The following story is just that, a story, completely fiction, all names are made up, except mine my name is Matt
I found myself standing in the middle of a large field of knee high golden colored grass. I realized that I was standing in the field right by the chicken houses on the old farm I grew up on, it was peaceful, the breeze was gentle and the sky was a deep shade of blue. In the distance I could see my old house and a little ways from that some of the various barns and sheds that were painted red. The largest barn had a chicken shaped weather vane that was spinning slowly with the wind. I didn't have a care in the world, I let my fingers graze the tops of the grass as I walked around, it was good to be home, it'd been so long...
As I lowered my gaze slightly from looking in the distance to instead look where I was going, I saw the shape of a person standing still off aways down hill, by chance in the same direction I was slowly walking. I didn't care who it was, I was going in that direction regardless of reason. As I got close enough to see their full outline, I noticed they were staring up at the sky which I thought was odd, the sun was behind them so I couldn't make out who it was, they looked like a shadow from here. I turned my hands from brushing the tips of grass to instead shield my eyes as I walked now at a bit more brisk of a pace. I squinted, I was getting closer, I thought of shouting, but decided against it.
I looked at the person's face now more closely now that I was only 10 feet or so away and as I looked at his face I felt a lump forming in my throat, it couldn't be...."SAM" I shouted, his head turned, it was him...
"Hey Matt" he replied with a sleepy demeanor. I was right in front of him now. "That's all you have to say?" Was all I managed to get out with misty eyes.
"Hey Matt.....What's up? Is that better?"
"Sam...You've been dead for six years...I haven't seen you... In six **** years!"
"I don't know what you're talking about Matt, I'm right here, obviously I didn't die"
"No....no I went to your funeral, I watched them put you in the ground!" I turned away and quickly wiped away the tear that ran down my cheek and turned back to him. "I remember everything about that day, the flowers, your coffin...Your coffin was black with yellowish gold trim, I watched them put you in the ground....Sam, you died six years ago..."
His face turned from torpid to contemplative and after a minute of silence his face took the shape of one coming to grips with the sudden death of a loved one.
"I....I did die, I remember, I was in the hospital....Everything went black and there wasn't any sound, I ...Never woke up that's all I remember. But then why am I here, or rather where is here?
"I'm dreaming, this is all just a dream, this is where I used to live I don't see why else I'm here or why theres nothing else going on around us, none of this makes sense...It has to be a dream". I stopped looking at him and instead focused my gaze on the spinning weather vane.
"It's nice here...Peaceful, you must be a good dreamer Matt." He laughed but I didn't, I just kept staring at the weather vane. After a moment of silence I said:
"Man, there hasn't been a day since you died that I haven't thought of you, not a single one...We were best friends and you died so....Suddenly, I never got over it, I never really...Felt like I could have another friend, I mean sure I talk to people but in the back of my mind all I can think is: they're no Sam...It's not the same, nothings been the same, everything went to hell the day you died man."
"That's terrible, that isn't what I want to hear from you at all, you know I'd rather hear that you're surrounded by awesome people and you've cured every major disease AND your a billionaire!"
"Heh, life is harder than it was back then Sam, more complicated, everyone is colder, and the powers that be are too overwhelming to conquer, what I wouldn't give to go back to those simple times...Why'd you have to die man? It was before your time, we could have helped each other in all this mess.."
"I fought it till the end, you know I did, my body was so weak I couldn't do anything, I wanted to die, I saw no hope for the future, everything was getting blacker and I just let it take me in and surround me, I'm sorry that it caused you to also feel hopeless, your still alive though and you have to keep on fighting, you can't get stuck in the past, I wasn't that great.."
"No you were the best friend I've ever had, I... I treated you like honeysuckle, so full of myself, I've regretted that all so much, I never appreciated you till you were dead and six feet under...I wish you were still alive..."
"I don't, that cancer would have chewed me up into jelly by now, besides.... I'm much better off here, it's peaceful here, I like it".
"Where? In my dream? You like living here where nothing is real, it's all just a figment of my imagination, just random honeysuckle thrown altogether with memories and coughed up into one big picture, sure it's pretty but it's fake...Hell, your not real either, I'm talking to myself..."
"Well...I'd beg to differ, I know I'm real, there's no way I can prove it to you...But, this place is real, I know it is...Remember The Allegory Of The Cave, Plato said ideas are more real than actual objects in the "real" world and isn't this...This whole place your idea of paradise? Touch the grass, smell the air, it's all as real if not MORE real than reality itself!...Let's just enjoy the sunset."
That's when I noticed for the first time that the sun was rapidly setting toward the tree line and the sky lit up a golden orange, we just stood there watching the sky until I broke the silence.
"It's beautiful...I must be a good dreamer your right". I smiled
"I told you
"What happens when I wake up?"
"You go on living your life, and me...Well hey I'm dead, I'm pretty sure I'll keep being dead"
"You didn't answer my question, what will happen to you?"
"Does it matter? I'm happy that's all you need to know"
A fog started to fill my vision, I couldn't say anything, and before I could react all I saw was black. I heard a final voice that was gentle as the wind say:
"Dream some good dreams for me Matt.........Perhaps something tropical next time..?...."
