January Dreams

by Carrigan Richards

  Jonathan waves his hand for the phone.

  “I gotta go, Dad, love you,” I quickly say and give Jonathan the phone.

  My door opens and it’s Ron. He never knocks. “There are still dishes to be washed,” he tells Jonathan, not caring that he’s on the phone.

  Jonathan nods and says goodbye to our dad.

  Ron looks at me. “Were you on the phone?”

  “No.”

  “Remember you aren’t supposed to.”

  “I know. He was just relaying messages.”

  Ron walks out and I’m sure he’ll tattle to mom that I was on the phone. He’s such a kid.

  “Thanks,” I tell Jonathan. Even though we’ve had our fair share of fights, we are close. People say we look alike, but I don’t see it. He’s taller than me by quite a bit. He’s lanky and not very athletic. He prefers to play video games over actual football any day. He kinda keeps to himself, but with work and being a freshman in college keeps him busy. He’s saving enough money to move out by May. I don’t want him to leave me here alone though.

  “No problem. I was thinking about going up Thanksgiving weekend actually.”

  “Yeah, sounds good.”

  “Cool. Just don’t do anything stupid to get you grounded.”

  I roll my eyes.

  He smirks and leaves.

  After doing homework all night in the boring silence, I feel as if my eyes are going to pop out of my head. I take my shower and curl up under the blankets. Savannah gets comfortable and I close my eyes. The dreams with Casper come back to me. I still remember every little detail. I groan and roll onto my side. Why can’t I get him out of my head? He teased me constantly when we were kids and spread rumors about me. The last (and only) guy I dated, Matt, dumped me because he thought I cheated on him. He told me Casper found me with some other guy. Douchebag Casper. Why would I have a dream about being in love with him?

  I turn on the lamp beside my bed, pull out my journal from underneath my mattress, and grab a pen. Writing has always helped me cope with my stressful life. I constantly change the location of my journal, because my parents have read it before.

  Even though it’s been a while, I’m excited to write out a new story idea. I can’t wait to see where it’ll take me.

  Maybe if I write down my dreams, it’ll help me not focus on them so much. I don’t get my mind’s current obsession and why all of a sudden Casper Truitt is paying attention to me. Why can’t it be Vincent?

  Maybe I should try to talk to him more. Take risks. Isn’t that what being a teenager is all about? Challenging yourself and learning who you are? I don’t even know the guy, but I felt a connection. My heart pounds at the thought. Will he think I’m weird? A freak? I’ve asked guys out before, but they always only want to be my friend, which means they never want to talk to me again.

  But Vincent seems different. I set aside my journal and turn off the light. I’m going to talk to him tomorrow.

  Chapter Five

  Standing on a cliff, darkness shrouds me except for the full moon hiding behind the tall trees. I hold myself as if it will make me warmer, but the strong gale pushes against me, almost knocking me over. I look over the cliff and gasp when I see several feet below, waves crashing against sharp pointed rocks and trying to reach me. I take a step back, but I collide with something hard. I try turning around, but it’s no use. Hands force me to stay straight.

  “Don’t scream,” a dark gruff voice demands in my ear. He presses something hard into my back and leads me back toward the cliff.

  “Please don’t do this,” I beg.

  The waves continue to rumble below, and I have no way out. I close my eyes and cold tears trail down my face.

  “It’s finally your time to die, traitor.”

  “No, please!” I wail and push against him but like a statue, he doesn’t budge.

  The man whirls me around to face him, but all I can see are dark eyes under a hood. “He doesn’t love you, Megan. He used his magic to make you fall in love with him. He’s an Elf. That’s what they do.”

  I narrow my eyes and gasp. “No. You’re wrong.”

  The man laughs. A deep throaty laugh. “You are a fool. A sad, pathetic fool if you ever believed he loved you. He only wants the Jewel. He’s only using you as leverage.”

  A gunshot sounds and the man releases me. I lose my balance. My heart jumps to my throat as I fall. I grasp the edge of the cliff and small rocks break and fall past me. They always say don’t look down, so I look straight up into the indigo starry night, holding on so tight.

