Dreamscape: Saving Alex
by Kirstin Pulioff
Dreamscape: Saving Alex
Copyright © 2015 Kirstin Pulioff
Cover Copyright © 2015 Elizabeth Mackey Graphics
Edited by Quill Pen Editorial Services
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of the author, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than which is published. Your purchase allows you one legal copy of this work for your own personal use. You do not have resell or distribution rights without the prior written permission of the author. This book cannot be reproduced, copied in any format, sold, or otherwise transferred from your computer to another through upload, or for a fee.
Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.
Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. All characters, places, businesses, and incidents are from the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual places, people, or events is purely coincidental.
First Edition—2015
www.kirstinpulioff.com
Dedication
This book is dedicated to the friendships that shape my life.
To my best friend and husband, Chris—life wouldn’t be the adventure it is without you.
And to my childhood friend, Natalie—Whatsamattmoo.
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
About the Author
Sneak Peek—The Ivory Tower
Chapter One
I pushed the golden nuggets around my plate. It was a bribe meal. I knew it as soon as I saw the table laid out with all my favorite food. Mom was buttering me up for something. I just didn’t realize it would be something that was going to totally ruin my life. And maybe, if I was still five years old, it would’ve worked.
I shuffled the food, pushing one of the nuggets under the mashed potato volcano until it erupted. A slow trail of chunky gravy slid down over the side of the plate.
My mom arched a brow, glancing purposefully between me and the brown puddle congealing on her nice tablecloth.
I ignored her. She had been doing it to me for years. Now it was my turn. It killed me not eating the bribe, but I couldn’t do it. She wouldn’t win. Not this time. As long as I didn’t look at the pile of sweet rolls in the middle, I would be fine. Easier said than done. My mouth watered as I glared across the table.
My mom lowered her napkin and refilled her wine glass. “Alexis, honey, do you want to talk about it?”
I met her gaze coolly. “Do I want to talk about it? I thought we did talk about it last month, when you told me we were moving over winter break. Three months, Mom, that’s what you and Dad said. Not this weekend.” My teeth hurt from clenching, but if I released my jaw, tears would fall. I couldn’t let that happen. Nothing would be worse than giving her that satisfaction.
I focused on the wall behind her, skimming over the sealed moving boxes until I found the corner with the torn paisley wallpaper. Bad idea. I’d never understood why they hadn’t fixed it. Everything else in our house had been upgraded over time, except that. It stood out as the one imperfection. And it was my fault. Why couldn’t they just fix it so we could move on? I brushed my blonde hair out of my eyes, pausing at the slight indentation of the scar at my hairline. It had been seven years now, but still, I hadn’t forgotten. They hadn’t let me.
With that one glance, I was nine years old again, crying in the corner. But I wasn’t that little girl anymore, and I wasn’t going to let her see me cry. No matter how much I wanted to. No matter how powerless I felt. I wasn’t going to admit it. Admitting it only tightened the collar around my neck. No, I wasn’t going to break. Not this time.
“Really Alex, try to be reasonable.” Mom’s voice broke through my thoughts.
“Reasonable?” I heard my voice squeak as I turned my attention back to her. My knuckles tightened around the fork. “You think I’m the one being unreasonable? When you bumped up our move to tomorrow? How did you expect me to react?”
“Civilly,” she muttered, taking a sip of her wine.
I glared at her. “Why couldn’t we wait until break?”
“Sometimes plans change,” she said. She wrung the cloth napkin around her polished nails and pushed her plate to the side. “We have to do what’s best for the family, and right now, that’s moving a bit sooner. Your dad’s already over there. He’s been working long hours and misses us. You can’t blame him or me for wanting to be together. Being apart like this has been hard for us.”
“And what about me? Don’t you care about how hard this is for me?”
“We do, but it won’t seem so bad once we’re all back together and you’re settled in. Dad’s already checked out the school and gotten the house ready for us. He says everyone’s real nice. You’ll make new friends in no time.”
I narrowed my eyes and cocked my head to the side, looking closer at my mom. Her voice was calm, but the slight twitch of her lower lip gave her away. It was her tell. They had known and just hadn’t told me. Well, if they thought I was mad with three months’ notice, how did they expect me to handle this?
“I don’t want new friends or a new anything. I just want to stay here. Can’t I stay with Natalie or something, at least until break? I don’t want to miss the—”
“Honey, that’s just not possible.” She lifted the half-emptied wine glass to her lips.
“Why not?”
“Because we’ve made up our minds. We want you with us. Our family’s been apart long enough. Too long,” she said, finishing off the glass.
“But y-you promised,” I sputtered, wishing my voice didn’t shake.
