The calendar did not stop at that. I could see it—Change, drastically. At first, it was only the year. But the more I looked at it, the more twisted it got. Words... letters were being erased, written, over, and over again. Until it settled at August 21th 2017.

  I couldn't believe my eyes as I lay there.

  "Is this even reality...?" I accepted my fate as soon as those words left my mouth. Whatever was going on, it did not obey the laws of physics itself. The roads were all wrong, the calendar, the-EVERYTHING.

  "I can't, I couldn't accept this, I can't. What went so wrong? How could it turn out to be like this. I- I don't want to think about this, it just doesn't make sense. It would never make sense, will I be stuck here forever?"

  "Mom, grandpa, uncle. Where are you? Please... I exist." Tears started to drip onto my cheeks, I couldn't hold them back anymore.

  "I don't know where I am, please-please, pick me up! Pick me up, I'm scared. I don't want to be here, please... please." My voice echoes around my room, the stress of this madness was evident. My words were shaking, I've never felt this much sadness and regret ever in my entire life.

  I cried and cried for God knows how long, lying in a puddle of my own tears. Time wasn't even moving, the Sun's ray was shining on my furniture, their shadow outstretched in the opposite direction.

  I kept hearing the same birds chirp and the sound of the same car over and over again, like a corrupted movie DVD. Of course, the noise ceased as if someone suddenly stopped a gramophone it wasn't even a sound anymore. And then it would start again, and the cycle repeats.

  It just... kept playing like that, the loop repeats again and again, and it was the only way for me to keep track of how much time has passed. My eyes were dry, hurt to the touch, I could swear I accidentally fell asleep for a few minutes, if minutes are even something that exists here.

  I stared blankly, until my senses came back. I knew that I could at least try to get out of here, even if the chances were slim. Trying is better than not doing anything.

  I sat straight up, my back aching from the position of which I laid down in. Scanning my room, I tried to gather any clues, anything. The wecker clock? As expected, broken, its hand still pointing at 7:33 a.m. that... cursed time.

  The strange calendar didn't have anything valuable, or anything for me to work with, just the year being all wrong.

  My monitor was still on, displaying the note that I didn't close. How could I forget about that?

  "Maybe the pictures have something?" I picked up the polaroid photos that were scattered on the one, it was still the same. "Just me and my family, infront of a bu—... What was the name of the structure, again? I—don't..." And then it clicked in me, the unsettling feeling wasn't because of anything, it was the building behind us in that picture.

  "Didn't I know the name and location of that building before? I can't remember anything." Memories were starting to drift apart. I could've sworn... I knew where this location was.

  "God... dam—Do I have amnesia? Dementia?!" I said to myself, trying to laugh despite all of the things I experienced. Who would notice a madman around here.

  And so I looked at the barricaded door as I stood up, the feeling of dizziness and pain, pressure building behind my eyes. It was just temporary, it'll go away soon enough.

  For whatever ungodly reasons, the furniture barricading the door had a thick layer of dust. It shouldn't be possible, almost as if three months have passed. Which was impossible, I counted the audio loop of the birds and the car. And I swear... I didn't count it wrong, it was played around 30 times repeatedly. Each session was 2 minutes each.

  I rechecked my computer, and analyzed the words. I tried deciphering the note, which unsurprisingly... failed. I kept looking through my computer's files, apps, to find any clues or ANYTHING. Nothing interesting crossed my path.

  And so only one option was left, an option I wished it didn't come to. One that filled my mind with fear whenever I thought about it.

  The barricade. As I stand in front of the barricaded door. A chill was sent down my spine. I scanned my room, again, and AGAIN. To try and find any clues for the last time, and the result, was still the same. There was only one choice left.

  "No.. NO NO NO. There's gotta be something, right? RIGHT? Something that I'm missing. I—" I knew that it was the only way forward, the window was a death trap. I had a feeling that if I had jumped out, I'll be falling forever, and ever, until eternity.

  I took a deep breath, as I tried to prepare myself. Took another last glance around my room, hoping for any miracle to happen. But I know that it wasn't that easy.

  I grabbed whatever I could, the three-pronged object with a bearing in the middle. The polaroid photo, and the clock.

  This isn't the end that I want to choose, I don't want to stay in this room forever, I won't.

  And so my arms worked tirelessly, un-barricading the door. And by the end of it, I was tired. But there it is, the door. With all of the glory and horror it awaits on the other side. Trying to gather any last remaining bravery that I had, my legs took the first step forward.

  I reached for the door handle and turned it.

  [Click]

  ...

  "It opened?"

  The door slowly opens, its hinges giving off a slight screeching noise. As it made friction with the ground, it came to a halt, opening a way to the hallway outside.

