Darkness surrounds him. The deafening blackness obscuring his sight, confusing him as he struggles to find his bearings. His heart races in his chest, fear and anguish crashing over him like ocean waves against the rocks. The wanting in his heart screaming for it, desperate to have the forbidden desire. A voice yearns to break free from his lungs, yet when he parts his lips, there's only silence. A lone body, swimming in the sea of the void. His mind begs for it to end before the light, hoping and praying for whatever god there may be to have mercy on him. But as a small orb begins to peak through the void, his aching heart drops to the pit of his stomach in realization that yet again, his begging and pleading have fallen on deaf ears. 

Little by little the light grows, piercing through the veil of darkness as it slowly illuminates his nightmare. White rays gleam and glow, reflecting off the deep crimson of the blood. Shining against the ebony locks that sprawl against the cold, wet grass. The painful anguish stabs through his heart, petrifying him as he's forced to gaze upon the sight. 

Every other thought disspareates from his mind as his eyes fixate on the gruesome scene. He begs to look away, longing to shield his eyes. To shake his head, scream and deny until the vision fades away. But his body stays frozen, only allowing a single tear to drift down his cheek. The quietness engulfs the world as it feels as though time has completly stopped, his gaze not breaking. He can never tell how long it lasts. Has it been a second? A minute? An hour? The distinction can't be made in this world. He trembles as his body finally allows him to move, his arm slowly reaching out towards the body. His lips quiver as he whispers. But no voice breaks the silence. 

Tears build up in his dark eyes with every passing moment until they finally fall down his cheeks, glistening in the moonlight. Each time is just as painful as the first, an enternal poison in his life. Through his tear-stained, blurry vision, he catches the smallest glimpse of a dark fog seeping towards the scene, like tentacles made of smoke. His breath transitions from long and slow to the short and quick beginnings of hyperventilation. 'No...No not again!' 

His mind screams as it begins to run frantic. He starts to flail his arms in a futile attempt to stop the fog from reaching it. "S-stop..." his words barely pierce the silence. The fog disobeys him still creeping forward, worrying him even more. "Please...please stop!" He speaks softly, still gathering his vocal strength. "I said stop, stop dammit!" He snaps louder. 

Gritting his teeth he reaches out grabbing at the fog, fingers combing through the dark, translucent hues. But each movement is slow and heavy, like trying to swim through a thick molasses. "Please let me! Just once, please!" He screams now in despair, longing to reach it before the fog. He yearns to have one last touch, whether it be the soft, navy fabric or the cold, pale flesh. Even only a brush on his fingertips would be enough to satiate the sorrowful longing for a time. 

With his hands only a mere few inches from the ghost-white hand, his hope rises for a split second. But as quickly as it rises, it falls horribly as the fog reaches the hand first, shrouding it in deep, grey smoke. "No no no! Fuck! No!" He shrieks in agony as darkness clouds his vision only a second later. Black, smokey clouds wrap around his limbs and body, pulling him away. Desperately trying to pull from them, all he can do is scream in sorrow as the clouds creep around his eyes and face, covering him back in darkness and muffling his cries. The last image he sees is the glowing, emerald eyes of a monster before his vision goes pitch black. 

A loud beeping rings out, rudely notifying the sleeping man and jerking him awake. Eyes open wide in fear he shoots up in bed. Cold, beaded sweat clings to his muscular body as his heart pounds heavily against his chest. Hands reach up to his face as he rubs his eyes and tries to focus back into reality. A large, black German Shepard lays at the foot of the bed, his head perking up. "Oh, did someone have a bad dream?" He teases unsympatheticaly. "Seriously Ryder, this is not the fucking time for that," the man snaps at him. "I'm sick and tired of this shit. It's almost every night and it's been getting worse again." 

"Sheesh sorry," he responds with a sassy attitude. "But if you're gonna turn this into a therapy session, at least turn the alarm off," Ryder groans, burying his muzzle in the sheets, pawing at his ears in an attempt to block out the incessant beeping of the alarm. "It's killin' me over here!" The man sighs and reaches over to his smart phone, stopping the alarm. Six-thirty in the morning. He groans slightly, never having been a fan of waking up early. "God, why do I even keep this job?"

"Because you make bank and it keeps me well fed," Ryder barks matter-of-factly. The smallest of smiles appears on the man's lips. It was always a slight challenge to not at least smile at Ryder's behavior. "Heh, sure." He says, reaching out to pat his head. "You're just lucky you're an amazing guard dog." "Ah I just do it for the treats," Ryder jokes, licking his owner's hand. Stretching, the man throws off his blankets and stands up, beginning to get ready for the day. 

