She's Here

I gripped the wheel, attempting to control the direction of the car ineffectively. I've had my foot on the brake for what felt like a century, which was equally ineffective. I screamed loudly, knowing no one would hear me over the engine of the Suburban, but something deep inside of me told me it was the right thing to do.

"Help me! Please, someone help me! I can't stop my car! I'm going to crash. Help!' It was just a cycle of useless words. I already knew I'd completely lost control, and it was pointless for me to continue on with this insanity. I should just jump through the windshield.

I climbed into the backseat, managing to calm myself with the thought of dying in an instant. I braced myself against the seat in front of me as I raised myself into a crouching position. I threw myself forward mindlessly, closing my eyes a millisecond before impact- 

I woke with a jolt, sweat soaking my t-shirt. I managed to catch my breath after a few minutes and calm myself by telling myself it was only a dream. It was just a dream, wasn't it?

I felt my head and my throat, ran my fingers over my ribs, and counted my fingers and toes. Ten of each, I was fine. I hugged my knees to my chest and squeezed my eyes shut. This has got to be the third time this week..

Am I going insane or something? Should I tell someone about my dreams? No, they can't hurt me because that's all they are. Dreams.

I woke a few hours later by the sound of my alarm clock, instinctively flinching as the morning sun assaulted my eyes.

An exasperated sigh slipped past my lips as I glanced down. I slid out of bed hesitantly, my eyes quickly adjusting to the brightness.

I shuffled into my bathroom and grabbed a towel, tossing it near the shower and lazily undressing myself.

As I stepped into the shower and allowed the cool water to cascade over me, causing my hair to stick to my forehead and the back of my neck, the slight tension was relieved in my core and I exhaled, allowing the water to warm a bit.

I sat there for a few minutes, enjoying the relaxing feeling of warm water soaking my skin. Soon, I turned off the water and stepped back out, wrapping the towel loosely around my waist. 

I glanced at myself in the mirror, moving the towel up to my head and rubbing the tendrils of wet hair framing my face.

I looked up suddenly, sensing someone else in the room. I thought I saw a flicker of movement in the corner of my eye, but passed it off as a fly.

I quickly dressed myself with jeans and a navy blue cotton t-shirt.

After I finished dressing, I slipped on some sneakers and slid my keys into my pocket, making my way out the door and to my car.

"Nick, get up, your shifts almost over."

"Huh?" I rose my head groggily, my eyes attempting to adjust to the fluorescent lights of the Seven-Eleven.

"Your shift's up in a few minutes. Hurry up and get yourself together, I don't want your driving yourself half asleep," said Abby, an old family friend.

"Oh, thanks, I guess," I stood up and ran a hand through my hair, trying to fix the disheveled mess. "Any time," she said, smiling and disheveling it again. I sighed and walked over to the employee area, grabbing my keys out of my locker. She followed me in and leaned against the counter.

"Are you alright? You've been sleeping a lot on the job lately. Is there something going on with your parents? You can always stay with me, you know," she said with a frown on her face. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just having a bit of trouble sleeping," I said as I closed the door to my locker. "Trouble sleeping? Do you need to see a somnologist? I can go with you if you need, you know. I'm always here for you. Are you having nightma-"