Pulling the Plug

I was lying unconsciously in a vacuum—no, that could not be plain vacuity. I must be lying on something. I found it difficult to describe the place; opening my eyes was an impossible task. I could not even describe the scent of the place or explain how it feels like to exist in such a place. I tried to lift my hand and brush it on the surface I am lying on but I failed. I tried to move my head sideways but I was not successful. I discovered that I could not move. I could not even lift my finger!

I fell asleep and was woken by warmth. The air that blew on my face was the warmest I have ever felt. I did not know why but it was a moment of bliss. Soon I felt warm air in my ears. It went out fast. It lasted for only seconds. I presumed that someone was trying to whisper to me—trying to tell me something. But I could not make out the words. Then there was warmth on my forehead, 1…2…and it was gone. It burnt my forehead but I loved it. I tried to hold on but almost immediately, the warmth completely vanished. The air was cool again. The few seconds of warmth was a moment of bliss. I could have believed that the warmth was from my angel.

I felt disturbed. I could feel a presence of a crowd. There were voices—a variety of voices. Everyone was talking. They sound like arguing. I wanted to speak—shout and ask these people what was going on. Maybe I could help.

The voices continued. But this time, there were fewer voices. I assumed that the argument had faltered. I could make out little of what the remaining voices were saying. Pull. Plug.

Wait, what plug?

Soon I felt my body start to weaken. I felt like collapsing. I wanted to reach out and hold on to something before this vacuum engulfs me. But I could not gather enough strength to do so. I felt like drowning. I thought of calling for help but no words came out. I felt like…dying.

My body—it was dying. It was as if my heart and my lungs stopped working. Why? Work, I need blood and oxygen. But they remained frozen. I realized that they had been frozen since…I did not know how long. And ever so slowly, I descended into emptiness.