_Chasing me… a man with a bloody knife is fucking chasing me! I don’t wanna die!_

__

_Running as fast as I possibly could, I tried to lose the man, but he just kept speeding up. Faster… running even faster. I couldn’t let him catch me!_

__

_But I was exhausted; he was not. I slowed down; he sped up. I tried my very best to fight against the overwhelming exhaustion, but it was too much to handle. I collapsed._

__

_My legs gave out and I fell to the ground, struggling horribly to get back up. I just couldn’t find he strength to stand._

__

_Closer… the man got closer and closer… and then even closer. Soon enough, the man’s dark presence loomed over me in an overbearing, dreadful way._

__

_“Please don’t kill me! I’m begging you!” I sobbed._

__

_The man lowered his knife… closer to me… closer… and then…_ I woke up. Cold sweat left my clothing soaked and me freezing.

This wasn’t the first time I had this dream. It had been a constant thing for at least the past month, and I had yet to discover why. But I had a theory: lately, I had been feeling almost as if I was being watched… followed. That made me wonder, what if my dream wasn’t just a dream? What if it was me seeing some sort of… prediction of the future?

I know, that sounds obscenely farfetchedc but there had been some reports of people having recurring dreams that eventually came true, whether or not they’re good or bad. I was really hoping that my theory was incorrect, because if it was… that meant I was going to be chased down and stabbed to death by some psycho.

_What other things could cause such a vivid recurring dream? I mean, I even feel like I’m being stalked when I’m awake…_ I thought, trembling. All the evidence pointed to a certain cause… I was being stalked, and with murderous intent at that.

_If I know what’s going to happen based on my dreams, can’t I just make a few different decisions and change the future before it even happens?_ I wondered, starting to believe that there was a way to escape my supposedly impending doom.

But there was the question of what decisions I’d have to make to get out of, you know, being killed. Nothing came to mind except for constantly carrying around a weapon of my own.

The thing about that was I only had one large kitchen knife that could be used as a weapon, and I couldn’t exactly carry that around inconspicuously.

_What do I do? I can’t just sit and wait for my death!_ I thought, frustrated and scared. It was so frustrating that I had ZERO defense mechanisms to use outside of my home. I wasn’t just going to let myself die! I had to do SOMETHING! ANYTHING to change my fate!

Though there was the underlying thought that my fate couldn’t change, that my gruesome death was simply set in stone. _No! I’m not going to die! Nothing is completely set in stone! Yet… I have to do something, and I have to do it now!_

A random idea popped into my head and I got into my car and started driving to the hardware store. _I’m a genius! If I board up my doors and windows, that asshole will never be able to get in!_

It was practically pitch black outside when I arrived at the store, and that worried me. But I didn’t let it show. I wasn’t probably just being overly paranoid. _Just because it’s dark out doesn’t mean that some psycho killer is lurking out here, waiting to kill me… but what if there is?! _I thought, my eyes darting every which way. It was hard to see in the dark.

I thought I heard footsteps, so I locked my car doors and windows. _Nope! There is no way in hell I’m getting out of my car to get boards when there is CLEARLY a psycho killer waiting for me outside!_

I started driving away, not realizing that the footsteps were actually those of an innocent customer, and that the real psycho killer was waiting for me somewhere else.

I pulled into my driveway and got out of my car. I had sadly come back empty handed, with no way to protect myself or secure my home. That’s when I heard it again. Footsteps. I was for sure hearing footsteps, and they were getting closer… closer…

A figure emerged from the shadows. It was a man, but not just any man… it was the killer from my dreams! And he was holding the same bloody knife!_ Shit! This can’t be happening!_

Before my brain could fully process what was happening, the chase began. I ran away; he ran closer.

_Chasing me… a man with a bloody knife is fucking chasing me! I don’t wanna die!_ I thought, panicked.

I ran faster than I ever had before, trying to lose the man, but he just kept speeding up. Running faster… faster. There was no way in hell I was going to let him catch me!

All the running left me exhausted; he was not. I unintentionally slowed down while he sped up._ I have to keep going! I have to! _I tried my very best to push through the exhaustion, yet it was still too much. I collapsed.

My legs had given out. I was on the ground, struggling to get up. I couldn’t find the strength anywhere inside me to stand back up.

Closer… the man got closer and closer… and then even closer. Soon enough, the man’s dark presence loomed over me in an overbearing, dreadful way.

“Please don’t kill me! I’m begging you!” I sobbed.

The man lowered his knife… closer to me… closer… and then…

A sharp pain shot through my body as he plunged the knife deep into my stomach, over and over again. I screamed in pure agony, the pain taking over my brain… until it stopped.

When the pain stopped, so did everything else. All dreams, including this one, thankfully come to an end.