I came to with a jolt, Jakob’s hands gripping my shoulders, shaking me hard.

  “Hey, man, are you alright? Can you get up? What’s wrong? Wake up!”

  I blinked, my vision clouded in a dull white haze. Jakob’s face hovered inches from mine, his bright blue eyes cartoonishly wide with worry. Wet blonde hair clung to his forehead, like he’d just run through a thunderstorm.

  “I… I’m alright,” I rasped, pushing myself up. Every muscle in my body screamed against it. My stomach twisted. The ground tilted beneath me, unsteady as I straightened. “What about you? You look like you’ve seen a ghost. Did Calvin or someone stage a coup? What’s going on?”

  Jakob yanked me to my feet in one firm pull. “I’m fine, Ezekiel. But you—man, you passed out cold. We need to get you to Nara. You might need food, water—something.”

  “Seriously, Jakob, I’m fine.” I brushed the dirt from my clothes, forcing myself to stand steady. “I just got lightheaded, that’s all. Walk with me. Tell me what’s happened since I blacked out. Can’t believe they left me here alone this long. Looks like it’s midnight or something.”

  I lied to him.

  I wasn’t fine.

  That demon still wanted me. Still whispering. Still feeding off whatever it fed off of—fear, pain, exhaustion. It had to be nightmares. That’s the only way it could know. The memories. The ones I buried. The ones I burned out of my mind.

  I was so fucking tired.

  Tired of the touching. Tired of the hurting. Tired of the monsters in my closet. The ones riding my back.

  Tired of being here.

  Jakob hesitated but fell into step beside me. He reached out, resting a hand on my shoulder.

  I jerked back on instinct swatting it with my hand hard.

  He shook his hand as if it hurt. Both of his hands shot up in surrender. “Damn—sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you. You sure you’re okay?”

  I shoved his shoulder, hard. He took a few steps back to catch his center mass. “I told you I’m fine, so stop fucking asking. Jesus, man, listen. Listen when I tell you I’m fine! I’m right here—fucking listen to me. Why can’t anyone respect boundaries in this goddamn place? Fuck.”

  Jakob’s face fell, and he exhaled slowly, running a hand through his wet hair. “I’m not trying to piss you off. I just…” He shook his head. “We’re all we’ve got, man. I just need you to be real with me.”

  I clenched my jaw. The trees reached over us like zombies in an old pulp fiction movie. Everything about this place—the touching. The cold. The air. The memories.

  I needed space.

  “Just… don’t touch me for a while,” I muttered. “I can’t deal with it right now.”

  Jakob nodded. We walked in silence, the sound of our footsteps were the only thing in the forest making noise.

  Eventually, he spoke. “Anyway—We got the wood we needed. Donnie set up a fire. I came looking for you and…” His voice faltered.

  I glanced at him. “And?” I said with an attitude.

  He exhaled sharply. “I saw something in the woods. I’m not sure. It looked like a devil or something. Damn thing nearly mauled me and Jerissa.”

  I stopped mid-step.

  My stomach twisted again, but not from exhaustion this time. Maybe from hunger, I’m not sure myself.

  I turned to face him. “Wait. Say that again. You saw a devil? What did it look like?”

  Jakob shrugged, shifting uncomfortably. “Didn’t get a good look. Just saw a blue hand and found some of this.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a tuft of fur—dark, coarse, and slick with something wet that smelled faintly of grease. “Why do you ask? Have you seen a devil?”

  My stomach churned, but I forced my expression to stay neutral. “No,” I lied, shaking my head. “Just curious.”

  Jakob frowned but didn’t press further.

  Ahead, the orange glow of firelight pierced through the shadows. A crackling blaze, three feet wide, roared in a shallow pit, its flames with the people fueling it. The rest of the group huddled around it, their faces shadowed and weary.

  The tension was in the air. Even from this distance, I could tell no one felt safe—not even with the fire keeping the darkness at bay. Not with some wild animals roaming the woods while we had no homes or shelter

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  I blinked at the firelight ahead, its glow flickering through the trees. Jakob walked beside me waving at people like this was high school or a family reunion.

  “I’ve made it back. I was out cold,” I said, my voice let out an aggravated tone. “Fill me in on what I missed please.

  Jakob turned his head slightly, glancing at me. “Nara needs to look at you. You hit your head.”

  “I’m fine,” I insisted, brushing it off.

  “You did?” Jerissa piped up from the circle of people by the fire.

  Nara stood, she stared daggers at me. “I’ll look at it, Jakob.” She approached with a gaunt stride, her hands already reaching for me. “Thank you for telling me. It important to keep everyone here safe. Especially those who are looking after us.”

  I let out a groan. She sounded like my mother.

  And as I sighed I let her fingers gently grab my head, pulling back my dreads to inspect the side of my skull. Her rough accent hummed in my ears. “Now, be still. “

  “You know you have thick hair right? It make it hard to inspect.”

  Her hands worked methodically, rubbing my temples and probing for any injuries. The faint scent of mint and lemon clung to her, oddly soothing. Her hands felt nice on my head, I wish someone did that more to me. She tilted my head and touched a small spot above my eye and my skull throbbed.

  “Where does it hurt, Zeke? Here?” She pressed the back of my head, and a sharp ache jolted through my skull.

