# "Participants Needed for Sleep Study! Earn $5,000! No Experience Required" Creepypasta

An episode of [CreepsMcPasta Creepypasta Radio](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1492008134), 23 Aug 2024, 27 min.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/61130530/participants_needed_for_sleep_study_earn_5_000_no_experience_required_creepypasta.mp3

8,337 views 20 Aug 2024 CreepsMcPasta Creepypasta Horror Stories Podcast CREEPYPASTA STORY►by Frequent-Cat: / participants_needed_for_sleep_study_earn_5... Creepypastas are the campfire tales of the internet. Horror stories spread through Reddit r/nosleep, forums and blogs, rather than word of mouth. Whether you believe these scary stories to be true or not is left to your own discretion and imagination. LISTEN TO CREEPYPASTAS ON THE GO- SPOTIFY► https://open.spotify.com/show/7l0iRPd... iTUNES► https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast... SUGGESTED CREEPYPASTA PLAYLISTS- ►"Good Places to Start"- • "I wasn't careful enough on the deep ... ►"Personal Favourites"- • "I sold my soul for a used dishwasher... ►"Written by me"- • "I've been Blind my Whole Life" Creep... ►"Long Stories"- • Long Stories FOLLOW ME ON- ►Twitter: / creeps_mcpasta ►Instagram: / creepsmcpasta ►Twitch: / creepsmcpasta ►Facebook: / creepsmcpasta CREEPYPASTA MUSIC/ SFX- ►http://bit.ly/Audionic ♪ ►http://bit.ly/Myuusic ♪ ►http://bit.ly/incompt ♪ ►http://bit.ly/EpidemicM ♪ This creepypasta is for entertainment purposes only

## Transcript

[0:01] Speaker 1: Participants needed for sleep study and five thousand dollars no
[0:06] Speaker 1: experience required. I was just your average guy struggling to
[0:11] Speaker 1: make ends meet. The bills were piling up, my job
[0:15] Speaker 1: at the convenience store barely covered the rent, and my
[0:18] Speaker 1: girlfriend of three years had just left me for someone
[0:21] Speaker 1: with a better future. I felt trapped, suffocating under the
[0:26] Speaker 1: weight of my own inadequacies. So when I was scrolling
[0:31] Speaker 1: through job listings at my phone, I came across an
[0:34] Speaker 1: ad that seemed too good to be true. It was
[0:39] Speaker 1: from a group called sleep Co. They described themselves as
[0:43] Speaker 1: scientists looking to run a study with psychology students for
[0:46] Speaker 1: their final year university project. I stared at the ad,
[0:52] Speaker 1: my mind turning. Five thousand dollars could solve a lot
[0:56] Speaker 1: of my problems rent, credit card debt, and even a
[1:01] Speaker 1: little bit left over to start fresh, or at least
[1:04] Speaker 1: try to. But there are enough horror stories online of false,
[1:09] Speaker 1: malicious ads that I had to think about it. I
[1:14] Speaker 1: ultimately decided that I have nothing left to lose. I
[1:19] Speaker 1: was at rock bottom, so, knowing I couldn't sink any further,
[1:23] Speaker 1: the only direction was up, I clicked the link and
[1:28] Speaker 1: filled out the application. If it was just a ploy
[1:32] Speaker 1: to steal my details. Then they would struggle to use
[1:35] Speaker 1: it as much as I did. What I didn't expect
[1:39] Speaker 1: was being contacted. A few days later, I received a
[1:44] Speaker 1: call from a woman named doctor Harris, who sounded professional
[1:48] Speaker 1: and reassuring. She explained that the study was designed to
[1:52] Speaker 1: monitor sleep patterns and improve sleep quality. It sounded harmless enough. Besides,
[2:00] Speaker 1: sleep was also on my long list of current issues,
[2:04] Speaker 1: so if this could help with that too, it was
[2:06] Speaker 1: a bonus on top of the promised pay. I agreed
[2:12] Speaker 1: to participate. The study was taking place at a facility
[2:18] Speaker 1: about an hour outside the city. Doctor Harris arrange a