  And so was my face drained from all colors, if it weren't done so already. Behind the door were scratch marks. Scratch marks that were so deep, that it was somehow engraved in the wood, the same wood that refused to break under my relentless kicks, and not even a dent.

  "This can't be right, I never had heard any scratching noises. Or even anything remotely similar to that."

  A feeling of uncertainty and dread washes over me, my flight or fight response kicking in with all of its glory, I was frozen for a moment. Before I walked out.

  "What would be out here? Will that thing still be here? What's with the papers?" It was all that I could think of. My words were stuck in my throat.

  The hallways were relatively normal, the walls had my family's photo hanged on it. Everything was how I used to remember it to be.

  "To escape this place, was to first get to the front door. Which was... downstairs." Was escape even possible? Would the front door even exist? If it wasn't distorted by... whatever this reality was.

  And so I noticed it, the all-to-familiar stair that I had walked hundreds of times on. So I went down it.

  The boards creaked under my weight, something I was accustomed to and, frankly, a bit comforting.

  ...

  ...

  I kept walking and walking, and WALKING. The stair spirals down forever in a way that was impossible, all that I could see was just more stairs and stairs and STAIRS going down in an endless array of stairs.

  This wasn't getting anywhere, so I turned back. And to my absolute surprise. I was still on the third step.

  As I turned my back and went back into the hallway, I couldn't help but feel something was watching me, somewhere from the depth of the stairs.

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  It was dusty, every gust of wind or air circulation picked up dust that blowed onto my way. The furnitures looked normal, but upon closer inspection, looks like it's rotting.

  I continued to walk through the hallway, and just like the stairs. The doors opened, and what used to lead to another room led to another infinite expanse of hallways.

  Until.

  After walking for what seems to be hours, I came across a door. And on that door was a sign that was hung by a pair of strings. The sign read,

  "Fishing Hut"

  And so I opened it. And what I saw, baffles me. It was—the spot where my grandpa used to fish. It was... Just how I remembered it.

  I took a step inside, and could only advance a few inches forward until I was stopped by a transparent barrier.

  Fishing With Grandpa

  I've woken up early for this! My parents told me yesterday that grandpa was planning to take me on a fishing trip.

  It should've been a surprise! Or so what my parents told me, but, hey. I don't mind spoilers, as long as it's a good one.

  And so as I expected, a knock on the front door was heard. It was grandpa. I eagerly jumped from the sofa and turned off the TV which was playing my favourite show.

  I rushed towards the door and greeted my grandpa excitedly, and I had a feeling grandpa knew that I knew that and he knew—

  I was going off-track.

  Well, it doesn't matter. My grandpa is here!

  And so we went on a looong car trip, the scenery outside was amazing. I witnessed the drastic change between the neighborhood, then the city, THEN the calm background of a countryside.

  I didn't even know time had passed that fast and that we had already arrived at the fishing spot.

  I grabbed my belongings along with a small fishing rod, and exited the car, following grandpa's lead.

  We arrived at a worn-out dock, along with a fishing shack... hut? Something like that.

  My grandpa grabbed his lawn chair, which he always carried at the back of his car for special occasions, and set it at the end of the dock.

  I followed suit! A small fishing rod wobbling up and down in my hand and stood next to grandpa who was sitting comfortably on his lawn chair.

  Of course, he helped me set up the bait. Those fish hooks were sharp, I wouldn't want my fingers to be stuck by them.

  After everything was A-Okay, I swung the rod as far back as I could and launched it forward. The line traveling really far, I can see that even my grandpa was amazed by that.

  I watched the bobber fly through the air until...

  It suddenly stopped mid air and fell to the waters below.

  Strange...

  Could it be the wind?

  _______

  I watched in horror... that's—THAT'S ME! And watched as the bobber that kid threw came into contact with the invisible barrier that was between me and... that world.

  Staring in disbelief was an understatement, I couldn't even believe my eyes at what I'm looking at. They're still fishing, as if I'm looking at the past, blissfully una—

  I frantically banged at the invisible barrier, to try and get their attention. I screamed at the top of my lung, I SCREAMED and SCREAMED. But all I got in response was them cheering over a caught fish.

  "No, no... NO NO NO! I'M THIS CLOSE, THIS CLOSE. PLEASE! HEAR ME, I'M HERE. HELP ME, GRANDPA, I'M HERE!" I said, deffeat in my tone was evident.

  It was there, reality. Or is it even THE reality? Infront of me, and I can't do nothing but only to observe, the barrier blocking whatever means of me to get there.

  [A loud noise rang out. And the world. Became black.]

  "Wh—where..." I took a step back, as I stared into the deep void. What used to be a memory, now is just a room, infinite in space. Something my brain couldn't even comprehend.

