My husband and I were on our way back home from a restaurant when we got stuck in a terrible traffic jam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019d had a rough day \u2014 long hours at work, a headache that wouldn\u2019t quit \u2014 so after about fifteen minutes of sitting there, I leaned my head against the window and drifted off to sleep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When I woke up, my husband was getting out of the car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The first thing I noticed was the light.
It wasn\u2019t the dull orange glow of streetlights anymore \u2014 it was dawn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My heart jumped. I rubbed my eyes and looked around. The road was empty. No cars. No noise. No city sounds at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We weren\u2019t on the highway anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Instead, the car was parked on a narrow, dirt-covered road surrounded by tall pine trees. A thin fog rolled over the ground. My breath hitched.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDaniel?\u201d I called, opening the door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n No answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I stepped out, barefoot, the cool morning air brushing against my skin. The car was still running, headlights dim in the mist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDaniel!\u201d I shouted again. \u201cWhere are you?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s when I saw him \u2014 standing a few yards ahead, facing the trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At first, I thought he was talking to someone. His hands were gesturing slightly, like he was explaining something. But when I got closer, I realized he wasn\u2019t speaking \u2014 he was whispering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His shoulders were tense. He didn\u2019t even turn when I touched his arm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDaniel,\u201d I said softly, \u201cwhat are you doing? Where are we?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He turned slowly, eyes wide and unfocused. His face was pale, like he\u2019d seen a ghost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey said we should wait,\u201d he murmured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I froze. \u201cWho said that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He looked past me, into the fog. \u201cThe people. They told me to wait.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n My pulse started to race. \u201cDaniel, there\u2019s no one here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He blinked rapidly, confusion flickering across his face. \u201cThey were just here… talking to me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A branch snapped somewhere deep in the woods. I turned toward the sound, squinting through the fog. \u201cHello?\u201d I called.<\/p>\n\n\n\n No response \u2014 just the rustle of leaves, slow and deliberate, like footsteps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every instinct screamed at me to get back in the car. I grabbed Daniel\u2019s hand. \u201cCome on, we\u2019re leaving.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He hesitated. \u201cBut\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNow!\u201d I said, louder than I meant to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We ran back to the car, slammed the doors shut, and I locked them instantly. Daniel just stared out the windshield, still dazed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I shifted into reverse \u2014 but when I looked in the rearview mirror, my stomach dropped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There was another car<\/strong> behind us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was an old, rusted sedan, half-hidden by fog. The driver\u2019s door was open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDaniel,\u201d I whispered, \u201cwas that car here before?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He frowned, shaking his head slowly. \u201cI\u2026 I don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I could feel my heartbeat in my throat. I pressed my foot on the gas \u2014 nothing. The car didn\u2019t move.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The engine was running, but the wheels were locked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDaniel, it\u2019s not moving!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He leaned forward, inspecting the dashboard. \u201cThat\u2019s impossible\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A sudden bang<\/strong> hit the back of the car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I screamed. Daniel spun around. The rear window was fogged up, but a dark handprint smeared across it from the outside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDrive!\u201d he shouted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m trying!\u201d I cried, slamming the gas again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The tires screeched, finally breaking free. The car lurched forward, throwing us both against the seats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We sped down the narrow dirt road, bouncing over potholes, branches scratching at the sides. I didn\u2019t care. I just wanted to see pavement again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhere are we going?\u201d Daniel asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnywhere but here!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n After what felt like forever, the trees began to thin. The fog lifted slightly, revealing a small gas station ahead. I pulled into the lot, slammed the brakes, and turned off the engine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n My hands were shaking uncontrollably.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The gas station looked like it hadn\u2019t been used in years. Windows boarded up, the sign half-fallen. But the payphone near the entrance \u2014 old and dusty \u2014 looked real enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Daniel got out to take a look. I stayed in the car, gripping the steering wheel like my life depended on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He picked up the phone, dialed, then turned toward me with a strange expression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s ringing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After a few moments, he frowned. \u201cNo one\u2019s answering.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, slowly, he held the phone out to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cListen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I pressed it to my ear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Static. Then a faint voice \u2014 my own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDaniel, there\u2019s no one here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I froze. The exact words I had said to him earlier in the woods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The line went dead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Daniel stumbled back, face pale. \u201cThis can\u2019t be happening.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I turned toward the car \u2014 and my blood ran cold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The backseat was empty. No groceries, no jackets, no purse. Even the car seats we\u2019d installed last week were gone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It wasn\u2019t our car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We both stood there in silence as the realization hit: A rumble broke through the silence \u2014 an engine. Headlights glowed through the fog.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A pickup truck slowed as it passed, the driver \u2014 an old man in a baseball cap \u2014 rolling down his window.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cY\u2019all lost?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I nodded, swallowing hard. \u201cI think so.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He squinted at the gas station. \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t be here. That place burned down fifteen years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Daniel and I exchanged a terrified glance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGet in,\u201d the man said firmly. \u201cI\u2019ll take you to town.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n By the time we reached the main road, the sun was high, warm and golden. It almost felt normal again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The man dropped us off at a diner near the interstate. We thanked him, but when we turned back to wave \u2014 his truck was gone. No tire marks, no dust trail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We sat there for hours, trying to make sense of it all. Eventually, we called a tow service. When they found our car, it was parked exactly where we\u2019d fallen asleep \u2014 in the middle of the traffic jam \u2014 engine off, doors locked, both of us gone for over seven hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That was six months ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We don\u2019t drive late at night anymore. We moved to a smaller town, quieter, safer. But every now and then, when we\u2019re stopped at a red light and the world feels too still\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Daniel will glance at me and whisper, And sometimes, I swear I do \u2014 \u201cDaniel, there\u2019s no one here.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" My husband and I were on our way back home from a restaurant when we got stuck in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3469,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3468","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3468","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3468"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3468\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3470,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3468\/revisions\/3470"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3468"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3468"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3468"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Had we really been stuck in traffic all night?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Stranger in the Woods<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Sound in the Mist<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Then another.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Abandoned Car<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Escape<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Call<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Truth We Found<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Somehow, between the moment I fell asleep in traffic and the moment I woke up, we weren\u2019t where we thought we were anymore.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Road Back<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Morning After<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Epilogue<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDo you hear it?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
a faint echo of my own voice through the static:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n