Witches Hour

I could sense my consciousness fall behind where my subconscious lays. There, on my bed, I didn’t even realize that I was on my back as I rested for the night & prepared my mind for dreaming. It started as it usually did back when I was still in middle school. My body, extremely tired, wouldnt have any trouble falling asleep yet I kept my mind awake & aware. That’s when the ringing in the back of my head started to sound & I felt the changes.

I had to stay relaxed. Any panic would cause a louder ringing, possibly with voices screaming in the background somehow & some pressure on my chest, causing me to feel as if I was suffocating. Right afterwards, I opened what could be my eyes in a different state and then began to move my arms up toward the ceiling. Still haven’t mastered my separation and understanding of this but it was worth a try to separate myself once again like I did a long time ago.

Right when I began on my second arm, which was already separating from my physical body, I heard a voice calling me. It was the voice of a child. “Lizzie! Lizzie! Come play with me!” I froze my astral body as my physical body still laid there, motionless. This wasn’t supposed to happen. I was calm & aware. I was aware that the voices aren’t real. But why was one calling me?

“Lizzie! Come play!” I made the mistake of panicking a bit. It began to creep me out. By the time I realized it, it was too late. I began to hear other voices & eventually they began to get louder to the point where they were screaming at me to get my attention. I couldn’t take it. “Shut up!!” I screamed inside my head. I was able to hear myself clearly without having my physical mouth speak aloud. Fortunately, silence came about. I still remained frozen.

“Nice job Liz. It seems that you handled that well.” another voice came said. “Who is this? Who is talking while I’m supposed to be sleeping?” I asked, in an annoyed tone. The voice, which sounded like it came from a man, chuckled. “Clearly, you’re not trying to sleep. Why don’t you just come to the other side where i am instead of trying to separate?” I was hesitant. “I don’t even know you & here you are invading my space & mind. Who are you?” “Oh please, as if I could do anything to you when it’s your dream. Just come!”

He had a point there & besides, I could always wake up when I’m not any bit comfortable anymore. “What do I do?” “Just close your eyes & picture yourself at the track field.” Sounded easy so i did exactly just that. I keep my eyes closed for no more than 5 seconds & when I opened my eyes, I found myself at the Cromwell track field in grey sweats & sneakers with a man dressed in a red & black suit & a kid about half my height, dressed in blue sweats. The kid, who appeared to be a somewhat feminine boy looked at me & I felt as if I knew him/her from somewhere. He or she had pretty long, brown hair that waved down in curls.

“What are we doing here?” I asked as I looked around the track & saw that there was no one else in sight. “The child wanted to play, so I thought we could play a little running game. Let’s keep it simple.” He points at the end of the track, some yards ahead of us. “See the finish line there? Why don’t you compete with the kid in a little race? See if you run faster now that you’re grown up.”

I shrugged, indifferently. “I don’t know if that’s a good game to play. The kid is pretty young & he looks a little chubby. It wouldn’t be fair.” He puts his hands on the kid’s shoulders & pulls him closer to me & the starting line. “Do it. The one who loses will be chased down by me.” He pats the kids head, twice. Soon afterwards, the kid puts his hands on his head, almost as if protecting it, as he crouches down. What is up with that kid?

Feeling sorry for the kid, I agreed to the game. “Okay, just let us know when to start.” Without any emotion or blink, the man said, “now.” The kid began to run. I figured I should just try to enjoy myself. I am dreaming after all. I caught up with the kid since he/she didn’t run fast enough & i decided to give him or her the win since he/she is only a kid.

The kid saw this right away. ”No, you must go first. If I win, I’ll end up with that guy for the rest of my sleeping life. Eli, you must win.” He whispers as he is now struggling not to run.

Eli? Only my family members call me that. How did this kid know my personal nickname?

I stopped & looked back. The man was still standing there, smiling mischievously at us. When I looked back towards the end, the kid won the race. He or she had what seemed to be a scared facial expression. Something was wrong.

I hear the man’s voice back inside my head. “Time for me to chase you.” I turn around back towards the man. He is starting to speed up as he is walking towards me. I panic & began to tap my right foot, my strategy for waking up from a dream quick. I forgot about the kid.

“Don’t leave me here with him, Eli!” was the last thing I heard in my head before I found myself waking up on my bed with my right foot still making the tapping motion.