She didn’t notice. She was focused on filling her empty glass, swirling it until it left a residue below the rim. “And we’re sorry, but this decision’s final.”
“You’re sorry? That’s supposed to make me feel better? How can I believe a word you say anymore? You keep changing things so they’re more convenient for you!” I couldn’t help myself. Upsetting her made me feel better.
She spread her hands out in defeat. “You’re right, and we knew you’d be upset.”
“You knew, and yet you did it anyway?”
“Alex, you’re not the only one in this family. The decision was ours. And it’s final.”
“But—” I floundered. She was right. I wasn’t the only one in this family—just the only one without a c
hoice.
“That’s it,” she said with an edge that told me we were done. She pulled her plate back in front of her, pretending the cold chicken was her favorite. “Now tell me, what happened at school today?”
I pressed my tongue against the back of my teeth, waiting until my chin stopped quivering. “You want to know how school was? Let me tell you.” Anger punctuated each word as I shook my head. “Mr. Phillips loved my sketch. I got a C on my chemistry test. Oh yeah, and Brian asked me to Homecoming.” The last words spilled out before my voice could falter.
My mom stopped mid-bite and smiled. “Oh honey, that sounds wonderful. Hmm, Brian… That name sounds familiar. Is he the one from your homeroom class?”
My mouth dropped open. Was she serious? “Yeah, it’d be great if we had three months left here, like you promised. But now I’ll have to cancel. How could you do this to me?” I shouted, almost falling out of my chair as I pushed away from the table. I stomped past her, avoiding her eyes. It hurt to look at her.
“We’re just trying to do what’s right for the family,” she yelled at my back.
“Whatever,” I yelled down the stairs. They didn’t care about the family, just about them. I slammed the door and nearly tripped over a pile of boxes stacked behind the door. Did she really expect me to pack when my whole world was falling apart?
I threw myself on the bed and screamed into one of my pillows. How could they do this to me? Make me leave my friends, my school, everything familiar? I didn’t care if it made sense to them. It wasn’t fair to me. Where was the reassurance that the cracks widening in my heart would heal?
Tears stained the pillow, and I tossed it to the far corner. I was tired of feeling. Of being torn between extremes. Since they’d told me we were moving, the past month had been a roller coaster of emotions. Swells of fury punctuated by brief moments of relief…then I plunged into the depths of inconsolable grief. I wanted off the ride.
Tonight would be hard enough without giving in to every emotion.
Tonight… The clocked ticked down in my mind. I groaned, flipping onto my back. How could she expect me to pack my whole room, my whole life, in one night? It was impossible.
I looked around the room, the perfect time capsule of my life. Shelves, bulletin boards, and my desk overflowed with stuff. I didn’t believe in empty space. Empty space meant something was missing. Beside my desk, behind a row of rock climbing trophies, a mosaic of bright colors hid the white walls. My abstract art projects curled around a still life, and the ribbons from my competitions fit together like a puzzle.
Mom and I had argued for weeks about that wall. Not too much of a surprise. We argued about everything. But that wall topped the list. She wanted to frame them, to highlight my achievements, as she called it. I refused. I knew the truth. She wanted order and control in the one place I denied it.
She controlled everything else around the house, but not here. My room was off-limits. And they had respected that, but now… now the cardboard boxes leaning against my dresser said something different. I clenched my jaw tighter.
A stray tear broke through my defenses, cooling the flush of my cheeks.
No matter how many times I replayed it in my mind, it never got better. When they told me, I lost it, in the worst possible way. Everything became their fault. It didn’t matter if it was or not, I blamed them. More specifically, I blamed my dad, and he knew it as he boarded the plane.
After he left, I stopped talking to him and my mom. It wasn’t worth the aggravation. I couldn’t even look at them without flipping out, let alone articulate the concerns that really mattered. And anything I said now was pointless. It was too late. I was walking into social suicide, and I’d let them get away with it without a real fight. My social career was over, and it had only just begun, especially since Brian had started paying attention to me.
I smiled. Brian.
Everything about him was perfect. From the disheveled way his bleach-blonde spiked hair shot off in different directions to the deep blue eyes that always seemed to be on the move, I found nothing wrong with him. Even the feature he considered his one imperfection, the small patch of freckles over his nose, matched mine.
We were made for each other. But now I would never know how it would end.
I screamed into the pillows again. No matter how I looked at it, this move sucked. This wasn’t the way it was supposed to go. I wanted my happy ending!
From under the pillows, I barely heard the doorbell. When it rang again, I glanced at the clock by my bed, half-hidden behind a stack of notes and photos. Seven o’clock. Who would be here that late?
Crap. How had I forgotten?
