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<h1><font face="Times New Roman"><font color="#00a9ff">Clouds in the Sky</font></h1>
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<h2><font face="Times New Roman"><font color="#6c3483">by Ibidun</font></h2>
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[[Read the story]]
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}<p><font face="Times New Roman">When I drifted off to sleep, or at least I thought I drifted off to sleep, I heard a faint noise. It was a very particular noise. It was a noise that can be heard from somewhere... quiet? I don't really understand. How could a noise be from somewhere quiet? That was when I woke up.</p>
<p>I woke up, and it seems that I am not in my bed anymore. I blinked a few times and blinked some more. This was definitely not my bedroom. I sat up and looked around. I heard the noise again, and I suddenly recognize it as... peaceful?</p>
<p>I don't really know what's going on. Everything around me is different. Something must've happened in my bedroom. All of sudden, when it was the first time I opened my eyes, everything became different. And, everything is easy to describe. It appears that there is a blue sky above me. It was very clear since it was at the very top of me. I looked up and I can tell that it was genuine.</p>
[[Next]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">Everything else besides the blue sky was... clouds. There were clouds everywhere. There was a couple beyond the distance of where I'm seeing and a few more to the left of me. I looked to the right and there were some more too. It seems that I am in the middle of the vast sky! Yes, it really appears to be it!</p>
<p>This is very amazing! I force a smile on my face. As I am gazing my surroundings, I felt something else different. Could it be on me? I looked down at myself and saw that my clothes have changed. I remembered when I was in my bedroom that I wore a black nightgown. Now, I am wearing a white nightgown.</p>
<p>So... is this a dream? My clothes couldn't possibly change by themselves. I looked around me. Everything seemed so real. I am even on a cloud once I have noticed that my clothes have changed. I must've been on this cloud since I've woken up. But before that, I was on my bed.</p>
[[Next->Next2]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">I suddenly remember what my father used to say to me. He said that whenever you feel that something is fake, then it is not real. I want to believe him, but I couldn't. Through my own eyes, I see that everything appeared real to me.</p>
<p>I looked down at the little cloud I am sitting on. How did I ever get onto this cloud? I have no wings, and there must be nothing else besides the beautiful setting I am in. With my bare hand, I felt my cloud. I hovered my hand over the soft bristles. Maybe it was just to be sure that it wasn't that harmful to my hand. I was told that my hand is very sensitive.</p>
<p>As I am feeling the soft, cloudy bristles, it was like little pieces of cotton just kissing my hand. It was a lovely feeling, so I decided to move my hand deeper into my cloud. Now my hand is directly on the cloud, making a translucent print. It definitely felt like a pillow. I never knew clouds could be that soft. Whenever I look up in the sky and see a cloud, I always compare them to a pillow. While I am in this realistic dream, the feeling is nowhere near a pillow.</p>
[[Next->Next5]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">So... this is a dream. But, it couldn't really. Everything might be real. I am even experiencing it while I am on this cloud. Do I even feel the experience? This is a great experience, so it must've taken effect on me. So, I breathe in the possible fresh air and breathe out. The air was pleasant, so it must be taking effect.</p>
<p>As soon as I pause to notice the effect, I frowned. In my body, I feel some sort of emptiness. I decided to spread my arms out wide like I am about to hug a white bear. Maybe this way, the effect can take over my body, and then I'll know that this is real, and not some dream.</p>
<p>While I am spreading my arms out wide, the emptiness was still there. It seemed very uncomfortable when it was put that way, and it was that way when it was felt. While I am doing this position, the emptiness felt very empty. It was like an empty sack.</p>
[[Next->Next3]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">I feel dead, but another thing might work. I decided to close my eyes to imagine the realism of everything I saw just now. It seems to be a great addition to what I am doing. I don't really know what I am doing, but hopefully, this works.</p>
<p>I closed my eyes and reimagined the blue sky, the clouds, and my white nightgown. Even when I close my eyes and reimagine, it was still a pretty picture, but it was even better when you can see it with your eyes open.</p>
<p>While I am closing my eyes, all I can feel is... emptiness. The emptiness was very uncomfortable, so I opened my eyes and stopped what I was doing. What am I doing? What I am doing is ridiculous. Of course, I am dreaming, and now I need to wake up.</p>
[[Next->Next4]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">The feeling is so addicting! I couldn't even let go of the cloud. A random idea popped into my head just now, and it is telling me to shove my hand through the cloud. While that may be surprising, that might not be a very good idea, at least I think it is not. I know that I might feel fear when I imagine that if I shove my hand through my cloud, the cloud may fall apart.</p>
<p>But really, I don't feel any fear. I already know that this is a dream, and all I can feel is emptiness. I already know that my father is right, so I should believe him. This is a dream, so without further thinking, I shove my hand through the cloud with all my might.</p>
