There was no way that was my reflection. Last time I checked humans don't have blue skin unless they're extremely deprived of oxygen or part of a music group. And I'm pretty sure my hair wasn't an extremely light, almost white, blue before. I mean not my hair obviously, it wasn't my reflection. I must have been looking in some sort of trick mirror. That would also explain why I looked like I still belonged in Kindergarten.
'I did seem a little shorter earlier...' I shook those thoughts from my head. They were ridiculous, something like this doesn't happen.
I burst out laughing. Of course things like this don't happen, of course, of course. It's all some hallucination, all of it. My appearance, this city, everything, a hallucination brought on by....by.....by what?
A cold breeze cut off my uncontrollable laughter, eliciting a shiver from me. Wait....how could I have felt temperature in a hallucination? Oh, of course! The answer was so simple: my actual body must be in some cold place and in the final stages of hypothermia! It wasn't uncommon for people suffering from hypothermia to see things; at least, I think that's correct. So obviously I was feeling the cold on my real body while my mind created this intense audiovisual hallucination, probably because I was near death and it wanted to give me some degree of peace. A perfectly logical explanation!
'Wait, DEATH!'
My panic returned. I didn't want to die, I was too young. There must be some way to save myself!
You know, if you asked someone how they'd react in a life-threatening situation, they would probably tell you they'd be calm, cool, and logical in their attempts to save their lives. Those people are lying.
When you feel like you're close to death, all logic goes out the window. You grasp at anything, no matter how odd, in an attempt to preserve your life. And that's how my next thought came about.
'If I find someplace warm in this dreamscape, maybe it will have some psychological effect that will wake me up!
Okay yeah, that was a stupid idea, but I couldn't really think clearly with the specter of death over my head.
I turned to glance down the street. Most of the shops had darkened windows, likely closed due to how early it was, except for one at the very end of the street. Hanging outside the shop was a universal symbol: a sign with a steaming coffee cup on it. Below the cup was fancy script reading Midtown Cafe. Not the most creative name but hey, at least it was probably warm in there.
I walked briskly toward the café, almost running but the snow stopped me from breaking into an all out sprint. I didn't know how much longer I had left, and a fall would only do to slow me down. Still I gad to hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry....
Reaching the door to the café I pushed it open with a sense of urgency, which was a bit hard considering my tiny dream body had trouble with large, heavy doors. Damn, this hallucination was detailed, even weight was present. Wait, how could I fe--
'Better not to dwell on it.'
As I finally managed to pushopen the door I was greeted with sweet, sweet heating. It felt so good against my numb face, and any anxieties I still held melted like ice under the sheer bliss. I could have stood there all day, all night, and all of the next day and savored in that feeling. I wasn't going to die!
"Can I help you little guy?"
My eyes (which apparently shut due to the sheer ecstasy) opened to reveal a young man walking out of some sort of back room behind the bar. My throat seemed to become very, very dry as I noticed his light green skin and blood red hair, as well as the fact that he absolutely towered over me. And why did his tone sound like he was talking to a 5 year old?
'Just relax, it's only a hallucination. Apparently it's taking a minute to wear off. And his tone is probably just your mind trying to sell the whole younger body thing'
"Oh, um."I winced at 'my' high pitched voice. "I uh, just came in to warm up sir."
"Oh, yeah it is a cold one out there," He noted, walking over towards a window. He looked side to side, up and down the street, then turned to me with an inquisitive look upon his face. "So uh, where exactly are your parents little guy?"
My right eye involuntarily twitched. "I think I'm old enough to be out on my own."
The man chuckled as he came over to me, kneeling down to be eye level. "Oh you're a big boy I'm sure, but you should still be with your parents. Are you lost? Do you know your address?"
My eye was really twitching now. I felt rage burning deep within me, and there was nothing I could do to stop it from spilling out.
"STOP TALKING TO ME LIKE A DAMN CHILD. I'M NOT I'M NOT I'M NOT." With each not I stomped my foot for extra emphasis, and that combined with my tirade seemed to take the employee back a bit. He wore a shocked expression upon his face, which quickly changed to a more neutral face as I heard heavy footsteps approach us from within the shop. The young man looked to the side as an older, grizzled man with pale white skin, bright blue hair and a similarly colored moustache poked his head out of the same backroom he had walked out of before. His gaze shifted between us for a moment before settling on the green skinned man.
"Is everything alright Almond?" the older man questioned.
"Everything is perfectly alright boss," Almond responded in an even tone, all the while looking directly at me. "Would you just mind doing me a favor and calling your wife real quick?"
The older man's eyes widened as though there was some sort of secret code in that request. He pulled out a cellphone and tapped the screen for a few moments before three distinct sounds, reminiscent of a dial tone, could be heard.
'He's calling 911!' I realized. No, no, no, I couldn't let this happen. 'But isn't this just a hallucination? what does it matter.'
There's a point in every situation like this where the individual has a moment of clarity, where the lie they've been telling themselves starts to crack and they're forced to confront the truth. I wasn't exactly there yet, but my lie was cracked enough to garner a reaction from me in response to the threat of the police. I made to run out the door before I felt something wrap around me and stop my escape.
"Hey, hey it's okay, we're only trying to help you," Almond said in a soothing tone. But to my ears it was like a croon of doom, and I had no choice but to leave before the police arrived. So I did the only thing I could think to do.
"AHHHHHHH!" Almond screamed in pain as a bit him as hard as I could. I could feel the ripping of skin, the blood in my mouth, and most importantly, Almond jerking away from me. I didn't even look back as I bolted out of the café and into the snowy street outside
I don't know how long I ran, I don't even really know where I was running too. Nowhere, I suppose. I was running not too something but from something. Not from Almond or the blue haired man or the police, but from the unavoidable truth that had lodged itself within my mind after my lie had finally shattered.
'I'm not hallucinating.'