Glitch | #ONC2020 ✔

Epilogue

I wake up with a jolt, smelling the relaxing smell of biscuits and gravy.   I am not on my but, but the living room couch.

A blanket is draped over me, along with an icepack on my forehead.  My mother walks in with a smile on her face. "You are awake! Your fever was so horrible, I was about to go call the doctor!"

Fever?

I was ill?

When did that happen?

"Fever? I do not remember being sick."

My mother is quick to sit on the couch, where my body does not currently reside at that moment of course.  "You woke up last night screaming because you fell out of bed. Unfortunately, you seem to have broken your leg.  Not to worry though! I made you biscuits and gravy so that you will get better!"

She shoves the tray onto my lap and I look down to see the fluffy goodness for a second before seeing a glitch.  "Wha-"

"What is it sweetie?" My mother smiles even wider, making me a little uncomfortable. "

I look back down at my plate, only to see the fluffy goodness of my mother's homemade biscuits.  "Nothing, I think that fever made me paranoid."

My mother tilts her head and continues to smile.  "Well, do try not to get so paranoid. It is not a good thing to be a part of your personality.  You do not want Aira to think that you are weird."

"Yeah…" I trail off thinking about Aira.  Memories of her sipping tea go through my mind.  And then another memory of walking down a deserted hallway with a brunette haired girl and Aira.  I make my brows furrow. When did that happen? Another memory flashes in my mind, but this time, it does not seem so calm.

Aira is bawling her eyes out and screaming as my hand reaches out and closes a door, leaving me alone.

Immediately, I shake my head.  That is just the fever talking.   Aira has never cried in front of me, and especially not like that.

As I look around me, I realize that the world around me is glitching.  I blink a few times before the world turns normal once more.

What is happening?  Did someone drug the food when mom was not looking? 

No, that is not possible.  I am a lonely child and my dad left us.  Now my mom is a single mom, who is the best person ever.  She actually volunteers to help expecting mothers and tell them what to expect when they go into labor.

She does not deliver the babies however, she did not have enough schooling for that because she had me.  Maybe that is why she wants me to have good grades, so I can have more opportunities than she did.

And that is probably why I respect her so much.  She truly cares for me, even though I brought her hardships.  Even when I was a moody little shit, she never laid a hand on me.

She never hit me.

The world seems to glitch once more and I groan.  I find the remit and turn on the television, only to be greeted by the news.

News of how the climate is changing for the better makes my mind flash to a middle-aged man.  His hair is balding and he looks malnourished. 

Now who is that guy?

I continue to watch the news until the commercial break comes on.  Right before I am about to switch it to Saturday morning cartoons, I see a brunette girl smiling at the camera.  "Hi! I'm Aeryn! Do you need help studying? Well call me, because I will gladly help!"

She rambles on for a bit longer, but I do not really pay attention.  What I do pay attention to however, is that she looks eerily familiar. 

"I never woke up."

I look around for the voice, but do not see anyone.  The world around me glitches since more, making me want to hold my head and scream.

Maybe I should sleep?

Yes, I should sleep.  If I sleep, I should make all these fever dreams disappear.

I lay down for a while, staring at the ceiling, before slowly closing my eyes and falling into a deep sleep.

•

I awake in a dark room with very little light.  Where am I? I thought I just fell asleep?

My eyes, that are finally adjusting to the low light, spot shadows around me. What those shadows are, I have no idea. My eyes can only see that they are not moving. 

"Sorry! Due to technical difficulties, the simulation has been interrupted. Normal services will begin shortly."

A woman's voice breaks the silence. The voice sounded robotic, like the sound of those bots that read Reddit posts for entertainment.

What do they mean? When does she sound like a Reddit bot? Where am I?

I start to doze off once more, making me surprised because I was already asleep.

What a strange dream indeed.

Epilogue WC: 834
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