The Sandman's Daughter

Eleven

Eleven

Cassie dropped the nail file back on the dresser and spun around. "I'm so sorry, Mom. I just..." She frowned when she saw her best friend standing in the doorway. "Sam?"

"Didn't you hear me?" Sam snapped impatiently. "The front door was unlocked and I've been calling your name this whole time. I thought..." She stopped, her red-tinged eyes growing wet.

Cassie tucked the box under her arm, knowing exactly what she thought. She thought she'd slipped into a coma as well. "I'm sorry I didn't hear you, Sam. I'm fine, though," she said, wanting to tell her about the box and the feeling that it held something about her true identity, but she realized her friend had something far more important on her mind. "What's wrong?"

"Riley," she said, her face falling, all the strength she'd been trying to hold onto gone in an instant at that word. "He's in the hospital. He's...in a coma, too."

"Oh no," Cassie breathed, hugging her friend. "I'm so sorry." She let go and pulled Sam to her room, shutting the door to her mother's bedroom behind them. She tossed the tiny hope chest in her basket of laundry. It was forgotten the minute it left her hands. There were more important things to worry about.

Like the fact that the love of Sam's life was lying in a hospital, stuck in a coma, and no one could tell her if he'd ever come back out of it.

"When did it happen?" Cassie asked Sam as she sat her down on the edge of the bed.

"At school," Sam told her, tears flowing down her cheeks. "He fell asleep in class." She wiped at the tears, sudden anger flashing through her eyes. "What the hell is going on, Cass? What happens to them when they fall asleep?"

Cassie shook her head, not knowing what to say. This wasn't the time to tell her what she could do. She couldn't tell her what really lurked out there, what really had Riley in its clutches. "I don't know, Sam."

Her friend sat there in silence, letting the tears come. "What are we going to do? People can't stop sleeping."

It was true. Sleep was a part of life. Sooner or later, it would claim them all.

"We'll have to stay awake as long as we can. Who knows...maybe this won't last much longer."

Sam looked up at her, the gleam of hope invading her eyes. "Do you really think so?"

Cassie shrugged. "Stranger things have happened, right?"

She chuckled half-heartedly at her friend's attempt at humor. "Yeah, I'd say so."

Cassie sat down on the edge of the bed and gave her friend's shoulder a consoling squeeze. "Why don't you spend the night here? We can keep each other awake while we wait for any news about the guys. Okay?"

Sam nodded, grabbing a tissue from Cassie's desk. "That's exactly what I need. I'll call my parents and let them know."

Great. A slumber party with her best friend never failed to cheer her up. She only wished it was under different circumstances.

Nothing killed the party mood like feeling like you might die any minute.