File: Liminal.reality.zip ... < INSTANT 2027 >

I woke up at my desk. The monitor was black. I felt a sense of relief until I tried to stand up. My legs felt heavy, like I was moving through waist-deep water. I reached for my phone, but my fingers passed right through it.

I looked around my room. The walls were a little too smooth. The shadows didn't quite match the lamp. I wasn't home. I was just in a higher-resolution folder. File: Liminal.Reality.zip ...

The program didn't open a window. Instead, my monitor flickered to a dull, fluorescent hum. The desktop icons didn't vanish; they just seemed to move further away, as if the screen had gained physical depth. I reached out to touch the glass, and my hand didn't hit a surface. It kept going. I woke up at my desk