Dreamaria

It was a drab and dreary morning, and I had just finished grabbing my coffee and breakfast, taking a stroll over to the nearby bus stop. I had recently found a used game store, and was heading over there to meet up with a friend. I had recently picked up a PS4, and was hoping that two minds would be better than one when I wanted to pick out some new games.

The bus arrived around 9:15 AM, and the ride was mostly uneventful, save for the slightly leaky roof above where I was seated. I'm sure the driver was aware of this issue (no one was even in the section I had sat in, after all), so I didn't feel it necessary to bring it up as I departed. Besides, it's not the driver's job to take care of the buses they drive; that's on the companies that do repairs.

I got off at my stop around 9:40 AM. After a quick glance around, I managed to spot my friend leaning up against one of the pillars of the strip mall's awning. After getting rid of my trash in a nearby trash can, I made my way over, but he spotted me first and ran over.

**Bill:** "You made it! I was starting to get worried that you were going to run late."

**Me:** "Bill, I said I was going to be here around 10. The store isn't even open yet."

**Bill:** "Oh yeah. I forgot. Sorry, chief, that one's on me. Damn places with their stupid times open...

Naturally, as two losers with nothing better to do, we stood around idly chatting until opening time, as the clerk turned the neon sign on and unlocked the front door. Bill, naturally, was the first one to run inside. Boy, he was eager. Maybe he was picking something up for himself? I watched him quickly run over to the Playstation section, grab a game, and check out in the span of about five minutes. That man was something else. I don't even know why we're friends. Maybe it's just his really spot-on Mario impression. Or maybe it's because we're too insecure to break off our friendship.

Regardless, I made my way inside, heading over to the towering game selection, browsing for any titles I'd heard of. With Bill's guidance, I picked a few titles, none of particular note for this story, and went to check out. Bill offered to pay, on one condition.

**Me:** "For what? You want me to owe you another favor? Because last time, you shoved me into a fursuit and threw me into a forest for a dayy."

**Bill:** "You weren't supposed to remember that. Anyways, no, that isn't it. This time. I want you to play this, first."

Bill took the game out of his bag and showed it to me. It was a copy of Terraria for the PS4.

**Me:** "Really? You want me to play this. This looks like 2D Minecraft."

**Bill:** "I've put nearly 2500 hours into this game, and let me tell you that you're sorely mistaken. I promise if you don't like it, I've got the reciept in the bag for you to return it."

I sighed. Bill wouldn't shut up about this game. He'd bought about a half dozen copies already, some for him, some for his friends, hell, he had multiple versions himself. Reluctantly, I agreed, taking his bag and game and adding it to my own.

I was honestly starting to get a bit sick of Bill's presence, so I made an excuse to leave. He didn't seem to catch my tone, which was probably good, to be honest. I hopped on a bus, noticing that it was the same bus that I'd rode on previously. I went back to my previous seat, setting the bags on the floor in front of me and leaning back to browse stuff on my phone.

An intense downpour hit while we were on the drive back to my stop, leaking far more water into the bus than a few droplets. Enough to get me to move out of the section. My bags seemed a little heavier than they were before, but that clearly didn't bother me as much as it should have.

I got home and set my bags on the counter, changing out of my soaked outfit for one that was more suited for lounging around. After fixing a quick lunch, I sat on the couch, before realizing I forgot the games to put into my PS4 on the counter. As I headed over there, I noticed a small pool of water around the bag. Shit, was there water in the bags? I had to get the games out, pronto! In a hurry, I removed all the cases, one by one, and set them in front of a fan to let them dry.

I figured I could give Terraria a try while I was waiting. I polished a few droplets of water off the disc, ejecting my copy of Persona 5 Golden and putting it back into its' own case before putting Terraria in. It seemed the game needed an update, so I let it install as I ate.

After I washed the dishes I used for my lunch, it was finally time to give Bill's favorite game a try. I booted into it, feeling a little tired from the relaxing rain sounds outside.

The loading screen began, and I saw some interesting effects. Was that rain on the title screen? That was pretty neat, like the game could tell it was raining outside. I watched the sun and moon rise and fall, rise and fall, as the background turned from green to purple-ish, back and forth. It was so enchanting...

I jolted awake. Had I passed out on the couch? What a shame, I didn't think I was tired enough to actually sleep. Not a problem in the moment, now was the time to try out the game. I made my way through the menu, creating a character I named 'Swifton' and a world I randomized the name for, 'Dripping Land of Buses'. I spawned in, and began figuring out the controls from the on-screen button prompts, killing a few slimes and cutting down some trees. After figuring out how to build and craft, I made myself a wooden sword and some armor.

It began to rain ingame. Was that a mechanic? If so, that was pretty nice. The music was a sort of peppy tune, one that felt fitting as I slayed Umbrella Slimes and Flying Fish.

*Steve the Guide was slain...*

What was that ominous red text? Probably nothing. I ignored it and moved on with my life, managing to build a crude shelter and craft some torches. It was starting to get dark, and I heard splashing sounds ingame. More slimes? Or was it something else? The music changed, and I suddenly started hearing some growling and snarling. I broke open one of the walls I had constructed and placed a torch outside. It broke, but not before revealing a small horde of zombies more than willing to eat my flesh. Some water also leaked inside the house, destroying my torches on the floor and making it harder to see.

Suddenly, more water began flowing in. Filling the house. A bubble meter appeared over my character, quickly running out and sending my HP quickly down to zero. I waited out to respawn, but drowned again. I felt something wet on my heel, but when I looked down, there was nothing of interest to see there. I drowned again. It felt up to my ankles.

And again. And again. Slowly, the feeling enveloped my entire body, and I began to suffocate.

On the screen, in bright, bold red text, it read,

***You were slain...***

I jolted awake. For real this time. So it was all a dream... I pinched myself.

I jolted awake. For real, real, *really* real this time. I pinched myself. Thank fuck I had finally woken u.

I returned the game the next day. Never dealing with that shit again, zero out of ten, if I wanted a horror game I would have pirated FNAF.