Page 9

There's a cool breeze roaming over my body, I can feel the fabric of my nightgown move with the wind. My bare feet are in some kind of wet, squishy, cold substance, making me want to move away from it, but something is holding me in place.

Slowly opening my eyes, confusion fills my thoughts. Is this a dream? I can remember going to bed but not getting here.

It’s dark, but I can see the tombstones surrounding me. I’m in that fucking cemetery again.

“You returned.”

I yelp and jump away, seeing the guy from before standing next to me. Either this is a nightmare or I am losing my mind.

“Did you take me here?”

The ghost, zombie man thing—whatever he’s supposed to be—is smiling at me like he knows something that I don’t know yet. Something I don’t want to know.

“No, not me. The cemetery did. It can feel your pain.”

Right, the cemetery did. Okay I am officially losing my shit.

The cold air is getting worse, making me clench my teeth. I hug myself in hopes of getting some warmth out of it, but it seems almost impossible, like the cold is not just the air itself, but it’s also coursing through my bones.

“Once she’s buried here, she’ll come back. Isn’t that what you want?”

I shouldn’t even consider it, but he does seem very real, and what if it actually would work? Would it bring my friend back? But that would mean I would have to dig her up from the grave where her parents will be placing her. From her final resting place. I can’t do that, can I?

“I can’t just steal her body and bury her here.”

The words leave my mouth without me realising it. I can’t actually be considering this.

“What harm would it do if no one knows?”

I look back at the dead-but-also-not-dead man next to me, thinking his words over.

It’s getting darker and even colder. I feel as if I might actually faint from the cold now. I’m shaking uncontrollably until suddenly my body feels heavy and everything turns dark again.

I can feel the sweat dripping off my brows while I try to catch my breath.

Inhale 1-2-3-4

Exhale 1-2-3-4-5-6

Inha–

“Babe? What’s wrong?”

Ryan's rough, sleepy voice catches me off guard, and I yelp while almost jumping off the bed.

He quickly moves, holding me in place so I don’t fall off. I laugh awkwardly, like I always do when I’m embarrassed.

“Sorry, I had a strange dream, it all felt so real,”

I mutter out while he brushes the side of my face. He moves closer and kisses my forehead. I love it when he does that.

“Don’t worry, you are safe here. I wo–what?”

Ryan moves away from the bed and pulls up the sheets. There's dried mud and leaves at my feet, and my dress is dirty too, as if I have been walking in the forest at night. He gets up and pulls me off the bed, checking my legs for injuries.

“Babe? What the fuck?”

Lost for words, I stare at the scene in front of me. What the fuck indeed. Was it not a dream? I can’t remember getting up and going into the forest. Does this mean it’s all real? Everything the man said, could it be true?

"Well? Are you hurt?”

He keeps patting my body as if he’d find a random knife or something else sticking out of me. Though if he keeps petting me down like that, he might have to check himself soon too.

“No, I—I don’t know, I thought it was a dream. Can you stop that!”

I slap his hands away from me, in an angrier way than intended. I’m frustrated, confused and a little bit pissed off—okay maybe more than a little bit, but what the actual hell just happened?

His eyes widen, and there is hurt in his expression, but he seems to mask it faster than it shows. Way to go, Taylor.

“I—I’m sorry, I don’t know what happened. I’m just going to take a shower and clean all of this up.”

His mouth is in a tight line and he nods. He seems unsure of what to do or say about all of this and therefore isn’t saying anything. I’m relieved that he doesn’t push the matter and lets me take the time I need.

Sighing, I walk away. I can feel him staring at me, and I start to feel guilty for just leaving him there, but what else can I do? Go to him and say: Oh hey, I think I was sleepwalking in the forest where there is a cemetery that brings people back from the dead, and uh, I might be interested in trying it out. I don’t think that will go over well.

Turning on the hot water, I take some small breaths and start to peel off my nightdress. The lower part is crunchy from the dried dirt, and it seems I have some cuts on my feet from walking on the stones and branches. I didn’t even feel them being there.

Nothing about any of this makes sense, and I am trying to hold on to the small thread that is my sanity, but the more I think about all of this, the more I can feel it slipping through my hands.

What if I have a second chance to have Mara by my side again? What if this is a sign?

Tomorrow is her funeral. I don’t even know how I could bring her there.

All of this is madness. I am just mourning and it’s clouding my head. This can’t be real.

I step into the shower, letting the water pour over me. I move my head backwards so I can feel it sliding over my face, dripping down. There’s nothing that helps me more than a hot shower to burn away the darkness.