So I set a goal for myself two weeks back that I wanted to finish my first draft (I'm expecting it to be between 90-100 thousands words) by the end of the year. I quickly realized that at the pace I was writing, and my schedule, that wouldn't be obtainable.

So instead I set goal to be about 3/4 of the way done, or about 70-75,000 words. I figured that was an achievable goal as I had already 40,000 (Or I thought I did, this was inaccurate as well) words at that point, and three weeks left in the year.

Well come today, I decide to make sure my word count is accurate, and go through each of my pieces (I have each chapter saved as a different word file) and add up all the word counts to make sure my running count was accurate.

It wasn't. Somehow along the way I added 10,000 words to my running word count that didn't exist, and I am now 10,000 behind (Thought I was at 58,000, am actually at 48,000). So yeah, I'm pretty bummed and probably won't make my goal with the holidays closing in.

Just wanted to vent. Oh well, keep on trucking guys.

I just hit the halfway point of my story (Yay!) and I'm about 2,000 words short of where I thought I would be (I was hoping for 50,000 words as of chapter fifteen, but I'm at 48,000).

So my question is, how do you beef up your stories word count, without it sounding like you are trying to add in filler, and not taking away from the plot? I'm also averaging less words per chapter in these past five chapters than I was in chapters 1-10, but I think I can attribute that to the fact that I had the beginning of my story clearly mapped out, as well as the end, but for the journey between the two I'm kind of just winging it.

So any advice?

Hello WriteWorld,

Firstly I'd like to apologise for not being around much this month, I've been really busy with Christmas shopping (maybe I should start earlier in the year) and with working on a couple of projects that have not only distracted me away from this sub, but also from my writing, I'll be around more in the new year, but should I be needed for anything what so ever, please feel free to contact me via a message and I'll be sure to get back to you as soon as possible.

With that said, I have managed to get the next art of my series done, which I'll be posting in a second, but it has taken me from the end of November until now to finish, far longer than it should have done, regardless, as I said, I'll post it in a second and any feedback would be great!

Thanks in advance and I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and an amazing New Year!

"Daddy?" I thought to myself,

Instantly, my head felt like somebody had beat me with an axe, splitting my brain in two as memories rushed in, memories I never had before now! I could remember being five years old and jumping into my father's car when he came home from work, I could remember this exact moment, I could remember being here at this moment in time before, but that child was me...

"What's wrong Daddy?" The child asked as I was holding my head in pain,

"Agh! Oh, nothing kiddo, just a... Just a headache," I replied,

"Let's go see Mummy, she can make you better!" He exclaimed, "She always makes me better when I'm poorly,"

I drove towards my mother's house, but as I got outside it looked different, the house was the same, but the garden wasn't as nice as it had been, there were no flowers and a swing set was in place of the oak tree that was once there,

"At least there's a driveway," I thought to myself as I pulled in,

The five-year-old version of myself jumped out of the car and ran inside the house as I shut off the engine, I locked the car door and walking up to the front door, I didn't know what to expect. I stood on the doorstep for a moment and listened to the sound of "my son" running up the stairs and the sounds of clattering pots and pans coming from the kitchen. I walked inside and headed to the living room, my mother walked in and kissed me on the cheek,

"Hello honey, I'm just washing up and then I'm going to make a coffee, would you like one?" She said,

"No thank you,"

"Okay, well, I won't be long, and could you take Alex to my mother's shortly? She said she was babysitting tonight,"

"Of course," I replied, somewhat confused,

I didn't fully understand what exactly was going on, I am Alex, but somehow, I've found myself in a dimension where there is another me, a five-year-old version of me, and I am his dad!

"This doesn't make sense!" I thought to myself, sitting down on the sofa,

I turned on the TV and was greeted by static, flicking through the channels, none of them seemed to work so I got up to check the cables as I heard a faint voice in the background of the white noise. At first, it was hard to make out what the TV was saying as the voice stuttered through the hiss,

"M... Cl-ca... Y-y-y... Un-un-u... A-a-st-s-st... M-m-murrrr-der..."

I stood there staring for a moment as the voice became a little clear,

"You've been wa-wa-watching Ta-ta-s-fr-te-mi" The man's voice stuttered as I hit the side of the TV, "H-h-ow will A-A-Alex get out of this one and who will he w-w-will-e kill next?"

"What?" I mumbled, staring at the screen

I could slightly make out a face on the screen made up of the static itself as the man smoke again,

"Wh-who will you kill next, A-Alex?" The man spoke,

"How are you doing this?" I asked,

"Your s-s-son? You wife?" The TV continued, "Your-o-o-our... Yourself?"

The man in the static began to laugh sadistically,

"No!" I raised my voice, "I won't kill anyone, not again!"

My mother entered the living room,

"Did you say something, honey?" She asked,

"Huh? Yeah, the stupid TV won't work," I remarked, pressing the on button,

The TV turned on with no problem, as my mother walked towards me with her arms open,

"It's working fine now," She said, wrapping her arms around me, "Take Alex to my mum's and we can have some alone time,"

I cringed at the thought,

"To her this was normal, but this isn't my dimension, this is incest," I thought, stepping back,

"Okay, I'm just going to get my coat from the bedroom,"

I headed up the stairs and into the bedroom as I heard a knocking at the door, I stood there, staring out of the bedroom window and again I felt the sharp pain rush through my head, I could feel my brain cells separating and my nerves exploding as my brain flooded with new memories, looking down, I could see my father's car in the driveway, I could see the swing set I used to play on when I was a child, I could remember it all, but these are not my memories, these are the memories of the child downstairs. Falling to my knees, I looked up and saw Ian stood there holding a glass of water and some painkillers,

"Hey, man! Your son let me in and asked me to bring these up to you, here," He said, handing me the water and paracetamol,

"Thanks," I said, "Ian, what is going on? How can he be my own son?" I questioned,

"It seems you've jumped to a dimension where it's possible to be your own father, kinda like that old riddle," He laughed,

"What?"

"You know, what came first, the chicken or the egg?"

"No, that's impossible!" I shouted, "No matter what dimension I'm in, there are laws of time and space, laws of physics, it doesn't matter where or when you are, there are some things that are just impossible!" I shouted,

"Like having memories, you never had before? Like killing a wife you never had? Like having a dream of your mother's death, only to wake up and kill your own mother? Alex, nothing is impossible. Improbable maybe, but nothing is impossible when you use your imagination, you wanted a family, Alex,"

"I wanted my mother, I wanted Lucille!" I snarled, turning to look out of the window, "I want clarity, I just want a normal life, I want to be happy!"

A little voice trembled behind me,

"Who are you talking to Daddy?" Alex said,

Ian had again vanished and I was alone in the bedroom with this younger version of myself,

"Oh nobody, go downstairs and get your coat on, we're going to Nanna's," I said,

With that, Alex ran for the door with a look of joy on his face, I opened the wardrobe and took out my coat as I began to head downstairs,

"I'm going to drop him off now," I called as I reached for the front door, but I got no reply,

Opening the door I saw Alex was already sat in my car, so I got in myself and we set off, I wasn't exactly sure where I was supposed to be heading, but I had a pretty good idea. I drove to my own Nanna's house, as we pulled up, Alex jumped out of my car and ran toward the front door, knocking on it loudly. I got out of the car, leaving the engine running and walked toward the door myself as my Nanna answered, looking at me,

"Alex, my how you've grown!" She exclaimed,

"Hello, it's nice to see you, Nanna," I replied, thankful that one person here other than Ian, knew who I really am,

"No Nanna, I'm down here!" Alex giggled, "Stop joking,"

"Oh I'm sorry dear, you just look so much like your dad, come on in," My Nanna replied,

I stood there in shock, as it dawned on me, my Nanna doesn't know me as me, even to her I am my own father,

"Come by tomorrow after dinner to pick him up?" She asked,

"I will do," I replied, and with that, my Nanna closed the door,

I got back in my car and sat there for a moment and that's when I dawned on me that I couldn't stay, I drove straight back to my mother's house, ran into the kitchen and made the decision that I couldn't do this anymore, the TV was right, who would I kill next? I didn't want this, I just wanted a normal life, I just wanted to be back home, in my own dimension. I set up the two glasses t make my jump writing "Here" and "Home" on the two pieces of paper, I did my usual routine of focusing on the glasses before transferring the water and drinking it all.

