CHAPTER ONE

The killer’s soft eerie whisper drew closer, just two walls behind her, hissing those awful words he's been saying for hours. “Beth! Ohhh Bethany! Where are you? Come out, come out wherever you are…! Come and play with me!”

  His presence felt closer now, right on her tail.

  She panicked. She knew that if he caught her, he’d kill her.

  The scenery around her looked like an outdoor hallway in a zig-zag manner, its walls and floor castle-stone, cold to the touch as she ran barefoot. Her only light, the flicker of lightning above her, which meant once those lightning flickers vanished, her whole world became black.

  Bethany carefully ran down these short, slanted stairs before running at full speed now, down the scary hallway with no ceiling. Her bare feet stomping against the smooth, cold stone floor with no idea where to go!

  Her breathing grew heavier as she heard the stranger catch up. That voice! His shadows in the distance! The sound of his footsteps coming around that corner she left just about ten seconds ago.

  Her chest ached; her lungs combusting as she raced for her life through the zig-zag halls - her feet pounding and slipping on the dampened areas. Bethany tried her best to feel around the pathway as she sped, but once those flickers in the dark sky vanished, she rammed herself into a wall, which had lively vines all over it. They reached out for her as she pushed and pulled herself away from the wall, her balance unsteady, dodging them before they snagged on her nightshirt. Freaked out, she managed to get away and made a run for it!

  Suddenly, a flash of lightning blinded her, and she slipped on a huge wet spot, startling her - gasping - and cried out as she landed hard on her side! The pain shot up to her knee, making her cringe. She glanced down, lost in a trance of shock, and spotted a huge red mark appearing on the cap of her knee. The sting tingled unpleasantly. Where did that puddle come from?

  But then she noticed something as she stared at it for a long time, perplexed with fear. She felt it. The pain. How could she feel something if this was only a dream?

  This has never happened before...

  Wet and cold now, Bethany gritted her teeth behind her flattened lips as she rubbed it gently, feeling its tenderness and soreness. Then, from up ahead, just around the corner, she heard a male's hum, playing an eerie lullaby. Chills ran through her pounding heart as she watched on. She just stayed there, frozen with fear, as she gazed up at the crazed stalker who showed himself, finally. He was tall, and the only thing she could see of him was his dark eyes and the side of his pale-looking face. His left cheek revealed that he smiled crookedly as he continued on with his humming. His voice was semi-deep, and delicate and maniacal, making the song disturbing.

  He looked down at her, grinning that wicked, crooked smile of his. The overcasting shadows of the outer corner of the stone wall, combined with the flickering light above them, created a haunting-like feature along the side of his face. He saw her lying there, sitting up with her hands on either side of her on the stone floor, helpless.

  He chuckled eerily and watched her eyes grow large as he raised his hand that held a gleaming sharp knife in his grasp. He even held it up for her to see it better. His grin a Cheshire Cat smile. “Oh excellent, I've found you.”

  Her face whitened as she stared up at him and the knife gripped in his hand. She felt her heart hammering against her chest and her palms began to sweat. Her hands and legs quivered so much she already knew her balance would fail her if she tried to run from him. But she had to! She had to before he had the chance of snatching her and ending her right there and then.

  Swallowing, she shakily tried crawling backward as he began sauntering towards her.

  He laughed maniacally as he watched her do this and quickly caught up with her. “Oh no, sweetheart…” – he ran his thumb along the blade – “…crawling away from me isn't going to work.”   Smiling menacingly, he raised the knife again, this time nearly over her. “Let's play!” he hissed excitedly, his eyes blazing with fire.

  Bethany couldn't help it any longer. Tears trickled down her cheeks like droplets of salty-like rain.

“Please! No!” she pleaded, begged.

  But he continued to laugh, hovering over her within the blink of an eye - about to strike down and kill her…until she heard a voice in the distance saying, “Beth! Beth, wake up!”

  She looked around quickly, wondering whose voice that belonged to. Then, she felt herself being shaken, and everything around her, including the scary man with the knife, vanished. Then her scenery changed to a slight blurriness of sunshine.

Bethany Northwood awoke with a start, panting breath after breath! She spotted her twelve-year-old brother, Mike, sitting on her bedside with a concerning feature on his face.

  “Are you okay?” her brother asked, watching her with lowered eyebrows.

  She took one greater, grasping breath, keeping her eyes closed shut for a moment, trying to settle the pounding of her heartbeat by placing a hand over it.

  Finally, Bethany managed to say, “It was just a bad dream,” assuring him that she was okay. Reopening her eyes she asked, “What time is it?” her eyes slightly squinted as if she had a massive headache.

  “Uh...seven.” He answered, then he asked, “Are you sure you're okay? You were tossing and turning a lot.” She thought it was nice of him to express his concerns, not every brother was like that.

  Bethany swallowed, and pushed her hair out of her face. “I – I'm okay. Honest.” She gave her brother a weak smile of reassurance.

  Mike looked at her with some uncertainty, but finally replied, “All right,” and then he got up. “Well, you should get ready. You know how Joseph gets when we’re running late,” he reminded her of Joseph’s - their step-father’s strict ways, “which to be honest I'm honestly not in the mood for that right now, especially with him,” he smiled flatly with annoyance.

  He was right about that one. Their step-father was a bit strict sometimes… Actually, he’s been becoming strict a lot lately these past few months it seems. It was like he woke up on the wrong side of the bed every morning! And they weren’t exaggerating about it either.

  She took a normal breath now and shook her head saying, “Yeah…neither do I. I'll be down shortly.”

  After that, he gave her a nod with a slight half-smile – glad she was doing okay, and disappeared from her bedroom and headed downstairs.

  Bethany swung her legs over the bedside. Resting her elbows on her knees, she planted her forehead on her hands, massaging her temples.

  “Man…these dreams are getting worse,” she said stressfully to herself. But then, she reopened her eyes, realizing something. Lifting her head up from resting it on her hands, she looked down at her knee cap, taking her elbows away from her thighs.

  There, on her knee cap…was the red mark from her dream, all nicely bruised – fresh.

She inhaled a silent gasp, staring with wide eyes. Bethany swallowed hard – her heart thumping over and over.

  Wh-what?

  She touched it gently, her hands trembling. The moment she did, her words were shaken as she whispered to herself: “They're coming to life…”

  How could this be? She thought wildly. It was just a dream! A continuous bad dream. You're not supposed to experience actual pain when it’s not real, right?

  Dizzy and shocked, she steadied herself as she took some deep breaths, feeling her anxiety reach its peak. Bethany threaded her hair back with her fingers, her hands remaining on her head, trying to calm down. She couldn't believe this…any of this.

  Bethany has been getting these crazy dreams since she was a toddler – five-years-old to be exact. At first, it started out dark and eerie. Then as she got older, the stranger popped up in the distance, its shadow emerging from the darkness. Saying her name in that creepy, sinister tone of his – a tone that increased her heart rate. He terrified her, even though they’ve never met face-to-face. But today, though…was the first time she has ever seen his face.

  She remembered the times when her dreams started, how much it scared her – couldn’t understand! She cried and screamed, according to her mother, and Joseph. It was either her mother or Joseph that came to her room when she had a bad dream she tried getting out of – mainly her Mom though. Joseph had always stayed by the doorway that was dimly lit by the upstairs hallway, watching her mother soothe her daughter after waking her up or whenever Bethany ripped herself out of the dream crying out for Mommy.

  Bethany still had moments like those, but she tried to deal with them all on her own which was not as easy as it sounded.

  Bringing herself back to the now, she took in a large breath, knowing she had to distract herself from her dream due to her anxiety. She didn't want to worry her mother, nor did she want her step-father to get into her business. She was surprised she wasn’t on any medication for her anxiety. But the question was: If she did talk about her dreams…what would they think? The unknown made her feel uneasy so that’s why she didn’t budge with it.

  She glanced over to her clock on her nightstand: 7:15 P.M.

  “Great…” she groaned to herself. “Joseph is definitely going to kill me now.”