[2:22] Speaker 1: car to pick me up and take me there. I
[2:25] Speaker 1: was instructed to pack a small bag of essentials, clothes, toiletries,
[2:30] Speaker 1: and my phone. Getting away from things, I hope that
[2:33] Speaker 1: this could be the beginning of something better, a detox
[2:37] Speaker 1: from the depths of wallowing I was living in. God
[2:41] Speaker 1: knows I needed it. When the car arrived, I was
[2:46] Speaker 1: greeted by a cheerful driver who chatted with me during
[2:49] Speaker 1: the drive. I felt like I had to relearn how
[2:53] Speaker 1: to talk to another human, but I picked up my
[2:57] Speaker 1: social skills as we went. Soon enough, I felt a
[3:01] Speaker 1: social connection, something I'd been missing for a while. As
[3:07] Speaker 1: we left the city behind, I felt a mix of
[3:10] Speaker 1: excitement and nervousness. The driver assured me that the facility
[3:15] Speaker 1: was state of the art and that many people had
[3:18] Speaker 1: previously participated in studies there. We arrived at a sleek,
[3:23] Speaker 1: modern building nestled in a secluded area surrounded by trees.
[3:29] Speaker 1: It looked more like a high end spa than a
[3:30] Speaker 1: research facility, instead of a cold experimental lab that I'd
[3:36] Speaker 1: imagined it would be. I was greeted by a friendly
[3:39] Speaker 1: receptionist who handed me a clipboard with a consent form.
[3:44] Speaker 1: I skimmed through the legal jargon. My eyes caught phrases
[3:47] Speaker 1: like informed consent, monitoring and potential side effects. Despite a
[3:53] Speaker 1: slight pang of anxiety, I signed the form and handed
[3:57] Speaker 1: it back, figuring this was just legal mumbo jumbo that
[4:01] Speaker 1: covered their asses. I figured this was my personal risk
[4:05] Speaker 1: for such a payout. Doctor Harris soon appeared, a woman
[4:10] Speaker 1: in the early forties with a calm demeanor and an
[4:13] Speaker 1: air of authority. She gave me a brief tour of
[4:17] Speaker 1: the facility, showing me the lounging area, the cafeteria, and
[4:21] Speaker 1: finally my room. I imagined it to be a cold,
[4:26] Speaker 1: sterile room with wires and monitors everywhere, a scientist with
[4:30] Speaker 1: a clipboard around me at all times, But now it
[4:36] Speaker 1: was a small, comfortable living space with a single bed,
[4:40] Speaker 1: a desk, and a large mirror on one wall. We
[4:45] Speaker 1: want you to feel at home, doctor Harris said warmly.
[4:49] Speaker 1: If you need anything, just press the button by the door.
[4:52] Speaker 1: We'll start the study tonight. Until then, feel free to relax.
[5:02] Speaker 1: I spent the afternoon exploring the facility and meeting the
[5:06] Speaker 1: other participants. There was Lisa, a single mom trying to
[5:11] Speaker 1: save money for a daughter's school fees. Kevin was a
[5:14] Speaker 1: college student struggling with tuition, and then there was Mark,
[5:19] Speaker 1: a recently laid off factory worker. We all had our
[5:23] Speaker 1: reasons for being here, and it was comforting to know
[5:26] Speaker 1: I wasn't alone. That night, I was given a set
[5:30] Speaker 1: of comfortable pajamas and hugged up to various senses. Now
[5:35] Speaker 1: he was starting to align with my perception of this study.
[5:40] Speaker 1: Electrodes were attached to my temples, chests, and arms. It
[5:44] Speaker 1: felt a bit intrusive, but doctor Harris assured me it
[5:48] Speaker 1: was all standard procedure and that it wouldn't affect my sleep,
[5:52] Speaker 1: just monitored it. She wished me a good night and
[5:57] Speaker 1: left the room. The first night was uneventful. I had
[6:05] Speaker 1: a few dreams, none on which I remembered in detail.
