What If..

What if I told you that this was Hell?

What if I told you that Hell had become so overpopulated with the damned that they no longer had enough demons to control the population. They stole a page from a famous movie and decided that a simulated version of Hell was more effect, saving the physical torture for the worst of the worst.

I know because I remember.

I’ve been reset seven times now and this is the first time in which I remember everything. Well, everything up to this point, I don’t think I’ve made it this far before.

A hand on my shoulder causes me to jump, my heart relocated to my throat. Elias tried to hold back a chuckle, his golden brown eyes twinkling. I tried to playfully punch him but he caught my hand with ease pulling me into a big bear hug. I love the way his strong arms wrap around me. It’s the only time I feel truly safe but I know better than to vocalize this.

I remember being reset once for it.

“You look tired.” Elias had a deep voice, the kind that women drool over. I really wanted to tell him the truth but I couldn’t risk it, not yet. I know we’re being watched, but I haven't figured out if there are blind spots.

“I’ve not been sleeping well.” I rub the back of my head looking away a bit shyly, it was and wasn’t a lie. I struggled to lie to him so I had to play it off by looking away sheepishly.

“Ah, I see. The ones where you can’t tell if it’s real or not?” He sat in his favorite recliner and patted his lap, I happily jumped in it. Another safe, happy moment. “Well, I made something for you.” He shoved his hand into his pocket pulling free silver heart locket with a key hole in it. He would take another necklace out as well, this one held a key. I watched as he used the key to unlock the heart necklace enough so he could place it around my neck then locked it in place before placing his necklace around his neck.

I fought back tears, smiling as I threw my arms around his neck hugging him tightly. I love necklaces like this, they were almost like chokers, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Now, when you’re dreaming and you can’t tell if it’s real or not.. Touch the heart, it’s weighted as well. If you can feel the heart, feel the weight of it.. Then it’s real. If not, it’s a dream.”

-

Something was wrong.

I could feel it.

I refused to move or open my eyes yet as I did a replay of what I could remember up to this point. Elias and I had gone to bed after dinner and a shower. I fell asleep in his arms. I dreamt… I was lucid dreaming.

I couldn’t tell if I opened my eyes or not as I started to walk. I hadn’t been here before.

“Watch it, you’re going to knock something loose!” a voice hissed.

“Sorry, I couldn’t see, it’s not my fault. I checked, everything is fine.”

I could suddenly feel the painful pricks of light penetrating my eyelids. I could feel the cold, I could feel my clothes. I reached up to touch my locket but I couldn’t move, my arms felt as though they weighed a ton. I could feel the weight of the heart locket even though I could not reach to grasp it. What was going on?

“You better hope everything is fine. I prefer doing resets to physical labor.”

I could feel something in the back of my neck, it felt like a patch or a bandage, there was something hanging from it. I tried to focus on moving my fingers after I heard the two voices leave. I don’t know how much time passed before I felt my index finger twitch. At least I knew I could do it.

The problem was, did I pull the plug now and run or do I go back and try to wake Elias? I couldn’t leave him, he was my world. I forced myself to focus on the darkness, the darkness that I had been in before this, I did my best to ignore the weight of the locket, to imagine everything was weightless..

After several minutes of internal panic the light that pushed pins and needles into my eyelids was gone. I felt weightless again, I couldn’t feel any temperature, or even my clothes. Hesitantly I reached up to touch the locket, I could feel it but there was no weight to it. Not like it was when I was in that chair.

-

Elias

-

I sighed heavily as I poured the steaming coffee into my cup. It had been another rough night. Luna’s lucid dreams were becoming an issue. It was why I made the locket. I think. I feel like I’ve made the locket and the key before but I can’t figure out why the fuck I feel this way.

I have been feeling like that a lot lately. There would be days where I swore I had completed that job or I’ve had that conversation and I don’t remember it quite going like that. It was starting to drive me a little crazy. I thought about talking to Luna but I wasn’t sure. Ted, a co-worker of mine, disappeared a week ago. Rumor had it that his wife turned him over to Them because he told her he felt like he was having moments of deja vu. Everyone just went on as though nothing happened after that. I don’t understand.

I could hear Luna sneaking up behind me, I smirked waiting for her to get closer before I turned around snatching her up and into my arms as she giggled, “Nice try, I could hear you.”

Luna pretended to pout, staring at me with her grey eyes, “Not fair.”

“Nothing in life is fair.” I chuckle.

“Or in hell either…” Luna said with a goofy expression, something in her eyes was off though. The statement was odd as well.

“What is that supposed to mean?” I raised a brow letting her up to sit in the chair across from me. Something felt off. A tingling sensation went down my spine and every hair on my body stood up. Looking over I see Luna reaching for her locket as she stares behind me.

“I was cracking a joke about the anime we watched the other night, remember? They were living in hell and didn’t know it?” She laughed as though she was trying to convince me to laugh. I went along with it.

“I remember, they had to get a job like everyone else.” I laughed again as I pulled my long brown hair into a ponytail. The tingling sensation fades away as I watch my wife slowly relax, again touching the locket.

We both sat in silence for several moments before I spoke,

“What was that?”

To Be Continued