<p>My hand successfully went through, but just like that, my cloud broke apart! I saw it move away before my very eyes, and I fell to what I don't even know. While I was falling, I looked up to see my cloud breaking apart.</p>
[[Next->Next6]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">After what seemed like a fast eight seconds of falling, I landed on something else. The texture was soft against my butt. I looked down and saw that is was another cloud. I didn't know I had luck in this different world. What a bonus.</p>
<p>The fall seemed startling, but I already knew it didn't affect me. That was because I felt that it didn't affect me. I felt dead while I was falling. It seemed to be scary, but I didn't feel it that way. It must've felt that I was dead that I can't be scared.</p>
<p>What did I just think? That thought must be scary, but I didn't feel it become that way. I feel dead. I feel dead right now. Can I ever wake up to feel real feelings? That is what I need to do right now. I can't be here any longer, even though the sights are amazing. I close my eyes and open them back up again.</p>
[[Next->Next7]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">Before I wake up, I should look around me one last time. I looked beyond me and saw more clouds in the distance. There seemed to be no sun. I never felt the sun during my time here, but then again, I couldn't feel anything while I am here.</p>
<p>The sky seemed to be serving as the light, and the clouds must be engulfed in the light. They seemed to be more emphasized than normal. They were different than the normal clouds I see when I was awake.</p>
<p>They are unusually like normal clouds, but very bright. Maybe that’s it. Their whiteness is very bright. Maybe that's why I was attracted to them. It was because they were very bright. That's it?</p>
[[Next->Next8]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">This is a mysterious but beautiful world I'm in right now. I've never been attracted to clouds like this before. They are just objects in the sky. They are just puffy cotton or crystal-like streaks of white. How can they be so special?</p>
<p>I decided to look up at the cloud that broke apart, and then my left eyebrow raised up. The cloud is back together again. There are no smaller parts of cotton. It was the whole piece. It is in the same place as before, back together.</p>
<p>Hey! I yelled in my mind. My fists tighten at first, but then they let go. This seemed funny, so I might be playing along. Maybe the cloud tricked me into thinking that it can break when I punch it. Maybe it was just playing with me.</p>
<p>That seems a little cute, but I'm a little confused. Maybe that's the mystery of clouds. You would think that they have a particular function, but they seem to be more than that. What other functions can they possibly do?</p>
[[Next->Next9]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">While I am pondering over this, I hear a noise. I hear a noise developing in my left ear. Was that the peaceful noise? No. That sound is not peaceful. That sound was louder than the average peaceful sound.</p>
<p>I turned to the left of me, but I see nothing. I see nothing, but the noise was getting louder. I decided to turn to the right just to be sure if the noise was a trick. Suddenly, I felt something move past my back. I turned to the left, and there was nothing there again.</p>
<p>That feeling I just had was quick. How can I feel again? I thought I couldn't feel. Whatever could that be? While I am wondering what swooshed past my back, I turned to the right of me and there it was.</p>
[[Next->Next10]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">After I saw it, I got startled. The creature was so huge. It was a deep red with a big, scaly triangular head, yellow eyes with a sharp pupil, and great wings that flapped by the sides of it. While I looked at it in the eyes, it seemed to look back with a focused gaze.</p>
<p>While I was looking at it, some of the feelings are coming back to me now. This is quite a miracle. Now I feel fascinated, scared, and hypnotized. The hypnotization must be coming from the long gaze of the creature.</p>
<p>I don't really know what to do. What does it want from me? The question in my mind was soon answered when the creature turned his back to me. His back was a big and scaly one, and it seemed good enough to ride.</p>
[[Next->Next11]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">Perhaps I can have some fun in this dream. Since some of my feelings came back, I am starting to feel that this wasn't what I thought it was. Nevertheless, I decided to get on the creature's back.</p>
<p>I stood up carefully from my cloud and stepped over on the creature's back. Once I am finally steady on the sturdy platform, the creature suddenly flapped its wings powerfully and flew surprisingly fast. My hair was flying as the creature flew past the many clouds.</p>
<p>While I am seeing all these clouds in a blur, I suddenly feel... realization. And then, all of a sudden, an emerging feeling of excitement rose in me. I am getting my feelings back! Was it all because of the clouds?</p>
[[Next->Next12]]<p><font face="Times New Roman">By the rate the rushing ride is going and the blurry images of the clouds speeding through with us, the effect the clouds are having on me made the excitement feel better. My heart is pounding in my chest. It was so strong that it felt like it can be grasped in my hand. As I was riding with the clouds, I am starting to feel that this isn't a dream. This is an experience!<p>
[[End]]<font face="Times New Roman">Thank you for reading! The story can be found here---><a href="https://www.wattpad.com/story/141096973-clouds-in-the-sky">Clouds in the Sky</a>. Share the short story with social media like:
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<p>If you want to go to Ibidun's website or contact, visit these websites.</p>
<p>http://ibidun.weebly.com</p>
<p>https://ibiduno.wordpress.com</p>
<p><font color="#6c3483">Bye!</p>