I shield my eyes from the bright, beaming lights of what seems to be a hospital room

Why am I here? What happened?

I start to panic, calling out for help, searching for a phone that I could use

A nurse and what seems to be a young man rush into the room

The young man stands in the doorway, breathing heavily

Behind him is an older man, dressed in a business suit

He looks like he hadn’t been sleep in days

The nurse has been talking to me all the while I’m trying to figure out who these two men are

Confused, I glance over at her and she stops talking

Her face turns blank

For a while, we just stare at each other without saying anything because I’m silently panicking

It seems as if this is all a dream

Why would I wake up in a hospital and nothing has happened to me?

“What’s going on?” I ask the lady, but she doesn’t say anything

Instead, she starts to look at the two men

Her face is full of sorrow

The older man wipes his eyes as if he’s starting to cry

“Do you know who those people are? Those two men, standing in the door?” she asks me, in a baby-like voice.

The young man rushes into the hallway and I can see him quickly walk away, shaking his head

I shake my head no. “Am I supposed to?” I reply.

“Ma’am, that’s your husband and your son. Can you recall the name, Michael?”

The older man slowly walks towards me, reaching for my hand.

I pull away, fear taking over my body. I clench onto the nurse. “Get him away! I don’t want him to hurt me!” I yell to her.

She walks over to the man, hesitates, and then mumbles something to him about letting me rest and getting coffee.

As he walks out of the room with the nurse, he looks over his shoulder at me with tears in his eyes

I feel scared, sorry for him, and confused

How is he my husband and I’ve never met him a day in my life?

Why does this dream feel so realistic?