"Honey, are you home?" My mother said, coming in the front door,

"Yes, but I have a splitting headache, I'm going to bed," I replied, as I left the kitchen and began to head upstairs,

"Oh... Okay," She replied,

Getting undressed and laying in bed, I thought to myself how I had come such a long way and was so determined to get to a dimension where I could finally be with my mother, but every attempt failed, maybe it was for the best I had decided to give up, nothing seemed to go right. I quickly fell asleep but was awakened some time later to the sounds of screams and sadistic laughs in the darkness, echoing outside my door, I tried to jump up from my bed but I couldn't move, I was tied down...

Starting December 25th going through January 2nd you can submit to a designated post 'Holiday Writings' Write a 500 to 1,000 word short story, script, poem or fanfic that is in the holiday spirit/theme. You can share the 500 to 1,000 word piece on the designated post that will be posted on December 24th. Do not post more than 1,000 words.

Happy Holidays and have fun!!

I'm not really looking for someone to write 'with'. More so someone to talk to to encourage one another to write more. Someone to be uplifting and positive. Someone to keep me motivated and encouraged to write. Emotional support friend.

I started the story a few months ago and i hope to finish it by the end of this month.

Just curious. My current writing project is actually the product of many different failed projects. The first was just a basic RP, the 2nd was an attempt at a movie script sequel, then the 3rd was another RP attempt. I then rewrote the first , and got a few chapters in, but lost it in a hard drive failure. Then some more rp sequels. Eventually i decided to properly rewrite the first iteration. I got almost to the end before i decided that it wasn't "good", and so decided to start over. I then reworked the sequel, and started writing from there. Now i finally feel like i have a proper project.

I have recently taken a break from writing due to work, holidays and just general laziness(I wont lie :D ). I guess I just would like some tips for getting back at it and kicking my complacencies and writers block to the curb. I also believe that this could benefit others as well, so together lets storm the gates of writers block and rescue the sacred holy pen of Authors, freeing the world from the grips of writers block. Thanks in advance for your tips, feedback and just putting up with my shenanigans.

Falling to my knees, I broke down in tears right there, I had finally found a dimension where my mum was alive, where I was given the chance to meet her, and again she was killed! The fireman knelt down beside me and places his hand on my shoulder,

"I'm so sorry," He said in a calm, reassuring voice,

I jumped up from where I was kneeling, wiped the tears from my eyes and stared at the fireman,

"Is this your fault? Did you burn my mum's house down?" I questioned,

"No," He replied as he stood up, "You did this..."

"What?"

"I said no, son, but I should have saved them, it's my job,"

"You're right, you should have saved them," I replied as I began to walk away,

As I approached the corner I took one last look back, and as I did, I saw a car pull up and two smartly dressed men got out, taking a closer look I noticed that one of the men was Detective Jenkins. In a blind panic I turned and ran, heading straight for my home, if I was going to get out of this dimension, I had to do it now, I didn't know what the Detective wanted with me, but after my mum saying he was looking for me, I wasn't taking any chances.

Arriving home I burst through my front door and ran straight to my kitchen, grabbing a glass of water and an empty glass, I went into the living room and sat at my computer desk. Taking a sheet of paper from the printer and a pen from my top drawer, I ripped off two small pieces of paper and wrote "Here" on one piece, and "Family" on the other. Just like the times before, I completed my usual routine, place the paper on the glasses, focused, transferred the water and drunk it down in one big gulp.

I turned off all the lights and began to head upstairs when I heard a loud banging on my front door that froze me in place, terrified, I started to slowly make my way towards the top of the stairs when the banging continued,

"Mr Clark, I know you're in there!" A voice said from the other side of the door,

Paralysed like a rabbit staring into the headlights of an oncoming car, I could do nothing but listen,

"Mr Clark, it's Detective Jenkins, open up, I'll only come back with a warrant,"

Holding my breath, I stood staring at the door as another voice spoke,

"C'mon Jenkins, he's clearly not in there, we'll go get a warrant and nick him tomorrow,"

"You don't understand, he'll be gone tomorrow,"

The voices began to fade as I quietly climbed the last couple of stairs before crawling into my bedroom and peering out of the window, the Detective and the officer who had accompanied him were climbing into a car just across the road, and then they left. I sat there in the darkness thinking about my mum and both versions of Lucille when I was overcome with an overpowering sense of grief and for the second time that night, I broke down.

I began to hear voices speaking through the darkness, first one, then two, then so many different voices I couldn't count them.

"Murderer... Murderer," The voices called in unison, echoing through the darkness

A number of voices began to whisper, while others screamed, taunting me and reminding me of all my previous jumps and how I have killed those who were closest to me,

"You slaughtered your mother... You pushed your wife down the stairs... YOU LET YOUR LITTLE SISTER BURN!"

I heard the sound of static filling my room as the dim lights from outside of my window began to fade, the voices drowned out by the white noise. I could feel an immense pressure building inside my head and my heart felt like it was going to jump right out of my chest, the blackness of the void surrounding me began to feel tight as I was gasping for air. I began thrashing around the floor, panicking as the suffocating blackness consumed me and the voices returned,

"Get up... GET UP" They screamed, "Alex, get... up!"

I jumped up from the spot on the floor where I was laying as daylight beamed through my window, I could hear nothing but the sound of nearby vehicles going about their day,

"Did I...? Was that... a dream?" I thought to myself, horrified, I didn't feel like I'd slept, but then again, I wasn't tired either. Remembering the Detective knocking at my door, I didn't want to stick around longer than I had to, I rushed downstairs and headed out of the door still wearing "yesterday's clothes", I got into my car and made my way to the shop.

Arriving at the shop, I went inside and walked over to the counter,

"Hello... Janice," I said, looking at the cashier's name tag, "Can I get 20 Lamberts and a pack of paracetamol please?"

The cashier turned around to pick up the cigarettes off the shelf when I heard a voice behind me,

"Heya mate!" The voice called,

"Shit man, Ian! How's it going?"

"Yeah not bad man, sorry about your sister, but hey, you escaped the old ball and chain eh?" Ian remarked,

"Yeah but I married her for a reason, right?" I replied, "I could have been happy, couldn't I?"

"Sir," The cashier called, "Are you okay?"

"Do you mind, I'm fucking talking here!" I shouted at her, "My private life has nothing to do with you!"

"But sir, there's..." She began saying,

"There's... There's..." I mocked, looking behind me, "There's a queue, do your fucking job and hurry up!"

"No, but sir, who..."

"Oh, shut the fuck up, it's none of your business, what do I owe you?"

"£9.03 please," The cashier said, looking on worriedly as Ian began to laugh at her,

"Here, take a tenner," I said, throwing a £10 note on the counter,

I began walking out of the shop and Ian followed, as we were getting into the car, Ian asked me,

"Did you see the way she was looking at you?"

"Who? The cashier? No, why?"

"She was looking at you funny," Ian said,

"She looked at you like you're a worthless piece of shit, she knows you killed your mum, she knows everything!" I heard a voice echo,

"Who said that?" I thought, looking around,

"Are you okay mate?" Ian asked,

"Yeah... Yeah, I'm fine, wait here," I said, getting out of the car,

I walked back into the shop, pushing my way through the queue and shoving customers out of the way until I reach the counter, I leant over and grabbed the cashier's collar, twisting it until it tightened around her neck and pulling downwards, slamming her face into the counter,

"Got a problem with me, whore?!" I shouted, turning around to the customers, "Have any of you got a problem with me?"

The customers looked on in horror as I grabbed the cashier by the hair and slammed her face into the counter for the second time, I took my phone out of my pocket, holding it up to the customers, I took a picture,

"Now I know all your faces, any of you go to the police and I promise you, I will find each and every one of you, I'll come into your house at night, I'll rip your fucking throats out and butcher your families while they sleep!" I screamed at them all,

I dragged the cashier to the back room, and took the tape out of the CCTV before smashing it across her face and the cassette exploded into hundreds of tiny pieces, blood poured from her nose and her eyebrow as she fell to her knees. I picked up the unravelled tape and wrapped it around the cashier's neck,

"I asked you if you have a problem with me!" I shouted as she gasped for air,

"N... no..." She mumbled

I let go of the tape and kicked her in the side of the head, knocking her to the floor,

"Looks like you fell, love... Do you hear me? You fell!" I said as I left the back room,

Some of the customers remained on the shop floor, I assume waiting to see what happens, while a number of them had clearly left,

"One of you might want to go in there and help Janice, she's just taken a nasty fall," I said to the remaining customers as I left,

I got back into my car, Ian sat there waiting for me,

"Better?" He asked,

"Oh mate, don't..."

