I came to an abrupt halt.
The words I had planned to speak remained trapped in my throat.
Slowly, I turned toward the voice.
A woman stood there, her long blonde hair loosely braided over one shoulder, leaning casually against the leg of a massive wooden table. Her golden eyes gleamed like wheat fields beneath a dying sun.
Then, another voice rang out.
"Looks like you're the last one..."
A girl dressed in black, with her hair being the same shade. Her eyes, nearly void of any reflection, shimmered faintly in the pale moonlight.
"How do you know that?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me.
She merely shrugged, then lifted a hand and pointed behind me. I turned, following her gesture.
The door, the one I had just come through, was sealing itself shut. Not like an ordinary door. More like a wound closing itself, the wooden surface warped and twisted until only a faint, scar-like mark remained on the wall.
"Ah... I see," I muttered, turning back toward the small group.
Something felt off.
My gaze swept the room. There were too many doors for the handful of people standing here. And yet... every single one was closed.
"But why are there so many doors if there are only a few of us?"
The girl in black shrugged again, pulling her scarf up over her nose. Her muffled voice sent a chill down my spine.
"At some point, they just closed up. We figured the ones inside just... didn't make it."
A cold unease crawled up my throat.
It was a logical answer, one I could've come up with myself.
"Zoey!" The blonde woman snapped, whirling toward her, anger flashing in her golden eyes. "You can't just say that to a child!"
Zoey blinked, caught off guard for a moment before scoffing in annoyance.
"And why not? The kid went through the same shit we did."
A soft hand rested on my shoulder.
I looked up and met her gaze.
Her jaw tightened and her eyes darkened.
She wanted to deny it, but it clung to her like a curse she couldn't shake off.
She knew Zoey was right. She just didn't want to accept it.
"...It's okay, ma'am," I said quietly, removing her hand with gentle finality. "I would've eventually figured it out myself."
She reached for me again, but before she could, a firm hand stopped her.
"The kid is right, Bella."
The voice was low and rough, like growling thunder, but with wisdom laying beneath.
I turned to the speaker. A man, older than all the others, his beard streaked with silver strands but well cared for. His eyes calm but piercing.
I gave a small nod, agreeing to the old man.
Then a sudden weight landed on my head.
"Don't mind her too much, kid," a lighter, almost playful voice said. "Bella was a mother. Seeing you here must be hard for her."
I glanced up and for a moment, I thought I was staring at a figure straight out of a novel.
A man, young, but radiating a leader's presence. His golden hair fell just past his shoulders. His eyes were the same blue as the ocean and his sharp features and easy smile gave me a strange sense of security.
"How do you know that?" I asked cautiously. "Did you know Miss Bella before?"
He sighed, his gaze flicking toward Bella and the older man before shaking his head.
"No. None of us knew each other before this." His smile faded slightly. "But we've had a little time together before you showed up."
Silence settled between us.
Eventually, he stretched out a hand.
"My name's Paul, by the way. And you, little man?"
"Oh my name is..."
I tried to tell him my name but I couldn't.
"You can call me..."
I tried again, but nothing came out.
a thick black fog spread in my head, swallowing the words before they came out. I was able to feel them, lingering just beyond reach, but no matter how hard I grasped, they slipped away like water through my fingers.
"Urgh, why can't I…" I gritted my teeth, fingers gripping at my hair. "Just... give me a moment…"
I squeezed my eyes shut. Forced myself to think.
"I'm…"
I swallowed. Tried again.
"I'm…"
A hollow silence stretched between us. My breath hitched, chest tightening, as a sickening realization settled in.
There was nothing.
No name. No past. No memories before that tunnel.
Only emptiness
My hands trembled. My stomach churned. A sharp, suffocating weight pressed down on my ribs.
"Hey, hey, kid!" Paul's voice cut through the fog, distant, like he was speaking from the other end of a long tunnel. "What's wrong?"
I barely heard him. My thoughts were unraveling too fast.
The others turned to me. Some stepped forward, concern painting their faces. Others hesitated, unsure whether to approach or retreat.
A warm hand gripped my shoulders, firm but gentle.
Bella.
She pulled me into an embrace, her steady heartbeat a soft, grounding rhythm against my cheek.
I stiffened, but she didn't let go. Her voice was quiet, soothing, almost like a lullaby whispered into my ear.
And for a moment, just a moment, the terror loosened its grip.
"I… I can't," I whispered, my voice small, raw. "I can't remember."
I clutched the fabric of her coat, my fingers digging into the material as if trying to wring out answers from it. My gaze locked onto hers, searching, desperately.
Her brows furrowed slightly. "What?" she asked gently. "What can't you remember, sweetheart?"
She never looked away. Not once. Her golden eyes stayed steady.
Strangely enough, that helped.
The storm inside me quieted, just a little but it did.
"Anything," I admitted. "I can't remember anything."
Tears burned behind my eyes, but my breathing slowed, steadying with the rise and fall of her chest.
"Oh, sweetheart... It's okay, you're okay." she murmured, holding me tighter. Her breath was warm against my neck.
Then
A sharp click.
The eerie screech of an old, ungreased wooden door that echoed through the halls like creepy laughter.
One by one, the torches lining the walls went out, their flames swallowed by the creeping darkness.