  “Megan.” Casper calls and grabs my wrists. His beautiful face takes the place of the stars and he hoists me up until I am safely in his arms. Holding me close, he kisses me fervently. “I can’t lose you. This is getting too close. We have to keep going. There could be others.”

  The man on the ground groans and I stiffen. We get to our feet and I cautiously walk toward the man, but Casper holds me back. I can’t see the man’s face.

  “You think you’ve won,” he says through a thick garbled voice. He coughs and I see a pool of liquid spreading around him under the bright moonlight. “The night of the eclipse, the war will start.”

  Casper takes my hand and pulls me through the thick forest, picking up his pace the further we get. It is hard though, running in such a long dress.

  “He will find you, Megan,” I hear the man bellow behind us. I gasp and look back. I lose my footing and crash to the ground.

  “Megan.” Casper helps me to my feet.

  Is the man right? Is Casper only using me? He wants me to go back home. He wants me to forget about him. But why is he grasping my wrist, holding me against him as we run away from my home?

  I open my eyes to my room and realize I was dreaming, again. The dreams are increasingly scary. And more confusing. I try to make sense out of it as I ready for school, but nothing comes to mind. My nerves are a little on edge since I keep picturing the creepy, dark figure trying to kill me. His large body stalking toward me with a gun in his hand. I could never see his face. I always feel so incredibly safe with Casper in my dreams, but now, I feel like there isn’t anything keeping me safe. I try to shake the ridiculous impending doom sensation, but I can’t.

  The dark morning mirrors my mood with its dreary rain. It’s one of those days where I want to curl up in my blankets with my dogs and read.

  “Good morning.” Cherry smiles but it fades. “Geez, you look hungover or something. What did you do last night?”

  I trade my backpack for my history book and notebook. “I dreamed that someone tried to kill me.”

  “Whoa. Damn, Megan. Again? Are you okay?”

  I shake my head. “Not really. It scared me.”

  I can’t help but look around at everyone like they’re going to appear from the shadows with a gun pointed at me. Cherry purses her lips to the side, and I see the concern in her blue eyes. She places a hand on my shoulder, and I jump. She removes it. “Whoa, it’s me. It was only a dream. It isn’t real. Keep telling yourself that. I’ve had pretty scary dreams and that’s what I gotta do to calm myself.”

  I close my locker and we walk to history class.

  “Was…he in it?” she asks.

  I nod. Speaking of Casper… “How can I figure out if he wrote that note? I don’t want to go up and ask him.”

  “He probably wouldn’t tell you the truth anyway. Maybe ask Vincent to get a writing sample.”

  I did tell myself I would speak to Vincent. Maybe this is a good excuse. I ponder it all through class, and when the bell rings, I finally decide to do it.

  Once I reach the office, I catch him as he’s packing up his books. When he sees me, he smiles and blushes.

  “Just the girl I wanted to see.”

  “Me?”

  He chuckles. “What’s up?”

  “Um, I was wondering if you could help me before you leave.”

  “Yeah, sure. I can walk you to class.”

  “Well
, actually…” I hold up the note and realize that I don’t want him or anyone to read such a personal note. “Is there any way you could show me a sample of Casper Truitt’s handwriting?”

  He crumples his face before replying. “Sure. He’s always checking in late, so I’m sure you can check his signature on the sign out pad here.”

  “He would check in late. How does he get away with that? Does his daddy invest in the school or something?”

  Vincent smirks as I check the sign out pad. I find Casper’s signature and I mirror the note against the writing. It’s a match. So now, it’s obvious that Casper is playing a trick on me. Fantastic. Here I am dreaming about some douchebag and I can’t get him out of my head while he decides to mess with me. Again.

  “Is something wrong?” he asks, probably because of the scowl on my face.

  “Vincent, why can’t they all be nice like you?”

  Blood flushes his cheek. We walk together down the hall. “I was wondering if I could call you sometime,” he says.

  My heart jumps and I smile. “Sure. Except I’m grounded right now, so no one can call.”

