I was in pain. The back of my head ached and my muscles screamed in agony. The room was pitch black, but I could still feel the familiar cinch of my belt around my waist. Suddenly, there came a voice.

"Riley Judith Cooper. Female. Age 19. Born on April 8. Fourth degree black belt. Suffers from..." the voice paused, chuckling lowly. "Bipolar disorder. Type 1"

"That is correct. Why am I here?" I questioned.

"Well, Rileybug," the voice snickered, "We need you."

"Who is 'we'? The mafia? And how the fuck do you know that nickname?" I asked, growing more agitated by the second.

A figure emerged from the dark. Brown, chin-length hair pulled into a short ponytail framed a young, tired face with blue eyes. A curvy body with some weight on it held a sense of anxiety in its body language. This girl, although younger than me, looked exactly like me. She smiled, coming closer.

"Reese Olivia Rocha, female, age 14, born on April 8, brown belt, suffers from Bipolar Disorder type 1," she stated as her smile faded, "I'm one of your past lives."

"What... what do you mean by 'past life'?"

"If you die, you get replaced, and the entire world's memory of you is replaced with another version of you. The next you lives on, and you stand on the sidelines, watching them build the life that was supposed to be yours," Reese stated solemnly, starting to cry.

"So... you're dead?"

"Yep. But that's not the point," she said, wiping her eyes. "Slenderman needs you."

"Who now?"

"Slenderman. He's basically the big head honcho of this place. Don't get scared when he talks to you through your mind. And don't mind the static, you'll get used to it. Oh, he also has no face and big tentacle thingymajigs that come out of his back. He's also REALLY tall, and I didn't like that at first because it reminded me of my dad, but he's way nicer than my dad. But that's besides the point," she paused, taking in a deep breath. "I'll turn the lights on now, I just wanted to be dramatic."

The lights went up, and Reese extended her hand out to me. I took it and stood up, clutching my chest out of the fear that I might fall. I followed Reese down the hallway, all the way down to a set of double doors.

"This is the office. Just go in, he's waiting for you. And, please, whatever you do, don't scream."

And with that, Reese headed down the hallway.

"Thanks..." I muttered under my breath.

Should I trust her?

A/N: Should you? also, that's what i mean by reader/author mashup. sorry for the short chapter, but make sure to leave a review with your decision!