  She stood up and started over to the closet. She grabbed for her favorite blue baseball varsity shirt that had two thick stripes just above the elbow on the sleeves – the blue going well with her blue eyes. The sleeves covered her hands some of which she liked – cozy and warm. She then grabbed for her dark blue Mudd skinny jeans that were folded nicely in her dresser drawer. She dressed quickly, and without glancing at her mirror on the bedroom door – not even worrying about jewelry – she hurried out with a hairbrush in her hand.

  As she traveled down the two flights of stairs that were shaped like an upside-down L, she brushed her light brown hair. She bypassed a mirror on the wall just as she approached the last flight of stairs. She took a quick glance at herself. Beth’s face was heart-shaped with downward-turned lips. Her deep blue eyes shaped in a protruding frame, but a little baggy from her nightmare – from trying to stay up late last night to avoid having another one. Her figure was petite-like but strong at five feet and five inches tall. She hardly painted her nails, but she loved lip gloss and eyeshadow – of which she was going to put on in the girls’ bathroom at school.

  She took a deep breath, followed by a sigh of stress to her baggy eyes. She drew herself away from the mirror and carried on down the steps. In the background, she could hear her folks chuckling warmly before reaching the bottom. As she arrived at the kitchen, she spotted her mother, Helen, and Joseph over by the kitchen counter, embracing one another affectionately – Helen’s lower back against the edge of the countertop. Joseph's hands were on her mother's lower backside while he kissed her shoulder and neck, smiling that crooked smile of his as her mother giggled with a grin, wrapping her arms around his neck and shoulders feeling up his hair from the back, making him moan deeply with satisfaction.

  Bethany understood love and marriage but…this sight made her feel awkward, uncomfortable and grossed out. It was as though he was the one that approached her during her duties since the dishwasher was wide open.

  “Good Lord,” Bethany mumbled to herself, rolling her eyes.

  But then, she couldn't blame Joseph though. Her mother was a beautiful thirty-three-year-old woman who was five feet and nine inches tall with blue protruding eyes to match her daughter's, slender cheeks, smooth skin, thin light pink lips, short blonde wavy hair of which Bethany thought fit perfectly on her – a natural beauty. Barely wore makeup – maybe a little bit of brown mascara to perk up her eyes. Helen also preferred a lot of casual clothing. Today was no exception – slacks and a blouse it was!

  Her step-father, Joseph, on the other hand, was a few years older than Helen. He was tall with broad shoulders, muscular, had an oblong face with a scruff. He also had a combination of eye color – emerald green on the left while the other was amber. You saw brown in the shadows, but within the light it became vibrant…and a lot more intimidating. His head was full of hair enough to run his fingers through that was so dark it was almost black. He wore long black sleeved shirts with denim jeans. And whenever they went out into public, he always wore his leather jacket. It was almost as if he wore it as if it were a uniform or a costume even.

  Her mother thought he was handsome for sure…but Bethany hardly had any chemistry with him. He was nice, always treating her mother with passion and kindness – always giving her flowers whenever he would come home from work, even jewelry as random gifts. But there was just something off about him that she couldn’t put her finger on. But, since her mother had married him after her divorce with Bethany’s biological father her mother hardly spoke of, he seemed like a decent man to be around.

  He may be decent and charming to her mother – and to the rest of the family…but honestly? Bethany still didn’t know him. Over the years of getting to know him, she’s noticed that he never spoke about his past; his parents, any siblings, even about high school moments. None. Zip. He was a mystery box. He seemed a bit too perfect – a dream guy. And that…made her feel odd about him. But of course, she kept these thoughts to herself.

  Joseph and her mother, Helen, have been married since Bethany was four-years-old. Yes, he had been around for Christmas, given her gifts she’s always wanted – spoiled her. Even on her birthdays…but it didn’t change how she felt about him.

  Bethany's mother and biological father divorced years ago when she was just only three-years-old. Mike – who preferred to be called either Mike or Michael – was born before they actually got separated. Helen never talked about him. It was just that she had a grudge on him Bethany didn’t know what. She wondered why they divorced. What was wrong with him? Did they have bad chemistry? She pictured her father with dark brown hair since she had light brown hair – in combination with her parents. What color eyes did he have? Blue? Soft and intent? Some memories were vague…but she could’ve sworn he had blue intent eyes.

  Returning to the now though, in the kitchen, she sighed with annoyance by her mother and step-dad being all lovey on each other. She walked over to the fridge and opened it, searching for something quick for breakfast.

  “Do you guys have to be doing that here?” she spoke with a hint of awkwardness and bothersome in her tone – and also a little cranky from a lack of sleep.

  Both of them looked over to her and Joseph raised his eyebrow retorting, “Well…good morning to you, too.” He gave Helen one last kiss before she continued on with her dish duties.

  Bethany was busying herself by searching the fridge for her box of strawberry pop-tarts she preferred cold but noticed them gone. “Hey, guys? Where did all my pop-tarts go?” Bethany asked, staring at the shelf she had last left them.

  “Oh, they’re all gone. Your brother had the last of them.” Helen answered, putting the dishes away into the cabinets.

  Bethany opened her mouth in a protest. “Are you kidding me?” she complained. “Those were mine! He didn't even think to ask before helping himself to my stuff? That little beast-!”

  “Hey! Watch it!” Joseph spoke sharply to her at the kitchen table with his cup of coffee. “You guys are running a bit late, so don't be blaming him for taking something quick to eat.” And then he added with dark warning eyes, “And I don't want to hear any of that coming out of that mouth of yours in that particular manner. That's inappropriate. I expect more of a mature young lady rather than hearing that garbage. If I hear another complaint or any other nonsense coming from you, you'll be hearing it from me. Do you understand me?” Joseph’s voice had risen as he reprimanded her. He even glared at her with those two different color eyes of his – the amber in his right eye growing vibrant against the kitchen light.

  Bethany’s eyes narrowed by that look. That was the first time in her years she's ever heard him lecture her in that way. It nearly frightened her – especially by that amber-colored eye of his. She avoided him from seeing it had affected her so by instead silencing herself by saying, “Yes sir,” in a low, ashamed manner, her eyes halfway down. He’s been more strict towards her than her brother as of late…it bothered her. What was going on with him?

  Joseph, like what he was hearing, felt his temper cooled down some. He breathed out a sigh, giving her a wise, stern feature saying, “You'll thank me one day for getting on your case. No one wants that kind of behavior from a sweet daughter of mine.”

  Bethany swallowed. Her stomach churned a bit from him saying that last part. The way he said it was out of the ordinary; he never considered her as his kid. It was always that line he would say to her mother when Bethany was very young: “I'll take care of her as if she were my own”. But Bethany didn’t feel this fatherly vibe of his. It was quite the opposite. He felt more like…a stranger.

  Her jaw tightened once as her eyes shifted on him. “I'll…I'll try my best, Joseph.”

  “Good to hear.” He smiled fully now. He then glanced at the clock on the microwave and shot up his eyebrows. “You better hurry now, or you'll be late.”

  Yeah, thanks to you! She thought with a slightly dirty look she hoped he didn’t notice, and instead said, “Yep!” as she grabbed a banana from the china bowl that sat in the center of the kitchen table. She headed for the living room and picked her book bag off the floor, threw the straps over her shoulders, and started for the front door. “Bye Mom!” she called.

  “Bye! See you at two!” Helen said, waving her hand as she placed a dish carefully into its spot.

  Bethany waved back with a crooked, irritated smile across her face, and went for the doorknob. But before she turned it, Joseph showed up behind her – out of nowhere, close enough to smell the Old Spice on him, and whispered, “Have a great day today, Pumpkin.” He said this with a smile, but the smile didn’t meet his eyes when she looked back at him, spooked.

  How’d he get to her so fast? She didn’t even hear him…

  Startled, she looked at him feeling her heart thud as she regained her voice. Sliding out a small grin she sarcastically replied, “Thanks…you too, Sunshine,” and quickly headed out – leaving him standing there.

