My Imagine

Chapter 13

It's dark out, and you and Sawyer are walking down a dark alley. Suddenly, bright lights come out of nowhere. Sawyer pushes you out of the way, and a car comes speeding out of nowhere. You're hidden away safely, but Sawyer's right in the way. There's a sickening crunch, and he falls to the ground motionless. The car moves away, and you let out a scream of horror so loud that your nerves rise on edge. You crawl over to Sawyer on the ground. He's not moving, and there's a trickle of blood coming from the side of his mouth...
"WAKE UP!!!"
You jolt upright in your sleeping bag, covered in sweat and tears. You had a nightmare. Sawyer's hand is on your shoulder. He must have shaken you awake. He looks concerned. "You okay?" he asks. You just shake your head. "S-sorry. It was j-just a d-dream." you gasp. He still looks scared for you. "Some dream," he murmurs. You bring your knees up to your chest and hide your face in your hair. "That was awful," you whisper.
You can't see him, but you can feel him press his side against yours. His gentle hand starts smoothing your hair comfortingly. "You were shaking and screaming. I had to do something to make it stop. What was it about?"
You shudder and close your eyes. "I watched you die," you tell him.
He inhales sharply. "It's okay," he says, his voice full of pity and concern. "I'm right here. I'm not dead. It was only a dream..."
You still refuse to move. The sight of Sawyer's body was too real. Shell-shocked, you stay silently on the ground. Only the sound of Sawyer getting up rouses you. You peek out from under your hair curtain to see that he's walking out of the room. He turns back to look at you. "Gotta take a call." he explains. You nod and begin to come out of your daze. You can't hear what he's saying, but this time it sounds positive. A few minutes later, he comes back in with a smile on his face. "I've got something to cheer you up." he smirks.
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah. You might want to sit down."
"I am sitting. Tell me."
"It's a long story..."
"Well then you'd better get started!"
Sawyer laughs and sits down across from you on the floor.
"I've been wanting to do this for a while. When I was told I had to go back to LA, I didn't want to go alone. I wanted to take along someone who could keep me company, as well as my sanity in a city. Naturally, when I voiced my concerns, I was shot down, but I kept trying. Eventually my manager agreed that it would be a good idea, but only if it was a family member. That's not who I wanted to go, so I kept pushing. These past few days, I've been calling relentlessly to try and bend the rules a bit." Now he smirks and looks at you.
"That was my manager on the phone. He's letting me take you to LA with me next week."
You stare at him, waiting for him to say he's joking, but he doesn't. He just keeps smiling.
"You're joking. You can't be serious."
"I'm serious. You're actually coming with me."
"If this is a joke..."
"I promise it's not a joke!"
"Really?"
"Yes really! You're coming with me!"
You squeal with happiness and tackle Sawyer to the ground. You throw yourself on top of his laughing figure. "Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" you yell. Suddenly, you realize that you're trapping Sawyer to the floor, and you hurriedly get off, embarrassed and blushing. He doesn't seem to notice.
"I'll be working most of the time, but you'll be there watching, and assisting when needed. It's kind of like an internship at the studio, so you won't be bored while you're there. I'm not sure how long we'll be there, but it'll be a month at least."
You sit down in awe. "A month in LA..." you whisper excitedly. A thought comes to mind, and you feel a twinge of fear. "What'll they say? At school? The media?"
Sawyer grins. "I don't care what they say at school. As for media, I have that worked out already. My publicist was all for a disguise, but I thought you might like it better if you weren't hidden."
You give him a glare. "Disguise? Really?" He shrugs back at you.
"Believe it or not, it actually wasn't my idea. It wouldn't have been too extreme, just a wig and some sunglasses."
You laugh at him. "I'm so happy that I don't even care if I have to wear fake hair and some stupid glasses. Now I don't have to worry about you while you're there."
"Um, I think it's the other way around."
"Don't ruin it Sawyer."
"Right, sorry."
Glancing over at the clock on the wall, you're surprised that it's only 10:30 in the morning. You're starving, so you get up and make two bowls of cereal. You envision your upcoming trip, and you burst with excitement. "I can't believe we leave in less than a week," you prompt cheerfully. "It all just seems so surreal."
Sawyer smiles in agreement. "Yeah, it kinda does."
You frown at him. "Why do you want to take me with you and not your family?"
Looking at you nervously, he replies, "My family doesn't know me like you do. Also, it would be more pressure on me if they were there and not someone who doesn't care about my flaws. I need someone who I can tell anything to and not get judged by. I need someone who can calm me down on my most stressful days, or remind me of my limits. I need someone who cares enough to help me, and someone who I care enough about to listen to them."
His next words will stick in your mind for what seems like an eternity.
"I need someone like you. It's not a want, it's a need. You keep me whole when I'm in pieces. You can make me work miracles. You make me feel complete."