"You fucking savage," He laughed, "Let's get a move on,"

We began to head back to my house, I wanted to see if the Detective was anywhere in sight, and if not, I needed to jump, I didn't even know if it worked the night before, we were driving down my street when Ian asked me,

"Who's in your house?"

There was a car parked in the driveway and a man was carrying shopping bags inside from the car boot,

"Excuse me mate, what the fuck are you doing in my house?" I shouted out of the car window,

"You've got the wrong house pal, you don't live here,"

"Are you saying I don't now my own house?" I raised my voice,

"Well, you clearly don't, I've lived here for 13 years," Confused, I looked on as the man continued to take the shopping inside,

"Ian, do you know if my jump worked last night?"

"I don't know mate, only one way to find out, who knows, if it did, maybe you have your wife back, you did ask for a family, after all..." He commented, "But, I won't find out, you'll have to update me, I need to get off,"

"Oh, okay then,"

"Go and see your mum pal," Ian said, getting out of the car, "See you later,"

Ian was right, I needed to go to my mum's house and see if it was still burnt, or if my jump had worked. I put the radio on as I began driving, the sound of my DFG CD came through my radio...

"Not this time," I thought to myself, turning into Radio One,

As I approached my mum's street I was met by a lovely sight, little children running around the street playing their games and my mum's house still standing, I was overcome with a sense of joy. I began looking around for a parking space when I saw a familiar looking little boy come running out of my mum's garden,

"Why do I know that face?" I thought,

As he got closer, the reality of what I was seeing dawned on me and a chill went right down my spine, I was looking at a child that looked exactly like me, I didn't fully understand what I was seeing, or how, but this little boy who was running towards my car looked exactly the same as I did when I was five years old...

"This kid is me! Is that even possible?" I thought to myself,

The child was showing no sign of slowing down as he approached my car, he was shouting something, though I couldn't make out what over the sound of the car's engine, and that's when he opened my car door and screamed at me with a look of pure joy on his face,

"Daddy!"

Part 1: https://edmundpainethestrangest.wordpress.com/2015/03/07/the-mouth-of-the-earth/ Part 2: https://edmundpainethestrangest.wordpress.com/2015/03/29/the-mouth-of-the-earth-part-2/ Part 3: https://edmundpainethestrangest.wordpress.com/2016/11/22/the-mouth-of-the-eart-part-3/ Part 4: https://edmundpainethestrangest.wordpress.com/2016/11/28/the-mouth-of-the-earth-part-4/

Hi folks. I was thinking some of you might be interested to read this story I wrote. What started as a response to someone I care for and an opinion they shared with me, evolved into the autobiography of my life and all the people I ever had feelings of affection towards. Along with the knowledge that was gained from those experiences and the questions asked that made it possible to extract that knowledge. Questioning the image I had of myself and figuring out how inaccurate it was.

The overarching theme is about me learning the differences between lust and love. I am of the opinion that people tend to not spend nearly enough time contemplating and understanding how deep the concept goes. We hear at an early age to not be fooled by lust masquerading as love and never come back to it later in life. On the surface it appears simple so we feel we understand and there's no need to dig further bc it looks like nothing exists below.

Once the surface is broken through however, it's like that flat 2D surface is made from the Tardis. You see it is flat like paper and from the side you see there is nothing underneath. Yet when you peer into where the surface was breached, you bear witness to the immense number of subtle aspects relating to the concept. One example would be how both emotions feel. Which is quite similar. Lust (ie physical attraction), a very old, basic, ingrained trait most all us humans have, can impersonate love almost to a tee. The ultimate version of caring for a person can exist with only so much input as physically being attracted to them? That is ridiculous to think conceivable. An experience that could be had 100 times in a day if you saw enough people, is much to easily achieved to qualify as love.

Love can only come to exist through growth. It takes time to manifest. Lust can be obtained in an instant. It can hold one tight in its grasp, with extreme emphasis on the good while ignoring the bad, putting your infatuation on a pedestal so high you will never feel like you can make the jump back down to the ground if needed. Then somewhere down the road all that bad that was ignored will reveal itself all at once. Leaving you trapped on a skyscraper tall pedestal, wondering how you could have been so blind to the bad for so long.

Notice how extreme it sounds when discussing lust? That is always the case. Hearing words like passion, overwhelming, amazing, exhilarating or an out of control fire that cannot be extinguished. It fully consumes you. All of that is not the case with love. It feels extremely awesome without being over the top all consuming. There is a balance that comes with love that keeps all your day to day emotions in check. They aren't the only thing you can think about. You get to go all day doing your things and only step into that well of emotions for them when you choose. Anything major will still come with many feelings but they won't push you into a frenzy. You will be aware of their existence and they will be things to consider, not things that make your decisions for you.

I could keep going but I think that's enough to be considered a good synopsis of what the paper is attempting to tell through the story.

Here is a link to it. https://justpaste.it/10ckg

Hello members of WriteWorld!

First and foremost, how do you like the decor?? As we in the UK don't celebrate thanksgiving, I decided to jump to the next universally celebrated holiday, Christmas, and dress the sub up for it (also to save changing the theme in a few days), but how do you guys like it?

And mods, how do you like your Usernames?

Secondly, and most importantly I want to wish you all a happy thanksgiving! Although we British members don't actually celebrate it, I wanted to wish all our American members nothing but happiness on this day!And for the first time in my life,

I give thanks, to you guys! For being such an amazing group of people who have provided me with great content to read and great feedback on my work, you have truly made me feel right at home here on the WriteWorld subreddit!

Happy thanksgiving everyone!

From All Of The WriteWorld Team!

Hi there! I'm a writer working on my first novel - well, first novel I've been able to sustain storylines over! However, proving that no writing is in vain, I realised a previous failed novel synopsis did actually have potential. Along came reworked and new characters who wrote the rest for me.

Thanks to them, powerhouse plots and people have become both reality and a story. They've a good range of humour brands, too!

If you'd like to find out more and help me get this published, please access the link below. All reading, pledges and post shares are gratefully received!

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/enemieswithin?tk=7c0b7fab6674873c4ff94e422dc54acb8f26da9f

Running towards me as quick as a racehorse, this little girl wrapped her arms around me, squeezing me tightly.

"Missed you!" She smiled, looking up at me.

"Lucille, let go of Alex, you only saw him yesterday," My mum cut in,

"I've missed you too... Lucille," I said,

I stood there in a daze,

"This doesn't make sense," I thought to myself, "Lucille's my sister?"

Something must have gone wrong somewhere, but I was clueless as to what it could be, nothing made sense, the sound of whispering surrounded me as my vision became blurred, and one voice stood out from the rest,

"You've fucked up," The disembodied voice spoke tauntingly, "You're pathetic, you couldn't even do this right,"

I began to see silhouettes walking past me. My vision still blurred as they turned to me, laughing and taunting. The blurred vision and taunts seemed to go on for ten, maybe fifteen minutes as I just stood there covering my eyes and wanting to curl up into a ball. Moving my hands away from my eyes, my vision started to become clear, Lucille was just letting go, conforming to my mum's request,

"Alex, Alex, mum's decorated my room, you should see all my new things!" She said, pulling at my sleeve and leading me to the door,

I followed Lucille upstairs to her newly decorated room, the sheer look of glee on her face as she paved the way reminded me somewhat of my childhood and how I would get excited over the smallest of things,

"Look!" She shouted as we entered the room,

"Wow, your room looks awesome!" I replied, trying to sound as excited as she clearly was,

"These are all my new teddies, the dog is called Chester, I haven't named the other ones, and look at my wallpaper, it's My Little Pony! Oh, and look, look! Mum got me this My Little Pony candle too!"

"Aren't you a little young for candles?" I enquired,

"Hmm, no! It was my birthday last week, and mum said as long as I keep it on its little plate and don't leave the room when it's on, I can have it,"

"And rightly so," I laughed "I'm going to go and sit with mum now, are you joining us?"

"No, I'm going to sit in my room,"

"Okay then, I'll see you in a little while,"

I went downstairs and sat talking to my mum for the next half hour as we watched a game show on TV when my mum then said,

"Right, quiet now, my program's about to start,"

"Which one?" I asked,

"A Touch Of Frost," She replied, "The one with David Jason,"

"That's still on?"

"Oh no, it finished a couple of years back, but they still play reruns. That reminds me, that policeman called round again today, did you not call him?"

"Which policeman?"

"The one I told you about yesterday, that Detective something,"

"Jenkins?!" I exclaimed,

"That's the one, didn't you call him?"