  Resting her back on the door, her heart banged against her chest. “What the heck was that all about? “ she asked herself, confused. Taking a slow breather, decreasing the rhythm of her heart, she licked her partially dry lips and breathed out. As she did, a puff of fog-like smoke escaped – the morning air crispy. She watched as her breath lifted into the air faintly, and then disappeared.

  Bethany lived in the small town of East Haven, in the state of Missouri. It was in the middle of October. The trees in her neighborhood were full of orange and red leaves, but some had fallen – leaves scattered along the ground and streets and sidewalks. She loved October, but that also meant winter was just around the corner. She hated winter, but then again she had to deal with it – couldn’t run away from it.

  Her neighborhood was quiet, except for the sounds of cars honking at each other in the distance. The neighborhood had a square-like landscape and she was pretty much in the middle of it. She lived in a large, dark blue house with black shutters and a small walkway with a medium-sized lawn and a regular-sized driveway. Her backyard wasn't that big – a house was right behind theirs with a chained metal fence dividing the property, the yard big enough for a grill, and a kiddy pool. But in between houses behind hers was an open view of the roads.

  As she began to walk down the front steps, she started to think about what her step-father had said. Pumpkin?

  Bethany was taken aback by that. He had never called her that. He'd usually just say “Have a good day, stay safe” but that was pretty much it. Where did all of this weirdness come from? First, his lectures about her behavior; second, having that fatherly moment of his; and third, creeping from behind her and whispering a spooky sentence in her ear.

Bethany shuddered, disturbed. She often wondered what her mother saw in him. Did she ever pick up on those creepy vibes? Or the times he lectured her as if striking her across the face? Was she blinded by love? Lust? Bethany got goosebumps from imagining the two of them…

  Snapping out of it, not wanting to picture that – at all! – started on her journey to school. Leaves crunched beneath her feet as she toddled along the sidewalk of her neighborhood – rounding the square. She had begun eating her banana, already finishing it within five bites because she was so hungry.

  She now searched for a random trash barrel to throw it away and spotted a house around the corner at the curb. Being quick to not be seen, she approached the barrel – doubled checked to see if the coast was clear – and quickly tossed it and scurried away, snickering silently to herself.

  Bethany continued on down the sidewalk, a silly smirk still smacked on her face at the same time she tried to hide it from the public eye. The walk wasn’t too far from school – just fifteen or fewer minutes, depending on how fast she walked. She would’ve taken the bus, but there was just something about taking a walk to school – exercise, fresh air to wake up to. Her best friend Hannah, on the other hand, didn’t like walking to school but she put up with it. Her mother pushed her to do so for the same reason Bethany was doing it.

  Hannah and she have been best friends since middle school. Hannah was the preppy one while Bethany was just an average girl who could be friends with the popular kids and the nerdy ones – the perfect balance. And speaking of Hannah, Bethany waited for her by standing at their usual spot – her friend living just about seven minutes away from her and should be there any minute now.

  Bethany stood there at their spot and pulled out her cellphone to play a game, trying to beat Hannah’s score point they always tug-a-warred with. She concentrated on the first stages of the game when she heard, “Bethany,” a distant male’s voice.

  Turning, expecting to see whoever it was calling to her…saw no one.

  Lowering her eyebrows she frowned. “Hello?” she asked. It was quiet besides the usual sounds of cars honking in the distance. When she didn’t hear a reply back, she turned back around, a little weirded out – perplexed – and returned to her game.

  “Beth!”

  That same voice! More persistent now!

  Bethany jumped spun around quickly this time to that nickname of hers!

  Again, she saw no one!

  “Hello?” she called out with a little more volume, her heart thumping with alertness.   Who was calling her? Saying her name?

  She thought back to that tone of voice. It couldn’t be her brother – he was already at school! Plus it sounded a bit older than her brother’s tone, now that she thought about it.   Then, she stood there for a moment – pausing…feeling on edge.

  That voice… No… It couldn’t be. It couldn’t from…her nightmares.

  Frowning more at this realization of who this voice belonged to, now felt confused. She’s never heard his voice outside her sleep before. Only during her dreams. Was it just in her head?

  The memories of his face – half of it. She remembered how scary he appeared with those eerie-like eyes of his along with that Cheshire Cat smile, a spec of dark hair she could make out in the darkness with the flickering of lightning. The gleaming knife he held that he had tried striking her with.

  Would she have died in her sleep if he did stab her?

  Shuddering, she felt her heart thumping hard at the thought. She swallowed nervously for tonight now. What if she did sleep…would she…die? Blood all over her nightshirt? An actual wound? Like in those Freddy Krueger movies? Terror gained upon her by the image of all of that blood…

  No. No this was impossible, she thought, shaking her head. There was no way. But then again…her knee said it all. She swallowed a gulp as she glanced down to that knee she fell on in her nightmare. Who was this guy? Why was he trying to kill her? Why were these dreams continuing? And how was it that she was able to feel pain, and end up with a mark, or even a scar? Why were all of these things happening to her? Why her? Where did he come from?

  This wasn’t real!

  Her head spun and spun from growing lost within her thoughts. All of it is so confusing! So scared! So scared to fall asleep!

  “Beth?” a voice replied from behind her – along with a tap on the shoulder.

  Bethany spun around with a gasp, startled – thinking it was that nightmare guy at first - about to snap “Leave me alone!” - when she realized it was only Hannah! Relief flooded through her as she said, “Oh…it’s only you…” Her hand landed on her chest, against her quickened heartbeat.

  Hannah blinked, saying, “Uh…yeah? It’s me?” confused. “Are you all right?” she asked looking at her face with concerned features now, her head slightly tilted. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” she added, pointing out that Bethany’s complexion had gone pale and frightened for a moment there.

  Hannah was a long blonde haired girl with big sassy blue eyes and cute round cheeks. Her skin was pale and beautiful. Today she wore a green tank top under a black zipped-up hoodie, blue partially ripped jeans, and a pair of black converse shoes she bought at Journeys with peace signs and hearts on them. She also wore a lot of black eyeliner and light pink glossy lips.

  Bethany took a moment to collect herself before replying, “Yeah I’m okay. Just…hadn’t slept much.” She rubbed at her eyelid some with her fingers. “Woke up feeling a bit off. Sorry that I startled you.”

  “That’s all right,” Hannah said, touching Bethany’s shoulder. “But how come you haven’t slept well? Have you had any sugar last night? I know you keep sour gummy worms in your desk drawer,” she smirked, knowing Bethany way too well about her secret stash of candies they would fetch at the dollar tree in town.

  “No, I haven’t,” Bethany said, shaking her head some, not feeling up to being humorous.

  Should I tell her about my dreams? She wondered.

  “Well, what’s bugging you then?” Hannah asked curiously.

  Bethany took a deep breath, hoping her friend would have an open mind about this, and told her, “Well…it's like this.” She sighed and began explaining to her, “I keep having these continuous nightmares and they seem real to me every time I get them.”

  Hannah arched her eyebrows. “Real? How so?” she asked, scuffing her feet against the sidewalk as they both walked.

  “Like…” Bethany inhaled a breath, nervous to even talk about this – unsure if it would bring her bad luck, but did it anyway as she continued on saying, “tonight…was my first night seeing this guy who's been calling my name eerily, and…he had a knife, and he nearly stabbed me until my brother woke me up.” Bethany's voice started to crack a bit, feeling her stomach churn. Scared. Waiting for Hannah to give her a funny look.

  Hannah listened to this – to her friend, and blinked while pondering. “That…sounds scary,” she said finally after a semi-long moment. “And…you say these dreams are continuous? What do you mean by that?”

  “Like they happen every night,” Bethany said through her anxiety she kept steady. “They started when I was a little girl and they’ve gotten worse over time.” She looked at Hannah, wanting to know what she was thinking.

  Hannah noticed the anxiety, the seriousness – the fear. “Uh…” Hannah began with, growing a bit more worried. “Have you told your mother and Joseph about this?”

  “They know of it,” Bethany said, “like…my mom for years has been coming into my room to wake me from hearing me crying.”

