"Hey," she said, the dream already fading. Nick talked excitedly, but the dream was more important. Somehow, she knew it was, but she needed to...
"Anna? You listening?" strong words with concern broke her concentration.
"Sorry...I just had this weird dream. I heard Julie and Michael talking..." but the words which had been so clear in her dream were now faded mumbles.
"It was just a dream," he told her, a reassuring cliche. One hand gently rubbed her neck. It was sore and when she touched her neck she winced.
"Yeah. What in the world..." she stood and went to the bathroom. Something didn't feel right. Something with her neck and her dream.
"There was someone strangling me," she could remember that happening in her dream.
"What?" worry, confusion, and anger resonated over the phone.
"In my dream. I..." but she had reached the bathroom and looked in the mirror. Across her neck and mouth was a purple bruise. She stared in shock. Her mind was not computing the information she had received. The dream had come back, solidified and become real in her mind once more.
"Anna?" now he was sounding annoyed.
"Sorry, I...can you come over? Something really weird is going on," she touched the bruise gently. She tried to rub it off. That only hurt, which meant it wasn't makeup.
"Be right there," as they hung up, Anna wondered what she would tell him. What would she tell herself? Perhaps if she slept, the girl with the scythe would appear again. She had helped her and might be able to explain what happened. But so could the strangler. Shaking, she returned to her bed. For now, she would stay awake.
I like the kind of "Nightmare on Elm Street" vibe going on here. What craziness will happen when she finally falls asleep?
ReplyDeleteNot much in the way of criticism today - some of the prose is a little clunky and could be polished a bit (the "brain wasn't computing" paragraph), but overall it's good!