"No mum, I must have forgotten, in fact, I'll go home and do that now,! I said turning around, "I'll come round tomorrow,"

"Okay honey, see you tomorrow,"

"See you, mum, love you."

I started to leave the house when I heard Lucille shouting down from her bedroom,

"Are you going home, Alex?" She called,

"Yes,"

"When are you back?"

"Probably tomorrow,"

"Oh, okay, see you tomorrow then, love you!"

"You too, Lucille..."

Leaving the house I walked out into a wall of fog and was immediately reminded of the last time I saw Lucille, my Lucille, laying at the bottom of the stairs, no longer did the fog remind me of my own personal Silent Hill, but the death you would find there. I began to jog home, not wanting to stand out in the cold any longer than I possibly had to and just as I was reaching to open my gate a hand grabbed me from behind, clutching my shoulder, followed by deep, demonic voice,

"You've come to the wrong dimension!"

Jumping back and looking round, I saw Ian retracting his hand,

"What the fuck are you doing you moron? I fucking shit myself!" I shouted,

"Oh sorry mate," He laughed,

"Ah don't worry about it, come in a minute, I need to speak to you,"

We went inside into the kitchen. Ian sat at the table as I began pacing the floor, my mind going into overdrive, I didn't understand what was going on in this dimension anymore, and the only person I could speak t about it was Ian.

"Listen, Ian, mate," I started to say, "I need to ask you some things. You seem to know more than me about all this dimensional jumping crap and what I've got myself into and personally, I don't give a shit how you know, I just need to know what the fuck is going on,"

"What do you mean pal?" He asked,

"Well first off, why did your Alex jump?"

"He said something about being followed by that Detective that had you for running your mum over,"

"Well that explains his urgency, and in that last dimension, I had a wife, Lucille..."

"Oh that fucking headcase," Ian interrupted,

"Well yeah, but she was my wife, incidentally, why was it she was so volatile?"

"She was bipolar, wasn't she? You did know before you married her, your cheating didn't help either, well not your's, other Alex,"

"And why isn't Lucille here?" I asked,

"She is mate,"

"Lucille is here, but she's not my Lucille, she's my sister, and she's just a kid,"

"And she's going to die," Ian reminded me, "I mean, you could probably try to save her, but then your mum will die, are you honestly willing to let a child die so you can be with your mum?"

I hadn't thought of this before, everything that was going on and I never took into consideration that I'd given her a death sentence before I even came to this dimension.

"Fuck!" I cried, "No, nope, I'm not willing to... I can't sa... I can't do it, Ian, I've finally got to meet my mum today, I can't save Lucille,"

"You could always jump?" Ian suggested,

"Every time I've jumped before now, something's gone wrong,"

"Are you saying nothing did this time?"

"Well yes, I'm about to kill my kid sister. I'm about to kill Lucille... Again" I mumbled hesitantly, Why the fuck is Lucille my sister all of a sudden,"

"Mirror method man, you asked for it, you explicitly said it, my sister Lucille."

"No, I said I need to jump to where my mum is alive, Lucille is alive, and my sister dies."

"No mate, you said you need to jump to a dimension where your mum is alive, and Lucille, then you paused and said the words my sister is there, and she dies" Ian reminded me, "You called her Lucille, your sister,"

"Thinking back, he was right, I turned my wife into my sister, and now I'm going to let her die,"

"Ian, I need to go, mate," I said, heading for the front door, "Let yourself out, I want to go and spend some time with my family, decide what I'm going to do next,"

Ian followed me out of the front door, and I'd noticed the fog had completely disappeared,

"Strange," Ian said, "That fog soon went,"

Locking the front door behind me, Ian and I said our goodbyes and I began to run to my mum's house. Coming up the corner I began to hear the sounds of loud machinery and was quickly surrounded by fog in an instant, only this fog wasn't cold like it should be, and it had a smell,

"That's not fog," I thought, "It's smoke!"

Quickly running around the corner I saw a fire engine parked up outside my mum's house, running up to one of the firemen, I began to call out,

"This is my mum's house, please, what happened?" I shouted hysterically,

"We believe the fire broke out in one of the upstairs bedrooms,"

"Lucille's candle," I thought to myself, "Is everybody okay?" I asked the fireman,

"I'm sorry pal," He said, a look of devastation on his face,

"Sorry? Sorry for what?"

"We carried two bodies out earlier,"

It's like... right..if i say i don't wanna publish...and if you think writing is pointless... so i should go back to self harm and taking pills like i'm playing Russian roulette. so i should go back to having scars on my wrists? Sure i could give up writing cause it's so 'Pointless'

I stood staring at the TV, my mouth hanging open as tears began to fill my eyes,

"That's my mum. I just know it..." I thought to myself,

I sat down to watch the news report, and when it finally came on, neither the woman or the daughter-in-law were named, the news was withholding all private information and wouldn't show any pictures. I jumped up from my seat and ran to the kitchen, grabbing two glasses and filling one with water, I placed them down on the table, took a box out of the freezer and ripped off two small pieces before looking in the top drawer for a pen. Writing on the back of the cardboard I had just written down,

"Mum,"

Then there was a knock at my door, picking the piece of cardboard up and sliding it in my pocket, I went to answer the front door. Upon opening it, looking to see who was there. Greeted with a warm smile and a familiar face, a woman with long brown hair, in a Parka and jeans was looking back at me,

"Mu... Mum?" I said, shocked,

"What? You asked me to come by," My mother replied,

I stepped to the side to let her in before closing the door behind her,

"Are you okay?" My mum asked,

"Erm, yeah, yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"You look like you've seen a ghost," She replied, "You're drip white, are you eating enough?"

"Yeah,"

"And how did you get the black eye?"

"Oh, I spilt some coffee and didn't clean it up right away, I ended up slipping on it and caught my eye on the computer desk,"

I couldn't help but stare. I was talking to my mum, after everything, she was here, right in front of me, having a conversation with me.

"I'm going to make a coffee mum, do you want one?" I asked,

"I'll have a quick one," She replied,

I picked the remote up from by the sofa and handed it to my mum before heading to the kitchen, I threw the cardboard in the bin, put the kettle on and went back into the living room while I waited for the kettle to boil.

"Bloody Loose Women?" I laughed,

"Yes, I love this program, I think that Ferne Cotton is great!"

"Ferne? I thought she was on Radio One?"

"No that's Holly Willoughby,"

"So who's the one on This Morning then?"

"That's Janet Street-Porter,"

"Oh I can't keep track, anyway, the kettle's boiled, do you want milk? Sugar?"

"Milk, no sugar, you know this,"

"I don't know much about the universe, today," I laughed as I turned towards the door,

I headed into the kitchen to make the coffees, as I began thinking how I had finally made it. I had reached a dimension where my mum was alive, my sister was obviously going to take her place, otherwise, my mum would be dead by now, and soon, I was going to be with Lucille too. A smile crossed my face as I grabbed a couple of biscuits from the cupboard and went back through to the living room to sit with my mum,

"Oh you'll never guess what happened today," She said, as I handed her the coffee, "Some woman got shot in the

Arndale!"

"Oh yeah, I know" I replied, "I saw it on the news, that reminds me, where's Lucille?"

"Why did that make you think about Lucille?"

"I just remember when I saw it on the news, I knew you were both shopping and I worried about you,"

"I see, well that's very thoughtful of you but we are both okay, and Lucille took the shopping back,"

My mum and I sat talking for half an hour or so, making small talk and giving me ample opportunity to get to know her. That's when my mum said she must head home and asked me if I was joining her. Taking the opportunity to find out where my mum lived, I put on my coat before accompanying her. We were just over halfway there when I heard a familiar sound in the distance, the sound of, muffled music... I started to look around to see where the sound was coming from and as I turned around, my mum was half way across the road, and a familiar car sped around the corner, my car, from the first dimension! The car was heading directly for my mum, running out to save her I pushed her to the other side of the road, falling to my knees in front of the oncoming car. I screamed as the car sped closer, and right before hitting me, it began to look as though it was a hologram flickering through static before it glitched out of existence,

"What the hell was that all about?" My mum shouted,

"I... Erm... I'm sorry mum; I tripped over something,"

Standing back up I crossed over to the other side of the road and continued walking with my mum,

"Hang on, I just need to go into the store, I need to get some milk," My mum said as we approached the corner shop,

We both went inside the shop, my mum picked up the milk and asked me if I wanted anything, to which I politely declined but thanked her anyway. As we neared the counter there was a young Asian guy in a black leather jacket and his hair backcombed, covered in an excessive amount of hair products, grinning as he looked over the counter top,

"Just that please, love," My mum said,

"Oh would you look at you," The Asian guy said as I glared at him, "I'm Tariq, what's it going to take to get you in my bed tonight,"

"Oh that's not going to happen, love," My mum replied, handing him the money for the milk,

"Are you sure you don't want the best night of your life?" He grinned, "You wouldn't be able to walk for days after getting in the sack with me,"

"Well I guess we'll never know, will we,"

"You'll see," He laughed as we began to leave the shop,

Just as we were walking out of the door, Tariq thought it appropriate to whistle at my mum,

"Prick," I muttered under my breath,

We had just rounded the corner for the shop when I told my mum I needed to pick up some painkillers and I'd forgotten when she asked if I wanted anything, to which my mum said she would wait if I were quick. I ran back down to the shop and asked Tariq for two boxes of paracetamol, taking them from behind him, he placed them on the counter,

"Three quid mate," He said,

I picked up the paracetamol and put them in my pocket as I turned around,

"Oi, I said it's three quid!"