  “And…you didn’t bother to tell me why…?” Hannah asked confused and slightly hurt.

  Bethany noticed this hurtful feature on her friend’s face and sighed, “I didn’t wanna worry you. And…I thought maybe you wouldn’t believe me.”

  “Not believe you?” Hannah stopped walking to face her. “You’re my best friend Beth,” she told her seriously. “I’m here for you. What you just told me is creepy and worrisome. I am not calling you crazy, but…maybe you should talk to your parents about you seeking like…a sleep specialist? Just to figure it out? Because look at you, you’re shaking from head to toe and jumpy – even to a single tap on the shoulder.”

  Bethany thought about what her friend was saying to her. Asleep specialist. Yeah…what would happen if she died in her sleep right in front of them? She swallowed hard and sighed while shaking her head. “I don’t know…”

  “Well, still, talk to your mother,” Hannah said. “And tell me more about these things rather than keeping it in. Okay?” she asked as she touched Bethany’s shaky hand gently. “As I said, I’m here for you,” she replied softly. “You gotta let me in.”

  Bethany knew she was right… She felt awful for keeping it from her. Taking a breath, she gave her friend a nod and said, “All right. I promise I’ll speak more about it.”

  Hannah nodded, glad for the communication, and gave Bethany a hug saying, “Don’t worry Beth, it’ll all be figured out.”

  I hope so, Bethany thought as she returned the hug.

  Then, a realization hit her friend as she asked, “Wait a minute…” she pulled back to look at Bethany. “Is this why we never have sleepovers?”

  “Pretty much,” Bethany answered with a nod, feeling shy – feeling bad.

  “Well. That makes sense.” Hannah said, feeling a bit better from understanding that part. “I’ve been wondering. Like even if I slept over you wouldn’t be – like – homesick. I wasn’t sure if you had a thing about sleepovers. But all right then,” Hannah nodded now. “Well, once these dreams go away, we’ll celebrate with a fun slumber party,” she smiled to her, elevating her eyebrows. “Deal?”

  Bethany, unsure how things were going to go, didn’t want to disappoint her friend by semi smiling, “Deal.”   

  “Cool,” Hannah grinned, and they carried on with their walk, holding hands like they always did. Bethany forgot to mention the mark on her knee…but thought better of it. Maybe next time.

  “So,” Bethany began to ask – changing the topic to reality, “have you finished your History homework?” remembering she was having a tough time with it.

  “Yeah, last night. I had to stay up until one o'clock this morning! I swear, Mr. Kenny gives us too much work to do. I mean, we don’t have a social life, it’s completely unfair.”

  “Yes, it is,” Bethany agreed with a bitter-like nod.

  Hannah sighed and shrugged. “Oh well…at least we have, like, eight more months of hell to deal with.”

  Bethany smirked. “Yes, and after final exams, I’ll create a great big ball of fire and set our school work into flames!”

  Hannah snickered. “That would be awesome if you could. And don’t forget the captain of the cheerleading squad! If I had the ability to do so, I would throw one of those balls of flames at her.”

  Bethany edged, “Jeez, Han, grudging much?”

  Hannah breathed deeply. “I never liked that chick. She looks like a Barbie doll and her laugh sounds awful. Not to mention the fact she stole my favorite shirt from the girls’ locker room.”

  “When was that?” Bethany asked.

  “Seventh grade,” Hannah answered rolling her eyes. “I’ve wanted to do the same to her but she has this way of knowing who’s doing what behind her back. I swear she has eyes in the back of her head.”

  Bethany backed away from those thoughts of that girl. She didn’t want to get in the middle of it, so she just put her arm around Hannah’s shoulders and smiled lopsidedly. “Let’s not think about that and just enjoy our day.”

  She smiled back, agreeing, and then they continued their walk to school.

  Once they reached the school grounds, Hannah and Bethany made their way across the street, watching for cars and waiting for them to either stop or drive on by before crossing. They picked up their pace, stepped onto the sidewalk, and rushed to the school building because they only had ten minutes to get their things for the first period.

Mildred High was a gigantic brick building. A huge sign on top of the roof declared the school’s name. Beside her was a vast parking lot with a load of vehicles – teens showing off their cars to everyone.

  As they entered, Bethany and Hannah went off to their lockers, which were down the freshman hallway – their lockers spaced from each other.

  Bethany, once opening her locker, set her backpack on the hook to select her History and Math books, and also her two subject binder. She put everything else on the top shelf of her locker to pick up later. After doing so, she snatched her bag and shut the locker door, locking it up – engaging with that always pesky combination lock she disliked so much every morning. As she was fiddling with it, the warning bell rang. The bell made everyone scatter to their classrooms.

  School started at 8:00 in the morning, which was nicer than those other schools that started at 7:15. So even though her step-father said she was going to be late, she really wasn’t. Late to him was her arriving ten minutes - like now.

  Bethany, starting for her History class, realized she had to use the bathroom. Crap! Now she knew she was going to be late! So much for that bit of victory on Joseph thinking he was right. Sighing out a huff, she gave in and quickly went to the bathroom.

  After doing her business, she flushed the toilet and came out, heading for one of the sinks to wash her hands. She looked at herself in the mirror, realizing as well that she had no makeup on.

  Sighing, saying “might as well – gonna be late anyways”, she put her backpack on the floor and took out her makeup pouch she always kept inside.

  Bethany started applying on some light blue eyeshadow and cherry lip gloss that made her lips shine - and also tasted yummy. She tried not to eat any of it as she worked on her school work. Smiling, looking pretty rather than appearing tired, decided to even put on a little mascara since she had it, just a tiny bit. Beginning to apply it on, feeling like her girly self for once - humming a tune, heard a harsh whisper reply, “Beth.” A male’s voice.

  Bethany froze, pausing on her humming. It sounded as if it were coming from behind her. She glanced at the mirror – looking behind her, but there wasn’t anybody there. Bethany hoped that somebody was there in one of the stalls. But a boy? Putting the mascara wand back into its tube, she began to investigate. She lowered her knees to the floor, checking under the stalls. But to her confusion, no feet were seen. Her heart thumped.

  Swallowing hard, a little nervous now, she stood upright and returned to her makeup, packing it up saying to herself, “I’m imagining this,” when she heard, “You’re not!”

  Bethany, nearly shrieking, spun around ramming her lower back against the sink! Where was that voice coming from?! She shut her eyes and shook her head to wash it away from her head.

  “Beth…! Beth! Bethanyyy!” the voice continued in that whisper loud enough where there was a slight echo. It was the same voice she heard outside while waiting for her friend. The same voice…from her dream.

  Bethany’s heartbeat was racing. What was going on here? She was imagining this right? Right? She wasn’t going crazy?

  “Beth! Beth!!” the voice now shouted – booming off the bathroom walls!

  Terrified, Bethany panicked as she grabbed all of her items – snatching her backpack off the floor – and hurried out of the bathroom. The voice continued on, calling her name! The voice echoing in the bathroom just as the door swung and closed - the voice getting louder and louder!

  She ran as fast as she could! Getting away! But as she did…she felt a sudden wave of nausea, which caused her to wobble – losing balance.

  Bethany gasped shallowly as she toppled weakly to the floor. The hallway spinning. What was happening?

  She choked on her gasp, startled by all of this. She couldn’t get up! She felt sick to her stomach!

  Gritting her teeth from throwing up, she used up all of her energy to scrambled back to her feet. In her mind, she was screaming out internally in desperation as she did, a strain to her voice. Now, back on her feet, she managed to run for the classroom door – her world tipped sideways. She steadied herself as she now approached the door, kept missing the doorknob, then finally, she got a hold of it, yanked it open, and slammed it shut with both hands. Her dizziness dying out.

  Her heart pounded as she caught her breath, feeling the nausea slip away. She placed a shaky hand against her clammy forehead, turned around, and paused shortly when she saw everybody staring at her strangely at their desks, including her teacher, Mr. Kenny, who stood there by the chalkboard with a piece of chalk in hand staring at her furrow-browed, more concerned than the others in the room, and also a bit alert by the slam of the door!

