That night, Grey dragged me into another one of his dreams. Palm trees surrounded me, along with discomfort, as I sat down on the ground beside him. The sky was dazzling, but debris lay all around us. It was as if a tsunami had torn by here.
"Why are we here?" I asked.
"This is where she drowned," Grey said, leaning his back into a tree. My throat tightened as I glanced around me. "She drowned in the tsunami."
"Who?" I whispered. His eyes watered, but not a single tear touched his face. Instead, they suddenly gazed into my eyes. "Sasha."
I expected her to be behind me, but she wasn't. So I returned my focus to Grey, and his soft lips suddenly encased mine.
Surprised, I shoved him away. "What... what are you doing?"
"What do you mean, Sasha?" he asked. His dream was a bit erratic that night. One moment he's talking about someone who drowned; the next minute, he's thinking about Sasha.
"I'm not Sasha," I said slowly. "I'm Hazel." His eyes narrowed, and then he leaned forward. "You threw juice at me." There we go. Grey was back.
"You called me Mutey."
"So?" he asked. "Me giving you that nickname justifies it?"
"Yes."
"So you think you're allowed to humiliate me, and I should just take it?"
"You think you're allowed to insult me, and I should take it?"
"Insult you?" He looked at me angrily, even though he was the one who caused bad blood between us. "I haven't done anything to you, Hazel. You've started with me." I rolled my eyes and then imagined a hole where the tree once was, not even bothering to tell him to wake up.
"Sure I did," I said with a humorless laugh. "In you go."
***
Surprisingly, the week passed without incident and without me getting dragged into any more dreams with Grey. He was my least favorite person at the moment and the last person I wanted to share a dream with anyway.
"You look tired," Ana said as I forked through my lunch that Friday. I looked up and shook my head, offering her a smile. "Seriously, what's wrong?"
"Nothing," I signed and meant it. I didn't know where Ana's comments were coming from, and I was slightly frustrated, signing, "I'm fine." I could tell she didn't believe me. Everybody at our table looked at me like a puzzle with a missing piece. "Honestly!"
Grey said, "Everybody, shut up!" We all looked and saw him standing at the table. I immediately cringed in horror, knowing someone would eat on it. That would be the first thing you thought of, you fool. I laughed at myself internally. "I'm having another party at my house tomorrow. Juniors and seniors are invited to join us." I rolled my eyes and faced away from him.
"Get off the table," one of the teachers shouted from across the room. Grey hopped down nonchalantly.
"We have to go," Mindy said as everybody resumed talking. "We'd be lame if we didn't."
"I'm not going," I signed. "I don't want to be around Grey."
"She said she's not going," Blake translated.
"You have to go," Mindy whined. "I need my party buddy!"
"Your party buddy will be home, getting work done," I signed as Blake translated.
"I'll change your mind, my sweet, I promise."
"She doesn't want to go," Andy insisted. "Don't pressure her." She winked at me in response. She and I both knew that I was going to end up going.
***
That night, I had the nightmare.
We stood in the Mobile gas station, right outside the store. My dad went stumbling away from me as I was locked in the confines of an unknown man. I nearly wet myself as something pressed against my temple; I knew it was a gun.
"Give me the money right now," the masked man said, gun pointed at my head, "or I'll kill her." I looked up at my father and his helpless eyes as he quickly dug into his wallet.
"Faster!" the man ordered.
"Daddy," I said, tears escaping my eyes.
"It's okay, baby, I'm going to give the nice man some money, and we're going."
My father kept digging in his wallet without producing any money, which caused the robber cock his gun. "You have no money on you?" he asked.
"No, I'm so sorry; if we could just get to a bank or something, I'll get you the money," my dad said quickly. "I just have to get my card."
"Not necessary." The gun went off before I could process it, and I screamed and covered my ears. My father crumpled down before me. Droplets of warm liquid soaked my face, and I shut my eyes.
I couldn't speak anymore. The man fled without another word, leaving me in the cold night air with no voice and a dead father.
I woke up, sweat drenching my body and tears escaping my eyes. I bit my lip and closed them, willing the harsh memory away. I didn't want to think about it anymore—I had gotten so good at forgetting it, but it seems right when I think I've made some progress, that dream returns.
My dog stirred in bed next to me, his tail wagging as I sat up. I gave him a reassuring pat before walking off into the bathroom.
Water-soaked my skin as I splashed it onto my face. Its coolness refreshed me, the last thing I wanted at the moment, being that I was so tired but was needed all the same. The sting of the dream and memory was already fading away due to my waking up.
Gunfire rang out again as my dad crumpled to the floor. I shook away the image, not even having enough energy to cry. I had cried so many times over it, and it never made a difference; the robber took my father's life, and he'd never come back.
The cops tried hard to communicate with me at five years old, asking me what he looked like if I could remember the color of his eyes, hair, and skin. But I couldn't answer. The more they pressed, the more distressed I got. My mom finally gave up for the sake of my mental health. Once they finally got the CCTV footage, they realized it would've been impossible for me to see him. He wore a mask and sunglasses.
The case was hopeless.
I went back into my room, tears threatening to spill as my chest ached with pain, but I sucked them back in. Tears wouldn't bring him back.
Nothing would.
He's dead.
I finally wanted Grey to desperately drag me into one of his dreams because I couldn't think about my dad anymore. The thought of him burned me. It's almost like I was less capable of handling it at 17 than five.
Finally, after laying back in bed, tossing and turning, I shut my eyes and got some peace.
YOU ARE READING
Little Sweet Dreamer
Teen Fiction"Oh," he said, as my back hit the wooden wall. Damn it, of course. With nowhere to go, his arms locked me in between him and the wall. He stared down at me as he said, "So you're trying to piss me off?" His lips were surprisingly close to mine. No g...
