The Lion King In The Human World Part 3

The Recovery.

A FEW MONTHS LATER

RANI

I woke up in a cold sweat. I've been having nightmares about that day ever since it happened. I was fine clearly and Dick and all his friends involved were behind bars now, but I still have nightmares and flash backs to that day. I'd been working through this with Kion, going to therapy and those things. Kion even let me into his apartment so I'd feel safer. But the nightmares continued.

I grabbed my stuffed lioness Fluffy and held her close to my heart. Holding her helped with the nightmares. I looked at the clock, three forty seven a.m. I could take my sleeping pill, so that's nicer than most people have been to me. They don't get what I'm going through. I trusted Dick and he betrayed me. 

I got out of bed went went to get water to drink with my pill. Kion stirred when I got up. His presences also helps me with nightmares and flashbacks, the sight of him and even just his voice calms me. That's the only reason we're in the same bed. No romance is happening under those sheets. I cannot make that clear enough.

Once my sleeping pill was swallowed and I was back in bed with Kion and Fluffy, I drifted to sleep again. No nightmares, but I did have another one of those spicy dreams with Kion I'd have now and then. But as I said before, there's no romance under these sheets. Once my nightmares stop, we'll try with him in his actual room and if I don't have nightmares after that, I'll try going back to my dorm. Though Kion's a better room mate than my dorm mate.

THE MORNING

We were almost ready to leave, literally in the elevator, when we heard about the quarantine. Mine and Kion's phones both had updates about the city wide quarantine. Two weeks of not being aloud to leave our homes except for necessary reasons. Classes were canceled until further notice. Kion and I just went back up to our apartment. 

Kion's apartment, I meant Kion's apartment. I don't know why I said it was our apartment. 

I hung up my rain coat up and dropped my bag on the kitchen counter. "Well," I said, "That changed my day."

Kion sighed. "Yeah," he said, "I have no idea what do now. It looks like we're stuck in here for two weeks."

I sank down on the couch and I had to sigh. Sure, I like Kion, as a friend, and I'm so grateful that he helped with the whole Dick thing, but I don't like being stuck somewhere for two weeks. I still remember that two weeks was how long Dick would have left me in that hut. Now I was stuck in this apartment with Kion for two weeks. It's too much alike for me.

THAT EVENING

KION 

Today was the most boring day of my life. Rani and I just sat around and got ahead on our college work. But we were done by night and after dinner, we had nothing to do. I didn't have a T.V. because I didn't think I really needed one for college. Almost all the books are college books, the only non-college books being my copy of Dear Taka and Rani's diary. Lastly, our computers are already filled with college tabs and already wrecking the hard-drives. 

It was boring. 

I looked over to Rani as she wrote a new entry into her diary. The last time I was near a girl's diary, I ended up with my first girlfriend. But Rani clearly had no interest in me, so my spicy dreams with her will stay dreams forever. I went back to staring out the wide window to where cars usually honked and beeped at each other and people talked, but it now was quiet.

Then I saw the sky. The street lights weren't turned on because no one really cared to turn them on. But with them off, I could see stars like I could at home. I opened the window and looked up at the sky. 

"Hey Rani," I said, "You gotta see this." Rani put down her pen and came over, diary and all. She looked down at first, then I aimed her head upward. "Look at the stars."

"Whoa," Rani said, "I didn't know there were so many stars in Texas. I still see more at my new house in Maine."

"Rani," I said, "Can't you just say home? You've lived in Maine for almost two years now."

Rani  set her diary on the windowsill. "I don't know," she sighed, "Maine just doesn't feel like home to me."

I had looked down at her and accidentally read her diary. I didn't read much, just eleven words.

My dreams about Kion making love with me are still happening.

She was having those kind of dreams too? Did she still like me? I then did something that reminded me a lot of something that Bunga would do and just started talking.

"Rani," I said, "I have to tell you something."

"What?" Rani asked.

I just had to be crazy brave and stupid like Bunga here. "I've kinda been having these crazy dreams about you," I started, "Long story short, neither of us were wearing anything in those dreams."

Rani whipped around, her braids hitting me. She had braided those earlier today and OW! "Really?" she asked.

I felt myself blush. "Yeah," I said, "I don't know why."

Rani looked down at her diary and took a deep breath. "Me too," she said.

"Really?" I said, pretending like I didn't read her diary so she won't kill me, "You've been having the same kind of dreams?"

Rani nodded. "And just so you know, I kinda like them."

I wrapped my arms around her. "I kinda like them too," I said, "You looked really pretty in them."

Rani closed her dairy, not before I saw a "Mrs. King" though, and took my hand. "You looked so strong and handsome in my dreams," she said, "Are you that strong and handsome in real life?"

"I hope so," I said, "If I don't measure up a dream, that will hurt. The dream's not even real."