  Vincent nods and frowns. “I see.” He starts to turn away.

  “Well, don’t you want my number?”

  He glances at me. “Sorry. I guess I thought—”

  “I wasn’t making that up. Really. Give me your phone.” He hands it to me, and I enter my number into his phone. “My parents are ridiculously strict. They ground me for looking at them wrong,” I joke.

  Vincent smiles, his eyes gazing into mine. “That sucks.”

  I shrug. “You start expecting it after a while.”

  “Don’t you have a cell phone?”

  “I do but they took it away.”

  “When can I call you?”

  “Monday.”

  “Three more days.”

  “Yes. I have to be extra good this weekend. Shouldn’t be too hard since I’ll be at work most of the time. Anyway, I gotta go.”

  “Have a good day.” He smiles awkwardly.

  “You, too,” I say and leave.

  I head to class, excited that he asked for my number. If I keep being late to class, Mr. Landry will probably start to guess something is going on between the office aide and me. At least I hope that will be true, I smile to myself. My heart swells and I feel good.

  “Casper wrote the note,” I tell Cherry as we count the money in our tills inside the grocery store office. We always chat while we count before hitting the registers.

  “What?”

  “Yeah. Who knows what kind of sick joke he’s playing?”

  “Ugh. I can kick him.”

  I shake my head. “It’s not worth it. Vincent asked me for my number, though.”

  Cherry’s jaw drops and she playfully punches me.

  “Ow!”

  “Why didn’t you start with that? Omigod, that is so exciting.”

  “I know.” I smile, loving how good I feel.

  “When Vincent asks you out, you must tell me every single detail.”

  I roll my eyes. “Aye aye captain.”

  “I wish Luke would ask me out. Too bad I can’t dream about a hot guy and have another hot guy ask for my number.” She teases.

  “Maybe you should ask Luke out.” I do not want to talk about Casper.

  “If he liked me, he would ask me.”

  “Maybe he’s shy.”

  “Honey, no one is shyer than Vincent and he asked you for your number.”

  “Maybe I’ll drop hints.” I grin.

  “Careful. I may take you up on that.”

  We make our way downstairs to the slightly busy floor. Cherry goes to customer service and I land on an empty register. As soon as I place my till into the drawer, customers flood into my line. Most of them are people rushing home from their office jobs picking up something quick for dinner, but there are the occasional ones actually grocery shopping. The later it gets, the more we tend to get the ones on welfare. I guess they come in late because they work late. My favorites are the ones who stroll in wearing slippers and pajamas, even in this cold weather.

  That’s what Birmingham is like. There are a mixture of classes and people. I like it here, but I’m ready to live far away from my parents. Maybe to Atlanta. I hear colleges are good there.

  The night is uneventful and tiring, but I still think of the dream and Casper. I swear, I will never forgive myself if I do have a secret crush. I shudder at the thought. Every time he pops into my head, I force him out and think of Vincent. Imagining us on a date. Kissing. I want it to be good, and not the product of a prank or whatever. I want Vincent to genuinely like me.

  But what if Casper starts spreading rumors and Vincent hears them?

  Casper and I run fast as the rain slants downward, soaking us in the cold. My body trembles and I taste something metallic in my mouth. Blood I realize. It trails down from my eyebrow to my chin and I wipe it with the back of my hand. It doesn’t stop bleeding.

  “Keep running, Megan,” I hear Casper’s voice behind me. I don’t want to run. I want this endless nightmare to end. I want to be with Casper, but I lift my long skirt and run. I jump at the sound of a gunshot and stop behind a tree. I frantically search the thick woods for any sign of Casper. My breath locks in my lungs as I clutch the tree so hard it feels as though the branch will break.

  Not again. How many men did they send to find us? We don’t have the Jewel. We want to be together. I never thought my own kind would try to kill me. The only person I told the truth to was Florence. She wouldn’t have told anyone. But I knew that once the army returned, they would come after me.

