Why is there nothing?... Am I dreaming? Or is this real and everything else fake?... Keep it together, if you freak out in front of them, they'll judge you... Everything I hear, everything I see, in every situation. It all feels like it keeps repeating... Under all this pressure. How do you cope healthily.... Please just fix yourself. Why won't things click back into place? Why is it all so broken?

It's been a few days now! They'd probably be surprised I even made it this long. '...' My stomach gives off a gurgle, '...' My bag was empty, so I continue walking, through the desolate town.

Most of the buildings looked fine, they hadn't rusted or broken down. The most damage was from the broken windows near the ground. But there was one building that looked completely normal.

A small pet store. I go up to the glass doors and pry them open. The inside was still filled with stock. But there wasn't any trace of food on the shelves. I walk to the back, looking in the cabinets. and find a partially rusted can of tuna, in the far back '...' "Look its better than nothing, just scoop out the molding bits." I whisper.

I grab the can and walk out the back accidentally bumping the register and knocking off a small fishbowl. It smashes and scatters across the floor. Then there was a sound, a weird... Angry? Sound, like a small broken motor.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

I follow it to a small tank. Hedgehogs $300.99 '...' I pull out the tank and grab the animal in the hiding hut. He kept puffing on my hand and making that sound, but the spikes didn't hurt. It was like gently holding a cactus, it didn't hurt so long as I didn't press against it.

I look at its cage again. Empty food, empty water, really small tank. "You're a little ball of anger." I say to the puffing hedgehog, I put him on my other hand and push him into my pocket, as bits of his quills stick out through the fabric.

"Let's find you some food." I say looking at my pocket.

There was that ringing again. Then it felt like my brain just stopped.

My senses changed immediately, there wasn't a pet store, or anything. Everything was dark... I was on a cold surface, with my eyes closed.

My head was throbbing, and each throb gave me more pain. Was I dreaming? Why was I dreaming?... Wait what was I dreaming about?

Then I hear a familiar sound. A grunt?

But why is it familiar?

I open my eyes and see a dark blue smooth metal ceiling, and wall. I slowly push myself up, as the throbbing worsens. Then I notice it.

Some thing sitting at the opposite side of the room, on the metal shelve attached to the wall, with its hands on its knees. Facing directly at me.

It knew I was there. I could feel it.

It was very thin, and pale. You could see its ribs through its torn white shirt. its nails were long and yellow extending well past its fingers. It looked humanoid, but clearly wasn't. Because it had no eyes. Where its eyes should have been were long... ears? Not human ears, more like bat wings, but the closest thing that I could compare to ears.

It just faced me emotionless. I stared back, trying to hold back my fear. Then it let out a grunt.