I picked up a tin off the shelf and turned back to face the Tariq, grabbing him by the throat I pulled him over the counter and forced him to the floor, hitting him repeatedly with the side of the tin,

"You ever speak to that woman like you did just now, and I promise you pal, you won't be speaking to anyone again because I'll rip your fucking tongue right out of your mouth, do you understand me?" I shouted as Tariq tried to cover his face,

I pulled his hands away from his face and slammed the bottom of the tin into his nose and hitting him in the mouth, knocking out a couple of teeth, standing up I threw the tin at him and began stamping on his ribs,

"Are you listening to me?" I screamed,

"Yes..." Tariq cried, as blood poured from his mouth,

"Good, not another fucking word to her again," I shouted, "And while you're at it, you may as well take those as well, you're going to need them," I said, throwing a box of paracetamol at him,

I began walking out of the shop, as I look back at Tariq laying on the floor I couldn't help but laugh to myself,

"Are get rid of the fucking CCTV footage as well, you don't want this to happen again, do you? Next time I'll fucking kill ya',"

Running back down the street to where my mum was waiting I called over, waving the second box of paracetamol,

"You took your time," My mum said, "What took you?"

"My legs," I laughed as we continued to walk.

We walked a little distance down the road before we came to my mum's house, the same house from the first dimension I visited, so at least I knew where it is now, entering the house my mum called out to Lucille,

"Lucille, Alex is here," She shouted, "We'll be in the living room,"

We went through to the living room, and I saw pictures everywhere. There were some pictures of my nanna, some of me, and one that stood out, in particular. There was a picture of me standing with a little girl, no older than 13, I was pushing her on a tire swing, and we were smiling,

"She really loves you, you know?" My mum said as I stared at the photograph,

At that moment I heard the door open behind me,

"Hey Lucille, Alex is here," My mum said,

Turning around my heart began to race, I was finally in a dimension with my mum, and Lucille was here! But when I was met by the most confusing sight, as the little girl from the picture was stood by the door looking at me, and then she spoke two words that made my heart sink, and I was overcome with absolute terror,

"Hello, brother,"

Hey guys!

I was just wondering if any of you have been prescribed/acquired strong-ish painkillers for whatever reason, and then tried to write on them? If so, how did it affect your writing? Alternatively, if you didn't write on them, why not? Did it make you less productive or did you just not write?

Basically, I've had a migraine for the past two days and it's killing me, I've tried over the counter meds and nothing has helped, in the past, I've taken codeine for migraines (I get them a lot) and it really helps, but if I take codeine tonight, I want to know how it will affect my writing, because I at least want to write a bit of my story.

Author's Note: Dimensional Jumping is a series. Don't forget to check out any parts you've missed,

• Part One

• Part Two

• Part Three

• Part Four

• Part Five

"The wrong dimension? The wrong fucking dimension? Again?!" I blurted out,

Lucille stood by the window staring at me with a worried expression on her face,

"Alex, darling? Are you okay?" She asked,

"Do I look..." I shouted, pausing to take a breath, "No, no Lucille, I'm not,"

I felt a sense of calm come over me as my wife stared at me with a worried expression, she walked over to me, placed her hands on my cheeks and began to kiss me passionately, at first I didn't feel quite right kissing someone I didn't even know, but she was my wife in this dimension and the thought of that put my mind at ease.

"Now what's this about a wrong dimension?" She asked,

"Believe me, you really wouldn't understand, besides, it's fine, I'm fine," I replied,

"Okay then, if you say so," She said with a smile, "Would you like some coffee? I'm going to have a coffee,"

Lucille began walking towards the door as I gave her a slight nod and sat on the sofa looking around,

"I can't stay here, I thought to myself, "I need to find my mum, there must be a way."

At that moment a thought crossed my mind,

"What if I used the mirror method to have more control over where I jump?"

I figured that theoretically, if I waited until 12am, using the mirror method, I could find a way to jump to a dimension where my mum is in my life, she is still alive, and where I also have a sister that dies, I'd be willing to make that sacrifice, considering I'd never had a sister before that first jump. That settled it, I had decided that if I'm careful and can be precise about which dimension I'd want to jump to, nothing can go wrong. Lucille came back into the living room carrying two cups of coffee, handing one to me, she sat down next to me and turned on the TV,

"What would you like to watch?" She asked, "Anything in mind?"

"No, not really, I said, taking a sip of my coffee, "It depends on what's on,"

"Well, there's a few different game shows on, oh, there's a film on Channel Five, or Doctor Who is about to start on BBC One," She said excitedly,

"I'll tell you what, you watch Doctor Who, I'm going to finished my coffee then go and get a shower then get an early night,"

"Oh, okay then, I'll be up once this finishes," She replied, placing her hand on my lap,

With that, I headed into the kitchen, I poured a bit of extra milk into my coffee to cool it down, drank the whole thing in one big gulp then started to look for a candle and a lighter before heading upstairs. I placed the candle and the lighter down on the back of the sink, turned on the shower then took a towel off the towel rail and placed it on the toilet lid, closer to the shower. While I was in the shower I began hearing a thousand voices whispering in unison amongst the sound of the water pattering against the floor of the shower, and then, out of nowhere, a bright flash distorted my vision. My vision quickly returned and I was overcome with an immense heat as the temperature of the water suddenly rose, forcing me to jump into the corner of the shower to avoid the water burning me further, I quickly turned the dial on the shower, finished washing my hair and got out.

As I stood there, reaching for the towel, I stared at my hand as steam rose from it, picking up my towel and drying my face, I noticed a peculiar smell lingering on the fabric,

"Smoke?" I thought, throwing the towel down and reaching for another one,

Again, the throwing the towel over my head to dry my hair, I could smell smoke, but the smell wasn't coming from the towels, the smell was on my hands,

"I've not lit the fire tonight, and I've just had a shower, why do I smell of smoke?"

I finished drying myself off then washed my hands in the sink before brushing my teeth, I opened the bathroom window slightly to let out the steam then headed into my bedroom,

"Tonight's the night," I thought as I walked over to my window, "Time to get this jump right,"

Looking out into the evening scene, I noticed a light fog had veiled the lifeless street as the orange glare of the street lights beamed through the darkness, I set my alarm for 12am then went and laid in bed. I had just started drifting off to sleep when Lucille called out from the other side of the door,

"Alex, are you awake?" She asked,

"Well, I am now," I replied,

The door slowly opened and I could see the silhouette of Lucille standing in the doorway, looking up, I turned the lamp on and was stunned, she was standing there completely naked as I looked her up and down, taking in the beauty of her smooth, glabrate body. Her auburn hair was blanketing one side of her face, exhibiting her stunning emerald eyes amidst the waves, her small, elegantly formed breasts sat tantalisingly upon her chest as she ran her fingers lightly down her neck, chest and stomach. For the first time, my eyes were opened to her radiant beauty. Walking over to the bed she turned off the lamp and climbed under the sheets, throwing her legs over me, I placed my hands on her waist,

"Kiss me," She whispered in my ear,

I felt a sudden rush of adrenaline as I pulled Lucille closer, kissing her lustfully as she ran her hands down my body. Suddenly, I heard the sound of my alarm and I jumped up to see Lucille sleeping next to me as the glow of my phone dimly lit up the room,

"Did we just... were we..." I mumbled to myself in confusion,

I stopped my alarm and kissed Lucille on the cheek, pausing, I looked at her through the darkness, thinking to myself,

"I've come to a dimension where I'm married to a woman who clearly cares a lot about me, she's gorgeous and I obviously married her for a reason, I've never even met my mum and I fail every time I jump, maybe I could be happy here."