  Bethany stood there for a moment, feeling completely embarrassed and awkward. She swallowed – red-faced – and said, “Uh…s-sorry I’m late.”

  Hannah, who was in her History class, furrowed her eyebrows while watching Mr. Kenny approach her friend asking, “Are you okay, Miss Northwood?” seriously concerned by the way she looked, acted – sweaty, exhausted, and panting.

  Mr. Kenny was a twenty-nine-year-old man with dark brown-haired and hazel eyes, tall – five feet and ten, almost eleven, inches – and had strong but slim shoulders of which made him appear attractive, to the women – of course. Maybe some students with their typical teacher crush. But she thought he was extremely nice to her. Kind.

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  “Yeah, I – I'm okay,” she lied, hoping he’d buy it. She had no idea what had just happened back there. The voice, her feeling sick. What was going on with her? Why was she hearing that voice? Out in public?

  He kept his worried eyes on her as he passed out the assignments in the front row. “Oh, all right,” Mr. Kenny replied. “Do you have a tardy slip?”

  Bethany flushed and shook her head.

  Mr. Kenny pondered within his choices as he studied her. Being kind as he was, he told her, “I’ll let you slide this one time, okay?” he checked. “Take a seat, relax. Take a breather.”

  Bethany nodded, feeling numb inside as she was handed her assignment. She took her seat, placed her paper onto the desktop of her desk, set her backpack beside her on the floor, planted her elbows on the desk, and massaged her temples, trying to breathe slowly.

  “Hey, what’s up girl? You look pale.” Hannah pointed out quietly, leaning in. “You sick?”

  Bethany swallowed. She took a deep breath and let it out through her nose – trying to stand tall, just for a second or two, and said under her breath, “I’m fine,” unsure whether or not to tell her yet as she rested her chin on top of her folded arms. If she told her friend about what just happened…will she call her crazy? Tell her mother on her if she doesn’t? Send her to a sleep specialist? She knew she promised Hannah that she’d be more open about everything now…but she wasn’t so sure at the moment.

  During their lesson, Bethany was unable to focus. She kept trying to understand what just happened out there. This morning outside. She couldn’t be hallucinating, right? Was it just stress messing with her head? Making her hear things?

  That voice for example…

  Bethany's jaw tightened. All of this didn’t make sense. None of it did. Not ever since she was little. And now that she was hearing that creepers voice from outside her dream, she was about to flip’n lose it. It was getting old and tiring – in other words: “Enough is enough!”

  She felt so tired… But she knew the rules: No falling asleep during class. So she struggled to keep her eyes open. And the last thing she wanted to do was sleep.

  Stay awake Beth, she told herself. Stay awake forever!

  Finally, after another thirty minutes, the class had ended. Bethany snapped out of it and gathered her belongings and headed for the opened door. But then she was stopped by Mr. Kenny.

  “Hey, are you doing okay?” he asked, holding the door open.

  “Yeah, um…” Bethany had no idea what to say. She rubbed her wrist, one of her ways to stay calm during her anxiety modes.

  He stared at her for a moment.

  “Beth?” he checked again, showing his concerns with slightly raised eyebrows. His eyes meeting hers.

  Bethany licked her dry lips. The gloss had come off. “I'm fine,” she lied, keeping herself at bay, at least until she left his room.

  His concerns remained on his face, reading into her eyes. But he then decided to let it go. “All right, just making sure you’re okay.”

  She smiled, which did not meet her eyes. “I appreciate it, though,” she said politely.

  “Well, that's what I'm here for. I'm not just a teacher, you know. I'm a friend as well,” he told her kindly with a warm smile.

  Bethany smiled at that. “Well…if anything is troubling me, I'll let you know.”

  “Sounds good.” He said with a nod. Then he noticed Hannah waiting for her out in the hallway and said, “Your friend is waiting for you.”

  Bethany peered over her shoulder to Hannah and said, “Yeah I’m sure she’s just as confused as you are.” She then turned back to him and gave him a half-smile replying, “See you later, thanks for checking up on me.”

  “You’re very welcome. Oh, and Bethany,” Mr. Kenny added with a small smirk, “Don’t forget to do your homework. Page fourteen, with a review page at the end.”

  Bethany gave him a brief nod with another half-smile and started off down the hall to her friend.

  Mr. Kenny, standing there, leaning against the doorframe of his doorway for a moment, and crossed his arms over his chest as he observed Bethany meet up with Hannah who was asking her questions as they started away to their next class.

  Continuing to watch, he stared at her with lowered eyebrows, his eyes full of curiosity. Pondering upon this odd behavior of hers - about why she slammed the door like that, he gave her one last wondering look before returning to his classroom.

  Bethany and her friend rounded the corner of the staircase as they headed on up to get to their next class. Hannah kept checking on her friend, making sure she was okay, but Beth kept saying she was fine…which was a total lie, and she felt bad for lying. But how could she even explain this? She didn't even understand it!

  “All right, if you say so,” Hannah said not exactly buying Bethany’s explanation. “I ain’t the one who looked clammy and pasty in the face and slammed the door, just saying.”

  Bethany sighed, unsure what to say. She then caught sight of her good friend Cole Pierce. The girls have known him since middle school. He was a Sophomore, though. So she was in the sixth grade when she came across him in the halls and at lunch, sitting by himself with barely any friends, until Bethany and Hannah asked to sit with him. Ever since then, it’s been the three of them - The Trio.

  His first year at the high school was rough for him, though, since both girls hadn’t graduated from middle school yet. So, during his lonely times at the high school…he dealt with bullies. They still bugged him, but he tried ignoring them the best he could.

  And Cole wasn’t one of those built guys – not a jock, nor hit the gym. He was rather average on his figure, his personality sweet-sided. He had a head full of brown hair with bangs, his voice was deep and pleasant. He was taller than her by four inches. He mainly wore band T-shirts - mostly Bullet for my Valentine, Disturbed, or The Rasmus, but on colder days he wore long sleeve shirts and denim jeans that barely hugged at his legs with a chained wallet that always hung loosely by his belt loop as he walked. Today he wore a grayish-green T-shirt with The Rasmus “Black Roses” band logo print and song title on it with a black long sleeve shirt underneath which looked really nice on him, at least that’s what Bethany thought.

  And another thing about Cole: He grew up in a home without a father. His father left him and his mother when he was only five. His uncle, his mother’s brother, was the only one he looked up to. His uncle had taught him manners and showed him how to speak to girls properly - including his mother, treating her with respect, and how to be himself when he’s feeling sad or angry - stressed out over his father leaving them, and also from being bullied.

  He showed Cole several techniques to prevent himself from raging over things, such as his guitar playing, or if he didn’t have his instrument around, breathing exercises. He did this mostly whenever he was in school when the jocks would mess around with him. There had been moments where he wanted to punch a locker or a wall. But, so far, he was doing pretty well. Plus, he had Bethany and Hannah around to distract his frustration.

  Bethany worried about him…she also had somewhat of a crush on him and was too shy to admit it – to confess. She honestly thought he was one of the hottest guys in school. He wasn’t a player nor obnoxious like the other lads here. He was different, and she really liked that. But, since she had a crush on him, did he like her back? He hadn’t shown any signs on it, only friendship. Maybe…he was shy, too?

  She and Hannah walked up to him as he situated his school books on the top shelf, his headphones over his ears – in concentration. Bethany and her friend glanced at one another and Bethany decided to sneak up on him – like she always did since the beginning of their friendship days. She crept – Hannah covering a hand over her mouth from laughing out loud - and surprised him by pouncing both hands on his shoulders shouting, “Hey, Cole!”

  Startled, Cole jumped and spun away from his books, yanking off his headphones. “Shit! Beth! Hi!” Cole replied with wide eyes, exhaling a breath, glad it was only her and not some punk. He then overheard Hannah laughing and looked back to see her cracking up by his reaction.