[6:09] Speaker 1: I woke up feeling slightly disoriented, but choked it up
[6:12] Speaker 1: to the new environment. The next day I met up
[6:16] Speaker 1: with the others. Most of them related to what I described,
[6:21] Speaker 1: and we all figured we were all adjusting to the
[6:23] Speaker 1: new stimulus. However, Mark was different. He didn't seem to
[6:30] Speaker 1: be taking well to things, saying how they invaded his
[6:33] Speaker 1: sleep and he felt exhausted from the study. He must
[6:38] Speaker 1: have been very out of his comfort zone. Her plus,
[6:42] Speaker 1: sighed was that they weren't joking when they said we'd
[6:44] Speaker 1: be looked after. I ate like a king compared to
[6:49] Speaker 1: my usual instant meals and had so much freedom compared
[6:52] Speaker 1: to my dingy apartment. After a relaxing day of comfort,
[6:57] Speaker 1: I was ready for the second night of sleep. However,
[7:02] Speaker 1: the second night it was different. I had a vivid
[7:07] Speaker 1: dream of wandering through a dark forest, chased by an
[7:10] Speaker 1: unseen entity. No matter how fast I ran or how
[7:14] Speaker 1: erratic I made turns, it was always on my tail.
[7:19] Speaker 1: Eventually it lunged and tackled me to the ground. Dreams
[7:24] Speaker 1: always feel real in the moment, and I was overcome
[7:27] Speaker 1: with a fear of death. In the struggle, I turned
[7:33] Speaker 1: and saw my ex's disappointed face. Before I could process this,
[7:39] Speaker 1: I jolted up in a panic. Back in the facility's bed,
[7:46] Speaker 1: I was covered in a cold sweat, the fear coming
[7:49] Speaker 1: through my body but slowly passing as I processed where
[7:53] Speaker 1: I was. I couldn't piece together all the details. When
[7:57] Speaker 1: I woke, the experience having left my mind quickly, Doctor
[8:02] Speaker 1: Harris asked me to describe the dream as best I could,
[8:05] Speaker 1: taking notes thoughtfully. I was instructed to give all the
[8:09] Speaker 1: details of anything sleep related, so I tried. She seemed
[8:16] Speaker 1: intrigued by the details, even though they made little sense
[8:20] Speaker 1: to me. Dreams are a natural part of the process.
[8:24] Speaker 1: She explained that it can become more intense when your
[8:28] Speaker 1: brain is adjusting to the monitoring equipment. I nodded, trying
[8:34] Speaker 1: to shake off the lingering dread. After the meeting, it
[8:40] Speaker 1: clicked what she said. They mentioned monitoring, which had nothing
[8:46] Speaker 1: to do with influencing dreams. As far as I was aware,
[8:50] Speaker 1: this was just supposed to study our sleep patterns. But
[8:55] Speaker 1: no matter how much I tried to deny it, the
[8:58] Speaker 1: dreams only grew more disturbed over the next few nights.
[9:04] Speaker 1: Each night the dreams became darker and more terrifying, more vivid,
[9:10] Speaker 1: more memorable. One night, I dreamt I was buried alive,
[9:15] Speaker 1: the weight of the earth pressing down on me, making
[9:18] Speaker 1: it impossible to breathe. It was too dark to see anything.
[9:23] Speaker 1: No light penetrated where I was. I struggled and felt
[9:28] Speaker 1: the earth around me loosening. Eventually I could turn more
[9:32] Speaker 1: and more and jostled my way out, and when I
[9:36] Speaker 1: looked back, it wasn't dirt but papers with red headers
[9:44] Speaker 1: late bills. I woke out of breath, feeling pressure released
[9:51] Speaker 1: from my chest as I shot up. Another night, I
[9:55] Speaker 1: was trapped in a burning building, the heat and smoke suffocating.
