I know I was dreaming about the encounter with random people on the bus as we were heading towards a festival.
In the past, I have traveled solo and in groups many times—sometimes with known people and sometimes with strangers—to different events for a tour.
This time, my friends (5 people) and I were going on a tour, more like a festival on a bus. For some reason, I was unable to gather my thoughts, possibly due to a hangover from late-night drinking the other day.
Upon reaching the destination, I checked my pockets for my phone, wallet, and keys. They were all there, but my phone battery was running out. My main concern was to charge it once I found a power socket.
As we got off the bus, I had my girlfriend with me and also a person who I had a childhood crush on. For some reason, the group felt like a reunion with old friends and some new ones. The whole place was bustling with preparations for the festival—banners, posters, people in costumes, huge screens, and more.
Upon reaching our room, an eerie feeling took over. Looking out of the window, I saw a dried land with fences, makeshift tents half torn, indicating an abandoned place. As I tried to find my friend who brought us there, he was nowhere to be found. The view outside seemed unsettling, and the feeling of something being wrong grew stronger.I immediately ran towards my room where I heard the noise, but it was my friends listening to music on Bluetooth speakers. As I looked for the friend who brought us here, he was nowhere to be found. Trying to reach him on his phone, I realized mine was out of battery. I used my girlfriend’s phone, but the number kept ringing. That’s when I felt in my gut that something was wrong, and I was about to voice my concerns to the group.
I was suddenly woken up on the same bus, with the same group. It felt like a bad dream on a loop. This time, I tried to notice small details and shared my thoughts with my girlfriend about my childhood crush, hoping they could become friends.
As the loop continued, the eerie feeling struck again. I looked for my friend and noticed him heading towards a makeshift tent in a trance. The surroundings became silent, and I couldn’t find my girlfriend and others. Eventually, I found my childhood crush hiding under the sheets, scared and crying.
After stepping out, the eerie feeling made sense—it was an abandoned black villa with no signs of life. I told my crush to climb the fence, and as we escaped, I saw a shadow in the torn tent growing larger. A sinister giggle and the realization that we never called in my crush hit me. I tried to run but slipped and fell on my head.
When I woke up, I was on the bus heading towards the same destination, with my friends and my crush, smiling at me.