บท 7: The strangest day... (part 2 - so, it was only a dream...?)

"Good morni-"

"UWAAAH!"

The elevator door opened and I hurriedly went inside, since there was no way that I was going to run all the way up to the fourteenth floor using stairs... And the guy who was already inside literally screamed and ran out the moment he saw me...!

"-ng...?"

Okay...

Rude.

...but okay I guess...

At least I have a whole elevator to myself.

I decided to not think about it and pressed the button for the floor I wanted.

The elevator closed and got up a floor to open again but...

"UHUAA...!"

"HIIIH...!"

Once the two people from other departments – a handsome blonde guy and a supermodel-level short brunette, noticed me, they both screamed and backed off - the girl even dropped the papers she was carrying all over the floor!

"Umm... sorry for scaring you...?"

I flinched and apologized, crouching, intending to pick up one of the papers that made its way near my feet...

"KHHHHHHH!"

The freaking brunette grabbed it with some lightning-fast reflexes and hissed at me like some angry cat!

What the f...!

Someone had been catcalled too many times and got their brain-damaged, making her think that she is a feline herself!

…

I backed off and the door closed so I was spared from looking at the weirdo.

Alright, that was rude of me to think, but damn... that girl was creepy, was it me, or did she had pointy fangs...?

No, no, no...

I'm just still thinking about my dream., it felt so real...

I only made myself sad, and that definitely wasn't a good idea, especially since I will have to sit through Rose's complaining about the young generation not respecting any values and whatnots.

"UGHIII!"

The elevator stopped at another floor and once again someone screamed at the sight of me.

…

I waited until the door closed and took out my phone, turning on the front camera to check how I looked.

I was used to hearing comments that I look sick or tired each time I didn't put on makeup, but, well, it was one thing to hear that and having someone scream at the sight of me.

My hair could look better, but screaming and running away...?

…

"WHAT IN THE...?!"

Another stop, another horrified reaction.

…

I put down my phone and lowered my head, finding myself blinking rapidly.

...I am an adult, damn it!

I will not cry over some idiots trying to get to me!

It's not a high school and bullying has no place in a workspace – the HR department will definitely get a lengthy email from me today!

...after I will be done with all the work that the others will dump on me.

I raised my head with a bitter face when a sudden realization struck me – could it be that everyone I met was acting like that because Rose told them to...?

There's no way that could be true, now... could it...?

That would be too low even for him...

Somehow, there were no more stops on my way up to my floor after that last stop so at least I could calm down a little bit before it was time to face my coworkers and Rose,

...right after I check in the toilet mirror whether or not I accidentally put on a filter and in real life, I have something growing out of my forehead or something...!

I basically ran there, completely ignoring the reactions of other people, and they were just as dramatic as everyone before- I could even swear that one guy jumped out of his cubicle right into the corner at the ceiling...

...but that surely was something I imagined since I only caught that with the corner of my eye...

Something like that was impossible, right?

Or maybe he was just that good at parkour and I was the weird one...

Anyway!

I made it to the toilet and put both hands on the sink and began carefully studying my reflection.

…

Shoulder-length brown hair, tied up in a ponytail since I had no time to do literally anything else.

Confused brow ayes.

A slightly upturned nose that I didn't particularly like.

Thin lips, now pale from me clenching my mouth shut.

There literally was no reason to act so mean when I passed by!

Since I slept through yesterday, my complexion actually got slightly better!

I dare say I looked healthier than normal then why...

...oh no...

I slept through yesterday... I ran around a lot... I've been stuffed on a bus...

...was it not my looks but my... smell...?

A terrible realization dawned on me as I grabbed my purse in panic in search of deodorant or something...!

There was one!

...empty...

Please... somebody tell me that I'm actually still dreaming... this can't be happening...

I bit my lips and looked back at my smelly self.

"...eh...?"

And then I finally noticed that something in my appearance was off, actually.

The band-aid on my neck was gone – and there was no trace of any wound whatsoever, but the skin in that place was oddly discolored as if it was an odd birthmark...

That I certainly did not have before - since I would remember that.

The round spot with a silver luster made me think of a full moon for whatever reason.

...oh, crap, is that an infection? A next stage of the stress-induced illness?!

Or maybe an allergic reaction to the disinfectant I bought and applied before sticking a band-aid on the wound?!

I trembled in terror as I touched the moon mark...

Huh...

If it was some sort of infection, it certainly didn't feel like it...

It didn't itch or oozed anything suspicious...

It was simply a differently colored fragment of my own skin.

...hmmmmm...

Well, I was more than happy to discover that the wound on my neck is gone and...

Oh crap, I need to go to Rose or he will order me to say in here well into the night...!

I panicked, realizing that I was taking too much time, and put up the collar of my blouse, hiding the spot before rushing out of the toilet, to let the strange day continue.