[10:00] Speaker 1: I escaped, and when I turned, I saw that it
[10:04] Speaker 1: was my childhood home. Though I made it out, the
[10:08] Speaker 1: screams from within told me I had left behind what
[10:10] Speaker 1: was valuable to me. I woke up gasping for air,
[10:15] Speaker 1: my heart raising. I wiped a copious amounts of sweat
[10:19] Speaker 1: from my forehead, and when I pushed off the bed
[10:21] Speaker 1: to fetch a towel. My bed was drenched too. Throughout
[10:27] Speaker 1: the day, I felt a growing sense of exhaustion. The
[10:31] Speaker 1: other participants seemed to be experiencing similar issues. Lisa had
[10:36] Speaker 1: dark circles under her eyes, Kevin looked perpetually anxious, and
[10:41] Speaker 1: Mark was irritable and jumpy. We shared our experiences, finding
[10:46] Speaker 1: some comfort in our shared plate all the while Mark
[10:51] Speaker 1: waved about conspiracy as he did each day. However, with
[10:56] Speaker 1: too much lining up with our experiences, he was starting
[11:00] Speaker 1: to make more sense. During this time, my mind was foggy.
[11:07] Speaker 1: No matter how much I slept, I would have no
[11:10] Speaker 1: energy for the day. I could no longer enjoy the
[11:14] Speaker 1: parts of the facility that relaxed me before. Any thoughts
[11:18] Speaker 1: of doing something was overridden by a need to stay stagnant.
[11:23] Speaker 1: When I was stumbling through a hallway, I overheard doctor
[11:27] Speaker 1: Harris and another scientist talking. They did so in hush tones,
[11:32] Speaker 1: so I focused up the best I could and hidden place,
[11:36] Speaker 1: trying to listen in They mentioned something about phase two
[11:42] Speaker 1: and no real manipulation. My curiosity piqued and my mind
[11:47] Speaker 1: fighting to remain focused through the lingering fatigue, I decided
[11:51] Speaker 1: to investigate further that night, after the lights went out,
[11:57] Speaker 1: I snuck out of my room and made my way
[12:00] Speaker 1: to doctor Harris's office. I was wary of footsteps and
[12:04] Speaker 1: the lurking scientists who were setting up for work. However,
[12:09] Speaker 1: I also had to battle the footsteps that weren't real.
[12:12] Speaker 1: My mind was playing tricks on me, an enemy to
[12:15] Speaker 1: my goal. From the exhaustion weighing on me, my only
[12:20] Speaker 1: saving grace was knowing where the office was. It was
[12:24] Speaker 1: the room behind where doctor Harris conducted interviews. She seemed
[12:29] Speaker 1: to want to work close to the sources of the
[12:31] Speaker 1: information she extracted from us. Inside, I dug through stacks
[12:37] Speaker 1: of papers accumulated around the desk, details on each other participants,
[12:42] Speaker 1: including myself. Eventually I found a stack of files labeled
[12:47] Speaker 1: confidential hidden away. I skimmed through them and my heart
[12:53] Speaker 1: started pounding. The jargon and signsy words I didn't understand,
[13:00] Speaker 1: but I got the gist from the parts I could.
[13:04] Speaker 1: These were details about an experiment and manipulating dreams to
[13:09] Speaker 1: study the effects of fear and the human brain. The
[13:13] Speaker 1: title and logo at the top did not match the
[13:15] Speaker 1: advertisement for this place. Instead of Sleepy co, it was
[13:20] Speaker 1: some cryptic symbol with the company's name blotted out. I
[13:26] Speaker 1: was sickened knowing we were essentially guinea pigs in a
[13:29] Speaker 1: study designed to push the boundaries of human mental endurance.
[13:34] Speaker 1: My mind screamed at me in an I told you
[13:37] Speaker 1: so way. I know. I couldn't get out just yet.
