against the railing of a pier, facing a busy boardwalk. Her shimmering, white hair blows in an imaginary sea breeze and she wears a simple white cotton dress without shoes.
The dull roar of the ocean hums through the dark night and colorful lights illuminate her porcelain skin in rainbow colors. A large Ferris wheel hums as it spins and game stands blare repetitive tunes. It’s a place I’d hang out at if I had my body. I guess Jacqueline’s dreams aren’t always so morbid.
I lean my back on the railing next to her. “You came back.”
She tucks her hair behind her ear and leans her shoulder against mine. “I have a lot of questions, Hunter.”
“Ask me anything.”
Nadia watches a man kiss a woman under the lights of the concession stand sign. The corner of her lip curls up slightly and she tenses as they whisper into each other’s lips. Nadia is more intense in the dream world than she is in real life. I want to tell her it’s okay, but instead I turn to stand in front of her so she has to look into my eyes.
“This is really strange for me,” she says. “This is the longest I’ve been in someone’s dream without turning it into a nightmare. I don’t know why it’s so hard for me to stand here and observe.”
“You’re uncomfortable,” I say.
She doesn’t respond to my observation. She reaches out and touches my shoulder and runs her finger down my arm and I hold very still. She drops her hand back to her side. “You feel so real.”
The wind blows around us and strands of her hair fall on her cheek. She doesn’t move to fix them and I wonder what she’d do if I tucked them back behind her ear. If I wasn’t so nervous, I’d do it. I’m too afraid of scaring her away. I’d do anything for her to stay.
I cross my arms over my chest. “It’s because I am real.”
She touches my cheek and I lean into her hand. It’s cool and the first physical sensation I’ve felt since Jacqueline imprisoned me.
“I think it’s because you’re an entity separate from Jacqueline. It’s like you’re doing the same thing I am by manifesting into her dream. I have no affect on you because you’re not the dreamer. My father never told me that it was possible. Maybe he doesn’t know.”
I’m taken by surprise. I don’t know exactly what I expected from Nadia—maybe something closer to an interrogation—but she hasn’t even asked me a single question. She’s working through her thoughts out loud and I let her. Anything to get her to trust me.
“It’s not every day you stumble upon a soul trapped in a monster’s head, huh?”
She winces and I regret my words. Her eyes dart from mine and she watches the crowd behind us. After a few seconds, she meets my gaze again. She narrows her eyes and purses her lips, and fear seizes my chest. She’s still beautiful when angry and I close my eyes expecting her to slap me.
“Do you think I’m a monster?” Her voice is low.
I open my eyes. I should say no, but I lose my words. I fidget and cross and uncross my arms as her eyes pierce into me. I open and close my mouth and then finally say, “I don’t know.”
She lifts her hand to my cheek and brushes her fingers along my jaw line. “Most people lie and say no because they really do think I’m a monster.”
I push my hair off my forehead. “I’m not a liar. I really don’t know the answer to that. What I do know is that you act differently here than you do in the real world.”
She twists her lips and drops her hand back to her side. “It’s because I am different.”
A scream rips through the night and Nadia stares past me. I look over my shoulder and see the crowd start to move and run in panic. The wooden beams quake under my feet and I reflexively clutch Nadia’s arm. She smiles, but it’s not at me. It’s at what’s going on behind me.
“I have to go, Hunter,” she says, sliding past me. I spin with her and she glides back, still facing me.
“Please, stay. You have to
The dull roar of the ocean hums through the dark night and colorful lights illuminate her porcelain skin in rainbow colors. A large Ferris wheel hums as it spins and game stands blare repetitive tunes. It’s a place I’d hang out at if I had my body. I guess Jacqueline’s dreams aren’t always so morbid.
I lean my back on the railing next to her. “You came back.”
She tucks her hair behind her ear and leans her shoulder against mine. “I have a lot of questions, Hunter.”
“Ask me anything.”
Nadia watches a man kiss a woman under the lights of the concession stand sign. The corner of her lip curls up slightly and she tenses as they whisper into each other’s lips. Nadia is more intense in the dream world than she is in real life. I want to tell her it’s okay, but instead I turn to stand in front of her so she has to look into my eyes.
“This is really strange for me,” she says. “This is the longest I’ve been in someone’s dream without turning it into a nightmare. I don’t know why it’s so hard for me to stand here and observe.”
“You’re uncomfortable,” I say.
She doesn’t respond to my observation. She reaches out and touches my shoulder and runs her finger down my arm and I hold very still. She drops her hand back to her side. “You feel so real.”
The wind blows around us and strands of her hair fall on her cheek. She doesn’t move to fix them and I wonder what she’d do if I tucked them back behind her ear. If I wasn’t so nervous, I’d do it. I’m too afraid of scaring her away. I’d do anything for her to stay.
I cross my arms over my chest. “It’s because I am real.”
She touches my cheek and I lean into her hand. It’s cool and the first physical sensation I’ve felt since Jacqueline imprisoned me.
“I think it’s because you’re an entity separate from Jacqueline. It’s like you’re doing the same thing I am by manifesting into her dream. I have no affect on you because you’re not the dreamer. My father never told me that it was possible. Maybe he doesn’t know.”
I’m taken by surprise. I don’t know exactly what I expected from Nadia—maybe something closer to an interrogation—but she hasn’t even asked me a single question. She’s working through her thoughts out loud and I let her. Anything to get her to trust me.
“It’s not every day you stumble upon a soul trapped in a monster’s head, huh?”
She winces and I regret my words. Her eyes dart from mine and she watches the crowd behind us. After a few seconds, she meets my gaze again. She narrows her eyes and purses her lips, and fear seizes my chest. She’s still beautiful when angry and I close my eyes expecting her to slap me.
“Do you think I’m a monster?” Her voice is low.
I open my eyes. I should say no, but I lose my words. I fidget and cross and uncross my arms as her eyes pierce into me. I open and close my mouth and then finally say, “I don’t know.”
She lifts her hand to my cheek and brushes her fingers along my jaw line. “Most people lie and say no because they really do think I’m a monster.”
I push my hair off my forehead. “I’m not a liar. I really don’t know the answer to that. What I do know is that you act differently here than you do in the real world.”
She twists her lips and drops her hand back to her side. “It’s because I am different.”
A scream rips through the night and Nadia stares past me. I look over my shoulder and see the crowd start to move and run in panic. The wooden beams quake under my feet and I reflexively clutch Nadia’s arm. She smiles, but it’s not at me. It’s at what’s going on behind me.
“I have to go, Hunter,” she says, sliding past me. I spin with her and she glides back, still facing me.
“Please, stay. You have to
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