I woke up

...

I woke up?

It isn't the fact that I have woken up that confuses me-instead-it is the fact that I have woken up instantly after having memories of my own death. Putting aside my emotional state and thoughts for the moment, I remember that all this time my eyes have been closed. I should probably open them sometime soon to see what exactly is going on.

But...I'm scared.

The likely possibility of me taking in the surroundings of a hospital when I do open my eyes fills me with fear. What condition will I be in? Will I be fired from my job? How will I afford this month's rent if that is the case? And so, in this opportunity I have to not be part of the reality awaiting me, I keep my eyes closed. For the first time in years, I feel at peace. I feel as if I am in a place where nothing can hurt me. And so, I continue to close my eyes tightly as possible, as if trying to shut out the world itself.

I hear a voice. One so far away, hidden in the depths of my mind but at the same time, one I can hear so closely. It's...so beautiful.

'Live.'

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

The voice fades away, leaving me with nothing but the sheer impact of that word echoing in my head as my eyes open gently. It seems I have been asleep for a while. It's finally time to face reality I think to myself but as soon as my vision is restored to me, what I am greeted by is not the familiar view of a hospital bed. Instead, vast, endless quantities of the colour green are present in place of it. Where...am I? I turn my head around frantically, my mind still riddled with uncertainty, but the landscape is the same in all directions. Grassland extends as far as I can see with a few darker-coloured trees placed in the distance. I...don't understand. How could I have ended up in this place?

I take a few minutes to compose my thoughts together. Firstly, I am certain of the fact I was hit by a truck just a few moments prior, after getting lost in the dark trying to walk home. Secondly, I then heard a voice when I fell asleep. I try to recall what I heard, but doing so causes my head to throb furiously. I decide to leave that thought aside for a moment. Oh, and most importantly, am I not...injured? After getting hit by a truck at that velocity, I was expecting to not be able to think clearly, let alone have a brain left to think with. I look down at my body. A plain black shirt covers my upper area with some sort of greyish-coloured silk trousers clung to my legs. My previously weak, lanky arms are now replaced with ones that are much shorter in nature and the short, grey hair I had grown use to was now non existent. Instead, medium-length jet black strands interrupt my field of vision.

'Ah.'

I speak instinctively to the huge shock I have just experienced when examining my body but from the sound of my once-deep but now puny voice I realise something.

What I see is a body that does not belong to me.

And where I am at is most likely a world where I am not supposed to be...