[ WP ] In a recurring dream everything seems so familiar , until a man in a white coat holding a clipboard and stop watch appears and says `` Hmmm , Interesting . You 've never made it this far before '' . He disappears and you 're not sure where you are anymore or even if this a dream .

Erica died at age 17. She committed suicide after months of being bullied by other girls at her school. Only one person was her friend, Matt. 
 
 
 8 years after Erica's death 
 
 
 Matt took off his glasses and placed them gently on the nightstand beside his bed. He grabbed the phone and looked at the time. It was 11:45pm and work was in 6 hours. He sighed, `` I really need to stop playing video games so late into the night.'' Matt turned over and went to sleep. 
 
 
 It was the same as that day. Matt looked around the hazy room. He could n't see all the details but he recognized the place as the nurses office from high school. He heard a small ringing sound but paid it no mind. Erica walked out of the back room with the nurse following close behind. Her eye was black and she was holding an ice bag to her forehead. 
 
 
 Matt stood up and went to her, `` Are you alright? Who did this? Where are they?'' She just gave him a gentle smile. `` It's fine Matt, really. I just... Walked into a door. That's all. No one did this to me.'' She looked away to hide her guilt for lying so blatantly. 
 
 
 But Matt knew the truth. He'd seen the hurtful notes and the random death threat texts from different numbers. He also knew how this dream would play out since he'd had it almost every night for a month. The nurse was about to say... 
 
 
 `` Here's a note, if you give this to your teacher you can go home.'' She handed Erica a piece of paper. Erica thanked the nurse then walked away. Matt attempted to stop her but she twisted her shoulder away from his grasp. 
 
 
 `` I'll see you tomorrow. Try not to get in trouble before I see you again.'' Matt could hear her choking back sobs, but he could n't say anything just like that day. In his mind he is screaming that he needs to stop her, make her stay, do n't let her go home alone. 
 
 
 But again, Matt did nothing except nod. She walked out the door without another word. What happened in the next 12 hours plays on fast forward. Erica goes home early. Matt goes back to class. He gets home and then gets a phone call. It's Erica's parents. She had hung herself after getting home while no one was there. They ask him if he knew what was going to happen. He tells them no. They hang up after giving him an empty thanks. Matt cries for the rest of the night. 
 
 
 Matt woke up drenched in sweat. His heart was racing and his body was unbearably hot. He got up and stumbled to the bathroom in the dark and blurry hallway. He tripped the last few steps and caught himself on the bathroom counter. 
 
 
 He turned on the faucet and splashed his face with cold water. The sudden drop in temperature brought a sudden sharpness with it as Matt's muddled head brought everything into focus. Well, as focused as one could be without wearing glasses. He sighed in defeat. 
 
 
 He noticed that the sun had started to rise through the window in the bathroom. That meant he had to start getting ready for his crappy Office job. 8 hours of mundane and boring work for 10 $ /hr. Matt regretted his decisions after Erica had passed away. 
 
 
 He'd gotten stupid drunk a few days after her death and destroyed one of the girls cars that had been bullying Erica. The school had a zero tolerance policy and he was expelled the next morning. He had gotten a GED the next year but that arrest and expulsion stayed on his record. Few jobs would hire someone like that for more than 10 $ /hr. Like most people, Matt wished he could change the past. But that only worked in fairy tales, tv shows, and manga. 
 
 
 A few days later 
 
 
 Matt went to bed extra tired that night. The boss had asked him to stay later to finish up a project. He did n't want to but more hours was more money. He checked the time, it was 12:57am. With a dreaded sigh, Matt went to bed expecting to feel twice as exhausted tomorrow. 
 
 
 The dream started again. He sat in the nurses office, waiting for Erica. She came out of the back room. Suddenly the ringing became intense. Matt wondered if he had freewill here he'd be cupping his ears and crying out in pain. But events played out like they were supposed to. 
 
 
 Nurse's note. Walking away. Attempt at stopping her. `` I'll see you tomorrow. Try not to get in trouble before I see you again.'' The ringing stopped suddenly. The room was deathly quiet. Before he realized what was happening, Matt blurted out. `` Erica.'' 
 
 She turned around halfway, `` Yes?'' But he was stunned. This had never happened before. Events had always played out exactly the same. Maybe this was a lucid dream. 
 
