Don't Tell Me It Was All A Dream (On Hold)

Chapter 4

Sang's POV:

            As my mother dragged me into the living room I started to panic. Since the boys weren't real I didn't have anywhere to escape to if things got really bad. I just hoped that she wouldn't do too much damage and I could retreat to my room quickly.

            She pulled me towards the couch and practically shoved me onto it. She immediately took a seat next to me leaving little to no space in between us. I tensed as she wrapped her arms around my shoulders squeezing just tight enough for it to be painful. She turned towards me and her face morphed into a twisted grin.

            "Sang dear it's so good to have you back. I have missed you so much these past 3 years." Her words were dripping with sarcasm and I was at a loss for words.

            "I, um, I missed you too." I had to force the lie out and each word tasted bitter in my mouth. I nearly whimpered as she squeezed my shoulders even tighter practically crushing the bones.

            "Don't lie to me Sang. It will make your life here so much easier if you just agree to be honest with me. Do you understand that?"

            Without looking at her I nodded slowly. I felt her tense beside me and I knew it was coming before I felt the stinging slap of her hand hitting my cheek.

            "Look at me when I speak to you. When I ask you a question I expect you to answer me. Now lets try this again. Do you understand?"

            I slowly raised my eyes to hers and held her gaze as I spoke. "Yes mother." I practically spat the words out and she flinched slightly.

            She jerked away from me as if she couldn't bear to touch me anymore. As she lurched to a standing position I shifted slightly on the couch and eyed the door, wondering if I could make a run for it. She started pacing for a few minutes but when she stopped I let out a sigh of frustration because she was standing between the door and me.

            She turned towards me and stared a moment before massaging her temple as if I was giving her a headache. After a moment of silence she spoke. "We are going to have to establish some rules around here. You will treat your father and I with respect. You will do exactly what I say no questions asked. You are old enough to take care of yourself so I expect you to do exactly that. You will be assigned chores around the house that you must do every week. You will stay out of my sight unless I call for you. My bedroom is off limits and so is your father's office. You are permitted to explore the woods behind the house but you are strictly forbidden to speak with any other people in the neighborhood without permission. You will make good grades at school and you will not draw attention to yourself. Friends, boyfriends, or any other kind of relationship is strictly forbidden. If any of these rules are broken the consequences will be swift.  I will not have you ruining this family's reputation."

            I almost nodded but then quickly looked up at her and confirmed that I understood. "Now that that's settled we can move on. School starts in one week and you will be a sophomore at Ashley Waters High School." I nearly fainted at what she said but I wasn't exactly surprised that Ashley Waters was real. To be honest I had kind of seen it coming. I just hoped that it wasn't as bad as my dream version of it was. "Your father will take you to get some clothing and school supplies. I expect you to get good grades and keep them throughout the year. No extracurricular activities like band or anything unless absolutely necessary." She paused for a breath and then continued. "Your room is upstairs, the first door on the right. The bathroom is the door after it. I expect you to unpack your bags and then if you get hungry find yourself something to eat. I don’t want to hear a peep out of you for the rest of the day. Now get out of my sight."

            The second she dismissed me I shot off the couch and grabbed my bags. I raced past her and thundered up the stairs. I slowly made my way towards the first door and turned the knob. As I stepped into my room I breathed a sigh of relief. I had managed to get away without much trouble and if I could keep my head down I would be okay.

            I turned to study my room and yet again I was not surprised by the fact that it looked exactly like it had in my dream except it wasn't furnished with anything but a bed with old gray sheets and a lumpy pillow. There were also a few boxes with my name on it that I assumed held my things from before the accident. I set my bags down and began unpacking my few things. Once everything was in place it looked even closer to what it had been like in my dream.

            A sense of deja vu hit me and I sunk down onto the rug and buried my head in my hands. I missed the guys so much it hurt. I felt like someone had ripped out my heart and torn it into a thousand little pieces. The pain and loss was almost unbearable and tears started to slip down my cheeks.  I was about to start sobbing when I heard a creak. My head jerked up and I saw Marie standing in the doorway watching me. I shot up and wiped my eyes staring back at her.

            "Marie." I whispered. "Hi." I took a step towards her but she jerked away. Her face morphed into a look of disgust. I could plainly see the hatred and pure loathing written across her face. She practically snarled at me.

            "You should have stayed in Illinois. Or better yet you never should have woken up." She turned around and stalked out of the room slamming the door behind her. I stood there for a second but then collapsed on the floor sobbing my heart out. After a while I just couldn't take it anymore. It felt like the house itself was suffocating me. I had to get out of there.

            I flew out of my room and raced down the stairs. I threw open the door and ran out onto the front lawn. When I reached the end of the driveway I skidded to a halt. I had been unconsciously running for Kota's house, but I couldn't do that because Kota wasn't real. I would just be knocking on some stranger's door. I was about to turn around when something big and furry knocked me over and sat on me.

            I started to panic but before I could scream I got a good look at what had attacked me. It was a big fluffy golden retriever. I started to feel light headed and shocked but that was nothing compared to what happened next. A strong commanding voice rang out.

            "Max get off of her right now." I gasped I knew that voice. After Max leapt off a familiar figure knelt next to me. "Are you okay?" he asked. I tried to answer but for some reason my voice didn't work. The darkness started to close in and the last thing I saw before I fainted was Kota's beautiful green eyes.