The Dream Guardian

                                                           The Dream Guardian

                                                                   Chapter 1

The air was warm, and the smell of fresh rain lingered over the hills. Pink, orange, and red flowers filled the floor leaving only a slender path to guide the way. I didn't need their help, only the boy before me in the distance. I lingered back just enough to go unnoticed hopeful that I could follow him to the top.

The view over the hills could take my breath away. It was exquisite, unlike anything I had seen before. The lake beyond the cliff was glassy with a bouncy reflection of colors. It seemed as though it could never be real. How could something so beautiful and pure exist in the world? I wondered if I were to touch it if it would disappear beneath my fingers.

I looked down at the boy that lay on the grass and took a seat. I couldn't remember the last time I had seen him and couldn't imagine he would ever be back. I can't be sure whether his return brings good for me. His appearance in my mind would always be unclear to me. When he was gone, I felt a loss that was so real. To me, he was real. He felt tangible, substantial, like every breath I would take. I never thought it would all disappear; he would disappear, and when he did, it stuck with me. I hoped he would come back, and every day that he didn't, it chipped away at my hope that he would ever return.

As I had grown over the years, so had he. Now looking back at me was the boy I had forced myself to forget but whose face still keeps space in my memory. I could never be able to forget him. His eyes are as green and bold as the hills around him. His dark hair was a little longer than when I had last seen him, though it seemed to suit him, drawing my attention to the loss of his once boyish cheeks. This time seeing him made me nervous. Anyone could see him for what he was. He was striking, his demeanor charming and welcoming. While I could be confident when needed, as he looked at me, I felt as though he could see through my facade.

He softly smiled as he watched me take a seat beside him. I wondered how I could feel so at peace and so nervous at the same time. I gently lay down, taking in the cool breeze. Shortly after, I felt a warmth in my hand as he intertwined our fingers. I wanted to but could not stop the faint blush that rose to my cheeks. I wondered if his would match but could not persuade myself to check. I held his hand tighter in mine. What once felt secondary when we were young now had me marveling at the warm feeling coursing through my chest.

We sat quietly for a while, but before long, he looked at me with a grin. I do not believe either of us imagined we would be together again. Every moment together felt different than it had with anyone else. It felt safe and warm; it filled me with a nervous fuzzy feeling. This feeling made me feel alive and slowly mended all the loss I felt when he was gone.

As quickly as he left once before, his smile had this time done the same. Despite our position, the warmth in his hand disappeared, and with it, his image faded.

"Sweetie, wake up. Evie school in twenty minutes." my mother said, rubbing my arm before leaving my bedroom.

So it was just a dream, it all felt so real. Why was this man so important to me, and how could he feel so real? It had been so long since I had seen him last, and I felt as hurt as I once had. I still could not place who he was or why he was so important. I had seen him in my dreams when I was a little girl, but why was he back now?

When I was little, my dreams repeatedly featured him. When I saw him in my dreams, it was fine. I would tell my parents stories about him and the field where we would sit.