 
 Matt knew he could not change anything in the real world. But maybe, for one night. He could save her. He grabbed her hand and looked her dead in the eyes. `` Stay right there for a minute. If you move I swear I will chase you down and tackle you.'' Erica seemed surprised. `` Uh, O-Kay...'' 
 
 
 He nodded briefly then walked over to the nurse's desk. `` Uhm, ma'am... My stomach is hurting could I get a pass to go home as well?'' The woman in her mid thirties gave him a look of disbelief. 
 
 
 `` Mr. Jenson if I were you, I'd try a bit harder than that to ditch class.'' Matt bit the inside of his cheek. He'd have to sell this. `` No really ma'am I feel terrible... I threw up this morning and thought I was well enough to come to class but I guess not... Also my gut is really feeling tight...'' He did his best to look ill. Then dream fate seemed to be on his side as a massive grumble erupted from his stomach. 
 
 
 The nurse seemed to not believe him but she rolled her eyes and wrote him a quick note similar to Erica's note. He thanked her and turned back to Erica, who had been sitting there in a sort of daze. Matt grabbed her hand again. `` Let's go. We have a lot to talk about.'' 
 
 
 Suddenly everything froze. Time itself seemed to stop moving. Matt could not feel himself breathing anymore. The world was standing still. 
 
 The door to the nurse's office opened suddenly and a man in a white lab coat and clipboard walked into the room. He had black hair with greying roots. His beard was neatly trimmed and he wore wore thin glasses that rested on a pointed nose. 
 
 
 He observed Matt and wrote a few things on the clipboard. He took out a run of the mill stopwatch and clicked it a few times. He wrote more onto the clipboard. After writing down many notes he finally nodded satisfied and walked over to Matt. 
 
 
 `` Hello! This is quite the interesting turn of events. You've never made it this far before. You always fall flat at the first and only hurdle. But fret not, your repeated diligence has been rewarded.'' He pulled a plain white card with some writing on it out of his pocket and tucked it into Matt's pocket. `` Let us know how everything turns out when you wake up. We'll be interested to know Mr. Jenson.'' 
 
 
 The strange man turned and walked out of the room. He pulled the door closed until the lock clicked into place, then everything erupted into white light. 
 
 
 Matt woke up peacefully for the first time in a month. He rose slowly and looked around. It was too dark to see anything meaning that it was still before sunrise. Matt sighed in relief. He'd saved Erica in his dreams. Maybe now his guilty conscious would let him rest easier from then on. 
 
 
 His phone began to ring suddenly. `` Who on earth would be calling at this-'' He blinked at the screen a few times. It was black with one word at the top, `` Erica < 3'' He picked it up and swiped the answer button. 
 
 
 `` Hello?'' He said. A feminine voice came through in reply. `` Hello sweetie! I know it's still really early in the morning but I just got off my flight and wanted to hear your voice after going without it for a few hours. I'm in London now. I'll try and finish up here in a few days.'' 
 
 
 Matt felt tears begin to fall down his face. `` You're... You're alive...'' The voice laughed a bit, `` Of course silly! I told you that I have a better chance of winning the lottery than being in a plane crash... Or is that getting struck by lightning? Ah who cares, point is that I'm perfectly safe. Ooh, I got ta go now, my taxi is right there. Or is it called a cab here? Oh I ca n't wait to find out. Ta ta!'' The call ended with a click. 
 
 Matt had a thousand questions running through his head. He leaned over and turned on the nearby lamp. Suddenly the room was illuminated and he could see it was not the same on he'd fallen asleep in. The bed was king size and there was a large walk in closet and a tv on the wall. 
 
 
 He stood up and walked over to the bathroom door. Still in a haze he turned on the faucet and splashed cold water on his face. The world came into sharp focus again and he looked up and into the mirror. A single white card with some writing was stuck to the center. Matt grabbed it and squinted at the lettering. 
 
 `` Lucidity Inc. We make your dream, a reality. Call us at ( XXX ) -XXX-XXXX for any and all questions, complaints, requests, and feedback'' 
 
 Matt slowly looked up and into the mirror again. He noticed a picture in the corner and grabbed it. It was a picture of him and Erica posing for wedding photos. 
 
 
 He was reminded of the end of a recent Tom Cruise movie. The one with aliens and robots or something. He never really understood the ending until now. All Matt could do was a quick chuckle.
