The Doorway

I had the dream again, it was the third time this month. I’d been having it for years, but I can’t seem to escape it. I wipe the sweat from my brow, closing my eyes against the memory of it.

Darkness, empty space. I keep walking… No matter the direction, I eventually come to a giant wooden door. A strange mist looms around it as if hiding what is beyond. A circular metal handle hangs from the middle, almost out of my reach. Its shape is an intricate serpent eating its own tail; Ouroboros. Every time I reach up to touch the handle an androgynous voice echoes in my head, “If you choose to go through this door, you will never return. Your old life will be lost, but a new life gained.” I can never discern if I am terrified or curious. Fear always wins. I never fail to wake myself.

But each time I have the dream, my curiosity grows. My thoughts always come back to the Ouroboros, I know what it means. The cycle of life, death, and rebirth. It is my only clue. What would happen if I stepped through? What was on the other side? Would I truly never return? These questions eat at me, constantly lingering in the back of my mind.

I always find myself daydreaming about the possibilities. I can’t help wondering am I meant to go through? Maybe this new world was unfathomably wonderful. But my fear of what horrors could be beyond the doorway always crept back, shaking me free of my curiosity. If I never return, what would happen to me in this world?

Or would it be even worse to never know?

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What did you think of this short story? Would you go beyond The Doorway? Let us know in the comments!

Thanks so much for reading!

-Clever & WTF