  I wait in the dark, wet night and then I see Casper. I dart for him and as we collide, our arms wrap around each other. He leans down and presses his lips against mine with a hard edge. I kiss back with the same lust, grazing my tongue against his. Our mouths are slick from the rain that falls between them. The heat from his kiss exudes my body. I never want to leave his arms. I never want to part from his lips. His heart. His soul.

  No matter what we’ll face, we’ll face it together.

  “You have to go back, Megan.”

  “No!”

  He cradles my face in his hands, forcing me to meet his eyes. “I won’t let them kill you. I won’t let them hurt you. But I refuse to let this be your life now.”

  My heart sinks. “I won’t leave you. I chose this. It won’t be like this forever.”

  “Yes, it will. Our kinds hate each other. We are constantly at war.”

  “We can save the world. You and me.”

  He gives a knowing look, but I refuse to part from him. “You know he will keep coming for you.”

  “Then we kill him.”

  Chapter Six

  “Hey! Are you planning on going to school today?” I hear Ron’s loud voice and when I open my eyes, I flinch.

  Ron stands over me, eyes about to pop out of his sockets, and a vein on the side of his head about to explode. “What time is it?” I gasp.

  “Nine-thirty,” he shouts. “Are you planning on staying home all day?”

  I silently curse and sit up. “No.” Why is he at home? And why didn’t my alarm ever go off? Didn’t Mom think to wake me before she left? How long has Ron been in here while I was having such an erotic dream?

  He walks out of the room. I hustle to throw on some clothes and grab my backpack all while thinking of that kiss. I can’t tell if I’m trembling from having to hurry or if it’s from the kiss. Or the fact that I mentioned killing someone. As I open the door, I groan at the pouring rain. Pulling the hood of my sweatshirt over my head, I jog out to my car.

  When I arrive at school, I go to the office to snag a late pass. My heart does an unexpected flip once I see Vincent. God, he’s cute.

  “Good morning.” His lips turn up into an easy smile and there’s a slight redness to his cheeks.

  I smile back and remove my hood. “Morning. I need to check in.”

  “Sure. Just fill t
his out.” He points to a sheet of paper on a clipboard. “You sure you aren’t being late on purpose?”

  It’s my turn to blush. “Maybe I am.”

  “It’s fine with me. It’s the only time I get to see you.” He tears off a sheet from a pad.

  I smile. “Thanks for this.” I hold up the slip of paper and turn toward the door.

  “Megan.”

  I look back and he winks. “I can’t wait to call you.”

  “Me either.” I leave but feel weird. I can’t stop thinking about that stupid dream with Casper. Why do I keep having them?

  After class ends, I make my way to my locker, stopping mid-stride. A guy bumps into me and the other students grunt, annoyed that they have to go around me.

  Casper’s tall, lean body casually leans against my stormy gray locker. My whole body freezes, except for the insane pounding of my heart. I don’t know what he wants, and I really don’t want to talk to him, but he does look hot.

  Maybe if I talk to him, he’ll leave me alone.

  I want to leave, but his brown eyes catch mine. I decide to play it cool and amble to my locker.

  “Excuse me,” I tell him with a cutting tone. “That’s my locker.”

  “Can we talk?” Casper asks. His voice is smooth, and it reminds me of the sweet voice in my dreams. “I had a dream about you.” He lowers his voice. He isn’t flirting like I’ve seen him do with other girls. His face is grim. He is a good actor.

  “Is that what you tell all your conquests?” I ask, keeping my voice strong. I don’t want to dwell on the fact that he is obviously messing with me. I also don’t want to think about my dream while he stands here either.

  “No. I really had a dream about you.”

  “Awesome,” I say sarcastically. “You wanna move? I need to get my books and go to class. I’m running on a time limit here.”

  He moves and crosses his arms in front of his chest, flexing his lean muscles in the process. I’m sure it works for other girls. “Did you get my note?”

  “Look, whatever this is, just stop, okay?” I spin the combination lock, trying not to let him see my hand shake. He stands a little too close for comfort. I open the locker and block his face from my view, but he moves to the other side of me.