  Rolling his eyes, he shook his head smiling and replied, “I should’ve seen that coming,” then glimpsed at Bethany as he selected his Math book. “Ready for Math? I know I am,” he said this in a sarcastic way but sounding humorous all together.

  “Not exactly,” Bethany smiled, agreeing on the sarcasm. She then looked back to Hannah who came up to Cole to give him a quick hug before saying, “Gotta get to class – see you guys at lunch!” Then hinted Bethany with her eyes to try and talk to him…she knew Bethany had a crush on him. They’ve spoken about it.

  Bethany smiled a little flatly, nervous about confessing, and said to her, “See you later,” then she watched as her friend took off down the hall. Returning to Cole she asked, “How are you this morning?”

  “I’m good,” he said as he finished up choosing what he needed for Math – of which they had together. He was just about to shut his locker door when he noticed something up with her. She looked drained, exhausted – anxious even. Eyebrows lowering he now asked, “Hey, are you okay?”

  Dang, was it that noticeable?

  Sighing, she answered with rolling eyes, “Yes…” But then she noticed how she sounded towards him and sighed again with frustration now. “I'm sorry, Cole. It's just that…I’ve had two people ask me that already – now three, you.”

  “I’m sorry?” Cole said this as he shut and locked his locker. He couldn't help but express his concerns by asking, “Has something happened? Did your Step-father act up again? I remember you telling me that he’s been hard on you as of lately.”

“He's the least of my worries at the moment,” she said which hinted at a “yes”. “But what I am dealing with has nothing to do with him.” She hesitated on telling him. Would he think she’s crazy?

  Cole noticed the hesitation and asked, “What is it?” waiting for her reply, his eyes shifting on her – reading her.

  Bethany was quiet for a moment before three jocks walked on by, laughing obnoxiously about something stupid.

  Noticing Cole there, one of them snorted, “Hey Pierce! Has Santa given you coal yet?” mocking his first name.

  Cole sent them a glare, trying to ignore them.

  But Bethany, on the other hand, gave the jock a look and replied, “You know, I was wondering how you comb your hair so your horns don’t show,” she smiled tilting her head.   “I wouldn’t be surprised if Krampus visited you.” Her tired eyes then sent the jock an edgy look that read: Try me, I dare you.

  Both jocks, surprised by her comeback, turned to beat red. They started down the hall, the other staring back at her in silence, honestly creeped out and taking the hint.

  Bethany arched her eyebrows sharply at him and watched him face forward as they disappeared to their classes.

   Cole, observing this, raised a brow before looking at Bethany with a sideways smirk. After he watched the punks disappear he replied, “Well dang, Beth.”

  “I had to,” she said, shaking her head as her attention remained to where they went off to, “they were getting on my nerves.” She then released a sigh and rested up against the locker by his saying, “They have nothing better to do than to bully. It needs to be put to a stop.” Now, she refocused on him with a turn of her head and cracked a smile. “You okay?”

  “Yes. Thank you,” he nodded with a lopsided smile. “That was very badass of you to do that. You scared to crap out of them,” he chuckled with a full grin. “I think one of them nearly pissed his pants!”

  “Yeah I think I did,” Bethany smirked mildly. Then she took a deep breath and replied, “Well, now that we’re alone…” she swallowed and bit her bottom lip for a split moment before telling him, “please keep this between you and me. I already feel bad for not telling Hannah yet.”

  “Okay?” Cole rested his shoulder against his own locker, listening, his eyes intent - concerned. “I promise.”

  Believing him, she swallowed again and inhaled before continuing to tell him, “I've…been getting continuous nightmares for a long time now since I was five, of…a guy… speaking my name in the distance, and…they’ve gotten worse.” She swallowed hard.   “Like…each dream changes, and he gets closer…and closer…” Her jaw tightened, looking down – feeling haunted. Remembering her recent dream. Seeing half his face.

  “What are they about?” he asked curiously, giving his undivided attention.

  Bethany was silent, praying on the inside that Cole wouldn’t go seek a guidance counselor for her.

  “Come on, Bethany, you can trust me.” Cole encouraged with a crooked smile.

  Bethany looked at him, seeing that trustworthy feature in his eyes. And, with him speaking her full name like that, she knew she could trust him. He never called her by her full name unless he was being serious.

  Breathing in, she brushed her hair back with her fingers, and made sure with him first, “If I tell you…would you promise to not think of me as a freak?”

  Cole looked at her curiously, taken aback even. “A freak? Never,” he told her softly.   “Bethany, you’re my best friend. Of course, I wouldn’t think of that of you. You can trust me, I won’t judge,” he said this while shaking his head.

  Hearing him say this made her feel a little better now. Licking her partially dry lips, she looked around to see if anyone were nearby to eavesdrop, but luckily nobody was, so she began speaking, sighing at first. “Last night…was my first time seeing this guy after all these years. I can hear his voice clearly, calling my name…in that eerie tone.” She shuddered at the memory of it. “He’s always been in the distance until this morning,” she said. “He showed up, chasing me down this weird-like maze, thunder, and lightning above me and gusts of wind,” she gestured with her hands a little. “I slipped and fell and before I knew it, he was right there, coming at me with a knife in his hand, and just before he killed me…my brother woke me up.” Her breath was a little on the heavy side from letting all of that spill, thinking what if her brother hadn’t woken her at that very moment? Feeling her heart banging against her chest, she studied the look on his face – which was pure shock.

  Cole's eyes blinked as they shifted. He was pondering on the inside, astounded by what she had just told him. Staying calm though – for her – he asked, “Have you thought of telling your mother about this?” worry in his eyes.

  She shook her head. “I haven't. I didn't think it was a big deal since it was a nightmare like any other dream I’ve had for years. I mean, everyone gets nightmares. But…these ones just seem…”

  “Realistic?” Cole finished for her with raised eyebrows.

  “Yeah.” She said this as they now began to saunter side by side down the hall, needing to move. “So, you believe me? You believe in everything I am telling you?”

  “Of course,” he said. “I mean, as long as you're not feeling any pain outside your dream, I think we're safe,” he slightly smirked, lightening up the mood for her out of his own nervousness.

  Oh, If only you knew… she thought, feeling cold all of a sudden.

  “I hope you're right,” Bethany said, looking down to the floor. She hated keeping that part from him. She wished she could show him the red mark on her knee cap. But, would it risk anything if she did? She trusted him…but she didn't trust anyone else who might get involved.

  The halls were empty – everyone in their second-period classes, the halls to themselves. They knew they were late, but at this point, neither of them cared. In Cole’s eyes, Bethany was more important than Algebra.

  Cole took a deep breath. He looked at each closed door they passed, looking through the small windows. “Do you think we'll get caught?” he asked smiling.

  “If we do, I could care less to be honest,” Bethany said with a light humorous smile.

Cole turned his attention to her and raised his brows. “Wow, Miss. Northwood, since when did you become a rebel?”

  “Since today,” she answered.

  “That's unlike you, I'm shocked,” Cole smirked, his eyebrows hiking.

  “Mhm,” she said, nodding slowly. She looked up at him and shortly sighed, “I'm not how I used to be. I mean, look at me, I'm tired, groggy, and not to mention paranoid,” she finished saying sardonically with semi-wide eyes to herself mostly.

  “Well,” – he tilted his head to study her face – “to be honest, I've noticed some dark circles under your eyes from time to time, but never this bad.”

  Bethany's eyes glanced up at him and felt her jaw clench. “Really?” She sighed and brushed her hand and fingers once again through her hair. “I would do anything to sleep normally, for once.”

  Cole, listening to her, breathed in deeply. Deciding to make a comforting move, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and said sympathetically, “If you need someone to talk to, I'm here.”

  Bethany looked up at him with those dark circles under her eyes and meekly smiled. “Thank you.”

  Cole gave her a nod and gently rubbed her upper arm. Just then, from down the hall, he spotted a hall-pass monitor! Quickly, Cole took Bethany’s hand and had her follow him just under a staircase – avoiding getting caught! He had his hand over Bethany’s mouth to keep her from giggling – of which she was doing.

