Unnamed

Chapter Two: The Boy

Eris awoke in a cold sweat, heart still racing from the nightmare. Looking at the alarm clock on her bedside table, she groaned. It read 3:58 A.M.  

With another groan, she rolled onto her stomach and dragged her pillow on top of her head. She had to get up in an hour, and she didn't think she'd be able to go back to sleep. This was going to be a long day. 

She turned so that she was on her side and hugged the pillow to her chest. That was the worst nightmare she'd had in weeks, and she'd had her fair share of nightmares this year. She dreamed she was being chased by giant wolves, men with unusually pale skin and pointy teeth (presumably vampires), giants, Cyclopes, you name it. If it was some sort of monster, it chased her. Some of them she swore she made up; for example once she dreamed that she was being surrounded by flesh eating, purple deer. She was pretty sure she had dreamed up the skeletons from tonight. 

She shuddered. They were worse than any of the other monsters. At some point in most of her dreams, she usually either outran her pursuers or else turned to fight them. Those shadows had been different. They had been like the embodiments of death. They had made her feel helpless; like there was no other outcome than to succumb to them. Even if she managed to escape them that time, she was human and would eventually be in their clutches.  

She shuddered again. Yes, that was definitely one of her nastier dreams. It might even take the cake as the most frightening dream she had ever had.  

But at the same time, it had also been the most wonderful. That boy... she didn't even know what else to think other than 'that boy'. She saw him in her mind's eye and remembered the way he had looked at her. Not being able to help herself, she hugged her pillow closer to her and pretended that it was him she was pressed up against instead of fabric and fluff.  

She couldn't help but smile as she heard his voice in her head. '...my darling Eris.' The image faded in her mind and the smile faded on her face. He wasn't real. She'd never get to meet him. They'd never have any sort of relationship, romantically or otherwise. He was a figment of her imagination. 

Feeling her heart go sort of cold, she stifled a sob. She felt heartbroken. That's stupid, she told herself. You're being silly and weak. This is what happens when your sleep deprived; your emotions go haywire. 

After a couple deep breaths, she released her pillow and rolled out of bed. She decided it was better to get super pretty for work than to stay in bed and fall asleep again only to wake up late and have to rush out the door, which she'd done once or twice now. 

After a quick trip to the bathroom, she consumed her customary peanut butter toast, apple juice, and vitamins. She then proceeded to brush her teeth and comb through her thick, black hair. The question of the day today: curled or straight? She decided to go with curled. People seemed to find her more approachable when her hair was curled.  

As she curled her hair, she considered her face in the mirror. To her surprise, her face bore an astounding resemblance to that of the boy's, with a few minor differences: her lips were fuller, her cheekbones were rounder, her face was more feminine overall, and her eyes were red. Otherwise they shared the same overall facial shape; big eyes, long lashes, and mostly subtle features. 

Also, they were both tall and slender. She hadn't looked much at his body during the dream, but she did remember those little details. He had stood between an inch to an inch and a half taller than her. 

Looking back at her eyes, she considered their odd color. Personally, she liked it. It complimented her face and drew your attention straight to her eyes. It also conveyed her mood nicely, whether she was angry, loving, or just plain passionate.  

Unfortunately, others didn't see it that way. Their brains went straight from red eyes to evil. It was hurtful, but she had become used to it. Besides, it made Halloween that much more fun. 

Suddenly, her ear stung. Hissing through her teeth, she promptly dropped the curler, which she had apparently clamped on her ear. It fell to the floor with a sound that was a mix between a clang and a thud. She hurried to pick it up, and set it down on the counter.  

Examining her ear, she was dismayed to see that it was cherry red. She turned on the faucet and let cool water fall into her cupped hand. She brought the water to her ear and let it dribble down her ear and onto her neck. 

After drying herself off, she finished curling her hair and pinned some of the curls on either side of her head in the back of her head. Checking her reflection in the mirror, she was happy to see that it turned out the way she had wanted.  

Walking into her bedroom, she glanced at the clock again. 5:01 A.M. Excellent. She had about an hour to get dressed and do her make up. 

After rummaging through her drawers for a few minutes, she came up with a plain silver blouse and black leggings. She usually refrained from wearing just leggings on her legs; they tended to draw attention to all the places she didn't want to draw attention to, but she'd be wearing her apron over them so she'd be fine. 

Once she had them on, she began putting on her make up. She didn't bother with foundation; her skin looked pasty when she put it on. Instead, she went straight for the eyeliner. She ran the pencil along the outline of her eye, careful to avoid extravagance. No wings, no heavy lining around her eye, no drawing the Eye of Horus without the actual eye around her eyes. She kept it simple. 

Once she was done with that, she put on mascara and Voila! She was done.  

5:36 A.M. Twenty-five minutes before she had to go. She spent those minutes on her couch, daydreaming about the boy.