Jason Roman, the person every man wants to be. Highly educated with a doctorate in biological education, a master's in adult education, majoring in biology and minoring in astronomy. Owns his own home and property  in the country along with a nice car. His deep black hair, chocolate eyes and chisled features easily captures the eye of women as he passes by. An older man, yet his face retains a remarkable youth worthy of jealousy. Co-workers and students speak nothing but positivity about him. Yes, as far as everyone knows, Jason is the epitome of a good man. 

Groaning, Jason heads to his dresser, pulling out clothes for work. Lately, everyday has been the same and falling into a boring routine. Wake up, get dressed, go to work, come home and grade papers. At least during the weekends, he is able to get inebriated without reprucussions in the morning. And not have to deal with students all day. But of course the weekend has to rush by bringing him to the dreaded Monday again, the beginning of a boring work week. 

To make matters more irritating, a memory made it's way into his thoughts, reminding him of a new student that would be in his biology class. Normally, having new students in his class would not phase him. This instance would be no different, had it not been for the fact that he recieved such news only two days prior to today. When questioned why, a simple talk of misplaced papers was the response he got. 'Leave it to Lena to lose shit'. Jason thinks to himself, remembering other times that the dean of faculty at his college, has misplaced paperwork and given late information. 'It's a wonder how she even still has her job.' 

He sighs as he continues his routine with Ryder trotting along beside him as he grabs a quick breakfast for them, before gathering up his briefcase and jacket. Ryder hops up on the couch, pawing at the cushions to make them just to his liking. "Behave while I'm gone," Jason warns, throwing on his jacket. "Don't I always?" Ryder barks. "Yeah yeah." He smiles as he pats his head again and heads out. 

The morning sun shines bright on the Michigan city of Alpena. Traffic stays light as Jason pulls into the city, which he never really cared for. Admittidly, it can be gorgeous at night with all of the sparkling lights from the collage of businesses. But for Jason, the noise, people, crowded places and little privacy overpower that fact. To him, the country has always been the superior area to live, just him and Ryder on that property. Pulling into the parking lot of the college, he parks and sits there for a moment, thinking to himself. 

Is this really all worth it? Worth it to come here everyday? What's to keep me from just pulling up stakes and running again? Impulse wants him to do so. But reasoning and logic override it. It took him a long time to find such a perfect house with such privacy. A long time to find Ryder, the perfect dog. A long time establishing himself with the community and college. If he were to run off again, it would makes things so much more complicated. Shaking his head, he grabs his case and keys and gets out of his Hyundai, heading inside to his classroom. 

'No, I definitely can't do that. It's too much work and hassle to fix it.' As he passes people, he keeps his facade on by giving a "Hello!" here or a "Good Morning!" there, all while internally wishing he was still back home, putting the bottle to his head and wanting to pull the trigger. 

As he reaches the second floor and begins to turn the corner, a young girl bumps into him, hard enough that she falls back on her side onto the floor, hair spralling around and covering her face momentarily. Already in an irritated mood, Jason can't help but snap a bit. "Hey, watch where you're go-" "I'm so sorry!" the young voice pipes up from the floor, cutting him off. "I didn't see you, I'm sorry!" It isn't until she looks up and speaks, that he becomes speechless. That time stops and the world feels frozen. 

Looking up at him is an angel. Long, ebony hair falling over her shoulders and down her back that Jason guesses to be at least waist length. Crystal blue eyes shining at him and soft-looking pale skin. "O-Oh it's alright, please don't apologize," Jason stammers slightly, reaching his hand down to help her up. "Are you alright?" Smiling, the girl takes his hand. "Yeah, I'm okay," she replies, standing up and brushing off her skirt. As she does, Jason can't help but eye her up and down. 

A shorter girl with a sizeable chest and thighs, but with a midsection to match her other proportions. An hour glass with extra sand if you will, chubby. She adorns a white shirt, a black pleated skirt and a large pink cardigan sweater. With Mary Jane shoes and knee high white socks, her appearance emanates innocence. Though despite all of these, the one thing that hits him the most, is her necklace. A sparkling white necklace, with a pendant of sapphire. It looks so familiar to him, but any memory of it is long gone.

The tiniest of blushes finds its way to Jason's cheeks, though thankfully avoiding the girl's notice. Jason shakes his head slightly, getting free from his thoughts. "I haven't seen you around here before. What's your name?" He asks. "My name's Lily," she replies happily. "It's my first day here!" Jason chuckles slightly. "Well, welcome to Alpena College," he says warmly. "Thank you! Oh! By the way, could you tell me where room 200 is?" Nodding, Jason happily points out the way. "Of course! It's just down the stairs and straight on, it'll be your second door on the left." Lily thanks him, waving goodbye as she heads down the stairs. Jason can't help but watch as she takes off. His hand slowly makes his way up to his chest, pressing against it lightly. 'Strange...I could've sworn I felt something for a moment.' His brow furrows as he ponders for a moment. 'But I haven't felt that in years. It should have been gone forever.'