||Short stories||

||Peaches and daydreams||

♥︎♥︎♥︎

It was a Sunday evening and the sun began to set. Its golden light made its way through the window which had the curtains left halfway open. The clouds, soaked by the sun's colours, turned into a baby pink, spreading across the sky like an ever-flowing stream. Ever so quietly, the faint sounds of the birds' chirps singing each other a lullaby could be heard. Everything was so tranquil.

A brief sigh left from a girl's lips. She tied up her hair into a loose ponytail with a single white scrunchie and put on a woolly pink cardigan. Putting her bag over her shoulder, she tucked her hands in her pockets and began making her way outside of her house. Usually going grocery shopping wasn't a problem, she quite liked to look through the different aisles and smell the small display of rose bouquets. However, today was rather different. Today she didn't feel like walking around the different aisles or smell the pretty, arranged flowers, but to just relax and listen to the birds chirping once more. She always felt fatigued on a Sunday evening, especially dreading to be back at the crowded and busy areas of school again. She always hated that place. It made her feel hunched and more lonely than comforted. Just dreaming of being free like the birds and touching the Candy-floss pink clouds made her feel safe. Daydreaming was practically a good way of coping for her. Imagining all the outcomes and possibilities. Paradise.

Swinging the shop's door open, she left the store with a bag full of ruby red strawberries, fresh vegetables, cat food and a small bottle of peach soda. In her hands she held a slice of strawberry shortcake carefully wrapped in a napkin, which softly crinkled between her fingers. Licking her lips, she found a small bench just outside the grocery store and sat down to enjoy her treat. She was a bit hungry after all. The cake's texture was soft and fluffy and was complimented well with the sugary icing. 

Ever so slightly she closed her eyes. A new daydream formed in her head—a nice picnic in a small isolated field scattered and coated in flourishing flowers of shades of pink and red and small baby daisies starting to bloom too. Alone she sat in her daydream, taking small bites of her cake and fiddling with the spotty picnic mat under a peach tree. The peaches were a lovely shade of pink, just like the flowers, and were nice and plump. Peaches were her favourite. How lovely.

Something fuzzy brushed against her leg. Finally aware of her surroundings, she opened her eyes only to be greeted by a tiny golden tabby cat with two white front legs, almost looking like it was wearing socks. They purred with affection and stars in their eyes. She couldn't resist giving a warm smile and returning the affection back by giving soft strokes between their small fluffy ears. Could this be a possible new friend? Are they a stray? She couldn't find any collar and their fur was a bit unkempt, but nonetheless, they seemed way too friendly around her—a human—compared to other stray cats she'd met. They seemed rather hungry too. She decided to take a can of tuna from her grocery bag, which she had bought for her own cat at home. She had a few other cans to spare, so giving some food to the cat wasn't too much of a problem. Eagerly, the cat chewed away at their dinner, clearly showing gratefulness to this human who's just helped them.

The full moon was out and peering over the town behind the fluffy clouds which had now been painted a light magenta. She had finished her cake and it was getting quite late, so she decided to leave her new friend be and return home. She gave the cat a final head pat and got up from the bench. Just as soon as she was about to leave, a voice called to her.

"Wait, please don't go!"

She turned around in surprise, but saw no one there but the cat. Strange. Oh well, maybe she was just hearing things. She began to take another step, but was prevented by her fuzzy friend who stood in front of her. "Please don't go!" they cried. In utter disbelief, she started to question herself. Was this another daydream? No, that can't be it. She shook her head—what was going on? The cat gave a reassuring look. "Please just trust me. I know this seems strange but I want to show you something," they purred, "I want to give you something in return, as a thank you." She was hesitant, but at the same time didn't want to upset them either, so she nodded and decided to follow them. "Great! Now come this way!" the cat tilted their head to the corner of the grocery store and began making its way around. The girl noticed a curious trail of stars following the cat's paws. What kind of cat are they? Just then, a sweet recognisable scent came closer and closer—peaches. In front of them, however, was not lovely garden or peaches, but a tall brick wall. Now this was even stranger. She thought that maybe the cat had made some sort of mistake, but the cat stayed confident and simply touched a single brick with it's paw. It acted as a button and opened up a long dark tunnel. "The stars will light up the way, so it won't be too dark." the cat meowed and waltzed right in. Once she had stepped through the tunnel, the brick wall began to close shut.

It didn't take long until they had reached their destination. The unforgettable smell of peaches was even stronger than before. "This should be it," purred the cat. They pushed a brick its place again and opened up what the girl had dreamt of. A small isolated field scattered and coated in flourishing flowers of shades of pink and red; a few baby daisies blooming amongst the tall green grass; and a great peach tree. This was exactly what she dreamt of just earlier outside of the grocery store. How was that even possible?

The cat, noticing the surprise and happiness on her face, was clearly very pleased. They loved to see others happy. "I'm sorry, Jasmine," the cat meowed. The girl was a bit startled by how the cat knew her name. The cat continued"but I never properly introduced myself. My name is Dream, I am a cat whose duty is to deliver those who are lonely and have a good heart. I can read the minds of others and can tell who they are as a person. I was able to sense that you were upset about something and what you were dreaming of, so I have granted you your wish as a thank you." Jasmine was absolutely speechless.

"Thank you!" the words just escaped from her mouth. "Thank you so much! I honestly don't know what to say. You've given me a lot more than I probably deserve." She danced through the grass and layer down underneath the shade of the peach tree after plucking one from its branch. Leopard spots of shade dappled her skin, letting a few dots of golden sunlight peep through. Then she realised. "But wait, I have school tomorrow and my parents are going to be worried where I am." Dream, who sat right beside her, gave her the same reassuring smile "it's ok, this may be a real experience to you, but by tomorrow morning, when the sun rises, you'll wake up in your bedroom like this never happened. So it's like this was all just a dream" Jasmine felt a bit sad after hearing that. She could lie here forever as much as she wanted, but only for a short amount of time before she is sent back to her bedroom. She watched the milky blue sky and pointed out any fluffy shapes she could make out of the clouds above. Dream laid down beside her and did the same. They exchanged stories and conversations as every minute passed by, until eventually it was time to leave.

"Goodbye, Jasmine." Dream waved with their tail, "I wish you a bright future and happy days ahead. Oh, and by the way, please never speak of this to anyone. This can only be kept between you and I and anyone who is already aware of who I am." Jasmine nodded in understanding. This was goodbye. "I'll miss you." she waved back as she closed her eyes shut.

The sound of birds chirping to each other a good morning welcomed Jasmine's ears. She awoke on her bed cuddled up in her duvet and warm in her peach pink pyjamas. The sun had risen and golden light made it's way through the window which had the curtains left halfway open. Jasmine smiled to herself as she looked outside her window. Today was another day, another day to dream once again.

♥︎♥︎♥︎

A/N: My first story on Wattpad! :'D It's a bit rushed and is really just a practice, but I would really appreciate any feedback given! If you would like to read any future works from me, please consider following, thanks! It's free and you can always change your mind and unfollow if you want to. :) Also, I am not very active on Wattpad and don't have much time to write stuff, so stories will take a bit of time! So I hope you won't mind a bit of waiting. :') Thank you for reading and have a good morning/afternoon/night!