I awoke screaming.

At least, I think I did. I couldn't hear or feel anything, nor could I see for everything was a blinding white pain. It felt like someone was using a hammer and chisel to dig into my temples, repeatedly driving deep into my skull.

I quickly began to dry-heave from the pain, and my senses slowly returning over what felt like hours. Yet as time passed the pain continued to grow worse. I was trapped in an eternity of torment. I begged and I prayed to whatever divine being would listen for it to stop. Please! Please make it stop! 

The pain stretched on forever and yet, mercifully, I passed out after my mind could no longer process the constant agony.

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I once more awoke in pain. Much less than before, but still in pain nonetheless. I couldn't remember what was going on, nor how I had gotten to where I was now. For some reason I was outside and face down on the pavement. I slowly picked myself up off the ground and looked myself over, checking for what was causing me so much pain.

I found my black wool jacket to be undamaged although dirty from, presumably, my unintentional fall. It was however missing my favorite pin, a small Turtwig cradled in a pokeball, and one of two treasured gifts from the girl I had a crush on. My green cargo pants on the other hand had not come out of my date with the ground unscathed. The left knee was dirty and had a small hole in the moisture-wicking fabric, leaving me with a nasty road burn. The right side had a large tear starting just above the knee and cutting most of the way down the outside of my calf, the damage including a jagged slash across my slowly bleeding leg. It didn't appear to be very deep, but it was still painful and a major concern. At least it seemed partially through the clotting process. I would have to clean it later as the wound had a large amount of dirt and gravel in it. 

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Looking at my hands they were covered in cuts and scrapes, and my left wrist was sore and hurt to move. I hoped it was only sprained and not broken. I had never broken a bone before and this did not hurt as much as I thought it would if it was actually broken. My first aid training from Boy Scouts helped me determine that I needed to brace my wrist, yet I had no easy way out in the wilderness. I would get one when I got to work, something would be better than nothing.

Reaching up to my face I found my glasses to be in place if slightly crooked, luckily not broken though. Running my hand through my hair, I found my cap to be missing; leaving my long, dark brown hair to freely move in the slight breeze of the morning wind.

As I moved over to pick up my cap off the ground, my wounds protesting my movements, I glanced around at my surroundings. I was on a park trail, surrounded by green trees, swaying in the gentle breeze. The canopy was lit by the morning sun and it looked to be sometime around six in the morning.  The path was pavement and behind me on it was a bike, no one else was nearby so it was weird that someone had left their bike out here.

As I picked up my hat, a tan ball cap with an embroidered Turtwig on the front, I saw the watch on my left wrist. Looking at it closer I found the time to be nearly 7 AM. With that realization I also noticed that the forest was completely silent, ‘Where are the birds?’ It was weird not to hear at least something from the forest, bugs and birds were supposed to be a part of the natural ambience, with them silent the forest felt slightly darker than normal. Maybe a storm was coming, But when I looked up I only saw a cloudless sky.

I was eager to get moving, I didn't want to stay here any longer than necessary. I needed to find a way out, even if I had to walk. As I glanced over at the bike, a red and black mountain bike, I realized it was mine as well as, ‘Oh shit! I'm late for work!’

I ran over to my bike, panicked and slightly confused, ‘Why can't I remember anything from this morning?’ I was going to be over an hour late for work and someone was most definitely going to coach me for it.

Picking up the bicycle I hopped on, glanced down to put my feet on the pedals, and saw a small, metallic red and white sphere beside the front tire. A sphere that looked incredibly close to a pokeball. “The fuck?”