Hyukjae could remember his dream vividly.

It wasn’t that hard, considering that it was the one he had been seeing every night for that past three weeks. No matter what, once he fell asleep, he would find himself in that dream world.

But the dream changed slightly every time.

At first, he found himself standing in the middle of a road. There was no sign of people even though there were cars parked alongside it. He heard the wind rustling through trees in the forest around the place, distant noise that sounded like one of a river. Throughout the dream he would wander around, searching for something even when he couldn’t point out what. As he walked, he came to realize that no matter how far he went, he wasn’t able to get away from the neighborhood. The road kept going on and on, the same forest still circled around. It was like a cage.

Couple night later he once again was standing on that same road, but this time he wasn’t alone. At the edge of his surroundings, barely visible in the forest, stood humans. He couldn’t see their faces or make out the exact number there was and spared no thoughts for them.

After that night, things started to change. Every night those people took one step towards him. Not more, not less, always just one, their heads fixated at him. He would find himself on the same road, and the first thing he saw was how they slowly raised their legs up and as slowly took one step ahead. They would always wait until he was looking at them, never moving before they were sure of it.

He had figured out before already that something was wrong with them, that they were not like any human he knew. The way they just stood, without moving a bit, always looking towards him made him nervous, especially when for some reason, he could never make out their features.

Then came the time when they were barely ten meters away from him and even when he was awake, he could not forget that sight. It haunted him even when he was awake because he had never seen such a thing.

They all had pale skin with a greyish undertone. In the place where the eyes belonged were just empty eye sockets with skin stretched over like someone had tried to cover them hastily. The mouth was turned into a wide grin that remained close.

Next morning he woke up panting and sweating. Sitting on his bed he couldn’t help but recall their faces and that feeling of a threat it brought to him. It was only a dream, he knew that but seeing the same one night after another was exhausting him.

Clenching his wrist he stood up, determined to not think about it anymore and just go on with his normal day.

When the evening came, the nervousness returned. For the first time since he was a kid, he felt scared of going to sleep. But he was already an adult, there was no reason to be scared, was there? He knew that those creatures only moved if he looked them, he knew they did nothing unless he got too close, which he had once tried. He would never do that again.

So he only had to spend the whole night sitting on the road and keep looking his feet. It would be a long night, but if that was what it would take, he would do it.

And just like previous nights, he found himself standing on that same road. He lowered his head right away and kept his eyes on his feet as he sat down next to a parked car, leaning against it.

The time went by so slowly and as more time went by, he started to doubt his plan. What if those… Creatures? Humanoids? “Things”? Would actually move more when he wouldn’t be looking at them? But then again, maybe they didn’t and if he would now look at them, they would be one step closer to him…

Those thoughts circling in his head he knew that he wouldn’t be able to take it. He had to know. He needed to know. But how? How could he make sure they weren’t moving yet not make them move by looking directly at them…

Then it hit him. Mirror. A car had a mirror on it, he could use that!

He slowly got up, his eyes strictly on the side of a car. Following it he found the part that attached the mirror to the car. Taking a deep breath, he crouched and looked into the mirror.

At first, nothing happened. Those things were still where they were the previous night and they also didn’t move when he was looking at them. For a moment he felt victorious, for a tiny moment he thought that he had found a loophole in his weird dream.

However, Hyukjae came to know that it wasn’t that easy.

All of the sudden, every single one of them opened their mouths into an even wider grin. He could see their black rotten teeth and some pieces that he assumed might have been from their previous meal. He could do nothing but look at them, regretting his stupidity as it clearly had changed something, but not for better rather than for worse. And then, it happened.

Like some sort of force was pulling him, he noticed that he was going closer and closer towards the mirror. Its surface got bigger and bigger until it engulfed him wholly, trapping him inside…

And then he woke up on his bed.

It was still just four in the morning, three hours before he would need to go to work, but he knew that he wouldn’t be able to sleep anymore. Instead, he got up and made himself a cup of coffee.

He had to admit, he was scared of going to sleep anymore. It felt too real like those things would all of the sudden pop out of his dream and appear before him in reality. It was a stupid thing, he knew that, but he just couldn’t help but think about it.

