Diane woke up to the hoarse, rough voice of her father, screaming in absolute terror. Waking up so suddenly was quite disorienting. She looked around in confusion as another scream reached her ears and she remembered what was going on. She tried to slide off the side, but her foot was caught on the blankets. Diane was able to recover at what was possibly the last minute and managed to avoid falling. She stumbled out of bed, any remnant of drowsiness quickly shoved aside as she all but tripped out of the covers. Her father had stopped yelling, but that didn’t dissuade the worry from the raven haired girl. If anything, it only made her think the worst. She threw open her door and rushed down the hall to her father's room. She slammed her fist against the door and called out.

  “Dad!?” She yelled through the door, worrying the worst.

  “I-I’m fine! Just a nightmare, go back to bed…” Her father yelled back, without the usual bite in his words. He still sounded terrified, but there wasn’t much she could do.

  “Alright…” Diane finally said and turned back to her room. The sudden surprise and panic of her awakening leaving her body, she was suddenly very glad that her father didn’t open the door as she remembers how she removed most of her clothes before bed. Slightly embarrassed, the girl returns to her room. As she returned back to her room and started to get dressed, her phone buzzed on the nightstand. Walking over, the first thing she saw was the time. It was almost five am, and right beneath the time she discovered, once again, a purple notification with fancy white lettering. [YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN! PROLONGED TIME WITHOUT CONTINUING CAN LEAD TO DISASTROUS CONSEQUENCES! WOULD YOU LIKE TO CONTINUE?] Diane sighed in annoyance and pressed ‘no.’

  Another discovery Diane made, was made in the bathroom. While the bags under her eyes didn’t get much worse, the bruise on her face was barely visible. She probably should have noticed the lack of pain, but the thought slipped her mind. It is a lot easier to notice pain than it is to notice the lack of pain. It wasn’t that unusual for a bruise to be gone after some time, but it was only a night. Her thoughts drifted back to her dream. It couldn’t be because of the figure from her dream, that would be ridiculous. It was a dream, but it was a weird coincidence. It was probably just her brain making a reason for why the pain went away while she was asleep. Diane let the thought pass by as she started to keep up with her hygiene, getting ready for the day. There was no way she would be able to go back to sleep, so she might as well get ready for school and work on her homework. It was currently Friday, so lessons wouldn’t be much more than review, and clarifying any homework that might be given out. Still, she shouldn’t make it a habit of being late to class. Or make a habit of being chased by a dog. That was something she hoped to never have to do again.

  Diane’s father left a few hours earlier without a word. He seemed to be in a hurry, and a little nervous? Diane wasn’t sure, she was trying to catch up on something for history. These last few days have been pretty hectic, and most of her homework was done in class. After a few more minutes of work, Diane quickly packed away her stuff and began her trek to school. It was a cold winter morning, soft snow falling everywhere you looked. It wasn’t a heavy snowfall, but it was enough to stick to the floor and use your wipers while driving. The sky was a soft gray, casting limited light making the early morning seam like it was a lot earlier than it is. Diane liked this weather. She was wearing actual pants instead of just shorts and leggings. She still had the leggings, it was really cold, but they were under her warm pants. She pulled her warm jacket tighter to herself and took a deep breath. The exhale of her breath hung in the air as a white mist as she pulled the scarf she was wearing to cover more of her face. She smiled under the cover of the cloth as she all but skipped along her way. The cool air was refreshing, and it left her alone in her thoughts.

  And as thoughts often wander to weird stuff that has happened to you, she began to think about her dream. It was the second time she dreamt of the void, and yet they felt so different. She was so scared the first time, the void felt so lonely before the figure in the smoke first arrived. The void was just, it was just empty. And while she was scared of the figure in the smoke, he… Were they even a he? Diane would ask next time. Would she even have a next time? Whatever, While she was scared of the figure in the smoke, she couldn’t help but feel close to them. The figure just felt so genuine with its concern, but Diane just didn’t know. Maybe she felt close to the figure because she just didn’t want to be alone. It’s kind of weird to feel like that, in retrospect, Diane realizes. The figure was a terrifying creature, they could even make a grown man scream in fear…

  Diane was stopped from her thoughts as she arrived at the base of her school. The raven haired girl looked up at the imposing building and let out another sigh. She looked around at the other students entering the building, talking to each other or just being content with themselves. Everyone was just living their lives, all dealing with their own problems. And who knows, maybe some of them had their own figures obscured in dark, black smoke. Diane walked into the school, ready to continue with her own life. Or, at the very least, her day at school.

