When I am good and overwhelmed, I wonder if it would be either comforting or stressful to be in a space of nothingness, simply floating. The character in this story finds some comfort in it, finally finding some peace when nothing is actually able to go wrong.

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Jim had a habit of feeling fear all of his life, paranoid that something was lurking, that the worst to come was always about to happen. “Be safe!” His mother would tell him, and as he grew into a man so did the fear that he felt. “Be safe!” His wife would yell out the door as he drove to work every day. One evening Jim didn’t come home, instead, he sought the help of a witch that lived outside of town. “I just want a way that I know I am safe, I need to be safe.” Jim nervously pulled at his collar that was damp with sweat. The Witch brought out a damaged wooden box, with a necklace inside.

The necklace fell heavy with a dark emerald jewel at the end. The Witch began to repeat something in an odd tongue before handing the necklace over to Jim. “This is a blessed item, it will keep you safe.” Jim walked out feeling foolish, how could a necklace of all things make him feel different? Jim examined the jewel, drifting his thumb across it to feel its smooth texture.

Jim looked up to find blackness, nothingness. The jewel hummed and crumbled away, each piece fading away into nonexistence. For a moment Jim felt fear, but then for the first time it completely left him, strangely, Jim finally felt safe.

By Justin Jackson

From: United States

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Twitter: Justin_Jacc