Asleep

36 Breakfast

Charlie~~

I awaken to Dad's face.

I rub my eyes and let out a small groan, I'm in my house in Somnia, and Dad stands over me.

"Can I help you?"

He leans back, giving me room to sit up. "You need to get back to focusing on Nora. Today."

I rift into my kitchen in front of the fridge, and grabbing a carton of milk, I let out a sigh, turning this moment into what I should have woken up to. Peace. Myself.

I've poured the cereal into a bowl and am about to drench it with milk when Dad stalks into the kitchen.

"Good morning," I lift my voice, making it chipper as if I haven't already had the honor of encountering him today.

He grabs a glass from the cabinet over the toaster and points it at me. "You're walking a thin line."

I pour the milk over my cereal and stick in a spoon. "Mornings." I shrug.

He glowers, grabbing a carafe of orange juice from the fridge as I take a bite of my cereal, the flakes crunching. Technically, I could have conjured a bowl of cereal—I only have to understand how to bake, cook, or make a dish—but the taste is never as vibrant as it would be if I had prepared it.

"You don't have to talk with her right now, but I do need you observing her to track her progress."

         I rift out to my pool patio and settle into the seat where I shared a bottle of wine with Tye. Closing my eyes, I focus on my other senses. I also can't see Dad. That's a bonus. A light breeze brushes my face, stirring my hair and making it tickle my forehead. Birds chirp. The scent of sugar wafts off my cereal. With my eyes closed, I can almost convince myself that this is the real world.

The sound of a chair scraping against stone makes me open my eyes just as Dad sits down, ire twisting his face. "Are you done acting childish?"

"I always thought it was the child who was supposed to wake the parent."

Sipping his juice, he gives me a pointed look, not taking the bait.

Maybe rifting away from him wasn't the most mature move, but damn did it feel good.

"Today, Charlie. I mean it."

"Are your cameras and microphones not enough?"

"You know they aren't. I don't feel like arguing with you." He rubs his forehead. "Just do as I ask."

I rest my chin in my hands, staring out at the pool, at the pine trees swaying behind it. "Your wish is my command."

His glass clinks against the table. He doesn't need to thank me or offer an acknowledgement of my answer. It's what's expected of me. Why waste the time on useless affirmation?

"Do you know anything about Radia Dacy?" I ask.

"Miss Dacy, of course. We met, remember?"

"Where is she now?"

"The Lucid dream."

I drag my eyes toward him. "Was she that much of a concern that you had to remove her from Somnia?"

He leans back in the chair, cupping his glass of orange juice in his hands like it's a mug of coffee. "I don't know. We tried a similar tactic to what we did with Nora, but she didn't pass out."

I swallow hard, the milk in my stomach curdling "You know she's friends with Nora?"

"Certainly, but it's been difficult to monitor how this has affected Nora. You can visit the girl if you'd like."

"What are your plans for her?"

"Her father's been difficult. She's a bargaining piece to ensure he brings her siblings when they're sixteen." He sets his glass down. It's clever—I'll give Dad that. Her father has to decide whether he's willing to force his other children into a half-life to ensure Radia keeps her life.

Donate your children to science. It's the hardest part for some employees to grapple with when signing their contract to work here. Many don't have children when they start fresh out of college, ready to dedicate their entire lives to oneirology.

Many don't see it as sacrificing their children. They're giving their kids a life where they can't be murdered, can't die in a car wreck, and never have to truly struggle to make ends meet. As long as their children aren't Lucid and they themselves work in the dream, they can befriend them, develop a new relationship. It's almost the perfect system for a helicopter parent—their babies are safe, sheltered, tucked within the confines of their minds.

"Nora knows what you did to her, what happens if she does turn out to be a Class One and learns what you've done to her friend?"

"You should be more focused on your own interest than hers."

"She was like a friend to me. I don't want to see her get hurt."

Dad slams his palm on the table, the glass rattling and making me jump. "She's mine, Charlie. Don't forget that."

"Then don't forget that if Nora is a Class One, that even though this is a dream, the pain and wrath she'll bring down on you when she realizes she's Lucid will feel very, very real."

I push back my chair and stalk into the house before I conjure something I'll regret.