Run.
"Who said that?"
Run!
"Why?" I question the voice again, not understanding.
Runrunrunrunrunrunrun
I find myself taking off in one direction, pushing my legs to move as quickly as possible. A pit begins to form in my stomach. Something isn't right. I glance down at my feet, barely able to see anything. As if I thought I could in the first place. The only thing I am able to see with at least some sort of clarity is a thin tunnel of space directly in front of me. My peripheral vision is practically nonexistent, and besides, turning my head in any other direction is unbearably uncomfortable. So, I give up on the idea of looking down. The pit in my stomach grows larger still as my breath diminishes into the air. I press on, despite finally noticing that I am not moving at all. It is as if someone's placed me in a tub of Jell-O well past its expiration date, just to watch me squirm. That's what this all is, isn't it? All for someone's sick pleasure.
It's going to catch up to me.
What is it?
If I am trying this hard to get away, I can safely assume that whatever it is won't be too pleasant.
"I must leave you now," the voice whispers.
"What? No! No, why are you leaving?!" I sob.

"You're just too much of a disappointment, Lauren."
I turn around to face rows and rows of people I've come to know throughout the years. Not all of them are people I've been too close with, but I am too overwhelmed to care. The fact that I recognize more than ten of the blank faces in a matter of milliseconds is enough to get to me.
Which one of them said it? I wonder, realizing that I've just spoken aloud.
"Please, don't leave," I beg not one of them in particular. "Tell me what I did wrong and I'll fix it, I promise!"
All at once, the voices speak in a broken unison. Though neither of them is saying the same phrase, I can hear them all in one rush, piercing my ears like icicles.
"You left me."
"You didn't care about me."
"You didn't satisfy me."
"You should have just left me alone."
"STOP IT!" I scream, pressing my palms to my forehead. Squint as hard as you can, they'll go away if you do. What a horrible lie... the voices only get louder.
"I never wanted you, I only pitied you."
"I never needed you."
"You are worthless to us."
"Nothing you could do will ever make us love you."

Silence. No warning, no fade-to-black courtesy. Just pure, immediate silence.
I draw my hands away from my ears, watching my palms turn pink as my blood begins to circulate through them again. I open my eyes.
Where... where am I?
I rub my eyes furiously, and it helps the blurriness around me just enough to help my disorientation. I pass by strips of stores while in the mall "hallways", walking alone contently with my hands stuffed in my pockets. Weird... I grew out of my last pair of sweatpants months ago...
That's right, I think to myself, a delusional cloud settling over me. I was finally able to buy some today. Or did I steal them? I can't remember.
Across the way, I recognize one of my best friends from high school. I light up immediately; I haven't seen him in months!
"Hey!" I shout, waving as I trot over to him. "What are you doing here, I thought you knew better than to come back to middle-of-nowhere town again!"
He doesn't stop walking.
"Dude, didn't you hear me?" I speed up to match his stride. "Where are you goin', I need to grab some things too, if you want a shopping buddy!"
He slows his pace until he has stopped walking completely. His brow furrows in annoyance as he whips around to face me.
"Who the hell are you?" he demands, his eyes cold. "Stop following me around."
I step back. "I-I-I thought... it's me! Lauren, remember? S-Seriously, stop messing with me," I stammer.
"Ugh, you must be desperate. Leave me alone."
He turns his back towards me and starts fast-walking in the opposite direction.
"Wait!!" I call after him, but he is long gone. In fact, the entire building is long gone as well. Where did everyone go?

In front of me lies a dark, barren wasteland, dimly lit with dark red lights floating in what I assume is the sky. I can feel a mushy substance beneath my feet, and whenever I move, it congeals under my weight. All in all, it doesn't take long for the uneasiness of the situation to set in. I freeze, wishing over and over that I could disappear from the landscape completely. Instead, I do everything I can to make my existence harder to detect. I definitely get the sense that someone is watching me. As if to confirm my suspicions, a distinct hissing rises in the dark around me. It fills my ears, my eyes, my mouth - every part of me - with millions of little tendrils that make their way through the rest of my body.
Gradually, the hissing begins to transform into coherent sentences.
"Time... to... EAT..."
The pressure on my body increases. I can't make a sound. I can't get away. The tendrils proceed to nibble away at every surface, and in one last attempt at escape, I force a soundless, bloodcurdling scream out of my lungs.

Sweat drains from my pores and my throat strains for a cry for help as suddenly

I wake up.