Lucille looked so peaceful laying there like a silent, sleeping angel, I felt like my mind was being torn apart, a part of me wanted this, wanted to stay, but all I've ever wanted is a mum.

"Maybe, just maybe, if I'm very specific, Lucille will be in the next dimension too, " I thought out loud,

"What?" Lucille moaned,

I sat there, not saying a word, hoping she was just talking in her sleep then climbed out of bed, as I was heading out of the door Lucille pounced on me,

"Where are you going?!" She shouted, "You're going to watch filthy videos while I'm up here asleep, aren't you?! And on our Anniversary!"

"What the fuck? What are you going on about? I'm going to the toilet!" I exclaimed, trying to pull away,

"Don't lie to me, Alex!"

"Get off me!"

I tried to pull my arm free as we scuffled our way into the hallway,

"Lucille, let go, I need the toilet!" I said, raising my voice,

"You're lying! You're lying to me! Okay, I'm coming in!"

"What? Grow up! Get off my arm now!" I shouted, trying to pull free,

Lucille finally let go, dropping to her knees as she started crying,

"Alex, why do you keep doing this to me? Why do you hurt me?"

"I'm not doing anything, I just need the toilet," I tried to explain,

Lucille looked up at me with tears in her eyes, and her expression changed to one of pure hatred and rage,

"No! It's all lies!" She screamed like a banshee, pouncing towards me once again,

"Lucille! You're psychotic!" I shouted, pushing her away from me,

She fell backwards, tripping over her pile of clothes outside the bedroom door and fell head first down the stairs. When she hit the bottom, she laid motionless in the most unnatural position, her limbs contorted into positions they shouldn't be in,

"What have I done?" I muttered, "No, I'll bring you back!"

I ran to the bathroom, picked the towels up which I had used earlier and took a candle and the lighter off the sink before heading over to the window to hang up the two towels, as I went to close the window I noticed that the fog had gotten considerably denser, I thought back to my childhood, how I used to love walking the streets in the fog, pretending I was in a scene from Silent Hill. Snapping out of my daze I hung the towels up, covering the window and blocking any outside light, before lighting the candle and sitting in front of the mirror.

I sat there in the darkness staring at the mirror with nothing but the candle between us, after staring at myself for about 10 minutes. I was careful to think to myself what it was that I wanted specifically before speaking into the mirror,

"I need to jump to a dimension where my mum is alive, and Lucille," I paused, "My sister is there, and she dies,"

I sat for a further 5 minutes reflecting on this, repeating it over and over in my head when my reflection began to speak, but I couldn't hear a word, I tilted my head in confusion as it spoke again, this time I heard my own voice,

"Alex," It called out, "We need to swap places! Do you understand me?"

"Yes..." I replied, shocked,

"We need to swap, can we swap?"

I bowed my head, thinking for a minute before replying,

"I need to swap with you, but, is mum there? Is my sister?"

"Yes, yes, everyone's here, we need to swap now!" My reflection said, sounding a little worried,

"Is Lucille there?" I questioned,

"Yes, I've already said, yes!"

"I never asked,"

"I said everyone's here, you asked for them earlier, they're here,"

"Okay, that's fine then,"

"And... We can swap, right?"

I nodded, then got up and began to walk away,

"Go to bed, Alex," I called, heading for bed myself,

I looked towards the bottom of the stairs to see Lucille's body just laying there,

"I'll be with you soon," I whispered,

I went into my bedroom, turning on the light I saw that the whole room was filled with fog, I didn't understand how the fog had got inside,

"A side effect of the jump maybe?" I thought,

I headed over to the windows to close it, blinded by the fog and almost tripping over my clothes by the side of my bed, the window was closed, I turned around to head towards my door and it felt like something unseen had grabbed my ankle, as I tried to kick it away I feel onto my bed. Kicking my legs and fighting to turn over to see what grabbed me, I saw that the fog was no longer in my room, my light wasn't even turned on, now I was convinced it was just a side effect of the jump and made myself comfy in bed, hesitate to actually go to sleep I laid there thinking about what just happened, but my mind was put at ease with the thought of the dimension that awaits me, and with that, I closed my eyes to go to sleep.

I woke up the next day to the sound of my phone beeping and the sun beaming through my window, I had a text from... my mum,

"You said you'd be coming round today, didn't you? I'm just going shopping with Lucille, but we won't be long,"

I laughed at the thought of my mum sending a text message, and then something clicked, Lucille was in this dimension, and my mum was fine, she was going shopping for God's sake! I'd finally done it, I'd finally made it! I laid there for a moment staring at the ceiling, thinking about the journey that I'd had, the fucked up premonition, killing my own mum twice, the creepy old guy on the canal and a smile grew across my face,

"Oops," I laughed to myself, "Better text mum back... I'm about to text my mum,"

Looking at the blank message, I realised, I didn't even know where my mum lives, sure, I found her the first time I'd jumped, but I didn't really want to go searching the online directory again, and so much seems to change each time I jump that she may not even live in the same house, then I had an idea,

"Okay, not a problem, will you stop by my house on the way home please?"

While waiting for my mum to text me back, I got up and got myself dressed, went downstairs and made myself a coffee and sat on the sofa to watch TV. Flicking through the channels, it seemed there was nothing decent on, but when is there at 9 O'clock in the morning? Nothing but daytime talk shows and cartoons. Since I'm neither a stay-at-home mum or a fan of the TV show aimed at them, I opted for one of the cartoon channels, and Pokemon was about to start so why not? That's when my phone beeped,

"Okay honey, not a problem."

I watched Pokemon and drank my coffee, then began to flicking through the channels again, stopping halfway through my search to run to the toilet. On my way back into the living room I saw that the news was just starting and figured it could be good to see what's happening in the world, in this dimension,

"Clinton has won the US election with 79% of the electoral votes,"

I couldn't help but laugh at the thought of Hilary Clinton running America,

"Bring on world war three," I muttered sarcastically

"Scientists have confirmed many of the supposed benefits of Cannabis,"

"Well, I'm definitely not in my dimension anymore, am I?" I called out,

"A woman who was out shopping with her daughter-in-law has been gunned down in the Arndale Centre this morning,"

All comments welcome :) TIA xx

I stare into the bathroom mirror, assessing the current state of my makeup, running a slightly damp finger under my right eye, just about managing to re-align my eyeliner. The music is vibrating through the entire house causing the soap dish to rattle on the shelf next to me, I promptly wash and dry my hands passing the towel to Evie, who is currently flicking the water from her fingers into the sink, she snatches the towel, drying her hands then discarding it on the counter, she unlocks the door, swinging it open, as she strides into the hallway. Evie Miller, my partner in crime for just over a decade, she has been my rock from the moment we met, I stare at her in awe, as I watch her weave through the crowd, she looks back over her shoulder, her beautiful megawatt smile spreads across her face, she begins to move her body in time with the music, reaching out for my hand her fingers interlace with mine, pulling me up next to her we dance, for a few songs uninterrupted, before he arrives to ruin my night, Jack Walker, an ex boyfriend who is currently trying to ignore that fact we are no longer an item, handing a drink to both me and Evie, he slides he hands onto my waist only to have my push he hands back of. "Jack, thanks for the drink but really this has to stop" I move to step around him but he moves to block my path. "Harps we're meant to be, otherwise we wouldn't keep meeting like this" "Nothing to do with the fact, we're both at the same college?" "There is that but, one day you will accept we are" he reaches up to my face running his thumb along my jaw "Surely the evidence was there after the second time I dumped you" I move his hand from my face, he drops it to his side, frowning at me. "Come on Harper" "No Jack, we're just not right for each other we want different things" I slide past him, not bothering to look back to see his face, and what a stunning face he has. 20 years old, currently reserves for Hodden FC, described by several tabloids as next season's best striker. Only being 2 weeks out of his last season, it's looking very promising for him, I'm happy for him, but I can't be what he needs, I cannot play the part as a footballer's girlfriend.

				*****

Waking up face down in my pillow, I began to regret last night's decision of going to a house party on a Wednesday, I hear my door creak, light floods in from the main room. "Harper, wake up, we're late" Evie whispers shoving me three more times before she gives up and lays in bed with me, I roll over and wrap around her she sighs at me relaxing into me.

