Long Hallway

It stretched out for what looked like forever. No one really knew how it got here, but we all had an unspoken agreement to never walk too deep into it. There were important rooms down that hallway that we needed to reach, like the department manager’s office or the room where the printer was, but that was the farthest that anyone had gone. No one wanted to be the one to test out what would happen if we walked in further. It looked completely normal from the outside of the building. There was no absurdly long section jutting out of the side despite the hall not turning a single time. We frequently joked about it being cursed or magical, but nobody really wanted to find out. In any case, we just tried to avoid going there as much as we could. At least most of us did. 

Once, my coworker Logan decided that he wanted to walk in as far as he could and see what he’d find. I tried to tell him that it was a crazy idea, and we all thought he wouldn’t actually do it. The next day, Logan asked us to wish him luck and disappeared down the dark hall. Everyone else went back to work, but I couldn’t help staring. Would he make it back alive? What a silly question, of course he would. It’s not like the hallway was actually cursed. It was just a stupid story. 

Three days later, Logan still wasn’t back. Strangely, nobody else seemed worried. 

“He’s probably just messing with us,” was something they’d frequently say.

Sometimes they’d sigh and say things like, “What an attention seeker. He was always annoying, but this is too far.”

“You’re seriously worried? It’s just some stupid joke,” was the thing I heard the most. I continued working like normal, trying to act like nothing was wrong.

Five days after Logan left, he stumbled out of the hallway breathing heavily. He had dark bags under his eyes, and his clothes were dirty. He looked horrified. 

“Am I back now?” He trembled. “Can you hear me?” Everyone gathered around the entrance of the hallway. “Can you hear me?” Logan repeated the phrase again and again and again, his voice wavering more every time. We rushed him to the couch and got him a blanket. He clutched it tightly, still shivering, but he wouldn’t say anything else. “Am I back now? Can you hear me?” Nobody knew what to do. Work was canceled for the rest of that day, and Logan’s brother ended up picking him up and driving him home. We didn’t know if he would be okay. 

When I arrived at work the next morning, everyone was standing around the hallway entrance. They were all whispering, pointing, and nobody would say what was going on. I quietly slipped to the front of the crowd. I gazed into the hallway, which used to stretch out into darkness but now looked just like a normal hallway. It had a visible end after around ten or so doors, with lights on the ceiling, completely erasing the eerie atmosphere that used to hang over it. 

We heard footsteps behind us and turned to see Logan walking into the room. He looked completely normal. There were no eye bags or shaky hands. It was like the incident had never happened. 

“What’s going on? Why is everyone staring at me like that? And why are you all crowded around that hallway?” He looked confused. No one responded. 

“You look really put together,” my friend exclaimed. “I’m glad you’re doing well after yesterday.”

“Yesterday? What happened yesterday? I’ve been visiting family for the past week.” Logan stared, blankly. For a moment, I could’ve sworn his fingers looked just a bit longer than normal. Or was it his posture that was different? I couldn't put my finger on it, but he just looked a bit off. The moment I blinked, it was gone. He looked completely normal. “Excuse me?” Logan tapped me on the shoulder. “Why are you staring at me like that?” I realized I must’ve zoned out.

“Oh, it’s nothing, but are you sure you were away for the past week?” I asked hesitantly.

He shrugged. “Where else would I have been?” 

“You’re right, sorry for being nosy,” I sighed and walked to my desk. Whatever. I should probably just forget about it. Nobody else was questioning it anyway.

Unfortunately, it got increasingly hard to ignore every day. Every time I saw him, something else looked off. His legs were too long, his hair was too short, and once I could’ve sworn he had a different eye color for a few seconds. I thought I was going crazy. 

Once, I tried to tell my friend about it. “Is it just me, or does Logan look a bit off sometimes?” I spoke about it as cautiously as possible. I didn’t want anyone to think I was going crazy.

She stared at me, looking puzzled. “What do you mean?”

“I don’t know, it’s just that sometimes when I look at him, he looks a bit… disproportionate?” I wasn’t really sure how to phrase it. “When he arrived a few days ago, his fingers looked strangely long. There were other things too.”

“Are you sure?” She raised an eyebrow. She didn’t believe me. Of course she didn’t. Who would believe something like that? 

That evening, I had to stay later than usual to take care of some extra work. I was exhausted, and I wanted nothing more than to just go home. I sat at my desk, looking at some documents I needed to print. I reviewed all the documents one by one, making sure I had everything I needed, and sent them to print. I was about to get up when I heard Logan’s voice behind me. I turned around.

“I’m leaving now,” he stated, looking right into my eyes.

“Alright then, good night. I’ll see you tomorrow,” I replied, nodding slightly. “Get home safe.” 

Logan nodded in response and walked towards the doors. From the front, it was hard to tell, but I swore his hair looked just a bit longer than it should’ve. It was probably just in my head; I was super tired. I sighed and got up. I walked down the hall to the room where the printer was, humming quietly. 

I paused. I should’ve reached the printer room by now. I stopped humming and looked around. No doors were anywhere to be seen. The hallway continued onward, fading into darkness. I shut my eyes tightly, hoping that my mind was playing tricks on me. A few seconds later, I heard the sound of footsteps right in front of me. My eyes snapped open. Logan stood in front of me, staring blankly at me. He looked a lot like he did when he came out of the hallway a week ago, but now he barely looked alive.

“Logan, what are you doing here? I thought you just left the office.” I trailed off.

He just stared at me. “Can you hear me?” he said, his voice barely audible. It was fragile-sounding, like it could disappear at any second. “Where am I?” 

I couldn’t think of anything to say. I looked behind me. But from both sides there were only dark halls stretching out for as far as I could see. I turned back, but Logan was gone. My heart thumped so loudly I could hear it. I ran. And ran. And ran. I closed my eyes and kept running until I couldn’t breathe. I wasn’t going anywhere. The walls felt like they were closing in on me, getting thicker and thicker. Loud ringing pierced through my ears, and the air got chillier. There was nothing I could do but continue running. Then it got too cold to run. I stopped to catch my breath, and the freezing air felt as if it penetrated my lungs. Panic climbed up my throat, ready to burst into a cry for help, but no sound followed it.