Being with Michael: Part 1 (Book Two)

Chapter Sixty Four

She wakes up with a jerk and feels a scream make its way out her mouth.

She gasps as she feels the salty liquid of tears run down her face.

She jumps again when she hears a knock on the door. Michael comes around the corner with a concerned and curious look on his face.

Paige just stares straight in front of her with wide eyes attempting to keep herself from hyperventilating. She has her arms wrapped around herself as the tears continue to run down her face.

Michael walks up to the bed. "What's wrong? You were screaming."

"Dad?" He hears Paris's voice.

Michael turns around and walks toward her. "You guys go back to bed."

"But-"

"Go!" He points out the door and Paris walks out into the hall where Prince and Blanket are standing. Michael closes the door behind them. He turns around and sees Paige still gasping and shaking.

He walks up to the bed. He's not sure how close she wants him to get.

"Paige?" She doesn't respond.

He sits on the side of the bed and looks at her right in the eyes, but she just seems to be staring right past him.

He puts his hands on the sides of her face to get her to look at him. Her eyes shift to his and he can see fear in them.

"What did you dream about?" Michael asks her. He's never seen her have a nightmare this bad before.

She keeps shaking her head repeatedly, "I don't think it was a dream."

Michael puts a hand on her shoulder to try to get her body to stop shaking. "Well, what happened?"

Tears stream down her face and she looks away from him.

"Come on. You can tell me. That's the only way I can help you out," Michael says.

Paige takes a deep breath and she says quickly all in one sentence, "There was fight in the garage and it seemed too real to be fake and I got shot and I shot people and they died, and, and, I shot them, that's all there is to it ..."

She cries and allows her body to curl up against Michael's as he holds her. He doesn't say anything, he just lets her cry. He knows it's the truth, so he doesn't want to lie to her, but he knows what this must feel like to her.

"Shh.." He makes out. Paige slumps over and her body lies across Michael's lap.

Suddenly she seems to calm down and he can hear her ask, "Is it true?" Her voice breaks and it's the most wretched he's ever heard her sound. It's heartbreaking.

Michael waits as long as he can before he forces himself to say, "Yes."

Paige sits up. "Get out," she says.

"What?" Michael asks.

"Get out. This was a mistake. I'm sorry. It's over. You can go now," she says while wiping off her face.

"Uh... okay..." He doesn't want to push her any more.

He gets off the bed and walks to the door but looks back at Paige to see if she's changed her mind.

She just turns and curls herself back up into the bed.

He knows she didn't, so he opens the door and leaves the room.

After he leaves, Paige keeps staring at the door without crying, without thinking, and without feeling.