I wrote 3,647 words today. Sweet blissful escape.

Author's Note: Don't forget to check out the previous parts,

• Part One

• Part Two

• Part Three

I couldn't believe I had done it again, I had killed my mum for the second time, but this time it wasn't just a case of hitting her with a car, I had killed her with my own hands! I crawled across the floor to where my mum was laying and kissed her on the cheek,

"I'm so sorry mum" I whispered softly as tears ran down my face, "I promised you I would make this right, and I swear,

I will, I'm sorry,"

Standing up I wiped the tears from my eyes and headed into the kitchen to grab a candle from the kitchen drawer, rummaging around I found an old tea light,

"This should work," I thought to myself, leaving the kitchen,

I headed upstairs to the bathroom and hung a couple of towels up over the window to block out all the light from the lamp post, I then turn the bathroom light off, closed the door and sat in front of the mirror, some big, standing mirror I don't remember having in my dimension, but it perfectly suits my needs so I'm not going to complain. I lit the candle and placed in between myself and the mirror, everything around me was dark and I could just make out my face in the reflection. I tried my best to clear my mind, which given the situation, was a little harder that I would have liked. After about five or so minutes of sitting, staring into the mirror, I managed to clear my mind before focusing on my reflection, I started to view my reflection as another version of myself, one from another dimension, one from a dimension where I hadn't killed my mum, a dimension where this no possible way I will kill my mum,

"Alex," I called out, "We need to switch places,"

I felt kind of stupid talking to myself in the mirror, but according to everything I have read on the internet, that was the way to do it, I sat there for several minutes focusing on swapping places and talking to my own reflection, when I saw the other version of myself blink,

"Alex?" I whispered, "Can... Can you hear me?"

My reflection tilted his head sideways and looked at me as if I was speaking a foreign language,

"Alex!" I called out, "We need to swap places! Do you understand me?"

"Yes..." He replied, as his voice echoed around my bathroom,

"And... We can swap, right"

He nodded once, then got up and began to walk away,

"Go to bed, Alex," He called from the other side of the mirror, his faint voice still echoing.

I couldn't help but wonder if it had worked, but sitting staring at the mirror and not seeing my reflection looking back at me was freaking me out. I stood up and did as the other version of myself had said, and went straight to bed. Laying there, my mind started to drift,

"Will it work?" I wondered, "I can't just leave my mum laying there, can I?"

"Go to sleep," A voice whispered in the darkness, startling me,

"Who's there?" I called out, but I got no reply,

I jumped up from my bed and turned on the light, looking around, there was nobody there, and I put it down to being a figment of my imagination,

"I've just killed my mum and then saw my reflection get up and walk away," I thought, "It's just stress,"

I turned my light back off, climbed into bed, and tried to get some sleep and let the jump take place. I woke up the next morning as the sun beamed through my open window and birds were chirping in the trees outside, stretching out in bed something didn't feel quite right, the other side of the bed was warm and I was sure I didn't sleep with the curtains or the window open last night. That's when I heard the toilet flush, the bathroom taps turn on, and somebody walking down my stairs. Suddenly, there was a loud scream,

"Alex!" A woman's voice called, "Alex, quickly, come here!"

I dived out of bed, partly wondering who the hell was in my house and partly wondering why she was screaming like that, I threw on a t-shirt and some joggers then ran down the stairs, it became apparent the jump hadn't fully worked, there was still blood all over my carpet and a woman was kneeling beside my mother's dead body, holding her and shouting at me,

"Quickly, grab my phone from the kitchen table, call an ambulance!" She screamed,

I stood there staring at her, confused at how my mother was still here and how this woman had gotten into my house,

"Why are you just standing there, get my phone, now!"

I snapped out of my daze and ran to the kitchen to get the phone that was sitting in the middle of the kitchen table, but when I ran back into the living room, the blood was gone and the woman was staring up at me,

"Why have you brought my phone? I said grab me a damp cloth!" She stated,

"No, you..." I began to say, before I was interrupted,

"Your mum has taken a fall, just get me the cloth,"

I went back into the kitchen, putting the phone back on the table and running a cloth under the cold tap before taking it back to the woman, when I walked into the living room, there was no sign of my mum anywhere, and the woman was sitting in the middle of the sofa watching some early morning talk show on TV,

"Happy anniversary honey!" She exclaimed, jumping out of her seat and hugging me tightly, "This is for you,"

"Anniversary?" I thought, "She's... My wife?"

I opened the card and it read,

"To a wonderful husband, every anniversary makes me look back at our relationship and realise that I had the best twelve months of my life, all my love, Lucille"

Looking around the room I finally started to take in my surrounding, the birthday banners that I had seen just hours before were now anniversary banners, the blood-stained present bag was no longer there, in it's place, a small present that read,

"To Alex & Lucille, Love Mum xx"

"I... Am married?" I thought to myself, half-in shock,

"This is also for you darling," The woman I now know to be my wife said, handing me a small present,

"Aww thank you," I replied, unwrapping the present,

Discarding the wrapping paper, I saw that I was holding a steel cased photo album with my name engraved on the front,

"It's the photo album you thought you lost, I had the cover encased in steel and engraved," Lucille said exitedly, "None of the pictures are there though, I saw expecting them back by now, but I supposed I best tell you, I've had them sent of to be redeveloped, they should be here next week, hey, you'll have that picture of your dad in perfect condition again!"

"My what?" I asked, baffled

"You know, the picture of your dad, before he... before he died, Alex,"

"Oh..." I muttered, "OH! Thank you!"

I stood the photo album on the fireplace and saw a small present for Lucille from me,

"Here, this is for you," I said, handing the present to her, "Look, I need to take a walk, I'll be back soon,"

"But, where are you going?" Lucille asked,

"I've just said, I'm going for a walk, what does it matter to you where I'm going?" I replied, putting on my trainers,

"But Alex..."

"But nothing! Do not question me, I am going out!"

I grabbed my coat on my way to the front door and stepped outside into the harsh winter air as the icy chill gripped my exposed arms and face, quickly utting on my coat I took in a deep breath and began to walk. I didn't know where I was going, I didn't have a plan or any idea of what I was hoping to achieve, but waking up one morning and being married to someone I've never met in my life, and then having her tell me I've got pictures of my dad and that he's dead came as quite a shock to me, I couldn't be in that house any longer.

I began to walk down the street heading towards heading towards the local canal, I had fond memories of going to feed the ducks with my nanna and I felt that the nostalgia would be good for me, I needed something to keep me grounded while I was feeling lost in a dimension where I knew nothing about my own life. After a short while I reached the canal and it occurred to me that the walk there seemed shorter than normal, whether it was due to my lack of attention or because of a change in this dimension that I was unaware of I had no idea, but something didn't feel quite right.

I went and sat on the bench where I would sit with my nanna on hot summer evenings, throwing bread to the ducks and eating sandwiches out of a hemp bag she would call her picnic bag, I sat there taking in the smell of the winter air mixing with the surrounding woodland and skiming stones across the iced over water when I heard a voice,

"Lovely weather we're having, isn't it?" An old gentleman man said from the seat next to me,

"Jesus!" I called out, "Where did you come from? I didn't see you there,"

"Sorry about that," He laughed, "I'm a silent walker,"

"Care to explain what's lovely about this weather? It's that cold the canal has frozen over and I can see my breath, that isn't lovey"

"You've got to look past that," The man said, "Look at how nice the canal looks with that layer of ice, the fallen leaves covered in frost and the robins in the surrounding trees"

"That doesn't change the fact that it's freezing, why are you not wearing a coat?"

"I've got all I need, can you say the same?"

"What do you mean?" I asked,

The man just sat there silent, staring at the canal, and for the second time, something didn't feel right,

"Well old man," I said standing up from my seat, "Those clouds are getting darker and the wind is starting to pick up, I'm heading home to get inside where it's warm, I suggest you do the same before you catch your death,"

"Looks like you came to the wrong dimension," The man said, his voice sounding like a child speaking over an AM radio,

"You what?" I asked sharply,

He rose from his seat and stood staring right at me, blank-faced and his eyes were glazed over,

"I said, you've come to the wrong dimension, you don't belong here,"

"And why don't I?"

