Red

Chapter 6

Clarissa

I was haunted by nightmares.

At first my dreams started out as usual. I would be in the same bloody world as from my daydream. That was usually it. But then the car crash my parents were in started playing over and over in my head. I'd seen videos of it online and on the news. Suddenly I was in the car with them, and I watched in slow motion as the truck slammed into my parents' car. I watched as the passenger's side, and my dad, crumple first, then my mom's side slam into a building, crushing her as well beneath the rubble and metal.

I watched as the drunken man who hit them climbed out of his truck and run away. I saw news flashes dance across my vision, all relaying the same thing: that the man who caused this has yet to be caught.

My dreams changed, and, for a brief moment, I was given peace. No horrible visions showed themselves and I'll I could see and feel was a warm, enveloping darkness.

But my mind would not allow me to rest. It insisted on throwing its darkest corners at me.

I saw Nate first, bound and bloodied, a blindfold over his eyes and tape covering his mouth. He was kneeling; he wasn't moving. I was forced to watch this image dance across my mind, until he suddenly lurched to the side and slowly, ever so slowly, I watched as his breathing slowed and, eventually, stopped.

I cried to myself, wondering my I was torturing myself like this. These nightmares were enough to drive anyone insane. Then Mike flashed across my vision, in the same position, and again, I was forced to watch someone close to my heart die before my eyes.

"Clarissa!"

I shifted in the darkness. Someone was calling my name.

"Clarissa! Wake up!"

The voice sounded vaguely familiar, but it was so muffled I couldn't place it. I tried to delve deeper into the darkness. I wanted to remain asleep, even if my dreams tormented me.

"Oh, God, she's burning up. Clarissa! You need to wake up!"

Mike! That meant the first voice was Nate. I began to push myself out of the void, trying to resurface. I gasped, and opened my eyes.

"Clarissa!" I looked to my side. Nate was there, holding my hand, tears pooling in his eyes. On the other side was my brother, placing a cool washcloth on my forehead.

"Thank God you're awake," Nate exclaimed, "You started shaking, then tossing and turning. I went and got Mike, and in the five minutes I was gone you got a raging fever, and you wouldn't wake up, and–" He took a deep breath. "You almost died."

I smiled at him, and he smiled back. "I'm still here, aren't I? Don't worry so much, Nate. I'm fine."

"No, you are most certainly NOT fine," my brother spoke up for the first time. "The fever was caused by an infection in your leg. Either that knife you were stabbed with was never cleaned, you dragging the wound over a public high school's floor, or both caused it, and that's what caused you to have the crazy nightmares and fever."

"H-how'd you know I had a nightmare, and not just a dream?"

"You started crying in your sleep," Nate said, "You said our names a couple of times...along with 'mom' and 'dad'."

"O-oh."

"Do you want to talk about it," Mike asked, "It might help."

"No, no I'm fine, I just need to think about it for a bit. I'll tell you later."

"Alright," Mike said, eyeing me suspiciously. "Nate, come with me. You had something to tell me, remember?"

Nate's eyes widen a bit, and he swallows. "U-um, y-yeah. Okay. I'm good." He smiles at me, but he looks nervous, even afraid. What's this about? I'll grill them later on it. Right now I've got to think about what I saw and do my best to forget. Nate follows Mike out the door, shutting it behind him, and leaving me alone with my thoughts.