I couldn't bring my vision in to focus but it was the very same hue and size as the one that had suddenly appeared in the office. I knew I had to be hallucinating because there was no way that the same door was now appearing in some random parking structure thirty minutes away from my office. It was an odd thing to see when you think you’re going to die but there it was. Just when everything was going dark for what I knew would be the last time, a voice broke the silence.

“I’d say pick on someone your own size but I’d have to find a beanstalk to find your equal.” I never thought in my possibly dying moments that Tess would be the last voice I thought of. There it was though, clear as a bell.

I heard a shriek followed by a dull thud before the man pulled himself away from draining me. I was dropped harshly onto the cement, my knees giving out upon impact. I managed to remain sitting up, my vision clearing slowly. Despite the air returning to my lungs, I couldn't help but feel as though I was still hallucinating. There in front of me, clear as day, was Tess. She had an aluminum bat in hand and a mad grin splayed across her face.

“C’mon bitch!” she screamed, bat poised and ready. The man positioned himself to lunge at her, legs ready to spring, but to my suprise used the momentum to try and run past her. I tilted my head to the left once more, only to realize that the green door I had seen before was still, in fact, superimposed on the concrete wall.That’s when I realized the woman was now on the ground, staring at me with glossy, unseeing eyes. Her brain was no longer where it was supposed to be. I wanted to scream but my throat still burned and the thought of moving, let alone speaking seemed impossible. Tess’ frustrated grunt brought my attention back to the conflict at hand. Tess had swung the bat but the man had caught it easily with one hand, the other coming up quickly to catch her in the abdomen with a sharp jab. Going in for a second swing, though, his hand was swiftly caught by Tess’ now free left hand. How she had matched his strength was beyond me. He seemed equally confused and in that moment of hesitation, Tess seized the opportunity to move her hand and grip the metal portion of the bat. A sudden current of electricity ran down the length of it and shocked the man, causing him to seize up. A rapid round of jabs to the chest from Tess and he was down. Her bat now free, Tess raised it above her head.

I didn't have time to look away. The way she swung could have been called merciless. I counted the swing, one two three until I lost count at twelve and his brain was also no longer where it should have been. As if dealing with a couch she had just finished hauling off of a moving van, Tess kicked the man’s still chest.

“Stupid fuckers.” She spat out as she bent over herself, catching her breath.

“Look,” she ground out breathlessly “I’m sorry about how I acted earlier.” her chest heaved as she straightened out “I was just trying to get a reaction out of you. That was shitty. I’m sorry.”

I gaped at her, shocked and unable to process what she was saying.

“You know,” she continued as if there wasn't fresh blood on her now red and silver baseball bat “sometimes I worry that I self sabotage and say the wrong thing on purpose. You seem really nice. Awkward but nice. Anyway, we should probably get you home.” she held her hand out, traces of blood still on the knuckles.

I was overloaded with emotions and the violence that had just transpired before me left me a wide eyed mess.

“What,” I choked out after a pause that probably lasted far too long “the actual fuck.” I looked to my left once again, hoping to see whether or not my visions of the green door had been real, only to find the space vacant and gray, just as they had been earlier that day in the office. There were too many questions and no answers to be found. I just wanted to sleep.

Everything had happened so quickly, too quickly for me to even process and the world was getting hazy again.

Tess’ warm hands pressed against my cheeks, concern apparent on her face.

“Oh shit, they got you good.”

If i had literally any strength I would have muttered out a no shit sherlock but I could barely keep my eyes open so that wasn't happening anytime soon. I could feel myself being picked up and cradled. She was stronger than she looked.

There was a humming noise that I couldn't quite locate where it originated from. It seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. The air around us felt charged like the moment right before lightning breaks in a storm.

“Don’t panic,” Tess whispered in a hushed, soothing tone “we’re getting you help.”

My head lolled to the side as I noticed she was stepping closer to the edge of the concrete barrier between us and the ground. We were four stories up and the wind ripped through my thin cotton shirt.

“Light as a feather. Stiff as a board.”

My heart stopped when she took two more steps and threw herself, with me in her arms, off the side of the building.