Jason walked into his cottage, hoping to find the book waiting for him so he could verify that the forest wasn't just a dream. Or a drug trip that went from good to bad fast. He tore through his stuff, desperate to find it. Nothing waited for him except the usual stuff, sleeping bag, the briefcases he took, and his boombox. He was a bit let down. He was picked up and taken to a location he'd never been by a man he'd never seen in person, just like in his dream, and he met a woman named Daphis who was beautiful and captivated his attention, just like his dream. It couldn't just be a dream. What the hell was going on? Jason didn't know. He thought about just sleeping here for the night, seeing if that would take him back to the forest.
Jason looked down at one of the discarded needles, thinking for a second. No, Jason thought, you were sober the first time you went to the forest. Still, he couldn't help but think about it. Turning away and toward the door of the cottage, Jason left. He had nothing to do here, so he decided to take a walk. Stepping outside, Jason lit himself a cigarette, standing up against the wall of the cottage to smoke before. He slowly sat down, leaning into the wall of the cottage. Why was this bothering him so much? It had to just be a coincidence. Jason started to wonder whether he preferred life in the forest.
"Jason." A voice said, close by.
Jason looked up to see Alex standing a few feet away from him.
"Alex, what are you doing here?" Jason asked.
Alex pulled out his pack and lit himself a cigarette, sitting next to Jason.
"I came to check on you, figured I would find you over here." Alex said.
"I promise I'm not using again, Alex." Jason explained.
"No, that's not why I'm checking on you, Jason. I'm checking on you because I don't want the last time we saw each other to be the last thing I say to you while you try recovering." Alex said.
"You don't have to apologize, Alex."
"I'm not going to, you deserved what you got," Alex chuckled, playfully. "I just want you to know that you've got mine and Lydia's support."
Jason looked over at Alex, the sincerity was touching. "Thank you, Alex."
Alex stood, finishing his cigarette quickly. "Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?" He asked.
"I was going to sleep here." Jason said.
Alex looked at Jason, a little suspiciously.
"You have my word, Alex, I am not going to make that mistake again." Jason said.
"I hope not."
With that, Alex disappeared as quickly as he came. Jason wondered why he came by and didn't just call to talk. It was kind of nice seeing him though. Jason was confused, despite being happy to have seen Alex. Jason decided not to take his walk yet. He lit another cigarette and enjoyed the outside air. It was very warm, but it was getting later in the day. The sun was starting to lower in the sky. Jason figured he would just kill time here until he slept. He took his time smoking. Before he knew it, he was lighting another. This was a dangerous habit, sometimes he just sat, and for lack of desire to get up, he would keep lighting cigarettes until he ran out.
Jason's phone started going off, he looked at it, it was an alarm he didn't even remember setting. It was already past 730pm. He looked up at the sky around him, it was almost completely dark, and he didn't even notice. Did he zone out or pass out? Jason stood up slowly, out of smokes or he'd light another. He stepped inside the cottage and opened the nightstand drawer, grabbing a new pack out of one of two cartons inside. The room was organized, Jason didn't remember fixing everything after he threw it all around, but he must have. Even the sleeping bag was neatly made and Jason rarely ever made it. It's nice not remembering doing chores, Jason thought. He pulled the sheet of paper out of his pocket, suddenly remembering Marie. He punched her number into his contacts and typed out a text.
"Hello, Marie. It's Jason." He sent the text.
Less than five minutes later, she replied, "Good to hear from you! It took you long enough." with a cute smiley emoji.
"How was work?" He sent.
"It was okay. Boring. And Dr. Ramirez wouldn't let me talk about you."
Jason chuckled. It was flattering to think he was interesting enough that she'd talk to her boss about him.
"Confidentiality, I guess." Jason replied.
"Boring." Marie's response was short and sweet.
"That's okay, you can talk to me instead."
"That seems fun enough!"
"Do you want to meet up again tomorrow?"
"Group isn't for another three days." She replied.
"I know."
A few minutes passed by before Jason got a response. "You can take me to the park and walk with me after work." Said one text. Ten seconds later, another came in. "I get off at 3."
"I will see you at 3 then."
"It's a date!" She sent a winking emoji.
Jason left it at that and put his phone down. He'd just come inside, but he was ready to get out again for a few minutes. He opened up his new pack and lit another cigarette. Time was so hard to kill, but if he slept now, he'd be up at 2am with nothing to do and nowhere to go. He sat down and smoked his cigarette in silence as it continued getting darker.
The silence was interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps to his right. The little light around made it difficult to see, but there was definitely someone coming closer to Jason and the cottage. Jason was confused, nobody ever came around here except occasionally, but usually that was set up by Jason. Jason could see a figure now, dark, but tall, about 20 feet away. Jason couldn't make out a face or even clothing, but he could see that it was a very large man.
"Who are you?" Jason called out.
The footsteps stopped and the dark figure stood there. There was no response, just a silent figure staring at Jason. Jason took a long drag off his cigarette and stood up. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his knife, flipping open the blade and waiting a second. The footsteps started again, slower this time. Jason noted the size of this man, knowing very well he wouldn't easily beat him if things were less than friendly.
The figure started moving faster now until Jason could clearly see him, practically within arm's reach. Jason moved back a step, getting ready for the worst. He was surprised to see, though, that the figure disappeared without a trace. Nothing in front of him or behind him. This is weird, Jason thought, am I being haunted? Jason moved around the cottage, looking for a sign of someone, but he found nothing. There was no trace of anyone around. He checked inside the cottage, nobody there either. Sleep deprivation must have been kicking his ass. He decided it was time to call it a night. Jason locked the door behind him, a bolt, the door lock, a chain, and an additional bolt. Having made sure the door was secure, Jason crawled into his sleeping bag, grabbing his phone and setting an alarm for 430. It was 745, not even eight yet. He thought he might get eight hours of sleep. That would be nice. Closing his eyes, he drifted off into glorious sleep, hoping the nightmares wouldn't come tonight and would be replaced by a good dream, or the forest. Either would be good. No dreams came, he slept soundly.
A few hours after he'd fallen asleep, Jason woke up to a loud crashing sound. He shot up, sitting to find that the door had been broken down and was now laying at his feet. Jason was alarmed, he reached for the knife next to him, but his arm was grabbed by a large, powerful hand. Jason attempted to fight, but another hand, balled into a fist, came smashing down on his right cheek. It dazed Jason, who fell back down onto the floor, his arm still seized in the powerful grip. Jason felt a sharp stab in his forearm, just below the elbow, he could see that he was being injected with something clear. It was a familiar sensation, cold flowing from his forearm and to the rest of his body. Jason slowly stopped trying to fight back, and drifted off again into sleep.