  Bethany’s heartbeat from the adrenaline, finding this running and hiding game fun. At least with Cole, and not with the fellow from her nightmares. She smiled and looked up at him with his hand still over her mouth. He felt so warm, nice…safe.

  Smiling humorously, he looked down at her as they waited for the hall pass monitor to bypass the stairs, his brown eyes gazing into her blue ones, studying her features – admiring her. That’s when…she began seeing some sort of nervousness from within his eyes. Tension.

  Is there…something bothering him?

  They waited until the hall pass monitor left down the hall before Cole finally removed his hand from her lips.

  “That was close,” Cole said with a small nervous chuckle.

  “Yeah,” she chuckled a little, too. Then, feeling curious, she tilted her head just a notch while asking, “Hey, Cole? Is there…something bothering you? You seem a bit off.” Her voice was gentle, not meaning to put him on the spot.

  “Oh, y-yeah, I-I'm fine.” He reassured her. But the stammering said otherwise.

  Bethany raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to spill with a curve in her smile. “I'm not buying it.”

  Cole noticed the smile and knew he wouldn’t be able to hide anything from her. She was too smart.

  Hesitating, his jaw muscles tightened as his eyes wandered. Too nervous to look at her face. Swallowing hard, his hands began to feel clammy. Bowing his head, he lowered his eyes and inhaled a large breath as if he were preparing himself for the worst speech on the planet. “I…don't know how else to say this.”

  “Say what?” Her voice was soft, concerned, her head still at that same tilt.

  Cole stood there in silence, rubbing the back of his neck, feeling his heart thumping. He kept his hand there for a moment, swallowing before taking a deep breath, and glanced to her face, looking into her eyes, and cracked in a whisper, “I like you, Beth.”

  Bethany remained standing there, surprised. It wasn’t just her. She thought she was the one to confess - the only one…but it ended up being the other way around! Two-sided!

  Feeling relieved, she smiled and admitted, “I…I like you, too, Cole.”

  Staring down at her, Cole blinked twice. “R-Really?” he asked, pleased.

  Bethany nodded, a cheery feature on her face, and went to touch his hand…when a wave of nausea caved in…dizziness. She shook her head in a firm shake, trying to snap out of it, but her knees were buckling.

  Cole, furrowing his brows, asked, “Beth? You okay?” His hands were on her arms, steadying her.

  “Yeah,” Bethany tried to assure him, when she heard from behind her, “Beth…Bethany!”

  That voice again.

  Bethany's eyes widened. Her body was growing stiff – cold. Her face white as snow.

Oh no! Not now! Not now! She internally panicked.

  “Bethany? Bethany, what’s wrong?” Cole asked worriedly, watching her breathe heavily.

  “Beth! Beth…!” the voice called out. His voice everywhere!

  “Do – do you hear that?” she panicked to him.

  “Hear what?” Cole asked confusedly, alarmed.

  He doesn’t hear it? But the voice was so clear! “Cole. Do you hear that?” She asked again, frantically, her hands gripping onto his shirt, begging for him to hear! Not wanting to look like a crazy person!

  Her legs felt weak, every inch of her body losing its strength. What was happening?

  Cole, alarmed by the look of consternation on her face, supported her by keeping his hands around her upper arms.

  “Bethany,” he pleaded, “what are you talking about? Wh-what do you hear? Let me help you!”

  Hearing his offer, she almost formed words when her breath was taken away by an internal wave of suffocation. Something was wrong… Everything was growing so dark! Like a tunnel…

  “Beth…Bethany!” the voice continued to speak – a direct tone.

  Leave me alone…! She thought as her world darkened…Cole’s voice muffled as she felt herself collapse – Cole’s hands catching her before landing on the floor.

  Once this happened, Cole settled her down onto the aluminum floor, her head resting on his knees. He tapped at Bethany’s face trying to wake her, but to no avail.

  “Bethany? Bethany!” Cole urged, but no use.

  Her face was clammy and white, her breathing shallow.

  Feeling scared, he did not care anymore about being caught and built up the courage to shout out, “HELP! HELP! SOMEBODY, HELP! WE NEED HELP!”

  The hall monitor, from down the hall, heard his scream and bolted in the direction of it. When he arrived, he spotted Cole, and poor Bethany on the floor on his lap unconscious! “Oh my God! What happened?”

  “I - I don’t know!” Cole panicked, “She - she just collapsed!” Honestly, he did not know what was going on!

  The hall monitor checked her pulse at her wrist, felt her forehead, and used his walkie-talkie to alert the staff to bring a wheelchair.

  Cole listened to his report and request and looked back down to Bethany. Brushing her bangs back with his fingers, he felt his heart thump, mystified by her words: “Do you hear that?”

  What did she mean…?

Bethany stirred from her unconsciousness, groaning uncomfortably. Her eyes barely opened, but enough to see light, a white room. She closed her eyes shut and then reopened them to look ahead of her to see Cole sitting in a chair looking down at what seemed like his phone. Texting? Browsing Facebook?

  What happened? How long has she been out?

  Breathing shallowly, she managed to speak, “Cole…?”

  Cole, hearing his name, perked up - saw that she was awake, and put his phone away. “Hey…” he smiled, walking over and sitting at her bedside. “How are you feeling?” he asked, touching her hand.

  “I don’t know yet,” she answered. She licked her dry lips and took a deep breath before asking, “What happened?” She looked around seeing a window of small flower pots. She was in a medium-sized space, one cot, and on the other side of a short wall was the mini waiting area and desk. The nurses’ office.

  “I…don’t know,” Cole replied honestly. “You and I were talking and then all of sudden you were growing white and asked me if I heard something and the next thing I knew you were collapsing.”

  Bethany swallowed. “I…fainted? I never…fainted before…?” she said thinking about that, certain she wasn't experiencing headaches but stress.

  Cole didn’t know what to say but asked, “Did you eat anything? The nurse and I were trying to figure out why you fainted.”

  “I had a banana,” she answered trying to sit up. Cole helped by keeping her steady as she did.

  “Well, maybe some lunch would do you some good?” he suggested. “I mean, that was a crazy fall. Not…saying you’re crazy,” he corrected right away, knowing how badly that came out. “It’s just…you startled me,” he rephrased.

  “I’m sorry,” she said feeling bad. The last thing she wanted was to scare her friends. But, then again…she was scared, too. Why did she faint? Was it from a lack of nutrients? This was the second time she felt like this. The first time, though, she didn’t faint. Just felt woozy. But this one punched her in the face!

  The nurse, relieved she had awoken, came by with a forehead and ear thermometer to check her over. She moved it across Bethany’s forehead until it beeped, stating that she was not ill – no high temperatures.

  “Hmm…” The nurse pondered while studying the numbers. She then glanced at Bethany's face and said, “Your temperature is fine… Sit here for a moment. I’ll give you some orange juice.”

  Bethany nodded and watched her go for a mini-fridge, selecting a juice. Once she returned, Cole offered to help so the nurse handed it to him.

  He unscrewed the cap and said, “Small sips,” taking care of her. Bethany listened to him by taking small sips, the taste of the citrus and coldness awakening her throat and belly. No wonder they recommended orange juice after fainting or dealing with nausea.

  After a few more sips, she handed it back to him and settled there for a moment on the cot while the juice did its thing – the nutrients filling her belly up. “Maybe lunch will do the trick,” Bethany said to him. “I have…no idea why that happened.”

  “Yeah, about that…” Cole began to say, unsure how to ask this question. “What did you mean by: ‘Did you hear that?’” His eyes eyeing her, trying to figure her out. He didn’t want to make it seem as if she were crazy. It was her words, not his.

  Bethany now, indeed, remembered what she had said. She threw out words of desperation. Vulnerability. She swallowed, unsure of how to explain this. “I…I don’t know,” she said, running out of words.

  Cole continued to look at her intently. Sighing, he began to run his thumb along her knuckles while holding her hand. “Bethany…you can trust me. What happened? Talk to me.”