Fear spread through the group. No one screamed. A few voices trembled, but there was no panic. Everyone already knew it wouldn't help so they didn't bother.
Bella exhaled, rising to her feet.
"Guess the nightmare continues..." she muttered.
"Fantastic," Zoey said dryly. "Can't wait to run headfirst into another deathtrap."
I forced myself to take a breath. To steady my hands.
"Honestly?" I swallowed hard, my throat still tight. "Better than rotting to death here."
Zoey turned, eyes sharp.
She grabbed her scarf pulling it barely above her mouth.
"Wow. For a kid, you sure calm down fast..."
There was something in her voice. Not quite disbelief. Not quite trust.
I forced a humorless chuckle and stepped toward the newly opened door.
"Not like I have much of a choice, now do I?" My lips curled into something that wasn't quite a smile. "And for the record, I'm not a kid."
I didn't wait for her to respond. My legs were still trembling, but I walked through that door anyway.
Then Darkness swallowed me whole again.
It took a few seconds, but eventually, my eyes adjusted.
Massive furniture loomed around me causing my already fast beating heart to speed up, towering wardrobes, immense drawers, a colossal nightstand, and an enormous bed bathed in moonlight filtering through stained-glass windows.
"I-It's a bedroom," I called back, stepping further inside.
Footsteps followed, hesitant at first, then quicker. Zoey was the first to enter after me.
She stared up at the furniture, her breath hitching.
"It is… but why is everything so big?" she murmured.
Before I could answer,
The door behind us slammed close, trapping us inside.
I heard some violent pulling and then a loud male voice "it's locked..."
I let out a troubled sigh, pressing my palms against my eyes to suppress tears.
I chose to distance myself from the group as they started to debate our predicament. Their voices faded into the background as I wandered deeper into the room.
"I don't have a good feeling about this..." I muttered under my breath as I got lost in thought.
The bed loomed before me, its size almost absurd. I stretched onto my tiptoes, reaching for the mattress, but it remained just out of grasp.
My gaze traced the rotting wooden frame, studying every splintered crack, every warped detail.
"Whatcha doin'?"
Zoey's voice cut through the silence, making me jolt. I spun around, my heart pounding. She stood there, her presence almost ghostlike.
"N-nothing..." I stuttered as if trying to hide something.
"I thought you were with the others," I said, exhaling sharply.
She shrugged. "Nah. They're busy arguing about what to do next."
Tilting her head up, she studied the massive bed, attempting to reach the mattress just as I had.
"Yeah, shouldn't you be listening to that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Shouldn't you as well?" she countered.
I swallowed hard, my chest still tight, but I kept up a casual tone.
"Eh, you got a point," I admitted.
"I know..." she muttered in a detached tone, her words tumbling out as she grinned in a way that made me feel caught red-handed.
"Why did you say it like that?" I asked, my carefully constructed facade beginning to crumble.
"Said what?" she replied, crossing her arms and without giving me a chance to answer, she added, "By the way, did I ever tell you that you're quite the actor?"
"What are you talking about, haha... Why should I be a actor?" I managed, my voice hoarse and my throat dry.
"Oh, come on, I know you're just acting tough!" she teased, edging closer until I could feel her breath against my face. Her eyes pierced into me, as if threatening to stab me if I didn't confess.
Then it all came crashing down, the terror I had fought so hard to suppress.
"Yeah, so what? I'm acting tough! What do you wanna do about it, huh?" I shouted, my rage and frustration boiling over. Not at her, but at myself. I couldn't keep it together, no matter how tightly I tried to hold on.
"I woke up in this hellish nightmare, fighting my way through a disgusting flesh tunnel while remembering nothing. I don't know who I am or where I come from... heck, I can't even tell if I'm really human because there's this big fucking black fog in my head that keeps everything hidden!"
I panted, my chest heaving and my heart heavy as stone. Yet somehow, I felt a small measure of relief.
Zoey was stunned into silence.
"I... I'm sorry..." she began, but before she could continue, I interrupted.
"Zip it, just... fuck!" I snapped, punching my head to force the tears back.
Then I felt a finger tap my shoulder.
"What?" I asked, irritation lacing my tone as I looked up at Zoey. She pointed toward the group with a mortified expression.
I turned my gaze back to them
But what my eyes landed on wasn't the group, it was the giant door behind them. More specifically, the doorknob. It trembled, rattling as if someone or rather something was trying to open it.
"Should we tell them?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
My heartbeat slammed against my ribs, a cold dread creeping up my spine. Before I even realized it, the word tore from my throat.
"Run!"
My scream must have been convincing because the second it left my lips, chaos erupted. Everyone bolted toward us.
Just a moment later, the door burst open, and through it stepped a giant nightmare.
I had no other words to describe it.
A towering shadow, thin, frail, it's crimson eyes burning like fading embers.
It looked down, saw, reached and finally grabbed.
A single scream ripped through the room.
I didn't have time to see who It took before Bella and Paul yanked me backwards, dragging me away.
Away from the beast.
While i watched, frozen in fear, as the creature tore the man apart, limp after limb, blood dripping onto the floor as his agonizing, pained screams echoed through my entire being, shaking my very soul.