Paint the town blue

Chapter XIII

I was walking along a shady alley in a park I didn't know, but there was no one around. It was early morning, but because of the dense crowns of the trees, it seemed that it was late evening: it was dark around, the lanterns were burning so dimly that it seemed that they weren't burning at all. The wind howled through the dense foliage, which looked more like a howl - muffled, but causing a crowd of goosebumps. I walked barefoot through the shallow puddles left after the recent rain, and hugged myself, trying to keep warm at least a little. I was cold, but I went ahead anyway. Where was I going? I don't know. But I knew that I have to move forward. I have to keep going, because they are waiting for me there. He's waiting for me there. That's why I have to keep walking, even though my legs hurt from the cold ground and my lips have turned pale. I was looking ahead, and there he was, standing at the end of the alley. I walked, no, I ran through the pain, because the puddles on the ground turned from wet spots into a road of shattered glass, but I couldn't let myself stop. The closer I got to him, the warmer I felt, and I didn't know why - either from the fact that he was getting closer, or from the fact that my legs were burning with pain and this pain spread throughout my body. I ran up to him, I reached out to him, I almost touched him, and he...silently mouthed "Wake up" and I fell into a deep abyss of icy water.

I sat up abruptly in bed, and cold large drops of sweat were dripping from my forehead. Was it all a dream? Just a dream? My heart was pounding in my chest, and my breath was as if I had run a marathon in one breath.

I looked around the room, and the sun was shining through the loosely hung curtains. What time is it now? I took the phone from the bedside table and looked at the time - it was 9.30 a.m! Not only did I oversleep my work, but Valtteri also sent some kind of message that I didn't notice right away. I wanted to call Fred, but decided to read what Bottas had sent me first.

Valtteri aka my sanity keeper:

"Good morning. I've informed your boss that due to unforeseen circumstances, your session has been changed to today, so I'll be waiting for you in my office at noon."

A visit to Valtteri? I don't remember asking him to reschedule the visit for today. I lay back on the bed and winced unpleasantly, feeling the wet cloth touching my skin. I wanted to spend a little bit more time in bed, but I immediately got out of bed because of unpleasant feeling. Was I crying in my sleep again? Or am I sweating so much because of this strange dream?

Deciding that since there was still time before the visit, it would be nice to take a shower and freshen up, I trudged into the bathroom. When I entered the room, I was surprised to see a pile of wet clothes on the floor by the shower stall. What the hell happened yesterday?

I picked up the still wet clothes from the floor and my memory began to return: I saw Max yesterday and I got something like a panic attack. Isn't that what it's called? Actually, hence the wet clothes, and the sudden, but still necessary visit to Valtteri. God, I'm definitely going crazy.

I put my things aside, planning that after the shower I would throw them and other things into the washing machine, then I undressed and entered the shower stall. Turning on the water, I felt my body begin to relax under the hot jets, and memories of yesterday and a strange dream began to pop up in my memory. What was that all about? And why did I react like that? I definitely need to discuss this with Valtteri.

After the shower, I dressed in clean clothes, picked up dirty and wet ones, and took everything to the laundry room. Yuki was no longer at home, because he had been working since early morning, and now it was almost noon. Damn, I'm going to be late!

After putting my clothes in the washing machine, I went back to my room and put on my glasses - one of my favorite accessories. It's not that I'm worried about my appearance right now, it's just that glasses are some kind of an additional protection for me. Like my own protection from this world.