I wake up to the sound of cars on the road, a horrid smell filling the air. I desperately want to cover my nose but find myself paralyzed, unable to move. A light tap on my shoulder startles me, and despite my hesitation, I don’t dare open my eyes.

"You need to wake up now," I hear a voice say. "You're running out of time."

Using every ounce of strength, I finally force my eyes open and meet the eyes of a man wearing an EMT uniform. His face is smeared with an unsettling amount of blood. Is it mine? His? Or is it someone else's?

"Hurry, you need to wake up," The EMT repeats.

Confusion sets in; I am already awake. He must be stupid. Looking at my surroundings, I realize that I’m inside an ambulance. An IV pump is attached to my arm, and on the floor is a motionless body, swarmed by flies.

I turn to the EMT, hoping for a rational explanation. But he simply repeats, "You need to wake up," followed by a solemn declaration, "There isn't much time."

Suddenly, the ambulance comes to an abrupt halt, catapulting me off the stretcher, out of the door, and causing me to hit my head on the pavement. Everything goes dark.

This time, I wake up standing before a door. I’m wearing my Halloween costume, clutching a plastic jack-o'-lantern, remembrance washes over me. I swear I have done this before, haven't I? Last night at 9:00 PM with my friends. So why am I back here now?

As the thought consumes my mind, the doorbell rings on its own, and the door creaks open. A woman is standing there, wearing the iconic zombie cheerleader costume. She’s holding a large bowl of candy. She deposits a handful into my jack-o'-lantern and locks her gaze with mine.

"You have to hurry. You're looking in all the wrong places," She says before closing the door, leaving me standing there, more confused.

It must be a dream, I reason, as I instinctively reach into the jack-o'-lantern, hoping to get some candy. But as expected in dreams where nothing goes to plan, I pull out a blood-soaked note instead.

Its words taunt me: "You're running out of time. You have to find the murderer."

Murderer? And why is everyone talking about time? I crumple the note and let it fall from my hand. Soon, I'll wake up, I reassure myself, turning to leave. Yet, I’m met by Sam, my best friend, his throat slit, and his costume drenched in blood.

"You have to find my murderer." He says. "Before it's too late." Then, he pulls something out of his pocket and hits me on the head. My body falls to the floor, and once again, darkness is everywhere.

This time, I wake up in a graveyard.