That had to be my best friend Natalie. When my parents told me we were moving, her solution was simple—sleepovers. Just like when we were kids. I had been looking forward to this all week, until my mom dropped the bombshell at dinner.
My feet hit the ground at the same time my mom yelled my name.
“Coming!” I yelled, shooting daggers at the door with my eyes. I shook my head. It didn’t matter. None of that mattered. I ran down the stairs and through the house, focused on the red door at the end of the hall.
When I ran past the living room, I heard my mom’s magazine ruffle. I could picture her raised eyebrows. But I didn't look. She had ruined my day. I didn’t want her to ruin my night.
“Natalie,” I squealed, throwing open the door.
“Geez, took you long enough,” she said, waving back to her mom who was waiting in the car. “Let me in—it’s cold out here. Brr.” She shivered, prancing in place. Her cheerleading skirt swished back and forth as she pushed past me. I noticed her heavy eyeliner and bright lipstick; she must have come straight from a game.
“Sorry. I, uh...long story,” I sighed, closing the door.
“Then it’s a good thing I’m here early. We have all night!”
“Maybe not,” I mumbled.
“What?” she asked, tilting her head to the side. Her ponytail flipped out over her shoulder.
I hesitated a moment too long. Mom peeked in from around the corner, her magazine bookmarked with one of her fingers. “Natalie,” she said, lowering her reading glasses to the bridge of her nose. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
“Me too, Mrs. Stone.” She shifted her sleeping bag and backpack.
“How was the game?”
“You’d never believe it. We won, but barely,” she said. “I mean, the other team must have been all seniors. They were giants! We only scraped by with a last-minute field goal.”
“That sounds nice,” Mom said, drumming her crimson nails against the doorway. “You know, since you’re here, maybe you can help Alexis with her packing.”
“Mom! That’s not why she’s here.”
“Well, it needs to be done. I’m sure she won’t mind helping. Would you?” She looked over at my friend with an overly sweet smile.
“Uh, of course not, Mrs. Stone,” Natalie said hesitantly, her eyes darting between us.
I rolled my eyes. “Let’s go.” I hurried, grabbing her stuff, turning my back to the doorway where my mom stood. That was the last thing we were going to do.
Before we reached the first step, Mom stopped us. “I’m serious. I don’t want to leave it all for the movers tomorrow.”
I glared back and tightened my lips.
“Yes, Mrs. Stone,” Natalie said, politely breaking the silence. “I’m sure we’ll be able to get some done.”
“Thank you, Natalie. I knew I could count on you.” With that reassurance, Mom pushed up her glasses and disappeared back into the living room.
“Come on,” I said, dragging Natalie up the stairs behind me. I shut the door behind us and dropped her bags on top of the boxes. “Anytime, Mrs. Stone,” I mocked, batting my eyelashes for effect.
“What?” Natalie laughed. “One of us has to know how to work your parents.”
“Then I’m glad you’re here because I gave up on that a long time ago.” I paused a
nd looked at her again. “Seriously, I’m glad you’re here.”
“Me too. Now stop that,” she ordered, pointing at the tears poised to fall.
I batted away the tears and leaned back against my door. “This is crap!” I spat, “Can you believe this? We’re moving tomorrow. Not over break like they said.”
“I know,” Natalie said, dropping her backpack along the side of my bed.
“What? How?” I asked.
“Well, the squad was out on the field practicing, and you can see your house from there. We saw the van.”
“Oh,” I said. “But can you believe she just dropped the news to me at dinner and left this pile of boxes in my room, expecting me to pack up? Like it’s that simple?”
“I know, it’s crazy,” Natalie said.
“It’s more than crazy. It’s the biggest load of crap ever!” I yelled.
“Shh…your mom will hear you,” Natalie warned, her eyes wide.
“I don’t care anymore. It doesn’t matter. Nothing I say will change anything.”
“Well, just don’t get me kicked out. Tonight’s too important. Now, where should we start?” she asked, looking around.
“Seriously?”
“Yes, really. I’m here to help and to have fun. I’m not going to let you drag it out. Now start putting these boxes together.”
“Who are you, and what did you do with my friend?” I asked, moving away from the door and falling back onto the bed.
“Don’t even,” she scoffed. “When we planned these sleepovers, we knew you were moving.”
“But it’s different now,” I said.
“Why?”
“Um...because I’m leaving tomorrow, not in December like I thought.” I propped myself up onto my elbows.
She pursed her lips and rolled up her sleeves. “Another reason why we need to do this now.”
“What?” I asked, confused.
“Look, you and I both know your mom’s going to come up here and check on you. Do you want this to take all night?”
“Ugh…no.” I pouted.
“Don’t give me that look.”
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