If I Had A Heart

Chapter 5

She had been running.

Pushing, hurdling, boundless yet weak at the same time, throwing herself forward.

All she could remember was the terror and adrenaline that coursed through her veins as she ran. Something was gaining on her, of that she was sure. With every step, it was getting closer and closer. Racing into the darkness before her, the only sound she heard was laughter coming from the creature that was approaching her faster by the second. The deep, guttural cadence of its voice spurred Regine to vault herself forward even faster without looking back once. Her chest heaved and her throat burned as she gasped for the acidic air around her. Her feet wouldn't be able to carry her for much longer and even though this was her dream, she had never felt so powerless.

Moving forward as fast as she could, her legs were suddenly trudging through a thick, black ocean of nothingness, drastically slowing her movements until she felt like she was running in slow motion. She cried in both fear and frustration, the inky blackness consuming her lower body proving to be no obstacle for the thing pursuing her as it bounded effortlessly after her.

The shadowy figure was only inches from her now, clipping at her heels. A cold hand roughly wrapped itself around her neck and she flew backwards, colliding violently with whatever had grabbed her. Her body tensed against the cold hardness of the creature's large frame, her legs almost completely giving out as it grasped her tightly.

A blind, searing pain suddenly ripped through her body as she felt the creature tear into her neck with its jagged teeth and Regine screamed.

She abruptly awoke with a start. Bolting upright from her bed, a thin layer of sweat coated her body as she wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. Breathless, she pulled her legs to her chest and leaned her head to rest on her knees, trying to fathom what had just happened. She wasn't one for nightmares, hardly ever remembering her dreams at all, but this one had been so vivid. Touching the side of her damp neck, her fingers traced along the veins pulsing underneath her skin, reminding herself that she was still intact after all.

I need a goddamn cigarette, Regine thought, frustrated with herself for relying on something so deadly to calm her nerves. Her clock informed her that it was just passed six o'clock in the morning, not nearly late enough for her to justify staying awake for the rest of the day. Throwing herself on her bed after her shift at around three usually meant sleeping until the late afternoon the next day.

She also usually never had terrifying nightmares that essentially scared her out of REM sleep.

Not wanting to be alone, she briefly pondered the idea of waking Jane up to keep her company. However, Regine remembered that she was most certainly not a morning person, especially on days like this when she had class. Jane also particularly hated when Regine would smoke in the apartment, but since she was feeling so shaken after her nightmare, she decided that it would be worth dealing with her best friend's wrath later on.

Lighting up a Red from her brand new pack, Regine reclined on her bed and stretched her limbs across her damp sheets. Her black tank top and boy shorts were drenched with sweat but she didn't have the energy to change. Inhaling deeply and holding in the smoke, her muscles slowly began to relax as she exhaled toward her open window. Everything was so quiet and peaceful outside from the view of her third story apartment, making it so easy for her to fall back asleep and forget about her stupid dream. It meant nothing anyway, she was probably just stressed out from work and this was a way for her unconscious to remind her to relax from time to time.

Yeah, that was it.

So why couldn't she just put out her cigarette and snuggle back under her covers without a care in the world? Regine didn't know. She continued to smoke and smoke and smoke until her pack was nearly empty and the sun had almost completely risen into the dim violet sky. She wished she could justify her decision to stay awake by finding a solution for the emptiness she was currently feeling, but the numbness just grew colder with every cigarette and tick of the clock, only snapping out of her trance at the sound of the shower being turned on from the next room. Jane was getting ready for class and would be gone until Regine had to leave for work.