The Aquarium
*This is completely fictional. It was a dream that I had about 6 years ago, and I've never forgotten it because it was just so strange. There will be some added details (not like you would know which ones exactly), but all of the main key points were part of the dream. I decided to turn it into a short story because that was the only way I was able to share it with people.*
"It's absolutely freezing out here! There's at least a foot of snow on the ground and it just keeps coming down! How are we supposed to get a cab in this mess?" I asked in a whining tone. It was winter in Chicago, and my family and I had decided to take the day off of work and go into the windy city to see the new aquarium that was the buzz of the town. Apparantly, this was going to be a major tourist attraction for our area and we wanted to make sure we got to see it before it made the big headlines. "The worlds largest aquarium, filled with all the exotic creatures of the sea!"- That's what they were saying. I had heard it was pushing all the boundaries, and I had to see it for myself.
There it was, just as I had heard, but bigger. It was 4 stories high, and the diameter of 3 football fields all put together. I know what you're thinking..... "Big deal, its a huge fish tank." It was so much more than that. All of the outside walls, doors, and even the ceiling were glass. Walking through the main entrance was a small sign saying that there were only 2 doors in the entire building, the main entrance being one of them. Passing through them, I couldn't help but think about the major safety hazzard I was stepping into. Something didn't feel right to me. A shiver traveled down my spine, but I wasn't about to say anything that could ruin the "family outing"..... so I kept my mouth shut and walked on.
As soon as we entered the main lobby, it was like a free-for-all. We have always been horrible when it came to family outings because nobody is patient enough to wait for what they wanted to see. My dad and younger brother wanted to go visit the deep sea octopi right away, so my mom and I decided to simply work our way through. The main lobby had very flourescent lighting, with white tile floors, and it had a very cold feeling. Pay phones lined the outer walls, and it very much reminded me of an airport terminal.
While I was trying to figure out which exibit I wanted to start with, I couldn't help but notice a man walking by with his small son sitting on his shoulders. He was telling the boy all about the sharks that were on the main floor, but the boy seemed more interested in the weather that was picking up intensity outside. He was completely oblivious to the fact that his father was even talking to him until his father tapped his foot and the young boy snapped out of it, and asked "What are we going to do now?"
Much like the boy on his father's shoulders, I wasn't paying much attention to the people around me either. I hadn't even noticed that my mom had gone her own way, so I just wandered around for a while, trying to find something that sparked my interest. After about 20 minutes or so, I found a room that was off to the side. There was something about this room that made me want to explore, and that's just what I did. It was a dark room, and to my surprise, it was vacant. Inside, was the most breath-taking fish tank I had ever seen. It was 40 feet tall ( thats what the sign next to it said ), and 30 feet wide. The lights inside the tank made the water sparkle on the dark rooms floor, and I was instantly mesmerized. The many colors of coral and plants, all seemed to be swaying in unison. Shimmering fish and sea turtles swam all around, and a giant sting-ray swooped down right in front of where I was standing.
I don't know how long I was standing in there, and I hadn't even noticed the young boy that was standing right next to me, also in complete awe. The boy looked like he was about 10 years old, and he was by himself. He wore a bright green sweater and faded denim jeans. He laughed at the schools of fish changing direction every so often, and asked me which fish were my favorite. Just as I was about to ask him where his parents were, I was hit with a shooting pain in my head. My ears were starting to pop, a feeling I never enjoyed. As I turned away from the well-lit tank, thinking that maybe the light had something to do with it all, I noticed the door to the room.
It was now open, and it looked like it was shaking. I hesitantly walked over to it, but when I tried closing it, it just popped back open. It was like trying to push together the same sides of a magnet but theres an invisable force that won't allow it. Quickly, I walked up to the tank and put my hand on the glass. It was warm from all the bright lights, and it was trembling ever so slightly. The pressure in the room was starting to change. All I could picture now was the glass starting to crack, and a slight wave of panic washed over me. The boy was slowly began backing away from the railing. He turned to me with a terrified expression and said in almost a whisper "My head hurts." Something was very wrong, I could feel it in my bones, and I knew that we had to get out of there. Grabbing the boys hand, I directed him back out to the lobby so I could find a phone.
