A/N: I had to restart this chapter like, twice. Goddammit.

Credit to a guest review for the idea for this chapter's plot! I hope you know who you are :]
To endershadow98: This will be regular Minecraft and not a Mob Talker story. Hope I cleared things up.

Tyler was never a believer of the paranormal. He was a man of science, not false realities. He could not fathom why humans made silly stories about creatures that had yet to be proven real. Then again, science couldn't prove the stories wrong either, so the matter wasn't very often touched.

However, the night he'd gone home after his meet-up with Desmond, something strange and unexplainable happened. Something that defied all his beliefs and simply could not have been real.

Was it real?

The room was completely dark; Tyler was surely old enough to sleep without a nightlight. It was quiet, so very quiet, the cold spring air still lingering around. He was under his soft blankets, covered head-to-toe in the fabric, just how he liked it. Little did he know that in the room, on his study desk, lay the laptop that would soon bring him a terrifying experience. It was turned off; at least, it was, not until the tiny LED light glittered, showing that it was now in use. The once odorless air was now replaced by an extremely foul stench akin to rotting flesh. Groans could be heard being emitted from the laptop, which was now dripping with a thick, black substance.

All the bizarre stimuli elicited a reaction from the sleeping teenager, who, after tossing and turning in uneasiness, roused and rubbed his eyes to adjust to the dark room. The first thing he noticed was the smell. Extremely pungent and vomit-inducing. He held back the bile in his throat and covered his mouth instead, to look for the source of the stench. Perhaps something had died in the middle of the night?

As Tyler stumbled in the darkness, his eyes watering from the repulsive smell, he noticed the laptop was on. Yet another strange occurrence, he thought. Just as he was about to take a closer look, his foot stepped on something wet and slimy. This made him jump back and inspect whatever he stepped on. Bringing his fingers to the small puddle on the floor, he rubbed his thumb and index finger together, to observe the viscosity of the substance, only to discover it was thick, black blood.

That was enough to make Tyler stumble to the floor in horror. One of his major fears was blood, and the very thought of it sent chills down his spine. But he had to get to his laptop, he had to! It was as if a mysterious force was drawing him closer and closer to the PC. When the teen regained his composure, he rose to his feet, albeit shakily, and plodded towards the laptop. Slowly he opened it, only to be greeted by nothing, much to his surprise. It was simply a black screen, like it was turned off, except it wasn't. The groans from earlier now echoed within the room, as if whatever made the sounds was now within his vicinity.

As Tyler sat on the computer chair and leaned in closer to observe his PC, two gnarly hands, with long nails and rotting flesh, reached out of the laptop screen to claw at its victim. He reacted too late; the fingers were now locked around his throat and he could not breathe. He found himself nearly passing out, from the foul stench and the lack of oxygen, and he felt his life force slipping away, little by little.

I can't survive this, Tyler thought as his arms fell limp. I can't. I can't. It's killing me. I'm dying.

Then, darkness.

The warm sunlight shone through the blinds and on the sleeping body of a teenager. He stirred in his sleep, then finally opened his eyes to the yellow rays of the sun. He blinked, once, twice, numerous times. The teen felt disoriented and sleep-deprived, but because of what, exactly? What had he done last night? Calm down, he told himself. Just try to remember. Let's see... I was out somewhere, with a friend... Desmond, was it? Yes, yes, and I arrived home late and went to bed... And... and...

Memories of the horrors he'd experienced came flooding in his mind. Every single detail was painted so carefully, so realistically, that it would be absurd to call it a dream. Blood. Decay. Strangling. Suffocating. Dying. Dying. The experience was too horrifying, too traumatizing.

Tyler hopped from his bed and went straight to the laptop, where he knew he would find it on his study desk. There it was, but no trace of black blood or pungent odor remained, if they were there at all. Even the PC was turned off, just as Tyler had done that night. Out of fear he opened it and saw the same empty black monitor. No evidence of any sort of hands or arms being there were found. Much to his relief, it was all a dream.

"Just a silly nightmare," he muttered, and almost laughed at himself for believing it was real in the first place. All dreams and nightmares ended whenever someone woke up from it, dispelling the sleeping fantasy immediately once their eyes awoke to reality.

Tyler began his daily (and mundane) routine by going to the bathroom and washing his face. The cool water helped him feel more awake and ready for the day. But just as he wiped his clean face with a towel and combed his wispy black hair, he noticed something in his reflection, something he thought wasn't real.

Strangulation marks decorated his neck like red paint on a white canvas. They were recent marks, too; they would not be disappearing for a while. He ran a finger across one of it, the feeling sending chills down his spine, and sure enough, they were real.

"H-How?" the bassist asked no one in particular. That can't be right. Last night was a dream. There isn't even evidence of... of whatever was trying to kill me. I must have scratched myself in my sleep. Yes, that sounds plausible.

Tyler wasn't going mad, was he? Yet the marks on his neck begged to differ. And they stood out like a sore thumb (sore neck?). He didn't have the necessary makeup to cover it with, however. Everybody would surely notice, and knowing people, they'd definitely ask about what happened, and his privacy would be ruined, which is why he chose a single dorm in the first place, to keep annoying college colleagues away-

Oh, shit. College. Tyler had almost forgot.

What was worse was that he slept in too late, and he couldn't even waste time to eat anymore. Eating wasn't a priority to him, anyway; cleanliness was. Which is why he decided to take a quick shower and get dressed. There was no way to cover up the strangulation marks without makeup, so the bassist settled for a simple scarf. If people asked, he'd just say he had a cold. That would surely drive them away, lest they got the sickness as well.

On his way to the college, he tried calling Desmond, but the other line did not pick up. Instead he called Craig. Luckily the vocalist picked up.

"Craig? I hope you're not too busy, but I need to confirm something. It's a somewhat upsetting matter, so I hope you don't mind."

"Sure! Go on right ahead." The sound of people chattering was heard in the background, but Tyler ignored it.

"See, last night, something strange happened to me."

"Oh, don't tell me this is about a wet dream."

"Wha-? No, of course not!" On the inside, though, the raven smiled at his friend's attempt to cheer him up. "Last night, I think I had a dream. I dreamt that something or someone was strangling me through my laptop screen."

Craig laughed. "You said this was a dream, right?"

"Well, see, that's the thing. I woke up today with marks on my neck."

It was silent on the other line. Finally the brunette spoke. "Did any of the other students come to your dorm last night?"

"Not that I know of."

"Maybe somebody snuck into your room last night and choked you for whatever reason."

'Why? What would they get out of that?"

"Probably because you're what they call a 'nerd'." Shuffling sounds were heard on Craig's end of the call. "Listen, man. I gotta go. If anyone's bothering you, don't hesitate to tell somebody about it. There could have only been one way you got those marks."

Tyler nodded, even though his friend couldn't see it. "Yes, I know. Thank you for your time."

"No prob, man. Stay safe."

Just as they hung up, people already started staring at Tyler, like he was some sort of freak. I'll just have to deal with them, he thought as he entered the college building.

He was used to being stared at, anyway.

A/N: Sorry if this chapter wasn't creepy or disgusting enough for your tastes. Trust me, I did my best.

Enjoy it nonetheless.

Reviews of all sorts are always appreciated!