The only thing I can hear is the beating of my heart. It feels like it’s pulsating inside my ears. It sounds way too fast. It sounds like it’s struggling to pump blood through me. I place a hand over it but I feel nothing. I start to search frantically. I check for a pulse but come up empty. This only causes the beating in my ears to go faster. Nothing makes sense. I can hear my heart beating but I can’t feel it. Is it my heart? How can I think? How can I hear if I’m dead? Come to think of it, where am I? I look around but am only met with darkness, so black that I can’t even see my hand in front of me. If I’m dead, then this must be hell.

I blink my eyes to make sure they’re even open. They are. I wave my hands around. I search for anything solid but there is nothing to feel. There is nothing in front or around me. I do the only thing that seems logical. I start walking. I allow the darkness to consume me. It feels so overpowering. My walking soon leads to a jog which quickly leads to a full on sprint. Once again, I focus on my heart beating in my ears. It’s rhythmic and loud. I know I’m breathing because I can feel it escape my lips but the drumming in my ears drowns everything out.

It seems like I’ve been running for hours. I continue, pushing through even though my lungs feel like they’re burning. I take a sharp turn to my right. Giving up on running in a straight line, I start zigzagging. Nothing. I’ve been running for a while and have made no progress. It’s like I haven’t even moved an inch. I open my mouth to yell out my frustration but nothing comes out. The words are one the tip of my tongue. I can feel my lips moving but I can’t hear my voice. What is happening to me?

I fall to my knees. The ground is as hard as concrete but as smooth as glass. I give up. I lay down on my back, looking up into the same nothingness that I’ve been seeing. The beating in my ears starts getting louder. An uncomfortable throbbing in my head causes me to tense up. The drumming of what I think is my heart raises an octave and the dull throbbing in my head becomes a painful pounding.