[13:41] Speaker 1: My phone was still in the room, and all the
[13:44] Speaker 1: scientists and workers were up and about. Besides, knowing this
[13:48] Speaker 1: wasn't just a group of jovial scientists working for the
[13:51] Speaker 1: greater good, I didn't want to try escape unprepared. My
[13:56] Speaker 1: best bet will be to leave during the day. I
[14:00] Speaker 1: slipped away back to my room, and a scientist stood waiting,
[14:04] Speaker 1: ready to put on the electrodes and wires. I simply
[14:08] Speaker 1: laid down and allowed it. After her gray speriod, I
[14:13] Speaker 1: slipped them off and had the most RESTful sleep I'd
[14:17] Speaker 1: had in a while. The next morning I was confronted
[14:23] Speaker 1: by doctor Harris. She demanded an explanation for why no
[14:27] Speaker 1: data was picked up from my sleep. They were thorough
[14:31] Speaker 1: on the placement on how the pads were secured, so
[14:34] Speaker 1: they knew it had to have been me who tampered
[14:36] Speaker 1: with them. The intimidating part was how calm she remained
[14:41] Speaker 1: while hitting me with the coldest stare. I was caught
[14:46] Speaker 1: off guard, and since I'd just woken up, my mind
[14:49] Speaker 1: was hazy for an excuse, so instead I jumped straight
[14:54] Speaker 1: into the accusations. I saw the papers. This isn't some
[14:59] Speaker 1: innocence sleep study you're using us, I asserted her, face calmed,
[15:06] Speaker 1: wearing the confidence of her actions. You signed the consent forms,
[15:12] Speaker 1: you agreed to participate in the study. We're simply observing
[15:16] Speaker 1: the effects. The effects, the effects you're causing. This is torture,
[15:24] Speaker 1: I shouted. This seemed to sadden hers slightly, which surprised me.
[15:31] Speaker 1: We're close to a breakthrough. You have no idea what
[15:35] Speaker 1: at stake here, Doctor Harris sighed. I did not care
[15:41] Speaker 1: for a study, especially since I was the guinea pig,
[15:46] Speaker 1: something to be used for a cause I knew nothing about.
[15:50] Speaker 1: So I stormed out, determined to leave the facility. But
[15:56] Speaker 1: when I tried to open the main door, it was locked.
[16:02] Speaker 1: Doctor Harris signaled to someone and they ran off and
[16:05] Speaker 1: did something. I picked up what it was as soon
[16:09] Speaker 1: as I looked at my phone. The signal bard drained
[16:13] Speaker 1: until it was utterly useless. The friendly receptionist was nowhere
[16:18] Speaker 1: to be found it was just the subjects and the scientists.
[16:24] Speaker 1: Panic setting as I realized we were trapped. Being captive
[16:31] Speaker 1: left me no choice. There was nowhere to run, nowhere
[16:34] Speaker 1: to hide, so I was resigned to my room, now
[16:39] Speaker 1: under constant watch. They simply told the others that I
[16:43] Speaker 1: was being observed during the day to test an anomaly,
[16:47] Speaker 1: and the look I was shot told me to keep
[16:50] Speaker 1: up with the story. As soon as we were to
[16:53] Speaker 1: turn in the others, who anne the wiser, went to
[16:57] Speaker 1: their rooms. My arms and legs were strapped down, making
[17:01] Speaker 1: it impossible to take the tendrils of the nightmare machine off.
[17:06] Speaker 1: That night, the dreams crossed the line. I was in
[17:10] Speaker 1: my room, but it wasn't my room. The walls were
[17:15] Speaker 1: covered in dirty handprints, and the mirror showed a reflection
[17:19] Speaker 1: that was me, but moving autonomously. Worst of all, it
[17:25] Speaker 1: could talk. Its mouth curled up into a knowing grimace
[17:30] Speaker 1: and whispered my darkest fears, my insecurities, my past mistakes,
[17:36] Speaker 1: all my life regrets laid out to bear. I tried
[17:41] Speaker 1: to wake up, but I couldn't. The nightmare continued, blurring
[17:46] Speaker 1: the lines between dream and subconscious thought. When I woke,
[17:52] Speaker 1: I struggled against my restraints. A scientist came in and
[17:56] Speaker 1: undid them calmly, disregarding my struggles. I stumbled out of
[18:02] Speaker 1: my room, seeking help, but the holes were empty. Looking around,
[18:09] Speaker 1: the whole facility was deserted except for those working there.