  Bethany lounged there struggling on the inside. He was being so nice, so understanding. She remembered him confessing to her and her vice versa, so hence his hand-holding. He liked her – more than a friend. All this time. But she still stumbled upon her words. What should she say? Would he believe her?

  Then…the mark on her knee came into mind. She told him the details of her dream – of her slipping and falling. Being quiet, she took a breath…and had him release his hold so she could move her hands to her pant leg, and began rolling it up.

  Cole watched this, curious. What was she trying to show him? Was she trying to tell him something? Explaining?

  Once her pant leg was completely rolled up, she inhaled another breath – preparing for his reaction, his questioning…and revealed the red mark that was now becoming a bruise.

  It took a long moment before Cole caught on to what she was showing him - telling him. When the realization hit, he glanced back up to her face, not saying a word. A hint of mystification across his features…on edge.

  They stared at one another for a while until he finally elevated his brows a notch, glancing back down to her mark, and breathed saying, “You…weren’t kidding.”

  Bethany shook her head. “I don’t know what’s going on,” she whispered to him, keeping the topic between them. “But…the reason why I ask you if you could hear it, is because…I heard him.” Her eyes shifted in his eyes. “The guy in my dream,” she swallowed, “I heard him…clear as day…behind my head. It happened a few times today.”

  Cole’s eyes narrowed, frowning…a bit creeped out.

  Bethany saw the look and sighed. “I know how this sounds, but I’m not making this up.”

  “I didn’t say you were,” Cole said. “I’m just…confused. I’ve…” he swallowed before continuing with, “never been encountered by any of this. It sounds like you’re telling me a scary bedtime story coming true.”

  “I really hope not,” she told him, scared. “I’ve never had this happen before so…you aren’t alone in getting creeped out about this.” Her jaw muscles tightened. “It always stays in my dreams. I don’t know what’s going on,” she said, feeling stuck on what to do. “But…whatever you do, don’t tell Hannah, okay? Not yet. I’ve already told her about my nightmares, but not the mark. It’ll only freak her out.”

  “When are you planning on telling her?” Cole asked concerned.

  “Soon?” Bethany guessed with a shrug. “I don’t know…” She sighed out a frustrated huff and pushed down her pant leg. “I already feel about not telling her. I mean, how would I begin the topic? The one thing she suggested to me was to seek a sleep specialist.” She looked at him. “The last thing I want is to seek one.”

  “Yeah…” Cole said slowly, not blaming her. “I…would steer clear from those people, for now at least.” He then glanced up at the clock. “It’s lunchtime. You’ve been out cold for at least two hours.”

  Bethany gaped. “Two hours?” She plopped herself back on the bed – her head landing on the pillow, her fingers threading through her bangs. “Jeez…that one really punched me in the face,” she murmured to herself.

  Cole raised an eyebrow and tried not to smirk. Minus the fact that all of this was strange on so many levels, she was able to keep up with her sense of humor – at least a smidgen of it. “Well, you’re awake now and that’s all that matters. Do you want to try and walk? Or do you want me to bring you lunch?”

  “I would recommend her staying here,” the nurse spoke up, overhearing them. “Just a precaution.”

  But Bethany didn’t agree on this as she sat up saying, “No I’m okay, I wanna go see Hannah.” She stood from the cot and began walking…until she felt dizzy again. Her hand meeting her forehead, trying to snap out of this – battling!

  “Bethany? Uh…maybe the nurse is right,” Cole said cautiously as he watched her walk. Her balance was off so he approached and supported her with his hands. “I mean it, Beth. Stay here.”

  Stubborn as she was, she shook her head side-to-side saying, “No…” She had to fight this - whatever it was. Trying to walk again, she ended up in the hallway now – both nurses at the doorway while Cole followed her, repeating her name.

  Her footing became clumsy-like as she tried walking down the hall, her vision tilting – things beneath her growing…see-through. Images of people on the other side of the wall in a file room.

  Blinking, she shut her eyes, and then reopened them, looking again. Staring. The people behind the wall disappeared.

  What…? She thought, perplexed.

  Just then, a throb of a headache came about, and she brought a hand up to it, groaning. It felt as if tiny knives were stabbing her head!

  What is going on here? First the voice…the fainting…and now she could see people behind the wall? And now this sharp pain inside her head…

  “Bethany, I’m serious. You need to sit back down before you fall and hurt yourself!” Cole demanded worriedly facing her now, both hands on her shoulders. “Bethany?”

  “Cole…what’s wrong with me…?” she asked him.

  “Nothing’s wrong with you, Bethany…” A voice replied.

  Bethany blinked by that sentence and looked up at Cole’s face. That wasn’t his voice.

  “Beth…? Bethany…” The voice continued – growing clearer and louder as if the guy was right in front of her, or behind her head…

  “Beth? What’s wrong?” Cole asked, studying her face. It was as white as snow again. Was she gonna faint?

  “I…” Bethany tried to form words. Everything grew silent. Lifeless. Almost as if her surroundings were becoming black and white. Scared, all she could do now was whimper and push him away – stumbling as she did. She had to get out of here! The voice was everywhere! Her heart beating loudly in her ear canal right along with it! She was losing her mind!

  “B-Bethany!” Cole perturbed, steadying himself after being shoved. “Wh-what’s going on!”

  “I – I’m sorry…have to leave…” Bethany managed to say as she tried quickening her pace…until she felt another wave of nausea. Bethany stood there silently, hunched over, unsure what to do… Where to go… Whether to throw up. Her mind spinning ‘round and ‘round and ‘round…

  She turned to him slowly on the last spin in her head, looking at him – pleading for help, when her body felt as if it got struck by lightning! Her eyes rolled back, then, just like that, she collapsed to the floor with a hard thud! Her muscles jerking!

  She was having a seizure!

  Alarmed, Cole, and the nurses, rushed over to her and immediately rolled her onto her side.

  Cole quickly removed his shirt and carefully placed it under her head as a pillow. He wanted to hold her hand but the nurses wouldn’t allow him. Rule number one when a seizure was active.

  But…that was the thing! From how long he’s known her, Bethany has never had a seizure! She would’ve told him about them if she had experienced one.

  What was going on?!

  Then, just around the corner, Hannah showed up – heading for Gym class and overheard the commotion. Walking over to see what was up - she gasped! “Bethany!” She dropped her school bag and got down on her knees by her friend’s side urging for answers. “What happened?”

  “We have no idea!” Cole told her, panicking – hating to lie, but seriously, he really had no idea why she was fainting, or having a freaking seizure! “She was walking and feeling dizzy and then all of a sudden she just collapsed!” He heard the nurses hesitating to call the ambulance but urged them, “No,” and to just take her back to the nurse’s office, due to the paranoia of Bethany going through a sleep study. But on the worst part on his end of the argument, he lost the battle. The nurse was calling for one. Meanwhile, the other nurse brought a pillow from the cot in the nurse’s room so Bethany could lay there comfortably until the paramedics arrived.

  Hannah, standing there now, watched as Bethany’s body began to settle now, the seizure dying down. Which was a good thing, right? Less than five minutes? She observed as the nurses helped Bethany keep as comfortable as possible, rubbing her back to help the oxygen in her lungs flow.

  Cole, staying there on the floor with her, threading his fingers through her bangs and the clamminess of her forehead, looked up at Hannah sharing the same worried feature she had planted on her face.

  Cole did not know what to say but sigh, at a loss for words. He just watched a close friend of his drop to the floor like as if a big boulder had landed on top of her, and then have a mini seizure. He didn’t know which part was scarier…but if only Hannah had witnessed what he saw.

  Swallowing, he took a deep breath before looking back at Bethany. The nurse had put a cold cloth over the side of her neck, and now checking her pulse at the wrist – of which was at a medium pace.

  As the nurse examined her, Cole moved his hand to brush her bangs again, soothing her as he thought to himself: What’s going on with you Beth? Thinking about the dreams, the mark on her kneecap, the fainting spells. Something was definitely wrong…and he didn’t like the looks of it.