Dear Payton,

Chapter 2

It's 9:07 a.m. I woke up terrified and screaming. I remember opening my eyes and Payton was above me yelling to wake me up. She kept screaming, "Sam, wake up. It's okay, it isn't real." I opened my eyes suddenly and gasped for air. I sat up and hugged Payton, "Thank god you're okay!" I mumbled. She looked at me and said, "I always am. It's just a dream, sweet girl!" She held me tightly. I tried to shrug it off. Even though the feelings were still there, I did a good job hiding them from her. I didn't wanna worry or upset her.
Payton and I both got out of bed and got dressed. She put on some black skinny jeans with rips in the middle, converse, and a white tee. I put on some nike running shorts and a long-sleeve I got from vacation in the Bahamas a year ago. We both go down stairs and I turn on the TV, the man starts off by saying, "... after a two car collision on Thursday, November 14th, police are investigating..." I turned it off and ran back into the kitchen with Payton. I hug her from behind and say, "What's for breakfast?" She smirks and says, "I'm making eggs, toast, and bacon. Does that sound good?" I smirked and nodded. I started pouring us a glass of orange juice and placed it on the table. I sat down and she came over with our two full plates of breakfast. We began eating and Payton asks, "So, how's school?" I took a bite of my eggs and laid my fork down. I hesitated and put my hands in my lap while replying, "It's good, I like my classes a lot so far."

I'm a senior at Rhode Island College on Fruit Hill Avenue, not too far from our home. I'm studying business management and sociology. I met Payton my freshman year at a football game. She ended up going with a few old friends from high school that I knew as well. She was tall, thin, had gorgeous blue eyes, long black hair, and the most beautiful smile. The first thing I noticed was the half moon tattoo she had on the side of her hip. I ended up getting her number after one of our friends named Lacey introduced us. I was more of the quiet type, I mostly kept to myself. But after meeting Payton, she always brought out this happiness in me I never knew I had.

For our first date, we went to this really popular restaurant called Ricks Roadhouse. I learned a lot about her that night and everything I learned made me fall for her a little more. She was 21 at the time and I was 19. She never went to college because after high school she wanted to start her career straight away. She was amazing at what she did, it didn't take her long to find a company that would hire her full time.

Payton was a photographer and model. She worked for a 5 star company called Lexi London Photography. Her photos were absolutely beautiful and her design method was extraordinary. She could find the rare beauty in things that most people couldn't. She rarely ever posed for the camera though. She was the type to be behind the camera than in front of it.
We ended up dating and moving in together once I started my sophomore year of college. I work part time at Macy's in the mall right down the street from our apartment. We plan to move to Nashville once I graduate.

Payton and I chit chat for a little bit and then she takes our plates to the sink. While I'm helping her clean the kitchen, Payton looks at the clock and asks, "What are you doing today, babe? Any plans?" "I don't know yet, I don't really have anything planned, why?" I asked in return. She turns around and looks at me and says, "I was just wondering if you wanted to come to the studio with me today. It'll be a lot of fun. We're having a huge party for Misty, one of our models who got promoted to Forever 21." I smiled and said, "Yeah, that sounds like fun! I'll go." She takes a drink of her orange juice and smirks, "Great! it's 9:47 right now, it starts at 10:30 so we should start getting ready." She replied.

I sat down on the edge of the bed and took a deep breath. I lay down for a few minutes and slowly start to fall asleep. I feel it again, my heart racing as I imagine what my dream looked like. I imagine myself running out of the school doors onto the campus. My feet running towards the road as my mind begins to panic. I felt it, the moment I saw the pole and Payton's car destroyed. I began to scream, "Payton!" But no noise came out, no one could hear me. It was like an echo of a scream never heard. "Payton!" All I could hear was the sound of my breath. "Payton!" I woke up suddenly and took a deep breath. Payton comes in and looks at me, "Sam are you okay?!" I try to catch my breath while whispering, "I'm okay. Just took a little nap." I sit on the side of the bed, rub my eyes, and just silently breathe. "It's okay. It's not real. It isn't."