  Diane was sitting in class, actually listening to her science teacher and being able to follow along with the lesson. Mr. Jackson was an Older French man with graying brown hair tied back into a bun. He had come to the states to teach, and he was really passionate about science. Diane usually didn’t have trouble understanding the topic when he was teaching, he was very good at making even really complicated stuff understandable. It was really hard not to do well in his class, not because it was easy, but because he really tries his best to help students if they are having trouble. As Mr. Jackson was explaining something about the transition of matter to different states, Diane felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.

  Looking up and seeing the teacher distracted with writing the stuff on to the whiteboard, Diane pulled up her book to shield her as she pulled out her phone and opened it up on her lap. Sitting at the top of her notification screen was a dark purple box, with fancy white lettering.

  [YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN! UNFORTUNATE EVENTS WILL OCCUR IF YOU KEEP DECIDING TO NOT CONTINUE! WOULD YOU LIKE TO CONTINUE?] Diane frowned at the notification. What is this and why does it keep showing up? First, after she was chased by that dog. Then, she was walking home, and it showed up in her dream? Did that one count? Whatever. And it showed up when she woke up to her father yelling. What is this? Is it some really aggressive marketing scheme? Should she just click continue to find out what is going on, maybe it would stop if she did continue? No, she won’t. Diane shakes her head and sighs, clicking continue would admit that they have won. Diane won’t let some vicious ad campaign win. As she sets this resolve deep into her heart, Mr. Jackson calls out.

  “Diane, do you know the answer?” He asks, having turned away from the board with a marker in his hand. Diane looked up in confusion, quickly looking at the board and trying to gleam any context. She found none.

  “Um, sorry, could you repeat the question?” Diane asks, pressing [no] and putting her phone back into her pocket, annoyed that it had distracted her.

  “I asked what state is after liquid?” Mr. Jackson clarified, a little amused at his student.

  “Oh, yeah. It’s gas.” Diane wanted to die. Nobody laughed out loud, but they surely held Mr. Jackson's feelings about the situation.

  “Very good Diane.” Mr. Jackson turned back around with a smile and continued with his lesson. Diane tried to put her embarrassment behind her and also continued with her work.

  Eventually, the event that marks half the day has ended and gives the student body both a break, and provides nourishment, arrived; lunch. Diane had waited in the lunch line and after getting the great, fulfilling lunch of a sandwich, some fruit and milk, she walked through the cafeteria. Diane didn’t really have many friends. She wasn’t treated badly or anything, she just preferred to keep her own company. She got along fine with most people, excluding the people Hannah associates with. A lot of people held Diane's sentiment of introversion, and yet a few of Hannah’s friends liked to pick on Diane exclusively. Maybe they just didn’t like the fact that Hannah liked to hang out with someone that they deemed ‘uncool.’ Diane, honestly, is still reeling that people like that are actually real. Sure, they are ‘popular,’ but it is really only the few people in cheerleading who act like the stereotypical mean popular people. Even the people in the football team who are also part of the ‘popular’ group are just nice people who are passionate about their sport.

  Diane eventually ends up finding a bench a bit further away from the rest of the cafeteria tables that was empty, and Diane sat down and began to eat her lunch. She kept her mp3 player on as she spent her time messing with her phone. She was almost done with her lunch when she felt a disturbance. An incoming mass of positive vibes and unrivalled extroversion. Diane quickly secured the loose items of her lunch, and not a moment too soon as Hannah slid on to the bench next to Diane, bumping into her in the process. Diane set her phone and tray down to her side and took out her earbuds as she turned to look at the redhead.

  “Diane! Are you excited for the party tomorrow?” Hannah asked, her smile almost too bright compared to the rest of the day. The redhead wasn’t wearing her cheerleading uniform currently, there wasn’t much need for it as the winter season truly started to take hold and games for the team were on hold for the upcoming break. The party Hannah was holding was actually meant to be a last little get together before the break, so everyone could celebrate with their friends and colleagues before leaving for whatever or just as they spent the time with their family. Hannah was wearing a rather fluffy white sweater, very indicative of her personality to be honest.

