The First Drop Of Rain

Chapter Forty Six

New Years Eve

Thank God Gaia was home, I had missed her so much, and I was even more shocked to hear that her dad had accompanied them back and would be staying until the sixth.

I shoved my hair beneath a beanie as I simultaneously shoved my feet into the new winter boots my dad had gotten me for Christmas. After both of those were on, I grabbed my purse and chapstick before shrugging on the heavy winter jacket. The temperature had dropped significantly as a snowstorm from the top of the mountains slipped its way sneakily towards town. I ignored this fact and grabbed my book while I was stepping from my bedroom door, heading straight down the stairs and out the back door. Dad was at work with Maddie until noon, and that left me dead determined to get over to Gaia's on foot. I figured this way was safer, and it saved gas. Besides, when the snow wasn't almost waist deep in some drifts, the walk was pleasant and at most fifteen minutes as the crow flies, however the snow made things much more difficult.

I desperately wanted to get to Gaia's however, because the dreams were back. I had nearly forgotten about them, they had all but stopped after my encounter last year with the rabid nurse. Naturally, my first reaction was to call Edward, but he was out on a hunting trip and I didn't feel like relaying all of the information to someone else again. Gaia, however, was still new to all of it and could serve as fresh eyes. I grunted as I shoved myself through another drift, not even to the tree line yet. I knew that once I made it to the tree line it would be easier, as the snow was only ankle to mid calf deep in its thickest spots.

As I broke through the scraggly dead bushes and ferns that poked through the tops of the snow, I began thinking about the dream again.

"Hold on Arabella! Hold on!" The voice called. I could feel that we were moving, faster than a human speed for sure, but I couldn't move. Anything I saw was a quick flash, the flutter of golden red hair or the blur of a tree. I fought against the dream, unwilling to experience it to any degree, then found myself in the clearing again. I was staring at myself with red eyes and bloodless skin once more.

"I never wanted this." I said with shock, backing towards the edge of the clearing as a brilliant ray of sunshine broke through the clouds.

"Oh, but you got it." The vampire version of me said with a malicious smile. "Tick tock sweetie. Tick. Tock." She waved her fingers one at a time as the dream dispersed slowly into black.

I had sat up with a short scream, lucky to be home alone for the night again, and looked around my room. Nothing was out of place, nobody was there, and just like nearly every night since last March. I was alone. Some part of me itched to reach for my phone and call Edward, knowing full well that he would be over in mere minutes. I inevitably didn't call, however, resigning myself to laying in bed and scrolling through my phone endlessly until the light of the morning shattered through the window and refracted against the sun catchers that hung from my bed canopy.

Now I stared at the light that filtered through the pine trees. The Cullen's would be trapped today by the sun, the idea was a small comfort to me. It meant that I could think about my dream freely without the surprise guest of Edward traipsing into the corners of my mind.

My knees ached from the cold and the tiredness of being up since two in the morning dragged on my eyes. I sank down for only a minute, with hopes to stretch my legs that were stiffening pulling me down as well. I decided I would press some fresh snow to the back of my neck to shock my system and wake myself up again, but I stopped before I could do it as a ray of sunshine broke through the trees and warmed my face.

Turning my head up to welcome the rare occurrence, I closed my eyes and sighed in content. The smells around me were comforting as I mulled over my dream some more in the blanket like warmth.