3
« on: June 19, 2026, 06:37:54 am »
i was driving down a rural road near the chesapeake bay, on my way to a party at some people's house. it was nearing sunset and i was driving west, so the sky was red and the sun was in my eyes a bit. also i had a partly deflated helium balloon in the car and it kept getting in my face. i came around a curve and there were some young kids, 7-8 years old, running down and around the road. i slowed down but the balloon kind of swooped in front of my vision and i swerved to avoid the kids but thought i might have run over one of them. but i couldn't tell, so i decided i hadn't and just kept going. when i got to the party, i parked behind another car and went over to say hi to people who were gathered on the lawn. at some point i excused myself to go to the bathroom and as i was walking up the stairs into the house, i stole a glance at my car's front bumper. there was a little dent and a little bit of red but not much, so i told myself the kid was probably fine. i felt awful but also like i had to just keep pretending nothing had happened. i went into the house, which was huge and mostly empty, and eventually found the bathroom. my uncle, who died earlier this year, was also there waiting to use it.
when i woke up, it took me a few minutes of lying in bed to be sure that it was a dream and hadn't actually happened last night. very disturbing.