Safsan fell asleep.
At first, there was nothing.
No sound.
No light.
No feeling.
Then...
he felt the ground beneath his feet.
Safsan opened his eyes.
He was standing in the middle of a long, empty road.
He looked around.
He didn't recognize the place.
There were no houses.
No people.
No cars.
Nothing.
Only the road.
It stretched endlessly in both directions, disappearing into a darkness he couldn't see through.
Safsan took a step forward.
Nothing happened.
He took another.
Still nothing.
For a few seconds, everything felt strangely calm.
Then...
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he heard footsteps.
Behind him.
Safsan stopped.
The footsteps stopped too.
He waited.
Silence.
He slowly turned his head.
There was nothing there.
Safsan looked forward again.
He continued walking.
One step.
Then another.
The footsteps returned.
This time...
they were closer.
Safsan walked faster.
The footsteps followed.
He walked even faster.
So did they.
Then he started running.
And that was when the dream truly began.
He was running.
He didn't know where he was going.
He only knew that he had to keep moving.
His breathing became heavier.
His heart pounded against his chest.
Fear consumed every thought.
Something was chasing him.
He didn't know what.
But he knew one thing.
If he stopped...
he would freeze.
His body would stop listening to him.
He would become trapped by the fear itself.
Yet another thought kept returning.
Look back.
Just look back.
He wanted to know what was behind him.
What was chasing him?
Why was he running?
What was he so afraid of?
His body told him to keep going.
His curiosity told him to turn around.
Then another feeling appeared.
Stronger.
More certain.
If he looked back...
it was over.
There would be no going back.
He could die.
Safsan kept running.
But eventually...
he looked back.
And froze.
There was no monster.
No stranger.
No creature.
It was him.
Another Safsan was running behind him.
The same face.
The same body.
The same clothes.
The same movements.
Even the same way of running.
Safsan stared at himself.
His fear became worse.
He turned forward again.
And ran.
Faster.
He didn't understand.
He couldn't stop.
He couldn't even think clearly anymore.
Then, suddenly, a thought broke through the fear.
It was a dream.
“This is a dream.”
The moment he realized it...
he woke up.
Safsan opened his eyes.
He was back in the same place where he had fallen asleep.
He breathed heavily.
He looked around.
Everything was exactly where it should be.
His room.
His bed.
The darkness.
Silence.
He had awakened.
Or at least...
he thought he had.
Something felt wrong.
The feeling was still there.
That same strange certainty.
He was still dreaming.
Safsan looked around again.
Then he felt something above him.
A warning.
Don't look up.
His entire body became tense.
He knew that if he looked up...
it would be over.
Safsan closed his eyes.
He forced himself awake.
Again.
His eyes opened.
The room appeared before him.
The same room.
The same bed.
The same silence.
He breathed slowly.
Then he realized it.
He was still dreaming.
Again.
And again.
And again.
A dream inside a dream.
Inside another dream.
Every time he believed he had escaped...
he woke up somewhere that only looked like reality.
Until eventually...
morning came.
Safsan finally opened his eyes.
This time, he knew he was awake.
He sat silently on the edge of his bed.
He didn't move.
For the first time in his life...
sleep frightened him.
He looked at the bed.
And wondered what would happen if he closed his eyes again.
He didn't know it yet.
But that dream would stay with him.
And that night...
he would dream again.
This time...
there would be a black snake.