I woke up with a scream stuck in my throat.
Not because of a nightmare.
Because it didn't feel like one.
It felt like a memory.
My hands were shaking. My chest felt tight, like something heavy was sitting on it.
And the worst part?
I knew this room.
Not like "I've been here for a few days."
No.
I knew it like I had lived here before.
Or… died here.
I stood up slowly and walked toward the window.
My feet moved on their own.
Three steps forward.
Pause.
Two steps left.
Turn.
I froze.
"Why did I just do that…?"
It wasn't me.
My body… remembered something my mind didn't.
Then it hit me.
A flash.
Not clear. Not complete.
But enough.
A woman.
Standing exactly where I was.
Breathing fast.
Crying.
And behind her…
Someone watching.
I stumbled back.
"No… this is crazy…"
But my head started hurting.
More flashes.
More pieces.
The same room.
The same walls.
The same bed.
But older.
Darker.
And the woman…
She looked like me.
Not similar.
Not "kind of same."
Exactly like me.
"I died here…"
The words slipped out of my mouth before I could stop them.
And suddenly—
I remembered how.
Hands.
Cold.
Tight around my neck.
Pulling.
Squeezing.
I couldn't breathe.
I tried to scream but no sound came out.
The room spinning.
The ceiling getting blurry.
And the last thing I saw—
Was someone smiling down at me.
I gasped and fell to the floor.
"No… no… NO…"
Tears filled my eyes.
"This isn't my memory… it can't be…"
But it felt too real.
Too personal.
Too painful.
Then I heard it.
A whisper.
Right next to my ear.
"You came back."
I froze.
Slowly… very slowly… I turned my head.
No one was there.
But the voice continued.
Soft.
Calm.
Almost happy.
"I was waiting for you to remember."
My heart started racing again.
"Who are you…?"
Silence.
Then—
A shadow moved across the wall.
Not from light.
Not from anything real.
It moved on its own.
And then it stopped.
Right behind me.
"You forgot me," it said.
The voice was no longer soft.
It was hurt.
Angry.
"You left me here… alone…"
"I don't even know you!" I cried.
The air grew cold.
The shadow stretched… taller… wider…
"No," it whispered.
"You knew me better than anyone."
My head started spinning again.
More memories forced their way in.
Laughing.
Talking.
Trust.
And then—
Betrayal.
My breath stopped.
"No…"
I whispered, shaking.
"No… I didn't…"
But deep inside…
I knew.
"I didn't run," I said slowly.
My voice breaking.
"I was trying to escape…"
The shadow didn't move.
It just watched.
"I remember now…"
Tears rolled down my face.
"I wasn't alone that night…"
Silence.
Heavy.
Waiting.
Then I whispered the truth.
"I trusted you."
The shadow smiled.
I could feel it.
Even without seeing a face.
"And you shouldn't have."
The door slammed shut on its own.
The lights flickered violently.
And the whisper came one last time—
Closer than ever.
Almost inside my head.
"This time… you won't escape."