes suddenly, and they're now in the living room of a different apartment. A young man is lying on the floor, crying.

"Taemin." The man doesn't react. "Taemin, it's me. Your hyung." Taemin doesn't move, just keeps crying. The girl watches in silence. He looks at her. "What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know."

"...I don't want to see him like this."

"Should we go, then?" she asks. He shakes his head. "Okay, tell me when you want to leave."