Out in the lobby, everything appeared to be normal. Families of all sizes were gathered around maps, and browsing through the gift shop. I managed to find an open phone so I could call for some help, but the line was dead. Nobody seemed to notice that there was a disaster headed our way, and I wondered if it was all in my head...... but it wasn't. The boy had felt it too. A woman nearby was on her cell phone, and she was yelling at someone. She brushed me off as I tried to ask for her help, and that's when I heard a familiar question.
"WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO NOW???" she screamed into the phone as she hung up on her caller. Hearing that phrase again gave me an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. Thinking that I was going to be sick, I ran to the ladies' room, and headed for the first open stall I could find. Fortunately it was a false alarm, but when I returned to lobby, I froze. Everyone was gone. There was no way that all those people could have just vanished in a matter of minutes. It was all starting to feel like a bad dream, and I just started to run. I searched every room I could find, and there wasn't a single person in the building. Just as I began to catch my breath, I felt the floor start to quake. There was an awful crashing noise, and a wall of water soon crashed through the glass wall at the end of the hallway. I was already exhausted from running, my heart was racing both from running, and fear.......and the wave was gaining on me.
All I could think about, was the sign in front of the main entrance. There was only 2 ways to get out of this glass deathtrap, and there was no doubt in my mind that I was lost. I literally had tons of water coming after me, and in the distance I spotted another door. My hands were sweaty as I tried to push the glass open, and I slid on the door and stumbled outside. The snow was still falling, and the wind was picking up. There were evenly spaced trees all around, and pathways shoveled and leading to park benches....... and then my heart skipped a beat. I wasn't saved, I was in a courtyard.
A single tear was forming in my left eye, and before it could roll down my freezing cheek, the waves crashed through 3 of the 4 walls that surrounded me. I had nowhere to go, and I didn't want to die here. As I was struggling to keep my head above water, I saw her. On the roof, there was a girl in a white dress staring down at me. Her long, dark hair was blowing around fiercely in the wind, and before I could react, her expression went blank. She stared at me with un-sympathetic eyes and she smirked as she asked "What are you going to do NOW?"
"It's absolutely freezing out here! There's at least a foot of snow on the ground and it just keeps coming down! How are we supposed to get a cab in this mess?" I asked in a whining tone. It was winter in Chicago, and my family and I had decided to take the day off of work and go into the windy city to see the new aquarium that was the buzz of the town. Apparantly, this was going to be a major tourist attraction for our area and we wanted to make sure we got to see it before it made the big headlines. "The worlds largest aquarium, filled with all the exotic creatures of the sea!"- That's what they were saying. I had heard it was pushing all the boundaries, and I had to see it for myself.
There it was, just as I had heard, but bigger. It was 4 stories high, and the diameter of 3 football fields all put together. I know what you're thinking..... "Big deal, its a huge fish tank." It was so much more than that. All of the outside walls, doors, and even the ceiling were glass. Walking through the main entrance was a small sign saying that there were only 2 doors in the entire building, the main entrance being one of them. Passing through them, I couldn't help but think about the major safety hazzard I was stepping into. Something didn't feel right to me. A shiver traveled down my spine, but I wasn't about to say anything that could ruin the "family outing"..... so I kept my mouth shut and walked on.
As soon as we entered the main lobby, it was like a free-for-all. We have always been horrible when it came to family outings because nobody is patient enough to wait for what they wanted to see. My dad and younger brother wanted to go visit the deep sea octopi right away, so my mom and I decided to simply work our way through. The main lobby had very flourescent lighting, with white tile floors, and it had a very cold feeling. Pay phones lined the outer walls, and it very much reminded me of an airport terminal.
While I was trying to figure out which exibit I wanted to start with, I couldn't help but notice a man walking by with his small son sitting on his shoulders. He was telling the boy all about the sharks that were on the main floor, but the boy seemed more interested in the weather that was picking up intensity outside. He was completely oblivious to the fact that his father was even talking to him until his father tapped his foot and the young boy snapped out of it, and asked "What are we going to do now?"
