We Awaken by Calista Lynne

called out the yellows, but we never really figured out who won. It felt so natural to sit there with her and make fun out of nothing.
    There was a comfortable silence apart from the occasional shout of a color until something large and pink in the water caught my eye. I stood up, pushing back the coffee table with my legs, and got as close to the window as I could. It was a fleshy mass causing huge ripples with wriggling tentacles.
    With a gasp I said, “Is that the—”
    “Yes. That is the kraken. You said you expected him to appear in your dreams, did you not?”
    I nodded slowly, watching as the creature ducked below the water, then erupted out again, which was a mind-blowing sight, but I was almost as taken aback by the fact she had remembered my offhand comment. My willpower was weakening, and I could feel myself falling for her even more, which just wasn’t fair at this point. I barely even knew her, and yet she had more of me than most others, and she wasn’t even solid. Or interested.
    My curiosity was bottomless, but I didn’t know how to go about learning everything I could about such a fascinating mystery. The only facts in my possession were her name, her sexuality, her job as a creator of dreams, and that she knew my brother. My brother who was in a coma.
    “Shit,” I whispered, “this is one fucked-up courtship.”
    Usually I left the swearing to Ellie, but this occasion seemed to merit such language.
    “We haven’t even gotten started yet,” Ashlinn crooned back at me with a wink. I choked a bit.
    “You know, you remind me of Ellie,” I told her after regaining my composure.
    “Not sure if I should be offended, considering it seems like you are currently avoiding her.”
    “Don’t be. It’s just you are both really open about things. Not afraid to speak. I always liked that about her.”
    “Should I be worried about competition?” Ashlinn asked me coyly.
    “Not in the slightest. If anyone should be worried, it’s me. What took you so long to see me again? Not holding your interest anymore?”
    If the world were kind, that would have come off as joking.
    “Quite the opposite, actually. Has it been a long time? It’s always so hard for me to tell. I haven’t done much since we last met. Saw Reeves, made a few people happy. The usual.”
    “How is Reeves? Did you tell him about Dad?”
    She nodded, her eyes not quite meeting mine. “Yeah. He took it well enough, and I think he might have already had a feeling something else was wrong. There were tears, but if anyone can power on, it’s that boy.”
    “Well, I’m glad he handled it better than I did.”
    She took my hand for a second and squeezed it. “I think you’re both doing great. He really loves you, you know.”
    “I think I actually do. And I really love him.” And maybe you too.
    If it wasn’t completely ridiculous, I could almost see myself starting to get jealous of Reeves. He got to see her all the time while I was left to pine away. It was still difficult to believe she was visiting him, and I was almost tempted to ask if she could bring me along next time. I owed my brother a carnation, some comfort, and a few stories. Before I could make any regrettable decisions, though, the dream began to evaporate around me, and I realized the morning was due. If only there was a way I could just remain asleep.
    “Try not to take so long next time,” I told her, and she waved as I was sucked away from her world.
    Upon waking I rolled over and grabbed my cell phone to immediately begin researching asexuality. This time I remembered everything about the dream, and the details weren’t escaping me like they usually did. I could recall her request vividly and had every intention of figuring out as much about her as possible. It was quiet, meaning Mother was already at work, so I had all day.
    Definitions, pride parades, and a dating website popped up on page one of the search engine, but all the information about this sexuality