[18:14] Speaker 1: The other participants were gone, their rooms packed up like
[18:17] Speaker 1: they weren't even there. I felt isolated. It was just me,
[18:24] Speaker 1: left to the machinations of these monsters. Desperate for answers,
[18:30] Speaker 1: I went to doctor Harris's office to either confront her
[18:33] Speaker 1: if she was there, or find any information that could
[18:36] Speaker 1: help me. But there she was waiting for me. Welcome,
[18:45] Speaker 1: she greeted, calmly. Where is everyone? I demanded desperately. They've
[18:53] Speaker 1: moved on. You're the last one, she replied cryptically. This
[19:00] Speaker 1: felt like a mistake, so I sharply turned to run,
[19:04] Speaker 1: but she pressed the button on her desk and the
[19:06] Speaker 1: door slammed in my face, my nose crunching against it.
[19:11] Speaker 1: It must have broken, or at the very least fractured.
[19:15] Speaker 1: I think your special Ryan. Your brain has shown remarkable
[19:19] Speaker 1: receptiveness to my machine. Your life is so meaningless that
[19:25] Speaker 1: you lend well to the escapes of dreams and fantasy.
[19:31] Speaker 1: I thought to attacker, or at least go down swinging,
[19:35] Speaker 1: but she pushed the button again and I was rushed
[19:38] Speaker 1: by too many people who had gathered on the other side.
[19:42] Speaker 1: I was quickly held down, and after a sharp prick,
[19:48] Speaker 1: everything went black. I awoke strapped a chair in a
[20:01] Speaker 1: sterile room, electrode attached to my head. Doctor Harris stood nearby,
[20:07] Speaker 1: monitoring the screen filled with data. This was closer to
[20:13] Speaker 1: what I imagined when I first got here. There was
[20:16] Speaker 1: a twist of irony in my head that at least
[20:19] Speaker 1: my instincts were somewhat right. This is the final phase,
[20:25] Speaker 1: she said. We are going to explore the deepest recesses
[20:30] Speaker 1: of your mind. If what I had dreamt wasn't the deepest,
[20:36] Speaker 1: dread filled me worrying about what would surface. The machine
[20:42] Speaker 1: worked to life, and I felt a tingle of electricity
[20:46] Speaker 1: coursing through my body. My vision was filled with rapid,
[20:50] Speaker 1: horrific images my parents' funeral, my girlfriend leaving me. The
[20:55] Speaker 1: moment I realized I was trapped here, everything wrong in
[20:59] Speaker 1: my life flashed before my eyes. The pain was unbearable,
[21:04] Speaker 1: both physically and mentally, my mind fracturing under the strain.
[21:12] Speaker 1: I screamed at them to stop, which only fell on
[21:15] Speaker 1: deaf ears. Doctor Harris's face remained impassive. We were almost there,
[21:21] Speaker 1: ian just a little more. The pain was too much
[21:27] Speaker 1: and I passed out. Yet I knew it was still going.
[21:31] Speaker 1: While I was unconscious, I could still feel it. I
[21:37] Speaker 1: don't remember how long it lasted. When I finally regained consciousness,
[21:43] Speaker 1: I was back in my room, the electrodes removed. My
[21:47] Speaker 1: mind was a shattered mess, fragments of nightmares bleeding into reality.
[21:53] Speaker 1: I stumbled to the mirror, barely recognizing the gaunt, haunted
[21:57] Speaker 1: figures staring back at me. The man led me to
[22:01] Speaker 1: doctor Harris, who greeted me warmly and conducted her interview.
[22:07] Speaker 1: I just mumbled along, barely answering what she had said.
[22:12] Speaker 1: With a disappointing ending, she sent me off to the others.