  “Oh, yeah. I am super glad you didn’t forget that I agreed to that.” Diane secretly lamented her friend's good memory, but she put on a smile for Hannah. Hannah, on the other hand, did not seem to appreciate Diane's joke.

  “Come on Diane, it will be fun!” Hannah pleaded, her usual optimism slipping from her face as she looked at her introverted friend. Diane sighed and bumped her shoulder against the redhead and smiled.

  “I know, cause you’ll be there.” Hannah smiled at that, and hugged Diane. Diane once again awkwardly pat-hugged her back and blushed a bit at her very affectionate friend.

  “Jeez Hannah, I still can’t believe you like this weirdo.” And the moment was ruined.

  Diane looked up as Hannah stopped hugging the introvert and they turned to see the rest of Hannah's, more rude, cheerleading friends showed up. The girl leading this squad of three people was also the one who had just spoken up. Jessica was a girl with pale skin, almost paler than Diane, and rather long straight black hair, with bangs that hung a centimeter or two above her eyes. She, for whatever reason, was still wearing her cheerleading uniform. She had black leggings under the shorter blue skirt, and a gray school hoodie above the top of the uniform. At least she had the hoodie and leggings for the cold, that was at least better than nothing. Not by much, though.

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  “Yeah, Hannah. Seriously. Why is she even invited?” Jeremy, the second in the group, piped up. Jeremy was one of the few guys in the cheerleading team, and also the only guy that liked to participate in the ‘popular mean girl’ cliche. Jeremy had dark skin and a rather feminine figure for a guy, but he still stayed in shape. Same with the rest of the cheerleaders. You wouldn’t think it, but a lot of the stuff in those routines are pretty physically intensive. Jeremy had a few inches of long brown hair on the top of his head, with shaved short hair along the sides and back. He wasn’t wearing the uniform, just a pair of skinny jeans and a black hoodie. He crossed his arms and leaned a bit closer to Jessica as they laughed and looked down at Diane like stereotypical bullies in a high school movie.

  “Come on guys, everyone is invited! You know that, I couldn’t just just invite everyone and exclude my best friend.” Hannah still smiled at her cheerleading friends, but it was a bit forced. The redhead tried to be nice to everyone, and she was pretty much friends with the whole school, but she really didn’t like it when people picked on Diane. It was pretty much only this group of people, but still. Hannah didn’t like it.

  “You are a rare breed, Hannah.” Jasmine, the third and final member of this group adds, shaking her head dismissively, places her hands on her hips. Jasmine was the tallest member of the group, with tan skin similar to Hannah, and also the second most physically fit of all the cheerleaders. There was only one guy with a better physique than Jasmine, and that was because he was built like he was on the football team instead of the cheerleading squad. Jasmine's blonde hair was tied back into a ponytail, and while she wasn’t wearing her uniform, she matched Jessica by wearing a school hoodie. Both the mascot for the school and the name of the football team was the Bluejay, so both the football and basketball teams were known as ‘the Bluejays.’ And this small clique within the cheerleading team was known as the ‘Mocking Jays.’ Very cliche, but that was pretty much the group's whole aesthetic anyway.

  “I know, right? So generous to a weirdo like me.” Diane piped up this time, as she shrugged and shook her head with a slight smile on her face. Diane, for her part, didn’t really care about the rude group of cheerleaders. Everyone pretty much just put up with it, it was mainly an inconvenience to most, and an opportunity for some. An opportunity, to have fun and mess with them. Jessica was taken back a bit by Diane’s comment for a second, but she quickly recomposed herself and she smiled in a sneer.

  “Yeah, a weirdo. You should really be grateful for her charity.” Jessica spat, like it was the crippling insult she thought it was, earning a few chuckles from the two standing behind her. Diane also smiled a bit, almost with more malice than the cheerleader.

  “Honestly. It’s kind of annoying. Here I am, trying to be all alone and weird, and yet my good friend Hannah tries to include me.” Diane smirked as he nudged Hannah with her elbow. Hannah rolled her eyes and had to stifle down a chuckle and smile behind her hand. The rest of the Mocking Jays were now glaring at Diane. Jessica was just about to say something else when a few of the football players walked up to the group. Adam, linebacker of the team, led the group. He seemed a little nervous for some reason.

