My phone alarm was seizuring violently beside my left shoulder, vibrating with the enthusiasm of a possessed jackhammer. I remembered my phone having three bars when I first tumbled into that crazy Isekai world. By now, it should be running on the fumes of an empty battery, right? I asked myself. I patted around until I found the source of the racket. It was 6:45 AM. I swiped it off, a faint memory of setting an alarm the night before conspicuously absent from my brain. Weird.
Then I noticed the bed. It was soft, firm, and blissfully unlike the crunchy leaf pile I'd been accumulating in my cozy little shelter by the wall. "Smooth?" I mumbled to myself. A moment later, the distinct aroma of dried sweat, stale saliva, and body odor assaulted my nose, stinging like a pungent acid of delicious familiarity—a smell I thought I'd never experience again. The subzero AC unit was blowing angrily, its icy breath caressing my hoodie.
Wait a minute, I thought, are my senses playing tricks on me? My eyes snapped open, and I immediately shot upright with a loud "THUD!" My head collided with something hard, thankfully not concrete. "Oww!" I yelped, collapsing back onto the bed, rubbing my forehead in an attempt to erase the pain. My eyes zipped left and right frantically as I scanned my surroundings. Bunk beds. A toilet door next to the entrance. A couple of guys snoring like hibernating bears. Below-zero AC. Soft, dim lighting. I was in the sleeping quarters. My heart began to rampage—a chaotic symphony of delight, relief, and, for some reason, a dash of panic.
I darted to the left and yanked up the blinds. Through the glass windows, I saw the corridor connecting the sleeping quarters to the next building. The night sky was slowly giving way to the crawling sun's rays, reflecting off the glass. People walked by, most clutching tumblers, blue lanyards dangling from their necks, ID badges swinging. An old, achingly familiar sight—my workplace! I started to laugh uncontrollably, letting out a triumphant "YES!"
"Shut it, will you?" a groggy voice grumbled from a nearby bunk.
"Sorry," I whispered apologetically, my triumphant yell shrinking to a mouse-like squeak.
Had I just experienced a vivid, elaborate dream? It had been days—days!—living in that bizarre Isekai world. Yet, I could still feel the monsters' breath on my neck, the hilt of my sword-knife warm in my hand, the epic fight sequences, the golem, the terrifying Boapede, Toni. All of it felt like it had just happened seconds ago.
"Ugh," I groaned. What was this strange feeling? My eyes felt heavy, as if someone had rolled them in sandpaper, and exhaustion clung to me like a wet blanket.
I dangled my feet over the side and slowly rose, carefully evading the low board of the bunk bed. Something clattered against my foot and fell to the floor. A bag. Inside, a dusty rose, and next to it, chocolates. *Huh?* I thought.
I slipped on my shoes and headed to the washroom inside the sleeping quarters, moving with a practiced, almost robotic routine. I immediately looked in the mirror. My face was pale, with dark circles under my eyes. I looked like a zombie, utterly drained of life. Hmm, I thought, did I always look this gloomy? I splashed water on my face, took a leak that felt like an eternity, and then shuffled out.
In my stupor-zombie state I walked, tired yet overflowing with joy and a touch of nostalgia. It felt like I hadn't been to work in a lifetime, despite it only having been a couple of days surviving that awful yet adventurous nightmare. I couldn't keep the goofy smile off my face, like a creep. I laughed under my breath, my eyes shooting up. "I'm back, I'm back to reality, ope there goes gravity!" My thoughts sang with an imaginary beat. "Haha!" I noticed people moving aside as I walked through, but it didn't matter, 'cause I was back, baby, back to my world!
"Kiks?" a suave, manly, and familiar voice called out, a hint of concern lacing his tone. "Are you alright?"
I looked down and saw Carlos, coffee mug in hand. His French crop haircut was in perfect shape, glistening with a burgundy sheen. His light blue polo shirt was neatly tucked into his grey pencil jeans, his dress shoes spotless, and a skull belt buckle gleamed at his waist. Carlos, always looking sharp. He was staring at me, left eyebrow raised, frowning, jaw agape, utterly confused.
"CARLOS!" I yelled, running gracefully like a teary-eyed damsel on a beach. I never thought I'd miss my best friend so badly after being stuck in that Isekai nightmare. I wanted to tell him everything that had happened, and all the awesome things I'd seen, all at the same time! As I ran crazily, people scattered, moving away from me as if I had a highly contagious disease.
I tried to hug him, but he intercepted my head with his right palm, flat against my cheek, pushing me away. "What on the..." he started, my hands flailing wildly, trying to grab him. "What happened to you? Are you on drugs?" he asked, clearly annoyed.
"Duuuuuuuuude! You don't know what happened to me these past couple of days!" I whined like a petulant brat.
"Couple of days? The heck? You drunk? I just saw you a moment ago; you were completely fine. And stop... Stop whatever this is! You'll spill my coffee, man!" he replied, desperately trying to keep his coffee mug from disaster.
Sanity washed over me, and I stopped trying to tackle-hug him. It looks like I'm really back, I told myself.
"Come on, bro, not cool. I thought I totally lost you there, buddy. You okay?" he asked, his voice now laced with genuine concern.
I felt a flush of embarrassment for acting like a deranged maniac. "Bro," I said, "You won't believe what I'm about to say, I was stuck in an..."
My phone alarm rang and vibrated violently. I smelled the oddly familiar scent of dried saliva, sweat, and body odor. I opened my eyes to the bed board of the bunk bed directly in front of me. There I was, lying on the bed, back in the sleeping quarters. "What just happened?" I asked myself aloud.
"Hey, put that damn alarm off!" a voice grumbled from nowhere.
"Oh yeah, sorry," I said, grabbing my phone and silencing the insistent buzzing.