The Shoebox Murders: Sometimes The Past Is Better Kept Hidden

Chapter 4: The Nightmares

(Jean's POV)

I woke up, sweaty, hot yet shivering, breathing heavily, heart racing. They were all the same. I would fall asleep only to be woken up in the middle of the woods, searching for something or someone. Everytime I'd try to walk, my legs felt heavy. They felt like concrete bricks were tied around my ankles. I would sink into the mud everytime my foot hit the ground as I took a step. I was dragging something behind me that was tied to both my wrists, making my arms go behind my back. My hair would always be wet, and I would only be wearing a silk nightgown that, too, was soaked.

The night gown felt restricting as it would cling to my body Everytime I breathed out, you could see the foggy clouds it would make in the air. I was barefoot, covered in dried mud and small scrapes. The air was always fridged, feeling like ice hitting my skin everytime the wind blew. The woods were dark, hardly any light coming through the tall dark green trees. I could only make it so far without something happening to me. That part would always change. This time, I was ripped apart by hungry wolves.

I flipped my sheets over to get out of bed, only to see that my legs were scraped up and covered in black dirt. My white sheets were covered in the same black dirt. I sighed as I got out of bed, walking to the bathroom. I got undressed after turning the water on, looking in the mirror. My blonde hair sticking to my face; my baby blue eyes staring back at me; my small rounded nose and my flustered rounded cheeks covered in freckles stared back at me.

I ran my hand down my face, feeling the heat and the sweat that invaded my skin. I watched as the mirror fogged up before stepping in, closing the glass doors behind me. I stood there, eyes closed, letting the scalding hot water trickle down my cold skin. I kept replaying the dream in my head over and over again, trying to decipher its meaning. Trying to figure out why I was chained; why I couldn't get to whoever I was looking for. Why I was dying in a million different ways before I reached my destination.

I don't know how long I was in the shower for, but when I got out, my fingers and toes were pruned up. I groaned as I turned the water off, wiggling by black painted toes. I reached for the towel, dried my wet skin off as well as my dripping hair, before tying it around my body. I stepped back in the shower, leaning my head against the wall, slowly slipping down to sit on the wet shower floor, not caring if my white fluffy towel would get wet. I sat there for several minutes with my eyes closed, feeling drained of all my energy, still replaying the dream in my head over and over again, until I finally gained enough strength to get up. I pursued with my normal morning routine, adding extra sugar to my coffee to keep me awake. Today was going to be a long day.

I went to work and surprisingly got through the day. However, it came with the consequence of fatigue and a pounding headache. When I got home, I didn't eat, just went straight to bed. Lying there looking up at my white ceiling, on my naked bed, not wanting to go to sleep. I managed to get up after a while of staring at the ceiling and made my bed. After fixing the light freay sheets and the navy blue comforter, I slid down the side of my bed landing on my knees, head in my hands as my elbows layed on the bed. I didn't want to go to bed. I didn't want to see the constant, recurring visions that always ended in my death.

Hours went by and I was still on the light grey carpeted floor of my bedroom. I sighed and changed into a black oversized t-shirt. I walked to the kitchen, grabbed a glass out of the cupboard and filled it with cold water, grabbing the small bottle of tylenol off the counter. I popped the two small orange pills in my mouth and let the cold water slide down my throat, carrying the two pills with it. I walked back to the white, light grey, and navy blue room, crawling into the unsafe territory that brought on my gruesome nightmares.After I got settled in, I closed my eyes, praying that I wouldn't have another nightmare. My prayers didn't work.