Wildest Dreams

t h i r t y - t w o

A car beeping outside the house alarmed me that I had relished my hours of the morning too much. I turned off the TV and grabbed my school bag, rushing outside.

It was a bit foggy this morning. Maybe I should've worn my jacket. However, the sun was still out, partially hiding in clouds.

"Hey guys!" I greeted them as I approached the red Cadillac.

"G' morning sunshine," Glen replied back, flashing me one of those smiles I always loved.

"Hey Maple! You lookin' better," Nancy told me.

"Thanks, you're looking much alive too." I gazed and grinned at the other girl beside her. "You too, Tina. No nightmares lately?"

"Nah. My nights have been less scary but more sweaty lately," replied Tina, looking at Rod. He wrapped an arm around her and they made out.

"Yikes," I remarked. I hopped in, sitting beside Glen and giving him a kiss over the gearshift.

"Nah-uh. It's only me and my baby's moment," Rod said, waving his hand between me and Glen.

"This is my ride, punk. I get to decide who's moment it is," Glen retorted, glaring at him at the front mirror.

"Make it mine because there's too much PDA already for this morning." Nancy leaned towards our seats with a tight-lip smile on her face.

"Jury's out," I muttered. Glen laughed and intertwined our hands together.

He then adjusted the gearshift and stepped on the gas, almost sending Rod and Tina out of there seats. We laughed at them, making our way down the foggy road with the roof down. We passed through the fog and saw three girls dressed in white playing in the grass while singing a nursery rhyme.

"Gosh, they give me heebie-jeebies," commented Nancy as we watched the girls play.

When we turned our heads back at the road, there was a man who wore a red and dark green sweater, standing in the middle of the road. Glen instantly slammed on the brakes but the car continued to skid forward.

We brac e d   f or   i  mp  a   c    t   .

#  #  #

My eyes fluttered open while my hands grasped the linen sheets under me. I took a couple of breaths before understanding that I was just dreaming.

I pushed myself up on the bed, noticing I had wires on my head and chest, and an IV tube on my arm and hand. There was a heart monitor beside me.

I was in the hospital.

. . .

When the clock struck 11, a nurse came in with a new bag of IV. She saw me awake and proceeded to call a doctor. The doctor came, introduced himself as Dr. Morris, and did a check-up on me.

"How long was I asleep?" I asked after the examination.

"Two weeks. Long enough that your injuries healed," he replied. "Do you remember where those injuries came from, Maple?"

I could clearly remember a big fire, Glen, Nancy, and I had to escape before we die inside the boiler room, and that rain was pouring on my face when we fell on the ground. I was holding Glen's hand.

"Bits and pieces of memory," I answered after a while.

The doctor nodded. "Take your time recovering. The detective on your case will come by tomorrow for your questioning. I'll come back later at six. If you need any help, just press that button beside you and a nurse will come."

"Wait," I called before he could walk away. "How about my friends? Are they here too?"

"You mean Nancy Thompson and Glen Lantz?"

"Yes! How are they doing?"

Dr. Morris smiled at me. "Nancy is doing fine. I'll tell someone to let Nancy know you're awake as well. However, in the case of Glen, he's still in coma after experiencing more serious energies. But you can still visit him."

I let out a sigh of relief. We all survived our nightmares.

. . .

I knocked on the door of 215 before peeking in. Nancy instantly smiled when she saw me.

"Maple!" She ran out of bed to give me a bear hug.

"Where's all this energy coming from? How long have you been awake?" I asked her.

"Three days, and yes, I have sleep in between," she answered.

"No nightmares?" I raised an eyebrow.

"None. Zip. Zero."

"Oh yes, finally!" I cheered and Nancy laughed at me. "Have you seen Glen recently?"

"Yeah, he's doing fine. He even snores. Why don't we go visit him?" Nancy invited, slipping on her slippers.

I shrugged. "I think it's a bit late in the evening. There's still tomorrow's morning anyway."

"I bet he'd love to hear from you sooner," Nancy commented. I smiled at her, a blush colouring my cheeks. We sat on her bed.

"Have you heard from your parents?" I asked, remembering it was their house that took damages.

Nancy's expression changed a little bit. Her smile faltered into a straight line.

"Yeah. Dad went alone since Mom died as revenge of Krueger when we set him on fire. That's why I was planning to nail him when we ran into each other."

"Oh, I'm sorry." I patted her hand. She pursed her lips, but noticed how my hand was bare.

"It's my first time seeing your actual hand. It's kind of weird." Nancy chuckled.

"Well, surprise?" I shrugged.

I stayed in her room until I called back to my own room. I made a promise that I won't sneak out after bedtime, but then it's hard to break old habits, right?

. . .

The next morning, I went to see Glen. He laid peacefully on his bed while the monitor beeped once in a while. I sat beside him on a chair, holding his hand as I watch his chest rise and fall. I tell him stories of my life because I knew he always wanted to know the real me, the one before gloves and nightmares and other things that made me forget who I am.

"I was a countryside girl who witnessed the sun travel the sky and conquer the horizon. I stayed up late with constellations above my head, only to sleep when the wind sings a lullaby. I would've never asked for a better life with my family.

But we all lose something we cherish in order to find another to love deeper, stronger, and braver than before. All good things come to those who wait, they said. Those who experienced life."

= = =

the epilogue is the next chapter.