  Adam was fairly tall and well built, much like most of the football team. He wasn’t the strongest in the team, but he was certainly the fastest. He had short black hair in a swept back look, and usually looked very approachable and friendly.

  “Hey! Why are you guys, um, bothering with a… A weirdo? Yeah, a weirdo. Why don’t you just hang out with us?” Adam tried to mimic that smug smile the Mocking Jays were seldom without, but he wasn’t doing it that well. The Mocking Jays, however, didn’t seem to notice. They looked smugly at Diane before they turned away and started walking towards the group of jocks.

  “You’re right. She’s not even worth our time. Hannah, like, join us when you’re done hanging with the lessers or whatever.” The group of bullies laughed and began to walk off with the jocks. Once they were a bit further away, Adam looked back to Diane and Hannah, and wiped a bit of nervous sweat away from his brow. He gave an apologetic look towards Diane and mouthed ‘I'm so sorry’ with a shrug. Diane gave him a thumbs up and a little bow, mouthing ‘thank you.’ Adam breathed out a sigh of relief and waved at the girls with a smile before joining the other jocks. Hannah sighed and leaned back against the wall.

  “I’m really sorry about them.” The redhead apologized. Diane just picked up the rest of her sandwich and shrugged.

  “It’s fine, Hannah. I don’t really care about them.” Diane took a bite of her sandwich after she tried to reassure her friend.

  “I know, but still. I don’t know what their problem is.” Diane placed a comforting hand on Hannah's shoulder and swallowed the food in her mouth.

  “Hey, it’s fine. And I know that I complain a lot, but I am looking forward to the party.” Hannah smiled and sat up.

  “Alright Diane. I should really go and make sure those guys are doing all right, Jasmine and the others can be a bit much.” Hannah waved and walked over to the rest of the sports people, mood improved a little bit from Diane's words. Diane sighed and leaned back onto the wall. Tomorrow is going to be interesting. As Diane was about to finish up with her lunch and pulled her phone back out, it buzzed and a familiar purple notification with fancy white script popped at the top of her notification screen. [YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN! YOU AND THE PEOPLE YOU CARE ABOUT WILL SUFFER IF YOU DO NOT CONTINUE! WOULD YOU LIKE TO CONTINUE?] Diane huffed in annoyance and pressed ‘no.’

  The school day finished without much more excitement. Diane was walking home through the light snow, the cold air making her shiver as she passed through the familiar park. Despite the weather that most people might find uncomfortable, Diane was smiling. She always loved the cold, from the mood the season brings, to the actual weather. It could be because she loathed whenever summer came, seeing as how her preference for dark colored clothes did not bode well for the hotter season. Diane took a deep breath, feeling refreshed as the cold air filled her lungs and the exhale of her breath hung in the air. It kind of felt like when she inhaled the smoke in her dream.

  Diane frowned at the thought. What was going on with those dreams? They felt so real, but they couldn’t be… Right? No, they couldn’t be real. It was kind of interesting, having these really vivid dreams. But why were they so cryptic? That’s what really bothered Diane. Especially last night. Before she woke up, the figure had been so weird. Weirder than normal, not that Diane had much of a baseline for what was normal for the figure. Diane really needed to ask for a name or something. She needed to ask a lot of stuff next time, apparently.

  Before Diane knew it, she had arrived before her home. Testing the door, Diane found it unlocked. The girl sighed and stepped in, expecting to see her father sitting at the tv, but to her surprise, the living room was empty. Sitting on her counter in the living room was a box of pizza. Diane closed the door behind her as she went to investigate. Opening the box, Diane found that it was half empty. It wasn’t unusual for her to find take out on the counter, but her father was rarely anywhere else then being absorbed by the old recliner. Diane took a slice from the box and placed the rest into the fridge. While she was walking back to her room, she heard the faint sound of the television coming from down the hall, and by extension, her father's room. Diane supposed that solved the mystery of where he was. Taking a bite from the pizza, Diane sat down at her old desk and completed the last of her homework, before she got ready and went to bed.