I found myself standing in the middle of a large field of knee high golden colored grass. I realized that I was standing in the field right by the chicken houses on the old farm I grew up on, it was peaceful, the breeze was gentle and the sky was a deep shade of blue. In the distance I could see my old house and a little ways from that some of the various barns and sheds that were painted red. The largest barn had a chicken shaped weather vane that was spinning slowly with the wind. I didn't have a care in the world, I let my fingers graze the tops of the grass as I walked around, it was good to be home, it'd been so long...
As I lowered my gaze slightly from looking in the distance to instead look where I was going, I saw the shape of a person standing still off aways down hill, by chance in the same direction I was slowly walking. I didn't care who it was, I was going in that direction regardless of reason. As I got close enough to see their full outline, I noticed they were staring up at the sky which I thought was odd, the sun was behind them so I couldn't make out who it was, they looked like a shadow from here. I turned my hands from brushing the tips of grass to instead shield my eyes as I walked now at a bit more brisk of a pace. I squinted, I was getting closer, I thought of shouting, but decided against it.
I looked at the person's face now more closely now that I was only 10 feet or so away and as I looked at his face I felt a lump forming in my throat, it couldn't be...."SAM" I shouted, his head turned, it was him...
"Hey Matt" he replied with a sleepy demeanor. I was right in front of him now. "That's all you have to say?" Was all I managed to get out with misty eyes.
"Hey Matt.....What's up? Is that better?"
"Sam...You've been dead for six years...I haven't seen you... In six **** years!"
"I don't know what you're talking about Matt, I'm right here, obviously I didn't die"
"No....no I went to your funeral, I watched them put you in the ground!" I turned away and quickly wiped away the tear that ran down my cheek and turned back to him. "I remember everything about that day, the flowers, your coffin...Your coffin was black with yellowish gold trim, I watched them put you in the ground....Sam, you died six years ago..."
His face turned from torpid to contemplative and after a minute of silence his face took the shape of one coming to grips with the sudden death of a loved one.
"I....I did die, I remember, I was in the hospital....Everything went black and there wasn't any sound, I ...Never woke up that's all I remember. But then why am I here, or rather where is here?
"I'm dreaming, this is all just a dream, this is where I used to live I don't see why else I'm here or why theres nothing else going on around us, none of this makes sense...It has to be a dream". I stopped looking at him and instead focused my gaze on the spinning weather vane.
"It's nice here...Peaceful, you must be a good dreamer Matt." He laughed but I didn't, I just kept staring at the weather vane. After a moment of silence I said:
"Man, there hasn't been a day since you died that I haven't thought of you, not a single one...We were best friends and you died so....Suddenly, I never got over it, I never really...Felt like I could have another friend, I mean sure I talk to people but in the back of my mind all I can think is: they're no Sam...It's not the same, nothings been the same, everything went to hell the day you died man."
"That's terrible, that isn't what I want to hear from you at all, you know I'd rather hear that you're surrounded by awesome people and you've cured every major disease AND your a billionaire!"
"Heh, life is harder than it was back then Sam, more complicated, everyone is colder, and the powers that be are too overwhelming to conquer, what I wouldn't give to go back to those simple times...Why'd you have to die man? It was before your time, we could have helped each other in all this mess.."
"I fought it till the end, you know I did, my body was so weak I couldn't do anything, I wanted to die, I saw no hope for the future, everything was getting blacker and I just let it take me in and surround me, I'm sorry that it caused you to also feel hopeless, your still alive though and you have to keep on fighting, you can't get stuck in the past, I wasn't that great.."
"No you were the best friend I've ever had, I... I treated you like honeysuckle, so full of myself, I've regretted that all so much, I never appreciated you till you were dead and six feet under...I wish you were still alive..."
"I don't, that cancer would have chewed me up into jelly by now, besides.... I'm much better off here, it's peaceful here, I like it".
"Where? In my dream? You like living here where nothing is real, it's all just a figment of my imagination, just random honeysuckle thrown altogether with memories and coughed up into one big picture, sure it's pretty but it's fake...Hell, your not real either, I'm talking to myself..."
"Well...I'd beg to differ, I know I'm real, there's no way I can prove it to you...But, this place is real, I know it is...Remember The Allegory Of The Cave, Plato said ideas are more real than actual objects in the "real" world and isn't this...This whole place your idea of paradise? Touch the grass, smell the air, it's all as real if not MORE real than reality itself!...Let's just enjoy the sunset."
That's when I noticed for the first time that the sun was rapidly setting toward the tree line and the sky lit up a golden orange, we just stood there watching the sky until I broke the silence.
"It's beautiful...I must be a good dreamer your right". I smiled
"I told you
"What happens when I wake up?"
"You go on living your life, and me...Well hey I'm dead, I'm pretty sure I'll keep being dead"
"You didn't answer my question, what will happen to you?"
"Does it matter? I'm happy that's all you need to know"
A fog started to fill my vision, I couldn't say anything, and before I could react all I saw was black. I heard a final voice that was gentle as the wind say:
"Dream some good dreams for me Matt.........Perhaps something tropical next time..?...."