  Her touch was firm but not unpleasant. Almost comforting. I wished someone did this for me more often.

  Then she found the spot.

  “Here?” She pressed a small area above my eye, and a sharp ache flared through my skull.

  “Agh—actually, yeah, that hurts now that you mention it. Please stop poking it.”

  She pressed again. Harder.

  “AGH—Stop, Nara! That hurts!”

  She tilted my head so I was forced to stare into her narrowed, unreadable eyes.

  “Oh, so when you don’t listen to friend, it fine. But when I do it? It problem?” She pressed once more for emphasis.

  “OW! Fuck—you’re petty!” I flinched away, rubbing my head. “Okay, okay, I get it! Just stop, you’re gonna scramble my damn brains.”

  “Good.” She smirked, clearly satisfied. But her words stuck with me. Friends. I wasn’t expecting her to say that. We’d only known each other for a day.

  “Now, lay down,” she ordered, her tone firm but not unkind. “Talk to me. Tell me what happen. I’ll help where I can.”

  I hesitated before sinking down by the fire, leaning against a log. The warmth of the flames licked at my skin, but it didn’t drive away the cold pit in my stomach.

  “Alright,” I sighed. “I passed out, unlocked some skills, and now I’m back. I guess I hit my head, but I thought I was fine.”

  The others stirred, their interest piqued.

  Nara’s brow furrowed. “Show me.”

  I hesitated, then held out my hand. “Crimson Light.”

  A small orb of blood-red light shot into the air, hovering above us. The firelight dimmed against its glow, and the group stared in stunned silence as it raced up to the stars and moon before sizzling out like fireworks.

  You can also—agh—” I winced as Nara’s fingers prodded my head again.

  Might as well rip the bandaid off now.

  “You can pull weapons and stuff from your inventory,” I added. “Might even find things from your past.” I nearly said past life. Caught myself just in time. “Or, you know, snacks or whatever. I can show you… just give me a minute.”

  I closed my eyes as she kept rubbing my scalp.

  Reaching into the void, I summoned a knife from my inventory. The steel gleamed in the firelight as I handed it to Nara.

  “Jakob, show them how to use their inventory while I rest, yeah?” My voice came out slower than I intended. God, I was tired.

  Jakob sighed, but nodded. “Alright, Zeke. I got you.”

  “Wake me up in an hour.”

  “Yeah, yeah.”

  She examined the knife, then my hand. Her fingers brushed against my skin, and her gaze focused on me. “What’s this on the back of your hand, Zeke? A tattoo?”

  I frowned, pulling my hand back to look. There it was—a black number, bold against my skin.

  “Two,” I murmured, my stomach twisting.

  “What is it?” she pressed, leaning closer.

  “I think… my level?” The words felt strange coming out of my mouth. “When I passed out, I saw a stat screen. It said I leveled up, and I put my points into Finesse. That’s it.”

  She studied the number carefully. “And no one else has this mark?”

  I shook my head. “Not that I know of. Maybe if you level up, you’ll get one.”

  Nara scoffed, shaking her head. “I do not want one. I keep my body pure.”

  Nara’s voice softened, but her eyes gleamed with curiosity. “Zeke, this is a strange request, but… can I watch you sleep?”

  I blinked, caught off guard. “You want to watch me sleep?”

  “It’s purely for observation,” she clarified. “Whatever’s happening to you, I want to study it.” The fire crackled beside us, casting wavering shadows on her face. That’s all.

  “If you keep rubbing my head like that,” I muttered, “I might just pass out anyway.”

  Her fingers, still tangled lightly in my dreads, slowed. For a brief moment I felt ok, the fire’s heat felt less stifling, the night less jarring on my mind.

  “This isn’t a joke,” she said, I want to make sure you are ok Zeke.”

  I sighed, running a hand down my face. “I know. I know. It’s never a joke with you.” I hesitated, watching the way the firelight danced in her eyes. “You really think something happens when I sleep?”

  “I don’t know,” she admitted. “But something is happening to you. And if it’s tied to sleep, I need to witness it myself and figure it out.”

  Her words made me think. If it is tied to sleep. Then the visions, the nightmares, the feeling of something crawling into my head, shifting through my past like an open file cabinet. Then he knows, he knows it all. He knows me better than me perhaps because my memories sometimes just disappear from my mind.

  I exhaled slowly. The thought of someone else seeing what I saw, even just as an observer, made me feel… exposed, vulnerable and a couple other words I was too tired to think of.

  But then again, wasn’t that already happening? Wasn’t something already invading my mind, my body, the core to my very being?

  Maybe it was time I stopped trying to fight it alone. Maybe.

  I leaned back against the log, letting my eyes drift to the dark sky above. The stars seemed further away than usual.

  “Alright,” I murmured. “Sure. I’ll let you do your thing.”

  Nara didn’t respond right away. Instead, she watched me carefully, as if studying the way I breathed, the way my shoulders eased ever so slightly in surrender. She waited, waited for me to calm down.

  Then, gently, she shifted closer, her hand resting on the front of my head right between the eyes.

  “Sleep, Zeke,” she whispered. “I’ll be here. We all will be.”

  And for the first time in a long time, I felt safe. Might’ve been a woman’s touch or her nice cold hands. Either way.

  My eyes drifted.