The House in the Woods

The caterer has a Nightmare

LUKE POV

We are in the dayroom watching an action movie. At first I think it is part of the sound effects, but then I realize that someone is screaming. I must have been the only one that heard it because when I jumped up, everyone was looking at me wondering what was causing to me to react.

We met Jennifer briefly this morning during breakfast. The two of us shared the one order of chocolate chip pancakes that the cafeteria sent up. When I got to the door of her room, she was thrashing around in her bed obviously lost in a nightmare. The screaming had stopped, but now she was sobbing, and just kept saying no over and over again.

I approach her cautiously. We know from dealing with Sang's nightmares that I need to gently try to coax her awake. She is facing me and I put my hand on her shoulder and shake her gently, saying, "Jennifer, it is just a bad dream. Wake up."

It takes a few tries, but the whimpering sounds taper off and I see that she is opening her eyes. First there was some confusion, but then her eyes dilate and her facial expression becomes one of terror. I see her arm start to pull back, but don't expect the punch that she delivers to my jaw. She is looking straight at me when she starts screaming, "Come back to finish what you started JR? You didn't punish me enough? Your jealousy tore us all apart. Your jealousy over Nonoh, I stayed away from him and it still wasn't enough for you. You take away everything that I care about and it ends now."

I was not prepared for her to lunge towards me or her wrapping her hands around my throat.

North appears at the door, looks around and says, "Luke WTF is going on?"

I am trying to remove her hands from my throat when I say, "Nightmare."

North yells, "What is her name?"

I am barely able to squeak out, "Jennifer"

North runs across the room and is almost to us when she looks at him and says, "You know who he is right? He set you up and stole from you too. DON'T LET HIM KILL ME TOO."

Then she flings me off of the bed. A pain explodes in my head as I realize that it hit the nightstand beside the bed.

NORTH POV

I am jarred awake by screaming in the next room. Sang baby must be having another one of her nightmares. She has not had one in several months, but it sounds like this is the worse one yet.

When I enter the room I see that it is not Sang, but the woman at Joshua's house. She is punching Luke, and then moves to put her hands around his throat.

I yell, "Luke WTF is going on?"

He responds back, "Nightmare."

Dammit, my thoughts go back to the classes that I took on how to help Baby deal with her nightmares. I learned from my first experience with waking Sang from a nightmare that you have to do it with caution, or they may perceive you as a threat. I still have a tiny scar on my arm from where she scratched my arm trying to get away from me.

I move across the room and try to draw her attention from Luke. She looks at me and says, "You know who he is right? He set you up and stole from you too. You are one of his jars. DON'T LET HIM KILL ME TOO."

As I reach for her, she flings Luke away from her. He hits his head on the nightstand as he falls to the ground. When I see that she is trying to get out of the bed to go after him again, I grab her from behind, pinning her arms down to her side.