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He picked up the knife, its shining and clean blade ready to be used. He turned it in the soft light that shone from the cabin’s window, a wicked grin spreading across his face as he listened to the muffled cries coming from the table. He stared at the dagger a little longer, his thin, long fingers testing its sharpness. He hissed softly, admiringly as a small cut appeared on his finger instantly. Then he turned around slowly, still grinning as his blue eyes searched out those of the distressed woman on the table. Her long, blond hair was tangled up in knots and her face was pale and dirty. She looked nothing like the beauty she had been before.

Brian awoke alone, in darkness with not a clue where he was. He lay still, breathing and realized for the first time that he was completely on his own. Nobody was there. Not his wife, not Nick, not even Bonnie.

And no Thomas.

He swallowed thickly, not having the strength to move. The darkness was suffocating, closing in on him and enveloping him whole. Everything hurt, everything was silent.

He was alone.

He was not quite sure at what point the whispers started. Unintelligible hushed voices floating in and out of earshot. No one. No one was there. Brian squeezed his eyes closed, slowly trying to get his mind back together. What’s the last thing he remembered?

“Bonnie,” he whispered.

Bonnie had been there. Bonnie had stayed with him. Where was she?

“Bonnie,” he said again, a bit louder, hearing his own voice echoing in his head. Every single sound left stabs of agony behind his eyes and he recognized it as the pain he sometimes got after a seizure.

That must have been it.

It made sense. Normally, Thomas wouldn’t leave unless he’d had a seizure. He’d be rid of Thomas for a few hours then. And it was awfully quiet right now.

“That’s a lie.”

Brian whimpered, trying to drown out the whisper that he recognized all too well. Grabbing his head, he rolled up in a ball, not listening to Thomas’ voice. It was all his fault. Wherever he was now, whatever had happened to him; it was all Thomas’ fault.

“Just think, Brian,” Thomas’ voice was as loud as anything now, but Brian couldn’t see him. “If you really think about it, you’d know.”

“Know what?” Brian moaned, his head feeling like it was going to split in half.

“The truth. You know it’s all a lie. You know it, you just deny it.”

“Shut up,” Brian whimpered pathetically. Part of him wanted to get up and run again, another part just wanted it all to stop forever.

“For fuck’s sake, think!” Thomas roared, “Why is it so dark? And what the fuck is that smell?”

Brian frowned, trying to open his eyes, but realizing it didn’t make a difference anyway. And faintly he smelled the disgusting smell that he’d hoped to have forgotten.

“No,” he whimpered, every sense and shreds of sanity inside him shattering.

“He would have never let you go,” Thomas whispered.

“No,” Brian moaned again. There was a distinct sound of water dropping on the floor.

“Finally,” Thomas mumbled, stepping out of the shadows now. He was shorter than Brian remembered, his skin pale, almost grey. Brian felt his heart shatter, watching the bullet holes appear slowly in the young man’s back and abdomen.

“You died,” Brian whispered breathlessly.

“And still I’m here. I’m the part of you that always knew the truth, the part that has been here the whole time. I’ve never left, and neither have you. Not really, anyway.”

“I was out,” Brian whispered, closing his eyes and shaking his head.

“It’s a lie you-”

“I WAS OUT!” Brian screamed, his voice instantly breaking as he gasped for breath. The sound echoed off the basement’s walls, and bounced right back at him. Sobbing, he rammed his fists against the wall repeatedly, not feeling the pain until his hands began to bleed.

“Stop that!” Thomas grabbed his wrists.

“No! I was out! They got me out!”

“Who? Nick? Nick died! You know that!”

“No, he’s alive. He and AJ got me out. And the police. They buried you. I went to your grave. I spoke to your parents.”

“I’m still here Brian,” Thomas said, a lot softer now, tears in his voice. “Nobody ever found us.”

And then he saw it. Just a few feet away from the bottom of the stairs, a filthy, faded dark stain on the stone ground underneath him. Thomas lay in the exact same spot as Brian remembered. Not breathing, not moving, lifeless. Brian’s stomach turned and he gagged, the sour bile rising quickly up his throat. “No no no no no no,” he pleaded.

“It’s okay,” Thomas was just a voice now. “You were lost for a while, but you came back.”

“I was out,” Brian repeated, whimpering.

Thomas sighed, “You made up a fantasy, Brian. It wasn’t real. It was comforting, and nice. I mean, a loving wife, a baby on the way. Understanding friends. And then Nick was suddenly alive? Something must have clicked right then, but sadly, it didn’t. And you kept living happily in that lie, because wasn’t it the best lie you’ve ever believed? Oh, the dog was definitely my favourite.”

“But it wasn’t perfect,” Brian said softly.

“No, no it wasn’t. Because I was there. I was the real part of you. I knew the truth. In the beginning, you pushed me away, you ignored every little hint I gave you. But then-”

“The seizures,” Brian mumbled, staring into the darkness, unseeing.

“I became stronger with each one. You began to see the cracks in that reality of yours. Do you remember what you saw during those seizures?”

“The basement,” Brian answered, mesmerized.

“Those were the only real thing. The only real thing, Brian. But you kept denying it. You kept denying those horrible dreams of yours. You kept denying that you remembered anything. I had to painstakingly drag you back into reality, because you got too caught up in a dream. But then, you did the unthinkable. That was you. Not me. I couldn’t have imagined it. And then your fantasy just shattered and you came back.”

“Leigh,” Brian breathed, the beautiful blond image of a woman appearing behind his eyes. As quick as it came, it went away.

“You needed her. Until you didn’t anymore.”

“How long?” Brian croaked.

“I don’t know… we don’t know,” Thomas voice was calm; it sounded nothing like Thomas. Brian heard his own voice echoing in the silence. “I’m you, and you’re me,” it said. “This is what we’ve become. We’re still here. We’re alive.”

Brian felt the cold, stained ground under his fingers, heard the water endlessly dripping from that one crack in the wall. How long had it been? For him, it had been over a year since he got out. But how long were dreams compared to reality? And what had happened since? Were there still monsters upstairs? How had he survived? “I don’t understand,” he whispered, lost.

He tried remembering. He could almost feel the rain on his face from that day he and Bonnie had been caught in a rainstorm. He could see the look of pure happiness on Leighanne’s face as he took her in his arms and sang to her when he’d learned she was pregnant. They’d danced in the living room and she’d cooked their favourite meal. They’d brainstormed over babynames and made a thousand plans for the newborn’s room.

How could that be a lie?

He flinched as he remembered the knife. The look of pure shock and disbelief on his wife’s face as it entered her stomach. He remembered Bonnie’s frightful bark as he tugged on her leash and dragged her out of the door with him.

He’d destroyed his dream until it faded from existence, and now he was back where he’d always been.

And he laid down.

And he watched the shadows on the wall.