The hauntingly familiar forest shifted into view, the trees shaking and cracking, as if being blown by violent winds. Cedar once again ran through the forest, her hair billowing out behind her. She ran and ran, jumping over fallen branches and turning sharply. The view of the cliffs came into view, and the boy once again stretched out his hand.

 
Cedar built up momentum, preparing herself for the jump-
right before she leapt out, she jerked to a halt, struck by a sudden thought.

  Rocks and dry dirt tumbled over the chasm, never to be seen again. Cedar looked back at the approaching storm of darkness. What if she didn't jump? What if she let the darkness consume her?  The boy realized what she was about to do- too late.

  "Cedar! No! Jump!"

  Cedar hesitated. Would she dare allow the darkness to take over her? She waited just a moment too long, and stood, silently, as the darkness consumed her.

  Cedar woke up in horrible pain. Pain filtered out of every part of her body. Every fibre of her being was racked with unspeakable agony. Cedar lay, paralyzed with fear and pain, until her body began to shudder and convulse. She was in the worst pain of her life. Sobs of agony pulsed through her body, tears flowing down her face. She cursed over and over again as she felt a new sensation, one that felt like needlepoints were pricking all over her skin. It was all Cedar could do not to scream.

  After what seemed like hours and the worst pain of her life, Cedar's suffering finally subsided. She lay in bed, not daring to move, the tears frozen in her eyes. After two hours, her alarm clock rang. Cedar swore never to let the darkness overtake her again.

  Now Cedar knew- she could not dream like this forever. She needed to find a solution. She needed to find an explanation. She needed to find a cure.

  At swim practice, Emma was furious. "Cedar, what gives? I left you, like, thirty texts yesterday! You just ditch me all day? What is going on with you?"

"I just wasn't feeling well, okay? I went home."

Emma's eyes narrowed. "You certainly seemed fine yesterday," she said accusingly. That was the last straw for Cedar. She was exhausted and still ached from her unearthly pain. Emma didn't know what she was going through.

"Did I, though? Did I? Because I'm pretty sure you said I looked terrible yesterday."

"You looked tired. There's a difference between being tired and being sick."

"There's a difference between being frustrated by something and being petty," Cedar shot back, folding her arms over her chest. Emma softened, clearly a bit wounded. Cedar sighed and put her arms down, feeling guilty.

"I'm sorry, Ced, I was just worried," Emma said.

"I'm sorry too. I should've at least answered your texts," Cedar apologized. "We should get in before Miller whips our butts."

Coach Miller saw them and sauntered over. "Hey, girls. Get in the water. Feeling better, Cedar?" Cedar nodded, then began her swim.

The day dragged on, finally ending as the school bell dismissed the students with its familiar ring. Cedar's last class was Biology, and she walked down the hall, having a good-natured argument with her lab partner, Ethan. He was a bit shorter than Cedar, with brown hair and glasses. He was a baseball fanatic, collecting and selling cards weekly. The two debated over who was a better baseball player, Babe Ruth or J.D. Martinez. Cedar laughed as Ethan shook his head in disbelief.

"You don't even know what you're talking about!"

"Yes I do!" Cedar lied.

"No, you don't."

"I do!"

"You don't."

"You're right; I don't."

The two turned a corner and reached the library. Cedar waved Ethan off, pointing to the library door. This is my destination, so I'll see you later."

"Don't forget the homework tomorrow!" Ethan reminded her. He rounded the corner and was gone. Cedar pushed the heavy door open, heading to the computers. The two rows of brand-new computers were taken. A teacher explained it was Coding Club.

"Sorry. These will be taken for a while, but you're free to use the one at the back of the library," the teacher said, nodding in the direction of the back. A few kids snickered, looking to each other. Cedar wondered why they were laughing.

"Thanks," she said, and walked in the direction she was supposed to go, navigating through aisles of books, pulling an interesting title off of one of the shelves. When Cedar saw the computer, she realized exactly why the other kids were snickering.

It looked ancient, like no one had touched it in decades. It was a giant box on a wooden table too small, with a stuffed chair that looked like it had been pulverized by young children. Half of the crunchy foam stuffing stuck out, and the entire area was covered in a thick layer of dust. Cedar pulled out the chair and sat down anyways, despite her initial skepticism. She immediately inhaled a cloud of dust. She coughed, turning the computer on and waiting as it set up. When the search engine finally popped up, Cedar took a deep breath, typing in her predicament.

trapped in your own dreams

She exhaled sharply at the unnaturally fast response. The first link to pop up was an article from one year ago, and it had been updated since then.

SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD BOY CLAIMS TO BE "TRAPPED IN HIS OWN DREAMS," GOES MISSING

Cedar's breath hitched in her throat. She began to get a very bad feeling about the article. She clicked anyways.

Sixteen-year-old Carter Murphy went missing after claiming he was "trapped in his own dreams." His parents, Shana and John Murphy, confessed he had shown signs of insanity shortly before going missing. The young boy was a track-and-field Star, breaking many long-jump and 100 meter dash records in his short time at school.
One night, he allegedly told his parents he was having strange dreams. He attacked Shana Murphy, screaming about a forest and some "strange darkness" he was running from. The sixteen-year-old was arranged to be taken to a mental asylum the night he disappeared.
"It was like a new person was trapped in Carter's body. He was normally so gentle... I couldn't recognize him anymore. Of course it [breaks] our hearts, having to send our son away, but we just weren't safe anymore," Shana Murphy tearfully exclaimed.
Carter Murphy's bedroom was searched. No trace of him was found, except a small note, which seems to encompass his final warning: "If you have the dreams, don't ignore it. They are real. You cannot escape them."
On another paper, this one torn and tear-streaked, simply reads: "My dreams have consumed me."
No one has seen or heard from Carter Murphy since.
UPDATE: After being missing for a year, Carter Murphy has been pronounced deceased. No body has been recovered yet.

Cedar sat at the table, dumbfounded. She exhaled, realizing she had forgotten to breathe the whole time she read the article. He did long jump in track and field. He must have been able to jump the cliff his first try, she thought. But more importantly, he went through the same thing! Where did he go? Who exactly is he?

Cedar glanced down at the bottom of the screen. She saw the edge of what looked like a photo. She scrolled down. Then, staring back at her, were the piercing blue eyes she saw every night in her dreams. She gasped, her suspicions coming true. She was unaware of her audible response, only hearing the ringing in her ears.

"Oh my God," she whispered breathlessly.
"It's him."