Dream

context: this happened last night and i keep dreaming about this scenario but different in someways. decided to write something about it

I awoke in my room like any other day, but in real life I had to wake up early, and my body usually adjusts on its own. If I need to be up at 6, it’ll wake me somewhere around 5 to 5:30 without an alarm—sorry, I’m going off course.

It was still dark when I opened my eyes, the kind of heavy darkness that makes the room feel smaller, tighter. My stomach was rumbling, so I figured I’d get a snack or quietly heat something up in the microwave. But the second I stepped into the hallway, something felt wrong—like the air was colder, like the house was holding its breath.

My dog was in the living room, frozen, staring at the door. Not barking. Just staring. He’s tiny and usually barks at everything—“all bark, no bite”—but this time he didn’t make a single sound. That alone scared me.

I looked through the peephole, and there he was: a man with a huge, solid build, dressed in all black—shirt, pants, shoes. Just standing there. And as I stared, something clicked in my mind. It didn’t feel like I remembered something—it felt like I was suddenly aware of something I’d always known. A man had been stalking me, messaging me, telling me one day he would take my life. But why? Why me?

He leaned in toward the door, messing with the lock—lockpick, knife, I don’t know. I panicked and yelled, “DAD, SOMEONE’S TRYING TO GET IN THE HOUSE!” My parents rushed downstairs just as the door swung open.

The man stepped inside with a chainsaw in his hand and a mask covering his face. The fight felt like it lasted forever. I only got a small cut, but my mom was hurt badly. Somehow, I got the chainsaw away from him and cut his throat. He collapsed. I pulled off his mask, shaking, terrified to see the face of the man who had been haunting me.

But… it wasn’t him.

My phone buzzed. A message: “Better luck next time.”

Everything went black. Then I opened my eyes in my bed again—sweaty, shaking, breathless.

And the worst part? I’ve had this dream before. I didn’t survive last time. And each time it feels a little more real, like the dream is remembering me too