Five Full Seconds

Earthquake. My bed is shaking, I'm shaking, and the window's blinds are sitting perfectly still. Hm. What's going on here? I hear thumping, a pulse perfectly synced to the quick techno beat at a local rave. Must be party music? If it is, must be a one man band. My pulse. That's my heart! Bed, chest, head, eyes blur to the rapid tump tump tump tump tump tump of blood expanding my skin. I'm laying perfectly still, despite my eyelids. What happened? I listen, hear nothing. What brought me back to reality? Some danger close?

Nothing. There is nothing there. Are you sure? Wait. Yes. Just me. And I'm breathing, fast and hard. My sense kicks in and I see - through color-washed and watery-eyed sight - the edge of my pillow, my mattress, my desk. My bed is still shaking. Someone thumps my spine with a rubber triangle, electric shock seizes me (my brain sends my entire body a panicked signal to move because it thinks I'm dying, thanks Wikipedia). Lasts 0.1 seconds. The...th... what the... fuck? I am ready to kill. I just did, I think. But I'm hurt, badly. I can feel blood on me, erm... wait. (My memory has a one second half-life) Sweat. Sweat? Sweat.

Uuuugggggghhhhrollmyeyeshhh Goddamnit... I'm sweating like a whore in church. Check the temperature, it's fine. I'm covered with only a sheet. Still nothing here. Something happened. I don't know what. Probably a dream, PTSD, stressed about something, etc. Oh well. This is why I don't like to be around people. Back to bed. I haven't moved.