Dreamscape

Chapter 1

    A shrill beeping came from the bedside table. Elliot groaned and sat up. He grabbed his phone, turning off the alarm he set. He checked the time. He immediately came to full awareness. 11:00, he read. He scrambled out of bed. “Fuck,” he muttered through his teeth. His first class was in an hour. He still had to eat and get there. He shuffled through the laundry. His dirty and clean clothes were mixed together, as there was a lack of organization. He picked up a plain blue tee. He sniffed it and shrugged. “Good enough,” he said as he threw it on. He grabbed a pair of jeans and ran to the bathroom. He stumbled trying to put on the pants. He got one leg though before falling on his ass. He groaned and stood back up. He got his pants on successfully. He put on his belt that he’d grabbed before rushing in. He looked at himself in the mirror. His long, blonde hair fell to his back. It was frizzy from sleeping. He grabbed his brush and started at the bottom. “I don’t have time for this!” He grabbed a hair tie and pulled his hair back. He used his brush to make the top smooth. He tied it together. It was still a little loose, so he grabbed a second hair tie. He scrambled to get it up. “This’ll do for now,” he said to his reflection. Elliot brushed his teeth in a hurry, not really caring. He scrunched his nose at himself. He shrugged and walked out of the bathroom. He grabbed his phone from his bed, checking the time once again. 11:06 “okay, I have time to make some lunch.” He put his phone in his pocket and made his way to the kitchen. 

    He slowed his pace down a little bit. He wasn’t feeling as rushed as when he first woke up. He noticed a black rose on the counter. “Aww. Thanks Declan!” He giggled like a child, picking it up. He went to smell it when one of the thorns pricked him. “Ow-” a small drop of blood rushed out. He went to the sink and washed it. He grabbed a bandaid and covered his new wound. He sighed at his clumsiness. He began to start his lunch. He made his usual, a simple ham and cheese sandwich. He was lactose intolerant, but that never stopped him. He got himself a glass of chocolate milk, as well, to help down the sandwich. He didn’t bother getting a plate, biting into it. He sat at the table and started looking through his school things. He didn’t want to forget anything. His professor was already close to failing him because of his tardiness and his habit of falling asleep in class. He looked through his assignments, making sure he did the homework. Despite having lots of difficulties paying attention, he did all of his work and generally got good grades. He finished his sandwich and chugged the remainder of his milk. He quickly washed his glass and went back to his stuff at the table. He finished packing his backpack. Almost forgetting his laptop, he rushed to his room and grabbed it. While he was in there, he grabbed his favorite beanie and his headphones. He walked back out, closing the door behind him. He put on his shoes and backpack. He was out the door by 11:30. 

    He pulled his phone back out of his pocket. Turning it on, he discovered Declan had tried to call. He swore under his breath and called him back. He began walking to class as he let it ring. “Hello. I am not available at this time. Please leave your name, number, and reason for calling. Have a nice day.” He was sent to voicemail. 

“Hey Declan. It’s Elliot. I just saw you called. Sorry that I missed it, I was rushing to get out the door and didn’t even hear it. Anyways, call me back when you have the chance. I love you.” He hung up. He shrugged, trying to not let it have him lose his focus. He needed to get to class, and on time. He walked at a more brisk pace as the time turned to 11:50.

    He walked through the classroom doors at exactly 11:59. The professor looked up in surprise. “Good to see you Mr. Flynn. Please take your seat, so we can start on time.”

    He nodded and walked to his seat. He took a breath as he slid his backpack off. He started taking out everything he’d need for that class: homework, laptop, notebook, pen, and laptop charger. He plugged in his laptop and opened up the class webpage. He got out his phone to record the lecture. He started the audio and set it on the table. He tried his best to focus on what the professor was saying, but he could barely focus. His mind was on Declan, the flower, and the missed call. He was glad he figured out that recording lectures was helpful. Whatever he missed, he could listen to later. His mind slowly drifted off. He was abruptly brought back when the professor said, “Mr. Flynn. What’s the answer to #3?”

    “Shit,” he muttered under his breath.

    “What was that, Mr. Flynn?”

    “N-nothing.” he blushed slightly. “For #3, I got ‘the author wrote this poem to have the readers recognize that the world is failing. Despite the many changes some seem to be taking, it’ll never be enough. It’s a very pessimistic view, but one many share. At the end of the poem, they talked about how the end would be coming, but there was hope.’ “

    “Good insight, Mr. Flynn. Thank you.” He moved on with the lecture. 

    Elliot took a deep breath. He was on track for once. He smiled to himself. The professor actually liked what he said. He made an extra effort to focus for the rest of the class. After the hour was over, Elliot shuffled out the door. He started walking home. He decided to try to call Declan again, as it would be his lunch break right about now. He opened up the contact. He went to press the button when his phone flashed with a call coming in. It was Declan. He quickly answered it. “Hey Declan! How’s work going?”

    “Hey Elliot. Things are going pretty well. I’m on my lunch break right now.”

    “I figured.” He couldn’t stop himself from smiling. He withheld a giggle. “Thank you for the flower this morning. It was really sweet.”

    “What flower?”

    “The black one that was on the counter this morning. I didn’t get it! I figured you had.”

    “I didn’t get you a flower, I’m sorry. I wish that would have been me.”

    A cold shiver ran down Elliot’s spine. “Huh…. Weird… Anyways, Professor Rynd said I had good insight today! It made me feel really good. And, even better, I had been zoning out a little when he called on me, so I didn’t know what was going on. I still got it!!”

    “That’s amazing!” Declan smiled. He really was happy for his boyfriend. He was so proud of him. “How else have things been going today?”

    “Nothing much else has happened. I woke up an hour before class.” He shrugged, despite the fact Declan couldn’t see that. “Oh! Last night, my mom called. She wants us to come down this weekend. What do you think?”

    “I don’t have work this weekend, so if you wanted to go, I’d love to.”

    “Perfect! I’ll let them know that. I’m going to let you get back to lunch. See you after work, babe.”

    “Of course. Bye,” he said, a little disappointed. He wanted to keep talking to his boyfriend. 

    “Bye!” Elliot hung up. He plugged in his headphones. He put on his favorite song, Take Me To Church by Hozier. He turned it up, almost full volume. He made his way back to their apartment, finally getting there. He opened the door, still listening to his loud music. He slid off his backpack and took off his shoes. He pulled down his hair, taking off his beanie along with it. He went to his room, still carrying his backpack, now in his hand. He flopped onto his bed, sighing. It had already been a long day, despite having only gone to one class. He took a moment to relax before getting out his laptop to work on his homework. 

    Elliot spent the next 2 hours redoing notes and working on his coursework. He found himself starting to drift off to sleep. He decided he needed a break. He shut his laptop and set it down gently on top of his backpack, on the ground. He pulled his sheets over him. Within 10 minutes, he was asleep. That’s when the first dream began.