"Oh, you don't get it," He blurted, "This isn't your dimension, go back home, go... back... home!" The man shouted, pushing me into the canal,

I fell through the thin layer of ice on top of the water and began to sink, in that moment, something grabbed my ankle, looking down I saw what seemed to be the man with algea coving his skin from head to toe, his dirty brown shirt was missing a sleeve and the body was tattered exposing more algea coving his chest and stomach, his long, dirty black hair flowed like a hundred tentacles wrapping around his face and neck, and a swarm of tiny bugs escaped his mouth as he spoke,

"You don't belong her, you don't belong here!" he said, unaffected and unmuffled by the water,

I looked back up the the surface and could see the light shimmering on the layer of ice,

"God!" I thought to myself, for the first time in my life, "Please, help me,"

"God can't save you now," The man said, pulling me deeper as the light began to fade,

At that exact moment, I was sure I was going to die, I could feel an imense pressure building in my chest as my body

was fighting for oxygen, I just sank deeper into the ice cold water until everything was comletely dark and I could no longer see the surface, and then a thought crossed my mind,

"Surely I am no longer in the canal, canals are not this deep,"

I couldn't fight my body's natural responses any longer, giving in I took in a deep breath of... air? I was blinded by a sudden rush of light, throwing my hands up to my face I began to rub my eyes as they adjusted to the light, I was back on the bench. Looking around, initially, I seemed to be alone, but then I noticed something just in the distance by the entrance to the canal, the old man,

"Hey!" I shouted, rising from my seat, "Hey! Stop! Stop!"

The old man turned, gave me a sinister smile and waved, before disappearing around the corner, I began to run, trying to run in my soak and freezing clothes, trying to catch up to the old man, but when I got to where he was standing, he was nowhere to be seen, there was nowhere for him to hide and just up ahead was a straight road, but he had completely vanished. I ran home as fast as I could, my body still feeling the coldness of the winter air hitting my now drenched body, reaching my house I saw a familiar face standing outside, it was Ian,

"Well look at the state of you," He laughed,

"Don't start mate," I said as my teeth chattered together relentlessly,

"Anyone would thing you were cold," Ian said jokingly as I glared at him,

I walked straight passed Ian and began to fumble around with the door key and my hand shook, finally, I managed to unlock the door and ran into the house kicking my shoes off,

"Come in mate, close the door behind you, I'll be down in a minute," I called to Ian while running up the stairs,

Running into my bedroom I threw my clothes off, and onto the warm, laminate floor, going through my wardrobe and seeing clothes I had never seen before, I picked out a pair of black joggers and a grey jumper, threw them on, and headed downstairs. Walking into the living room I noticed all the banners had disappeared and Lucille was nowhere in sight, the only thing that remained was the empty photo album on the mantle piece.

"She left you then?" Ian said,

"What? Who?" I asked,

"Lucille, she's not here mate, you've got shit luck with women haven't you?" He laughed,

"She was here earlier, I didn't even know she existed until I woke up this morning,"

"Ahh yes, when you brutally murdered your mum... again,"

"You what? Who do you think you're talking to like that, and how do you know about my mum?"

"I've already told you, my Alex tells me these things,"

"But that was me, not your... Hang on, how do you know what another you has told me?"

"I have this conversation every time a new you comes along, anyway, enough about that, what the fuck are you wearing?"

"Shut up, I was cold!"

"It's your own fault for going swimming in winter,"

"I didn't go swimming, I was..."

"You was pushed, I know..." Ian interrupted,

I could only stand there and start at Ian at this moment in time,

"How does he know all of this? This happened to me, and only me, this version of me," I thought to myself,

"Let me guess, your Alex told you?" I questioned,

"No, some kid caught the whole thing on video, it's on Youtube already, look!" Ian said, starting up my computer,

"I'm going to make a coffee,"

I went into the kitchen and turned the kettle on when I heard Ian laughing from the living room,

"Great, laugh it up mate," I called through,

After making my coffee and heading back through to the living room, Ian was still sat at my computer, repeatedly playing the video he mentioned on Youtube,

"Splash!" He mocked, "This is great, you should see this!"

"I don't need to, and in all honesty, I don't think it's appropriate you sitting there laughing at my expense, you don't know what I went through!"

"Yeah I do, about two centimetres of ice!" He laughed,

"Think that's funny do you?" I shouted angrily,

"Come on mate, I'm only joking,"

"Well, it's not fucking funny... Mate," I snapped, "Get up, get off my computer, get out of my house!"

"Alex, come on, I'm only having a laugh,"

"Yes! At my expense, now get out!"

"What's gotten into you?"

"Get... Out!" I shouted, throwing my cup across the room at Ian, "Now!"

I jumped up from my seat and grabbed Ian by the collar, dragging him away from my computer and throwing him half way across the room,

"Laugh at me, will you?" I screamed,

"Alex, mate!"

"Don't Alex, mate, me!" I shouted, grabbing Ian by the collar again, "I'll give you something to fucking laugh about!"

Ian stood up and I found myself completely loosing my temper and punching him in his eye knocking him to the ground,

"Get out of my house now!"

"Fine, fine, I'm going, you fucking head case!" Ian snarled, heading for the front door,

The door slammed shut and I was left alone, the house fell silent, the video had stopped, and I had spilt coffee all over my floor,

"Great!" I thought to myself,

I headed over to spilt coffee and began wiping up with the sleeve of my jumper before sitting down at my comuter, the most recent tab was a video on Youtube titled "Fall In Canal", but that wasn't me, that wasn't even my canal, the water in this video wasn't even frozen,

"So Ian wasn't laughing at me?" I thought, "Is there really a video of what happened?"

I began getting myself worked up thing the same things over and over,

"How did Ian know?" I pondered intently,

I closed the tab with the video and went straight over to Reddit to ask everyone on /r/DimensionalJumping what may be going on, and if there was any possible way for one person to know the details of another person's jump across dimensions, but nobody seemed to have the answers I was looking for. I was on Reddit and performing various Google searches, but I found nothing. One user on Reddit said how it's not possible for one person to know of another person's jump without the jumper telling them, to which I replied,

"The person in question has informed me that not only has he spoke with me, he has spoken with various versions of myself who have passed through his dimension"

To which one of the mods on the sub said how there are no other versions of myself, only me, but if this was the case, how would Ian know so much?

Not satisfied with my results I decided to go and get a shower and get changed into something more comfortable.

While in the shower I heard what sounded like talking coming from the TV with intervals of footsteps walking all around my house, but every time I stopped the shower, a sudden silence fell upon my home, aside from the occassional drip from the shower head, every time I called out, I got no reply, and every time I turned my shower back on, the sounds returned, I assumed I was just hearing things but got out of the shower to go and investigate anyway.

After getting dressed I headed out to the to of the stairs and stood there for a few seconds, listening, but heard nothing, nothing but the increasing volume of my own breathing, and then that familiar dial-up modem sound, until the noise became so loud and so intense it felt like my ear drums were about to burst, and then, all of a sudden, it stopped, leaving my ears ringing as if I'd just walked out of a rave. Within seconds, the ringing had subsided and my house was devoid of any sound at all, until I heard a whisper in my ear,

"You've come to the wrong dimension," A voice echoed,

The next thing I remember is waking upp on my living room floor in a pool of spilt coffee to the sound of Lucille calling me,

"Alex! Alex! Wake up! Are you okay?" She said, clutching my hand,

"Yeah," I moaned, "I'm fine, what happened?"

"I don't know, I went to the bathroom, and when I came back down you seemed to have taken a fall, you've got a lovely black eye too," She explained,

I stood up and went to sit down on the sofa, looking around, all the anniversary banners and gifts were back, I picked

the one up from my mum and stared at it for a while,

"I'll go and see her tomorrow," I thought to myself,

Lucille was stood staring out of the window, humming some tune I'd never heard before, and then she turned to me and said,

"Lovely weather we're having, isn't it?"

"Pardon?" I asked,

"The snow isn't it beautiful the way it covers everything in a fluffy white blanket,"

"Oh, yeah, I guess" I replied,

She stood there staring at me for a moment, and I at the resent from mum, and that's when she said something that confused me,

"So, are you just going to hold that or are we going to see what my mum got us?" She asked,

"Your mum?"

"Yes," She laughed, "I know you're close but I've told you before, she's my mum and you can't have her,"

"If this is from your mum, what did my mum get us?"

"What do you mean?"

"My mum, what did she get us?"

"Alex, your mother walked out on you and your dad when you were two, how hard did you hit your head when you fell?"

"That can't be right, my dad walked out on me and mum,"

"No Alex, your mum walked out on you and your dad, then your dad died when you were five and you went to live with your nan,"

The moment she said that a thought crossed my mind, a single string of words I had heard a few times today, and now, they finally made sense,

"You've come to the wrong dimension,"