Lost in Transmission - Little Nightmares AU

Too Much TV Ruins Your Brain | 6

       "No," I whisper. "It won't be okay. It's not going to be okay ever again."

       I can't not see it. I can't go back. I can't erase what I saw, what I know. Mono is the Thin Man, and nothing can go back to how it was.

       I don't even want to look at him.

       Is he still my friend, or is he all bad? Is he still trying to help me, or will he try to trick me? Is he the Thin Man, disguising himself as Mono? Is he telling the truth about his powers, or is he lying?

       If I go through the TVs again, am I actually going to be someplace safe, or will I die?

       I wish I had dropped him.

       No, I would have regretted it.

       I wish I had run away from him.

       There was nowhere to run to.

       I have to go through the screens.

       But I'm terrified to.

       Mono is silent. I don't think he knows what to say to me. There isn't anything that I want to hear, except for, "There's another way out," but that isn't going to happen. The only way to leave is through the TV.

      I make myself take a deep breath. My body feels shaky. What if the Thin Man is there? What if this is a trap? Is he going to kill me? Am I going to die? I don't want to die. I don't want to die! I DON'T WANT TO DIE! I feel like I'm going to scream. I need to say something, or I'm going to scream. What should I say?

       I can't keep thinking the Thin Man will be in there. Mono needs to make me a promise. Friends don't break promises. He can't break this one. I swallow the scream away. "You...you promise me he's not gonna be in there?"

       "I promise," Mono says. He smiles and holds out his hand. "I pinky promise."

       He...he promised! A pinky promise! Maybe...is this...will everything be okay? I want it to be okay. It has to be okay. I have to pinky promise back, because maybe that will make everything okay.

       I'm about to reach out, but then I think of the Thin Man and I can't think of anything else. The Thin Man is Mono, the Thin Man is Mono, the Thin Man is Mono, I can't do this, I have to do this, I have to promise back because that will make the Thin Man go away, but the Thin Man is right here, but he's still Mono, and...I don't....Is he still Mono?

       Before I can think of worse things, I make myself reach out my pinky finger and pinky promise.

       Mono grins. He looks so happy that I almost smile, too. "Okay," I say. Okay. He pinky promised. It's okay. I'm okay. We're okay. "Thanks."

       He isn't bad. He's still my friend. So he has to be telling the truth. Slowly, I look up at the TV. It's glowing, but nothing moves inside. Mono promised the Thin Man is gone, so he has to be. We're going to be safe. It's okay, it's okay, it's okay.

       Wait...will we really be safe? Does Mono know what's on the other side of the screen? What if it takes us back to the Signal Tower? "Where do you think it will go?" I ask, trying to keep my voice calm.

       "I don't know," Mono says. "Anywhere but here, I hope."

       Anywhere but here....Somewhere will be safe. Somewhere will be okay. I need to do this now, before I stop. Before I decide I can't, and start imagining all the terrible things that could happen, and go wrong, and kill us, and we would die, and-