There's nothing you're forced to trust more than your own mind. You're dependent on it, it stores the memories that make up your world.
But what if it could be stolen from you?
Aspen's world is growing, from the boundaries of her country farm to...
a huge thank you for getting awake to 30k! i really started writing this on a whim - it wasn't like anything i'd read before and definitely not a genre i've written. i really hope you're enjoying it 💕
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I stayed with Isaac for a while. We spoke, our tones low and rushed murmurs about how we could do it. Every now and again the panic would break through, and he'd question reality. I was wondering whether my words were calming him down or if it was the power behind my words making him understand. Either way, I was already feeling better.
Eventually, his roommates returned, and their loud laughter echoed around the small apartment until I suggested I go home. It didn't feel right, for such normality to contrast the urgency of our conversation. They were oblivious to Evan's disappearance. Oblivious to what was going on.
It was dark as I walked across campus, this time sticking to the trail through the forest. The lanterns lit my way, but shadows cloaked my path, and every now and again I'd snap a branch or brush through leaves, sending waves of panic down my spine.
I wondered if I was alone in the woods. Maybe there were others, buried deep in the trees where their screams wouldn't carry.
An uneasy feeling blossomed within me when I reached the ground floor of our building. I'd left them alone. On an impulsive decision and a desperate mission, I'd left Gia to fetch groceries and Isobel to go off with her boyfriend. Did they come back? Had my instruction worked?
I ran up the stairs, my calves burning with every step. I was still on a high from my success with Isaac, and it pushed me to our front door.
When I unlocked it and stepped inside the most beautiful image greeted me. They were there, sitting side by side at the dining table with books spread out in front of them.
"Hey," Bel chirped. "Have you eaten?"
"I picked up pizza while I was out," Gia said, continuing Isobel's words. It was a habit the three of us had grown into. "I don't know about you, but our cooking sucks."
Relief filled me. I was so glad they were here and okay. Having them in front of me acting completely normal left part of me to believe things really were okay. Or they would be.
"Great," I said. The aroma of Isaac's half-cooked food filling his flat had made me extra hungry, and it was the first time I'd had an appetite in a long time.
I pulled the near-empty box of pizza from the fridge and placed it on the counter. My throat was dry, and I was parched from so much talking. I had just grabbed a glass from the cupboard when there was a knock at the door.
"Oh, that would be him," Gia said, standing from the table and pacing towards the door.
"Who?"
She looked at me and frowned, as if I was daft for not knowing.