  Diane was back in the void. She looked around and was greeted with the familiar emptiness. She was fully clothed again, and patting her pockets she found that she still had the tooth, money, and her phone in her pockets. As she patted her phone through her pants, it vibrated. Diane sighed as she pulled it out and was greeted with a dark purple screen, with fancy white lettering. She knew it. This was really starting to get on her nerves. She guessed it was her own fault, the ad following Diane into her dreams. [YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN! TERRIBLE EVENTS ARE IN PROGRESS, NOT CONTINUING WILL LEAD TO A HORRIBLE OUTCOME! WOULD YOU LIKE TO CONTINUE?] Diane pressed [no] once again, and returned the phone to its cloth prison known as her pocket.

  “Why are you so reluctant to continue?” Diane yelped and jumped forward a bit as the figure in the smoke spoke up behind her. While she was reading the notification, Diane didn’t notice the wall of smoke approaching. If she was still holding her phone, she would have thrown it an unreasonably far distance.

  “Come on!” Diane turned around to face the figure after she steadied herself. “I thought I told you not to sneak up on me!” Diane glared into the smoke where she had heard the voice, but her anger faltered when she realized what the figure said. “Wait, were you talking about the dumb notification?”

  “I am. This isn’t the first time you’ve pressed no. Why don’t you want to continue?” The confusion was evident in the figure's voice. There wasn’t really a reason for Diane to be so steadfast in her convictions, so he couldn’t really understand why the girl continued to be annoyed by the ad.

  “I just don’t want them to win, I don’t even know how they keep sending me the unmarked notifications, but I won’t let whatever company is doing this have the satisfaction of me continuing!” Diane crossed her arms in angry determination. She couldn’t see it, but the figure cocked his head to the side, still confused.

  “That is an interesting reaction to being chosen…” The figure could only sigh and move around ominously in the smoke. Diane, on the other hand, was surprised. Her arms fell back to her side and away from her sass filled pose.

  “Do you know what the ad means? What, being chosen means?” Diane was unsure, this was supposed to be a dream. The figure didn’t respond for a few seconds.

  “I… I’m not sure. I think I used to know what being chosen meant. I can’t remember,” the figure chuckled sadly a bit. “Something else I can’t seem to remember.” Diane frowned and looked around into the smoke.

  “Do you remember your name? Do you even have a name?” The girl asked, remembering that she was going to ask the figure things when she had the chance.

  “I know I have a name. I am sure of that. As for what it is, I have no clue.” Diane had expected that much. It would probably be too easy to just get the answers to her weird dreams. She still had questions, but what the figure said about the ad was still bothering her.

  “Um, are you… Male?” Diane didn’t know why, it was a perfectly normal question to ask, but Diane felt a bit awkward about asking. Maybe it was because she saw almost all of the figures' naked body. The figure let out a small laugh at the question.

  “Yes, I think so.” The figure replied. Diane could ruminate on what he said, or she could think of something else to ask, but she just couldn’t let it go. Diane nervously brought her hands up and crossed her arms. It wasn’t a statement of pride like it was previously, more the girl trying to hold herself to settle her nerves.

  “Is being chosen important?” Diane wasn’t sure why her previous determination of her stance on the had had started to slip, but it was. Maybe she just wanted to understand more about the figure in the smoke, maybe his mysterious past and having some knowledge of being chosen was what shook her resolve. The figure thought about it for a second before responding.

  “Yes. It is something important. What’s even more important, are those who are chosen. You are…” The figure trailed off, before some of the smoke parted and the top half of his body was revealed. The figure stepped forward and grabbed Diane's shoulders, his skull covered face leaning in, a bit closer to Diane. While his face didn’t do an excellent job of conveying emotion, Diane could still feel a sense of panic from him. His grip wasn’t that strong so it didn’t hurt the girl, but it still had the sense of urgency like the rest of his actions.

  “Something is coming. You have to continue, I don’t know why, but if you don’t something terrible will happen. As Diane stood there in shock, her vision began to fade.

  “W-Wha..?” The girl managed to stammer out as she continued to slip further out of the dream.

  “The next time you are asked, continue. Your safety depends on it.” The figure said with urgency as he looked around, head shaking side to side as if he was looking for something. And that was the last thing she saw, as her vision finally faded to black.

  Diane woke up suddenly, thankfully with less of a start than the last few times she had visited the void. The dim light of the winter morning sun streaming into her room through the window. Diane continued to lay in bed for a few more moments, thinking of the dream she just experienced. It was a lot to unpack, and she could only come to one conclusion.

  “Well then. That was ominous.”