Me and Bear

Chapter five

Austin

I sit in the bushes, trying to frantically plan out my next move when the bear raises its head from the stream, water dripping down its muzzle. It turns away from me and starts slowly walking away. All of a sudden, it's not a bear that stands some fifty feet from me, it's... Bruin? And all goes dark.

***

It's funny how sometimes the brain mixes reality with fantasy. Take for example what happened today: Justin refers to Bruin as a bear and when I go into the forest and encounter an actual bear, my brain just up and morphs it into Bruin. Dreams get so weird sometimes, it's sad I almost never remember them after waking up because I would like to write them down to look at them from time to time and have a good laugh.

It is unbelievable how soft a bed gets when you know you have to wake soon. It's like your body just wants to keep laying and then your brain tricks you into thinking that the bed you're sleeping on is the softest thing in the world. I know it to be wrong though, my fuzzy socks and blankets are even softer. I lay here in the comfort of my bed and darkness and find myself wondering when the alarm will go off. What seems like forever goes past and I'm still laying here, waiting for the ringing to announce it is time to get up. What if I forgot to set it and am now running late.

I decide to just get it over with and open my eyes to take a look at the clock on my bedside table. When I open my eyes, however, I find myself staring at a door across the room. There are no doors in my room except for the one at the foot of my bed. I look down, past my blanket covered legs and see a door. It doesn't look like the one in my room. Mine is a pale wooden one, this one here is way darker and older looking. It has a worn down brass handle, whereas the handle on my door is a pale metallic grey. Who in the world changed my room? And where does the extra door lead to? The walls are different too, they're a dark blue. The only thing that's halfway similar is the ceiling, wooden and with beams showing. What in the world... I couldn't have possibly changed my room that much and then forgotten about it. There is no bedside table on the left side of the bed, instead there's a nightstand on the right side.

I look around the room with bleary eyes before rubbing them clear with the backs of my hands and making another visual sweep of the foreign surroundings. The blanket covering me is as soft as mine are but it is a pale grey and mine are in different shades of blue and beige. I most definitely don't have a pale grey blanket.

The room smells different as well. It is a warm, strong and masculine smell that wafts into my nostrils and it has me bewildered, I've never met anyone that smells this good except for... Bruin! But what the hell is going on here? How did I end up in what I imagine is his bedroom, on his bed?

I throw the blanket to the side and slide my feet to the floor. The bed is a massive wooden frame with an equally enormous mattress. I hop off the bed and note with relief that I'm still dressed, only my boots, jacket, scarf and hat are missing. Debating on which door to take, I finally go with the one facing the foot of the bed.

It creaks slightly when I pull it open and peek out into whatever room is on the other side. It's a small living room with a couple of armchairs in front of a fireplace, a soft looking carpet stretched out on the floor in front of them. To the side is a small kitchen equipped with the essentials. Bruin stands there, leaning onto the counter behind him. His arms are crossed over the wide expanse of his chest as he looks at me.

I shuffle myself into the living room and lean my back onto the door I closed behind myself. We just stand and stare at each other from across the room until I finally break the silence. "You've got a lot to explain." I remember the bear that suddenly wasn't a bear and wonder if that was a dream or some kind of warped reality.