Much like the boy on his father's shoulders, I wasn't paying much attention to the people around me either. I hadn't even noticed that my mom had gone her own way, so I just wandered around for a while, trying to find something that sparked my interest. After about 20 minutes or so, I found a room that was off to the side. There was something about this room that made me want to explore, and that's just what I did. It was a dark room, and to my surprise, it was vacant. Inside, was the most breath-taking fish tank I had ever seen. It was 40 feet tall ( thats what the sign next to it said ), and 30 feet wide. The lights inside the tank made the water sparkle on the dark rooms floor, and I was instantly mesmerized. The many colors of coral and plants, all seemed to be swaying in unison. Shimmering fish and sea turtles swam all around, and a giant sting-ray swooped down right in front of where I was standing.
I don't know how long I was standing in there, and I hadn't even noticed the young boy that was standing right next to me, also in complete awe. The boy looked like he was about 10 years old, and he was by himself. He wore a bright green sweater and faded denim jeans. He laughed at the schools of fish changing direction every so often, and asked me which fish were my favorite. Just as I was about to ask him where his parents were, I was hit with a shooting pain in my head. My ears were starting to pop, a feeling I never enjoyed. As I turned away from the well-lit tank, thinking that maybe the light had something to do with it all, I noticed the door to the room.
It was now open, and it looked like it was shaking. I hesitantly walked over to it, but when I tried closing it, it just popped back open. It was like trying to push together the same sides of a magnet but theres an invisable force that won't allow it. Quickly, I walked up to the tank and put my hand on the glass. It was warm from all the bright lights, and it was trembling ever so slightly. The pressure in the room was starting to change. All I could picture now was the glass starting to crack, and a slight wave of panic washed over me. The boy was slowly began backing away from the railing. He turned to me with a terrified expression and said in almost a whisper "My head hurts." Something was very wrong, I could feel it in my bones, and I knew that we had to get out of there. Grabbing the boys hand, I directed him back out to the lobby so I could find a phone.
Out in the lobby, everything appeared to be normal. Families of all sizes were gathered around maps, and browsing through the gift shop. I managed to find an open phone so I could call for some help, but the line was dead. Nobody seemed to notice that there was a disaster headed our way, and I wondered if it was all in my head...... but it wasn't. The boy had felt it too. A woman nearby was on her cell phone, and she was yelling at someone. She brushed me off as I tried to ask for her help, and that's when I heard a familiar question.
"WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO NOW???" she screamed into the phone as she hung up on her caller. Hearing that phrase again gave me an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. Thinking that I was going to be sick, I ran to the ladies' room, and headed for the first open stall I could find. Fortunately it was a false alarm, but when I returned to lobby, I froze. Everyone was gone. There was no way that all those people could have just vanished in a matter of minutes. It was all starting to feel like a bad dream, and I just started to run. I searched every room I could find, and there wasn't a single person in the building. Just as I began to catch my breath, I felt the floor start to quake. There was an awful crashing noise, and a wall of water soon crashed through the glass wall at the end of the hallway. I was already exhausted from running, my heart was racing both from running, and fear.......and the wave was gaining on me.
All I could think about, was the sign in front of the main entrance. There was only 2 ways to get out of this glass deathtrap, and there was no doubt in my mind that I was lost. I literally had tons of water coming after me, and in the distance I spotted another door. My hands were sweaty as I tried to push the glass open, and I slid on the door and stumbled outside. The snow was still falling, and the wind was picking up. There were evenly spaced trees all around, and pathways shoveled and leading to park benches....... and then my heart skipped a beat. I wasn't saved, I was in a courtyard.
A single tear was forming in my left eye, and before it could roll down my freezing cheek, the waves crashed through 3 of the 4 walls that surrounded me. I had nowhere to go, and I didn't want to die here. As I was struggling to keep my head above water, I saw her. On the roof, there was a girl in a white dress staring down at me. Her long, dark hair was blowing around fiercely in the wind, and before I could react, her expression went blank. She stared at me with un-sympathetic eyes and she smirked as she asked "What are you going to do NOW?"
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