The Hospital Nightmare

The Answer

I open my eyes to see, "it," there again. Except this time, it only stands there, facing the dark elevator door. I don't know why I'm here again, all I know is the atmosphere in the elevator, it's much different. It's not as cold and the lighting isn't yellow, it's more blue-like. I look at the creature expecting it to scream as it had before. All it does is point to the elevator door. The door slowly and creepily opens practically luring me in with curiosity and anticipation. I hesitantly walk towards the door and feel myself being forced out of the elevator door very violently. I look back to see the elevator gone and only a blank wall. I observe the now dark, uncomfortable, and frightening hallway I am in. This hallway isn't like the one before, no, this one shares only similarities to only one half of that hallway. I can feel a chill down my spine as I realize this. I look up to see very faint flickering lights in the distance. Everything appears foggy and hardly seeable. I begin walking toward the flickering end of the hall. While still viewing the entire hallway. It was cold as ice and as dark as night. The air smelled of dead roses and burnt paper. I continued walking, and as I got closer to the light I began seeing pieces of paper on the ground and walls. I picked one up, at first, it appeared to be just blank, up until I looked up and saw her again. The dark me standing under the flickering lights. I looked back to the paper to see water drops on it all of a sudden. I drop the paper immediately. I look back at her, she's... crying. I ask aloud, "Why are you crying?" But no answer, just silent sobs. I pick up another piece of paper this one with writing. The handwriting was sloppy, distorted, and hardly legible. To the best of my ability in the dark I try to make out what is written. I read, "I don't understand. What had I done?!" I remembered instantly I wrote this, more than once too. I let the paper fall to the floor, and as it does it burns to ash. All of the papers around me begin to burn, smoke filling the hall. I cover my mouth and begin to run to the light. Just before I get there, I see her look at me holding a lighter. I shake my head at her, no, immediately running faster to her. I reach for her and throw the lighter into the flames. The flames grow brighter and stronger by the second. I without hesitation grab her hand and try to pull her away with me. She doesn't budge. She stands there, back to me, just sobbing. Right before the fire is centimeters from us, it vanishes. My heart had practically pounded out of my chest by that point. Then she spoke, "Calm down, you know that isn't what you should be afraid of." I don't understand what she meant.  Well for a minute I didn't. I then looked at our hands which were still interlocked. Her hand was so cold, she almost felt dead. Then slowly dripping down, blood. I aggressively took away my hand, rubbing it against my shirt. "See, even we're afraid of us." I look at her, my heart begins to ache from seeing that same blue gleam in her eyes. The pain practically becomes unbearable, until I hear him call out my name. I try to look for him, but ____ is nowhere to be seen. "You depend on him quite often, don't you?" I look down to the ground and feel a hand rest on my shoulder. "I hate to be ourselves saying this, but you need to stop. Stop complicating your emotions and thoughts all the time. I'm what you've created! Fear." I begin to feel tears spill uncontrollably from my eyes. I start to tremble and shake. I feel her hand grip tighter on my shoulder, but I refuse to focus on the pain as my tears refuse to stop. I look at my hands to once again see that familiar crimson shade of red. It doesn't stop, she won't let me go. I then can't hold it in any longer as I scream at the top of my lungs. Hearing myself echo throughout the hallway. Then it stops the crying, the grip on my shoulder, and my screaming. I look up and see she's gone. But, "It" was there standing before me. I don't fear it though, in some way I feel safe. I open my mouth to say something but nothing comes out. It puts a finger to its lips and points behind me. I see ____ and myself on the ground. He's hugging me. I then see us get up and look at me. I see her walk towards me, I know this scene. I'm her, the dark me. I had to see myself this way, to save myself. From becoming nothing but ash, before it's too late.