[22:18] Speaker 1: I went out, and there they were, Lisa, Kevin, and Mark.
[22:26] Speaker 1: They were packed and ready to go, big grins on
[22:29] Speaker 1: their faces. I'm sadly this place. It's so nice here,
[22:34] Speaker 1: but I'm happy to get back to my kids, Lisa said, enthused.
[22:40] Speaker 1: This snapped me into the moment, swirls of thoughts and
[22:44] Speaker 1: confusion mixing around my head. One of the scientists placed
[22:49] Speaker 1: the hand of my back and I flinched around. He
[22:53] Speaker 1: looked at me, confused at my reaction, and held my bag,
[22:58] Speaker 1: which was already packed with my things. Oh, I just
[23:03] Speaker 1: you were late, so I packed everything up for you.
[23:06] Speaker 1: Sorry for startling you, he started. This was a far
[23:12] Speaker 1: cry from the menacing demeanor they all had and the
[23:15] Speaker 1: almost militaristic actions they synchronized with. Doctor Harris approached. Your
[23:22] Speaker 1: sleep was the most disturbed of everyone's. You should get
[23:25] Speaker 1: that checked out. I can recommend a facility that specializes
[23:29] Speaker 1: in that, she mused. She promised to email me the
[23:34] Speaker 1: details and left to return to her office. I just
[23:40] Speaker 1: costed through my goodbyes with the other participants and was
[23:43] Speaker 1: let out by the friendly receptionist. I left floating on
[23:49] Speaker 1: an air of uncertainty and dread. When I got home,
[23:57] Speaker 1: I was no closer to knowing than when I had
[23:59] Speaker 1: left that office. All I knew was when I rubbed
[24:03] Speaker 1: my nose, to which it it stung with a pang
[24:07] Speaker 1: of pain. I sat down in my apartment. Autopilot landed
[24:12] Speaker 1: me back in front of my computer, ready to decompress
[24:16] Speaker 1: with whatever entertainment I could find. Anything to get my
[24:20] Speaker 1: mind off things. When my e mail dined with a notification,
[24:26] Speaker 1: it was from doctor Harris. It was a recommendation for
[24:32] Speaker 1: another sleep study. This was headed by a different doctor
[24:36] Speaker 1: in a different location. It offered ten thousand dollars for participation,
[24:42] Speaker 1: which not long ago would have made my mouth water
[24:46] Speaker 1: at the prospect. She noted that they work with people
[24:50] Speaker 1: with troubled sleep and that they could go deeper into
[24:53] Speaker 1: my sleep to find what makes me tick, which was
[24:57] Speaker 1: a disturbing way to phrase it. But what disturbed me
[25:02] Speaker 1: most was the header. No facility name was mentioned, but
[25:08] Speaker 1: their logo was all too familiar. It was the same
[25:13] Speaker 1: one on the notes I found in doctor Harris's office.
[25:19] Speaker 1: What did I find it? I was still questioning what
[25:23] Speaker 1: was real and what wasn't, but it was too much
[25:27] Speaker 1: of a coincidence to deny. I instantly deleted the e
[25:32] Speaker 1: mail and blocked all correspondence from doctor Harris. I'm still
[25:38] Speaker 1: haunted by the nightmares even without the machine. I still
[25:44] Speaker 1: occasionally get vivid dreams of cryptic scenarios that echo my
[25:48] Speaker 1: day to day struggles. It followed me home, a shadow
[25:53] Speaker 1: lurking at the edges of my subconscious. But there's nothing
[25:58] Speaker 1: I can do about it. Hey, police, A strange woman
[26:02] Speaker 1: gave me nightmares about my inadequacies. Why yes, I did
[26:06] Speaker 1: sign a paper saying they could do it. Why do
[26:08] Speaker 1: you ask? It's preposterous. I can't escape it, and I
[26:15] Speaker 1: can never go after them for it. But hey, in
[26:20] Speaker 1: the end of the day, at least I got paid

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