Something was definitely different. I had slept through the night - there were no screams, no gunshots and I did not wake up in a cold sweat as I had many nights before. And yet, I was definitely where I had always been. A loft apartment with a far-too old bed worn down by time, on the outskirts of humanity.

Amongst the familiar scene, however, remained the unsettling feeling that something was wrong. The air seemed calmer, unnaturally still, while the sun itself seemed to reflect with peace, rather than anguish. Had I succumb to insanity? Have I finally been driven mad by the increased pressures of urban decay? I remembered seeing a woman the night before, being mugged and beaten for heroin, and I did nothing .. then, here .. but nothing else. Maybe I had finally gone mad.

Sweat began to pool around my brow as my stomach twisted into knots. I had suddenly grown ill at the thought of what might have been. Flashes of gruesome brutality rang in my head between gazes at the growing calmness breaking the serenity. Tick, tick, tick. Eternity, only broken by the ringing of a phone, once disconnected.

"HELL-O and merry greetings. Welcome to eternity. We're sure you have many questions, but we don't care. Press 1 for more options."

There was no 1.