Passing ((pillow) talk)

The nightmares constantly plagued his mind. They never left him, playing just around the edges, waiting to snatch him up and take him away. He was terrorized by the thought that they were after him, that they would pop up at any moment and devour him.

Day by day he crawled by, struggling to find the strength to keep going. Everything was just in shades of gray; there was no color, no light, no life to his world. There was nothing he thought worthy to live for, until he had the dream.

Typically his sleep was just as tormented as his wakefulness. He would toss and turn, unable to sleep for longer than a few hours. On this night, however, he slept peacefully.

In his dream, he was not alone. There was another person standing there, wrapped in a thick black coat, the hood pulled over their eyes. He stared at this individual, willing them to take the cloth off so he could see what he was looking at.

“Jonah,” the person spoke. Its voice made him shiver. It was raspy and croaked, yet sounded like there were multiple things speaking at once. “Jonah, do you know where you are?”

He glanced around them. They were in a forest, he knew, but that was as far as his knowledge went. The trees were too thick to look through, vines hung almost to the ground, and bushed prevented any sort of walking. In response to the voice, he shook his head.

“This is the gateway. Your gateway, to be precise.”

He studied the stranger. “My gateway to what?”

For a while, there was no answer. Then, “Heaven. You died, Jonah.”

He blinked, stunned. Touched his face. Pinched his arms. Yanked on his hair. He surely didn’t feel dead. “Oh.”

Its head tilted. “You had a heart attack. In your sleep. They will find your body in the morning, lying on your pillow peacefully.”

He nodded, still processing this new information. “Alright. What now?”

“Now?” He was asked, “Now, I escort you to your personal Heaven. If you will follow me.”

Jonah followed, watching his feet so he did not trip. He missed how the scenery changed, but when he next looked up, the figure was a step ahead of him, and everything was white. A door stood in front of them, and they stopped a few feet before reaching it.

“This is where I leave you. Through that door is your Paradise. Enjoy.” With that, the figure drifted into the air like dust, and soon it was just him.

Reaching out Jonah touched the doorknob. The feeling of peace it gave him was awe-inspiring. Without a second thought he flung the door open and stepped inside, leaving his nightmares and his troubles behind.