Peculiar Dreams

Chapter 8

He is then thrust backwards by a force so strong it knocks all the wind out of him. He can feel himself falling, and falling, and falling. His eyes still closed, he begins to envision Chloe. She is looking right at him with her bright blue-green eyes. He can feel love radiating between the two of them. But as he reaches out for her, she is whisked away by some unseen force. Her face full of fear as she vanishes from his sight. He sighs as he thinks to himself, "Well I knew this wouldn't be easy... I will find you Chloe, I promise..."

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He coughs as he slowly opens his eyes. Then as he starts to remember where he is, Jaden quickly springs to his feet, scanning his surroundings. There is a foggy haze surrounding him in every direction. All he can see is a barren wasteland as far as the eye can see. He hears a faint whispering behind him, he spins around, but there is nothing there.

"What the hell am I supposed to do now..." He mutters to himself.

He closes his eyes and remembers the words Cathy said to him."Follow your heart, it will lead you to Chloe. But you must move quickly."

Feeling frustrated and a bit desperate, he yells out at the top of his lungs, "CHLOE!" but the only thing he hears in return is the echo of his voice. Jaden takes a few deep breaths and closes his eyes, concentrating on her face, that beautiful smile that he remembers so well, her voice whispering his name, her soft lips on his. After a few moments, he opens his eyes and to his amazement, he sees a clearing through the haze to his right.

"Thank you Cathy." He smiles to himself, feeling that she is out there somewhere, still guiding him. He begins walking through the clearing. After walking for a few minutes, he notices a little dirt path winding its way down a hill and into what looks like a very dark forest. He gulps as he begins walking down the path. As he approaches the forest, he feels a strong gust of wind pushing him backwards, almost knocking him over. He squints as he swears he can see a figure standing at the entrance to the forest.

"Chloe? Is that you?" He tries to call out, but his voice sounds like nothing more than a faint whisper. Confused, he starts sprinting towards the figure. But as he gets closer, the figure quickly fades away. He stops to catch his breath at the edge of the forest, and directly where he saw the figure standing, he notices something sparkling on the ground. He slowly walks over to it and bends down. He reaches out and picks it up.

"What the hell?" He thinks to himself. It's a silver necklace with a shiny blue gem in the shape of a butterfly. "Why does this look so familiar..." Jaden closes his eyes and memories start racing through his mind. Remembering back to when he woke up in that bed. He quickly opens his eyes, "That's it! She was wearing this during that... life... or memory? Or whatever it was. This has to mean something. I've got to be getting close!"

With new found vigor, he makes his way into the forest, more determined than ever. Clutching the necklace in his hand. He walks for what feels like hours, realizing it's becoming darker and darker the deeper into the forest he travels. His legs begin to feel weak as he realizes how long he's been walking. He's tempted to stop to rest, but he knows there isn't much time. So he trudges along the path, barely able to keep his eyes open. Just as he is beginning to have feelings of doubt enter his mind, he sees a faint light in the distance. He continues his way towards the light. As he gets closer, he can make out what looks like an old run-down house in a little clearing in the trees. He slowly approaches it. The windows are all broken, there are cracks in the walls. It looks like it could collapse at any moment. He peeks through one of the windows and can see an old woman, rocking slowly in a chair, facing away from him.

Suddenly, she stops rocking. She tilts her head slightly, as she shouts, "Who's there?"

Not sure what to do, Jaden just stands there frozen.

"Well don't just stand out there in the cold." The old woman insists. "Come in, I haven't had company in ages."

Finally, Jaden makes his way to the front door and as he opens it, it nearly falls right off the hinges. He walks in and looks around. Everything looks tattered and worn, there is dust covering all the furniture. There are a few torn and faded paintings on the walls. The old woman turns to look at him with a smile on her wrinkled face.

"Well, hello there stranger, what brings you here?" She asks as she begins rocking in her chair again.

He walks over and sits down in a dusty chair next to her. "I'm looking for someone."

"Oh?" She asks. "Well I'm sorry, I haven't seen anyone around here as long as I can remember. In fact, I don't even remember how I got here. It's a very lonely place indeed." She says with a bit of a sad look on her face.

Jaden sighs, "I'm afraid I may be running out of time." As he stands back up, the necklace falls to the floor with a clanking noise.

The old woman glances over at it with a puzzled look on her face. "Where did you find that? I've been wondering what happened to it, I haven't seen it in years."

Stunned and confused, Jaden looks at the necklace, then back to the old woman. "Wait... this is yours?" He asks as he picks up the necklace.

"Yes, yes of course! Where did you find it? I lost it many, many years ago, I didn't think I would ever see it again." She says with a bit of sadness in her eyes. "It reminds me of a time long ago, you see, I didn't always look like this. There was a man, we were very much in love. But something happened..."

Jaden, still in shock, suddenly notices a cracked picture frame next to him on a table covered in dust. As he picks it up, he can't believe his eyes. It's a picture of Chloe and him, just as he remembered her from his dreams.

The old woman smiles, "Yes, you see. That was us, many years ago..."

He stands up and gasps and he looks across the room and sees his reflection in the mirror. Instead of how he remembered himself, he sees an old man staring back at him. He looks down and holds his wrinkled hands out in front of him. "What happened to me!?" He cries out, feeling a bit light-headed. He looks at the old woman, now staring at him awkwardly. "Chloe... is that really you?"

Looking like she had just seen a ghost, she replies, "Yes... how did you know my name?"