3, 5, 4, 3 hours of sleep this week and counting. And now, it’s finally Friday. My alarm blasts its cacophonous tune as I hit snooze once again. After another relentless attack, I force my eyes open and look around my room. Piles of laundry littered all over the ground, stacks of paper mounted on my desk, my walls adorned with lines and scribbles. Habitually, I haul myself out of bed and check my phone. It’s 6:22 AM—less than 3 hours left until my final exams begin. “Just hold on a little longer,” I recite to myself.
It’s the last week of May, meaning all my teachers are rushing to finish grading all their students. As a result, students are being pushed to the limit with homework, labs, and of course, final exams. Knowing how important it is to do well on the finals, I’ve been studying tirelessly for the past month to prepare. It’s been hard, but I’ve managed to do the best I can. It’s time for the final push.
I trudge to the bathroom and stare at my reflection in the mirror. Dark, round circles lay under my puffy, bloodshot eyes. My skin feels coarse and uneven, with absolutely horrible acne. It’s kind of funny actually. I look like a zombie straight from the movies.
I get dressed and pack my bags, making sure I have all my textbooks and notes that I’ll need for more last minute cramming. I step outside into the dark, the sun having yet to rise.
Strangely enough, despite being tired, my senses feel extremely sharp. The sound of my shoes slamming on the pavement, the fresh aroma of the morning dew, the harsh winds blowing into my face, tracing layers of shadows—all these perceptions come crashing down on me spontaneously, creating a chaotic, yet sensational feeling.
Overwhelmed by my surroundings, I escape into school where it becomes quiet again. I check the time—7:00 AM. 2 hours left. I walk through the dark, empty hallways. I can hear my footsteps echo as I turn left, right, left, left, straight to the library. I find myself a secluded spot in the corner and take out my notes.
As I try to decipher my frantic writing, my eyelids become heavy and my head slowly drifts down on my arm as my consciousness slips away…
Suddenly, I hear 2 voices whispering behind me. I can’t quite make out what they’re saying, so I choose to ignore them. Out of nowhere, they stop. I sensed a tingling sensation on the back of my head and I knew instantly that their focus was now on me.
“Hey girlie, come chat with us, it’ll be fun,” said the first voice in a high-pitched and taunting manner.
I try to lift my head and look but I realize I can’t. I’m stuck in place and can’t move an inch. My eyes are glued shut but I can still feel their eerie presence.
“Hah, she’s too shy… but still… don’t ignore us…” The other sounded more gloomy.
Panicking, I’m petrified in place as I try to say something in response but no sound comes out of my mouth.
“That wench… how dare she ignore us. After everything we’ve done for her.”
“Unforgivable… IF IT WEREN’T FOR US, YOU’D BE DEAD BY NOW. SCREW YOU. DIE DIE DIE.”
The pressure holding me down amplifies by tenfold and the two beings come rushing towards me. They yell and screech curses at me and start pulling relentlessly at my hair. I can feel something blowing on the back of my neck. Then it hits me. I know what this is— sleep paralysis. It’s when your mind is awake but your body is still asleep. That means I must’ve fallen asleep at some point while I was studying.
I try to force my arm up but the pressure keeps getting heavier with the slightest effort. My feet and legs… my entire body will not listen to me. Struggling, I use every ounce of my strength to force my jaw open and bite into my tongue. It works and I jolt awake.
I’m still in the library, but thankfully I’m the only one here. I try to move around and it works; however, it still feels like my body is somewhat lagging. I stand up to stretch, but a few moments later, I can feel my body slowing and approaching a petrified state, once again. I stagger back into my seat and my head flops back into the table.
Absolute silence. How much time has passed? Seconds? Hours? Days? It feels like I’m stuck in a void devoid of life apart from myself. I start to hear my own thoughts echo through my head as if it’s being amplified through a speaker. My brain creates random noises to fill the emptiness. Whoooosh…. hissssss… I’m going to miss the test…. fizz… hummm… all that suffering will have been for nothing.
All of a sudden, I sense a dark presence standing at the end of the hallway. My senses pick up a sinister, spine-chilling aura. It takes a step forward. Then another. The room starts gently swaying. With every step, my fear grows exponentially and I break out in a cold sweat. As it comes closer and closer the room starts to tremble and the pressure pushes down on me harder and harder. I can hear its footsteps echo through my head as it nears the entrance to my void. This is death. Inevitable death is coming my way. I panic. Thoughts rush through my head, trying to find a way to break out of this cruel fate. I try biting my tongue with no success and I yell with all my might. A pitiful whimper is all I can manage to voice.
Please. This cannot be the end. I have so much left to do. I haven’t lived the life I wanted to live up until now. Once the exams were over, I was going to rip up my textbooks into a chute and watch them burn, journey to the countryside to find a field to nap in, and so much more. I have so many dreams and aspirations for my future. It cannot end like this.
At this point the demonic being had reached the entrance. It stood still… staring right at me. Amidst all the chaos, I still had my eyes closed, but I could now see the situation from an omniscient point of view. There I was, with my head down and a couple steps away was the demonic figure. It had the silhouette of a human, but dark fumes emerged from its body and was wrapped in smoke. It had no arms or a face, a completely anonymous creature.
My trembling and fear intensified; you could cut through the tension with a knife. I questioned all my choices in life and realized I had so many regrets. If only I had one more chance… I would never make the same mistake again. And now it was too late.
The creature looked at me, and as I prepared myself, now accepting that I was going to die, it turned away… and just left.
Abruptly, I woke up, but this time I knew I was back in the real world. I sat in silence for a few moments, completely speechless. I check my phone: 8:50 AM. It’s starting soon. I pack up my things and slowly get up. Step by step, I approach the door where the ominous visitor had stood. Will he visit again soon? Will I be able to stave him off somehow next exam session? Will he haunt me more and more as school becomes more intense?? Who knows, but everything’s back to normal for now.
“Dang, I have debate club and violin class after this,” I mutter to myself as I approach the testing site. Weaving through hundreds of other students, I can’t help but notice that they have the same zombie-like demeanor. Hilarious.
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