Shaking his head he got up and went to take a shower. Maybe the hot water would help him to relax and get ready for his boring, but now a very welcomed day.

After the shower, he walked towards his sink in order to check his appearance and how sick he looked. Raising his head he met his reflection's eyes, noticing the dark circles around them.

Then he noticed The Thing grinning at him behind him.

Shrieking he turned around but didn’t see anyone there, same as when he checked the mirror again. Now he knew that he had to go to talk about it with someone and decided to schedule a meeting with the therapist his company profited for its workers, a middle-aged woman who had been working there for over ten years. He had luck and was able to schedule meeting with her for that same day.

“So tell me, what seems to be a problem?”

“I keep seeing this very strange dream every night.”

“Does it affect your sleep?”

“Yes. It does.”

“Well then, would you please close your eyes, recall it the best you can and tell me about your dream?”

“Sure. In that dream, I always end up on the same road. It’s completely quiet except for the wind and distant noise of a river, I assume.”

“Are you alone there?”

“At first night I thought I was.”

“First night?”

“The dream changes a bit every time.”

“Go on.”

“It has these… Human-like creatures… Things. I say human-like because they appear as one but their face… It’s not one of a human. Although their greyish skin cannot be called human either.”

“What is their face like?”

“At first glance, it seems normal. There are two eyes, a nose, and a mouth. Once you are able to see better, you notice it’s not like that. In a place of their eyes, they have two black holes, so black it feels like they are swallowing the light around them. They are not complete holes thought, no, the skin around their eyes has been stretched over them like some sort of an attempt to cover them. Their mouths are turned into a huge smile that always stays closed. Well, did until last night.”

“Let’s go that later. What do these Things do in your dream?”

“They do nothing. They only take one slow step towards me once I look at them. Never less, never more.”

“Right. What happened last night?”

“It was strange. I looked them through a mirror, and they opened their mouths to show me their teeth… black, rotten teeth.”

“What happened then?”

“The mirror swallowed me and I woke up.”

“Did you?”

“Excuse me?”

“Did you really woke up?”

Hyukjae opens up his eyes and looks at the therapist. What looks back at him is one of those Things from his dreams. They stare each other for a second, before it latches at him.

And then he wakes up in his bed.

Shaking he quickly looks for his phone to check what day it is. Relieved he notices it is the same day what he thought he had just lived, meaning that somehow he had dreamt of being awake. He gets ups, once again going to take a shower – after all, he only did take on in his dream.

He steps under the hot water, enjoying as it hits his bare skin and closes his eyes, breathing out in satisfaction. But then he feels hands on his legs and looks down.

Once again Hyukjae stares straight at one of those Thing’s black holes, but instead of one, there are two of them. Then they drag him down, through the floor.

And this time, he doesn’t wake up in his bed.

He finds himself laying on the cold tile. Looking around himself he discovers a pool, worried people around him and wonders what has been going on. When his eyes meet up with his friend, Donghae, he remembered. It’s the place where he and his friends went swimming couple years back. But why would he wake up in there?

“Hyukjae!” Donghae yells and hugs him “I thought you were dead!”

“What?”

“You almost died! Drowned!”

“But… no how can it be...”

“I’m glad that you are alright.”

“Yes, I am. I guess I just dreamt about next two years… and having a dream within it. It was strange.”

“Oh was there something unnerving?”

“Yes, there...” he started but stopped when he heard a hollow laugh erupting from behind Donghae's lips

Then Donghae’s face started to change and his skin slowly got greyer.

“Yes, Hyukjae?” His eyes disappeared slowly into his skull until pitch black holes were only left.

“Tell me, would you? Maybe it will help.” His grin widened until it was stretched all the way to his ears.

“Did they look like me? Like us?”

Every single person around them had changed too.
Hyukjae was about to scream, but Donghae opened his mouth, bared his black, rotten teeth and jumped at him.

“Thank you for looking into that mirror.”

Hyukjae realized that he had made a mistake. A huge mistake. Then Donghae took a bite of his neck.

And then, Hyukjae woke up.

A/N:

Promised some sort of small story so here.

This is based on a dream I saw couple months ago. I always have these lovely dreams. 
My brains clearly love me.

Hope you are doing well!