Tamara Turner. This Here Is Now

The dark sockets of a lurching corpse stared right into Hailey's eyes, suspended in midair above her. She was lying on a cold, hard surface, the thin fabric of her white gown doing nothing to ward off the frozen ground. The corpse above her moved, the strings attached to it tightening as it got closer to her. She could smell the stench of death before she saw its mouth open—letting out a horrifying guttural moan.

Her automatic reaction was to jump away, but her muscles felt numb. It felt like she was cemented in cold air, unable to turn her head away from the horror in front of her. She forced her eyes shut—her last resort, as the corpse above her started to scream.

Dread consumed her whole body. She tried to let out her own frenzied scream, but nothing came out. Her lips had been sewn shut. Hysterical sobs managed to escape before realization hit her.

This was a dream.