REM // Van McCann

32. Faceless People

Once the programming was complete and checked once again for accuracy, I brought out the anesthesia and the dream kit. I grabbed the canister and entered the dose, making sure it matched what the program calculated for me. Then I brought out the probes, connected them to the computer, and brought them out to where we were sitting.

"You'll be sitting in that seat," I said, pointing at his seat.

He immediately sat down as if he was afraid he'd forget his seat assignment. I followed the probes to the computer and made sure our settings weren't switched. Roman's a bigger man than me. We're about the same height but he's got a much bigger build so he'll receive more anesthesia than I will. Nothing awful will happen if they're switched. I will just fall into a deeper sleep and he might have difficulty staying asleep. Once we were good to go, I asked him one more time if he was comfortable going under (to which he said yes). I set the delay to ten minutes which should be plenty of time to put the probes on and help calm his nerves.

"This probe right here with the tape wraps around your index finger. It doesn't matter which hand you choose but I'd choose the one that makes things less tangled," I instructed, holding up the probe and wrapping it around my finger. Roman looked for the probe with the tape and wrapped it around his index finger. "The remaining two are interchangeable. One goes on your wrist like this." I pulled my sleeve up and put the probe on and Roman did the same. "And the last one goes on your temple." Now that the probes were in place, we could move on with the gas mask.

"This mask delivers the anesthesia with oxygen. Just put it over your nose and mouth and adjust the straps so it fits nice and snug on your face." I demonstrated so he could follow along. "You can also remove the probe on your temple if it makes putting your mask on easier but don't forget to put it back." Putting the mask on first was probably the smarter move but for some reason, I always want to put the probes on first. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," he replied, his voice slightly muffled by the mask.

"We've got five minutes until the anesthesia will be delivered. In the meantime, try to relax. I'm going to find you and we'll go over those two concepts."

Roman nodded his head and stared at the countdown. There was no doubt he was nervous and didn't know what to expect. The confidence he exuded earlier was now gone.

-

I was in a corporate office. The floor had an open plan full of cubicles and everyone was too busy working to notice me standing there. My guess was that this was where he worked but I looked around and couldn't find him. There were personal offices that lined the edge and I suspected he was in one of them since he seems to be in a higher position. I began walking slowly, reading the names on the door—all of which I didn't recognize. It wasn't until I reached the opposite side that I finally found him. His door was closed so I knocked on the door.

"Just a few minutes please," I heard him call from the other side.

There were low voices that I couldn't make out and I tried to refrain from eavesdropping on their conversation. After a few minutes, he opened the door and a woman walked out. She saw me and smiled shyly, ducking out of the way and I had to remind myself not to make any assumptions. Roman looked at me and I could see that I was a familiar face because he smiled.

"You don't work here," he teased.

"Who were you talking to earlier?" I questioned, turning around to see if I could spot the woman who left. Roman paused, no doubt wondering why I was curious about her.

"I was talking to Heidi, one of our staff accountants. Her last day was last Friday so I'm wondering why she's here."

He was no doubt using what he learned to determine if he was dreaming or not. Meanwhile, I was stood there thinking he was a cheater when he was just dreaming about work and thinking about an employee who no longer works here.

"You're doing a great job. You've spotted two things that are off. I'm here when I shouldn't be and you saw someone whose last day was last week. Remember to not get carried away by all the details or you'll wake up. However, I want you to find two more things and then we're done."

We were moving fast. We're not even ten minutes in and he already spotted two things wrong with the dream. He's quick to learn like Florence and I felt like shit for thinking he'd be slow to learn. There's a reason why he's so high up in the company.

Roman began pacing around the floor, watching the people busy at work. No one paid us any attention. Even though it doesn't mean anything when they look at you, I always get an uneasy feeling that they can tell I'm not supposed to be here and turn on me.

"I don't recognize half these people. Some of them don't even have faces. Do you see that? It's fucking creepy."

Roman pointed to a man in the corner. He was typing away despite not having eyes to see what's on the screen. I was brought back to the first time we saw faceless people. We were creeped out but it makes sense if you think about it. Have you ever had a dream with people you don't recognize? When you're dreaming, none of their features stand out to you. This person is a total stranger. And when you wake up trying to recall what they look like, you can't. I reckon this is what's happening to Roman.

Bondy said "faceless people" is used to describe this phenomenon. He's written extensively on it, highlighting all the possible scenarios and using his own dreams as an example, along with Larry's. Of course, like all dreams, the meaning of it depends on the context. Do you recognize this person and how does this person make you feel? Your face defines who you are; it's your identity. If someone is faceless, it means you're confused about this person and their intentions.

"Do you recognize this person?" I asked, testing this theory.

"He doesn't have a fucking face! How am I supposed to recognize him?" Roman fought back.

"What about the clothes he's wearing? Do you know the person that actually sits in that seat?"

"I don't...oh." He stopped once he knew what I was getting at. "This is Charles. I'm sure I've seen him wear this outfit before and this is his seat."

"And how do you feel about Charles?"

"I'm undecided about him. He's young and very smart but not very motivated."

If Bondy was here to hear that, he'd be very pleased with himself. I made a mental note to include that in the report. Charles suddenly stopped typing, sensing that he was being watched. He turned to face Roman and Christ, he's terrifying to look at. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. It's normal for people in your dreams to interact with you but something was off with this encounter. If you're too focused on the fact that you're dreaming, these people will feel it too and that's exactly what's happening. They're becoming aware they are pawns in a dream.

"You need to stop thinking about him," I said, grabbing his arm and leading him away.

"What just happened back there?" he asked. "That was really creepy."

"Charles is becoming aware that he's in a dream. That's what happens when you're fixated on someone long enough."

"What happens if I continue thinking about him?"

"Nowt. This is just a dream, remember? The worst that can happen is that you'll wake up but he can't physically hurt you. I can't say the same about emotional trauma, though," I told him and he nodded his head, remembering all the things I've warned him about. "Let's find one more sign you're dreaming."

I was still holding his arm but no longer felt him. My hands were grasping at nothing now and I tried to remember if he somehow got out. When I turned around, he was nowhere to be found but Charles was sat there staring right at me.