  With haste, I exited from the way I came from. Slamming the door behind me, the door clicked. As if it locked itself.

  As I stand there, my back to the door. I can't think whether I should feel... desperate, doomed, or even defeated. How can hopelesness become even worse? All I could describe was that hopelesness is just an understatement here.

  "I—I need to keep on moving, I... shouldn't think much of it. It's just an illusion, it is. I couldn't go in there even if I want to, there was nothing that I could do..." A sigh came out. What predicament have I found myself in?

  I kept walking, walking, and walking. Hallways after looped hallways, each—... I noticed the walls slowly being rotten away, the floorboards now made an audible creaking sound. And cobwebs that had no spiders starting to appear.

  Spooked, I was. This was like the feeling I had watching Paranormal Activity, but cranked a thousand-fold.

  My breath was labourous, all of these things finally took a toll on both my body and my mental state. I couldn't even distinquish which is reality, and which is not.

  And then... I encountered something. Something that I came across, and that where I almost went past it. Another door, a door with a sign. Out of sheer luck, a door that I would've missed due to my exhaustion was there.

  I reached for the handle, this could be it. The way out! Right?! And then I read the sign, it read as follows.

  "Regret"

  I hesitated—what if this could be dangerous? What would be behind this door. I—no matter, something, amything, that's diffrent, than the endless hallways in this place is welcomed.

  And so I opened it. I expected another ear-piercing screech from its hinges, but nothing. The door opened smoothly. And what I saw terrified me... something a human shouldn't see, something MANKIND shouldn't see. It was... my family, my relatives. Having a picnic. But their features, oh God their features are distorted. One of their hands are longer than the other, their face? I can't—GET IT OUT OF MY HEAD. Their mouth was stretched, almost hitting the ground. They all had a smile A SMILE.

  All of them were frozen, almost as if time itself froze. I stood there, staring at them. Quickly, I checked if the barrier, like the other room, was there. And to my relief, it was. I felt the familiar contact of the transparent barrier. I... didn't know it would give me a sense of relief.

  And suddenly, time resumed in that reality. The birds chirping, uncannily... just as if it was recorded in a Monday morning. And them? Them... They, ate their food. Frantically, violently, ripping through each other's food from their hand. They-ate each other's food like it was a game of survival, one even snatched it.

  Their mouth was the most horrifying part of them all, it opened, it opened like it was an Origami fold. It had no teeth, there was not a single teeth in sight. Christ—what is this... this isn't... right, no... NO it's not right.

  And then I saw it a figure, in white, almost paper like, staring at my location from the treelines just behind a tree. Myself. I... or me, in there, was normal. He was all there, alone by himself. And I saw him, I saw him slowly approaching the woods. I don't know why, but I had a desperate urge to warn him.

  [Bang]

  [Bang]

  [Bang]

  I kept hitting the invisible barrier, TRYING to get his attention. But all I got, was a glance from him looking back. And him, entering the woods and dissapearing out of sight.

  ...

  "No... NO NO NO DON'T GO IN THERE YOU-" To my horror the banging, attracted something else. Somehow, the—creatures that was having a picnic heard my bangings. But... how? HOW. Last time, they didn't even notice me! I was invisible, right? Was I—

  My thought was cut short as ALL of them lunged towards the barrier. Each of them trying to get through. Punching. Biting. Scratching. Instinctively, I stumbled and jumped back. I hope, I hoped for the barrier. Or whatever it was, was strong enough. Please... PLEASE. KEEP THEM AWAY FROM ME.

  Then—the signs that I feared came, the barrier started to develop cracks. Even the reality seeping in through them, if a TV show was liquid, this was the screen breaking and spilling the contents. Without the show ever being interrupted.

  The cracks became larger, and larger, and LARGER. I was frozen in fear. I SAW their expression, I swear, they saw how much fear I had. How... HOW?!-

  The first of the arms broke through, prying the barrier apart, to create a larger hole.

  "OH GOD, NO. NO. NO. NO. " The fear was overwhelming, but the fear of them catching me was even worse.

  From my frozen state, I bolted, I ran through the door. I could hear the barrier breaking, just like dropping a glass from a height.

  I slammed the door shut. Again, it locked on its own. I knew that I shouldn't find out whether they would come for me or not. But I stood there, infront of the door... and then I heard it, scratching from the other side.

  I reeled back from the door, my eyes locked on it. The hinges were giving up, the doors were strong, but whatever was pounding on it, were even stronger.

  I hesitated...

  I turn my back and ran, trying to get as far as possible—

  [Crunch]

  The door broke.

