Trapped by the mind

Red. The sky was tinged with a hellish red as far as his eye could see. A mixture of awe and fear was demanded by that ensuing and ever-continuing sky. Accompanying it was a maroon cavernous ground filled with disorienting holes that stemmed in every direction.

Upon closer inspection, the sky appeared to be nothing but an unescapably large space filled with red vapour. In reality, the 'space' led to nothing more than a familiar red rock in the far distance that acted as both ceiling and seal.

Being so dauntingly small compared to the never-ending red terrain surrounding him, the boy couldn't utter a single word or expression. As though willed on by someone or something beyond his control, the boy began to walk towards the pointlessly red environment that beckoned him. 

Careful to avoid the common pits and dangerous vertical drops of the uneven territory, the boy wandered the flattest possible path, cautious of the sensations uncomfortably nestled within his heart. Alone, he wandered, aimlessly navigating through this strange, peculiar landscape. Had he ever tread this path? Or had he always tread this path? The boy didn't know; he simply walked.

Seconds, minutes, hours, whatever vector of time used would fail to fully encapsulate the ensuing feeling of dread felt by both the world and its sole victim.

After some time, a dead end confronted the boy, who had failed to emit a thought nor sound. Seeing a hole conveniently presenting itself in front of him, the boy, with but a hint of hesitation, began to plunge. 

Within the hole, light became scarce, and the darkness shielded the boy from the unending red. Slowly yet steadily, the boy descended down the slope of that hole, plunging deeper and deeper into comforting darkness. Strangely, something finally changed.

Sound... the boy was invited by the remarkable instance of something, something that was not like everything else. Eager to seek out the source of the noise, the boy treads towards its source as though entranced. 

The boy strained his vision into the ensuing darkness that continued to swallow him until he was met with a small source of light that accompanied... something. Upon closer inspection, the boy recognised this to be 'someone' who sat on what seemed to be a stylish black bench. 

This bizarrely located furniture in an otherwise vapid, empty wasteland hardly warranted his attention. Instead, it was the sound and light that called out to him. These things. They brought about a strange sensation.

After closing in on the bench, he examined what appeared to be a small girl who clutched her legs within her arms tightly. It was as if she was attempting to shrink away from the world around her. The sound that had led him towards the girl revealed itself to be a soft yet comforting weeping that etched its way into his soul and mind.

A small, fragile light illuminated the girl, giving off a mystic feel, and the devil-like horns that protruded from her petite figure invited both awe and confusion. Enraptured by yet another unfamiliar emotion, the boy stared longingly at the source of disorder that graced him with its presence.

Before he knew it, tears laced his vision like that of the girl. A mimicry of the girl? A real feeling? No one could say for sure. After an uncertain amount of time spent aimlessly wandering this empty landscape, the boy simply surrendered to his greatest desire. His only.

Without much thought or consideration at all, he embraced the girl who remained shrivelled on her perch. Only some moments passed before he felt a response as arms hesitantly yet gently wrapped around his back.

These two lonely entities, for the first time within their shallow, hollow memories, were able to forget about the loneliness that had so fervently haunted them.

And so he awoke.