“Do you have a parent that had passed away?”

The old man was sitting across from me in the wild. He told me once he built a tree house that was fifty feet high and a hundred feet wide. I believed him.

“No,” I answered.

He looked at me and pointed at my feet, “then why are you wearing socks inside the house?”

I looked up to remind him we’re in the forest and not a house, but as my eyes reached his face I saw a white wall behind him. He was right, we were in a house.

“I’m sorry, I don’t understand.”

“We are in the house. In the house we cannot wear socks unless one of our parents is dead,” he said with raised eyebrows.

“Is it bad luck?” I asked,

“Yes.”

I quickly took my socks off, “I’m hungry,” I said.

The old man got up from his chair and walked into the kitchen. I watched as his naked feet hit the porcelain floor with soft thuds. When he came back he had a bowl of green grapes with him. He handed it to me and sat down. I started chewing quickly, drinking down the juice.

“You’re not wearing socks,” I simply said.

“I am not,” he simply answered.

When I had finished eating, I carefully placed the bowl down on the floor, only to find out the floor became snow.

“Have you ever been in a snow globe?” He asked.

“No,” I answered with a smile.

The old man got up and took my face between his wrinkly hands, he spoke silently into my eyes, “Do you want to stay?”

I shook my head. Yes.

I closed my eyes and woke to blue skies. 

I died in daylight.