  I quicken the pace, my muscles straining under the speed my brain was demanding, step, step, step. Creak, creak, and creak. Was all that I can hear from the floorboards, and with dread. I can hear them behind me, too.

  I looked back, and saw EVERY ONE of them chasing me. Hands outstretched, as if they just saw dinner.

  God knows what would happend if I got caught, my mind wouldn't even want to make an image of what will happen.

  I ran and ran, RAN AND RAN. Until eventually, my pace began to slow. My muscles, were at its limit. I can hear them coming up behind me, slowly but surely. They're catching up.

  I search frantically for anything in the hallway, ANYTHING. And that was when I saw a window. Without hesitation, I changed my course, and plowed through it. All I could see. Was my arms covering my eyes.

  [Thump]

  I landed back, I landed on the carpeted floor of my room. I—couldn't believe it... I managed to surviv—

  I quickly looked behind me, and to my relief. The window I came through from was not there, just the concrete wall of my bedroom.

  I took a moment to gather my breath and steady my heartbeat.

  Now, I was back... back here...

  "GOD F-DAMN IT!"

  I punched the wall. My fists hurting in return, but I don't care. I DON'T. As long as I can release my anger and frustration.

  [Crack]

  I heard one of my fingers breaking from the impact.

  It hurts.

  But the andrenaline kept the pain at bay.

  I stopped punching the wall, it was a cue for me to do so.

  The polaroid photo in my pocket was loose from all of that running, and it gently fell towards the carpet.

  I crouched and picked it up.

  ...

  I made eye contact with them.

  They were staring back at me from under my bed.

  Their eyes were looking at me with hunger.

  Their mouth hungry for flesh.

  Jesus Christ.

  I quickly grabbed the polaroid photo, and ran towards my bedroom door. And reached for the handle.

  ...

  ...

  It was locked.

  To my horror it was locked.

  I looked behind my back, to see that they're pushing each other, trying to get out from under there.

  I used all the strength that I had to pull the door handle, the door? Stayed firm.

  Again and AGAIN I pulled at the handle, only for it. To come off.

  The handle now in my hand, I looked at it with an expression only described as a man who's facing imminent doom.

  I looked back, and saw.

  The bed was almost breaking in half.

  God... help me.

  They kept pushing each other, their grosteque proportion kept them almost merged with the others, their smile... was still on their face.

  I slumped my back on the door, and sat down, waiting and watching the death to come about to claim me.

  Praying for any miracles, for anything. To come.

  And it did.

  It did come.

  The bed was forcefully twisted back to its original shape, the creatures? Were not stopped, but it bought me time.

  I quickly turned towards the bedroom door and search for anything, a keyhole?! Anything.

  And then I saw it.

  On the top of the door was three shapes. A clock. A square. And a three-pronged shape.

  Quickly, I connect the dots and looked towards the item that I had.

  A wecker clock, a polaroid photo, and a... three-pronged object... this is it. THIS IS IT!

  I placed each object on their designated spaces, and I heard the door click.

  And so did I hear the bed breaks.

  Without any hesitation, I opened the door and jumped in. I swore, I could feel their breath behind me.

  My vision was filled with nothing but whiteness.

  The Picnic.

  After we went fishing with grandpa, my family and I went for a picnic in an awesome plain grassland, the view was beautiful, nothing like I've seen before.

  Coincidentally, today was an eclipse. And the sun was laid bare for me to see it! It was so magical...

  My family told me to use these special glasses... which looked funny.

  But I wasn't interested in that, I wanted to explore.

  My family and my parents were too busy watching the clipse, and so I sneaked away from the picnic ground and towards a wood nearby. And, hey! It was interesting, I could see the squirrels and the birds that made nest there.

  But what piqued me the most was that there was a door there, just inside the treelines. From what I could see here...

  ...

  It had scratches? Well... it wasn't too surprising, it was probably just the bobcats. And maybe a woodpecker or two, for the heck of it. I was tempted to enter it!

  And so I approached the door, trying to not prick myself with any bush or bugs that was hidden beneath the folliage.

  I reached the door, analyzing it. The scratch marks were BIIIIG, it was so deeply engraved into the wood! It must've been a one big bobcat.

  "Oh, who cares!"

  I reached towards the door handle.

  Before I could turn it.

  I heard a noise behind me.

  I quickly looked back, half expecting my mother that was mad at me for sneaking away.

  But there was nothing.

  I could see my family in the distance watching the eclipse.

  "Maybe... I should join them."

  I suddenly had goosebumps.

  "These woods gives me the heebie-jeebies..."

  And so I walked away, from that mysterious door.

  __________________

  The figure behind the tree watched him. It watched him walk away. It gave him a slight smile. It turned to you. And waved you a goodbye.