UNNAMED [Chapter 10 — “The Cold That Follows Me”]

Chapter 10 — “The Cold That Follows Me”

“I said it wasn’t a dream — because it wasn’t.

The blood was real. The cold was real.

And the silence between us stretched like a second skin.

If it was all in my mind,

why did it hurt like this?”

I went outside for a walk.

As I stepped out, the wind bit into my skin — December was coming down hard, I thought.

“How have you been?” the voice popped up.

“I don’t know. Things aren’t making sense anymore,” I sighed.

“Which things?” it asked, curious now.

“The forest. That lab. That woman. Everything… that corpse on the table.”

My body shivered — from the cold outside, and something colder within.

“Oh. You mean more of your stupid nightmares?” the voice mocked.

“It felt real. I felt everything — deep in my bones,” I defended.

“You say that every time, don’t you, little girl?” it said, sly and amused.

“It wasn’t a dream. When I woke up, there was blood smeared on my face.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“Yes. I’m sure. What I saw was real. It wasn’t a dre — nightmare.”

Silence fell between us.

“What were you doing before you went to sleep?”

“Nothing. Just — ”

“See? It was just an illusion created by your own mind.”

He laughed — sharp and hollow — and fell silent again.

And then it hit me.

I understood what he meant.

I’d carved vermilion lines into my skin. With sharp edges. My edges.

What he was implying — it wasn’t someone else’s blood. It was mine.

Maybe he was right.

So… was it all a dream?

But the feeling was too vivid, too visceral to dismiss. It wasn’t a dream. If anything, it was a nightmare — her words still echoing in my head.

140.

That’s what they called her.

What could that mean?

A strong gust of wind snapped me back to reality.

A few people were out, walking their after-dinner strolls with families. I guessed.

My eyes wandered. Most of the trees around me were bare, skeletal.

Everything is dying, a thought murmured.

I kept walking. The wind grew colder.

I headed for the outskirts of the city — where the crowd thinned out.

I didn’t want to see anyone.

Being around people drained me. Even eye contact felt like a chore, a weight.

And I didn’t have the energy to spare.

Eventually, I reached a place where I couldn’t see a single soul.

Only dead trees.

Only me.

“I could hear the sound of dried leaves being crushed beneath my feet with each step.”

The weather turned again — sudden, heavy snow began to fall.

The sky bruised darker. The wind sharpened.

I was far from home.

There was no way I’d get back in this storm.

It’s not worth it, I told myself.

I needed shelter — just until the wind eased.

A few steps ahead stood an abandoned building.

I went inside.

It was dark. A thick layer of dust covered everything.

I turned on my phone’s flashlight.

The space was wide and silent. A few broken windows let in ribbons of cold air.

Metal frames — rusted, forgotten.

Scattered around were broken machines — or maybe just twisted metal limbs.

I stepped further in. The floor creaked beneath me.

There was a layer of dust, mingled with the tang of rusted iron and old oil. I could smell something musty, rotting. The air was suffocating. I felt nauseous.

I decided to check upstairs, hoping for a breath of ventilation.

The staircase stood in the middle of the room.

I climbed. Mold spread across the ceiling edges like bruises.

Insects and bugs had made this place their own.

Humans abandon things once they’re no longer useful, I thought. It’s in their nature.

But nature… nature finds a way to make use of everything.

Everything belongs somewhere.

At the top of the stairs, I stopped.

There was someone standing in front of me.

A black coat. White fur lining the edges.

My breath caught.

Is it her?

Is it 140?

No… it was a dream. It was just a dream —

But maybe it wasn’t.

I rushed forward, grabbed the figure’s shoulder.

“Say — wh — ”

The figure turned.

And it wasn’t her.

It wasn’t anyone I recognized.

“That was kind of rude… to say that to a classmate, don’t you think?”

“A classmate–?”

“Wait. A classmate??”

Confusion hit me like a leaf in a violent wind — weightless, directionless, like I’d been ripped from whatever branch once held me.

Writer’s note:

Hiya reader’s. I apologize for the late update, got stuck in middle of some crisis. though would be sticking to the schedule from now on.

and again sorry to the readers who were waiting for the next chapter.

Thank you for your patience and love guys!

Thank you for reading ! Feel free to leave your thoughts, comments, or questions. I’d love to hear your perspective on the story so far.

connect with me at [email protected]

Genre: Psychological Horror, Surrealism, Dark Literary Fiction, Psychological Thriller