Don't own Joan characters or the first dream below. The dream part was created by Robyn (RavenRain) and she deserves full credit for it. This story was her idea, I'm just adding the words to the thought.

Part 1:

I closed my eyes for what seemed to be a second. My brain immediately went to the dream that I'd had last night, the one that had seemed so so real. The one that kept silently tugging at my brain, demanding that I analyze it.

I can not believe I'm doing this. Oh gawd what am I doing? I still have time to go back...it's not too late. Oh, I wish my stomach wouldn't flutter so badly. Gawd I'm shaking and I can't get my breathing under control.

Okay, It's now or never. You have to do this! When was the last time you took a risk? Or did something new or scary? Yep...this definitely qualifies as scary, new and risky. I should ask if he has a girlfriend first. I don't wanna ever cheat or help someone cheat on someone. I don't think anything can hurt more then betrayal.

Oh no, I'm here. What do I do? Okay, just breath. "Are you single?" Geez...did I have to sound so girly and dorky!

Wait! HE'S SINGLE? Are women crazy! I mean, a guy this cute can not possibly be single! What if he's lying? Why would he lie? He has no reason to! Okay...You have got to stop gawking at him like a goldfish!

"Would you mind if I kissed you?" I hope I'm not blushing as much as I feel like I am. Is everyone staring at me or am I just paranoid? Just paranoid...no one has a reason to be staring at me.

hummm...did he really say he didn't mind? Who cares! Just go with it! Leaning in I close my eyes and suddenly my lips are met with the softest lips I have ever had the pleasure of touching. I can not believe I'm kissing this man...this god of a man!

I think I just moaned. Oh well, never mind. I think he just moaned too...this is turning out to be the best thing that has ever happened to me. The kiss is deepening...the butterflies in my stomach are fluttering more but I never want this to stop. I never want to stop touching this man. Am I really french kissing this man? Seriously! It feels soo good. I hope I don't wake up from this dream any time soon.

My body seems to have a mind of its own. My hands are running up this guy's chest and around to his back holding on for dear life. I don't think my legs can support me any longer. Oh, yay...his arms are around me. Wow, I feel so warm and safe here with him. Thank god he's holding me otherwise I'd be a big pile of goo on the floor.

I think I've died and gone to heaven. Can you fall in love with someone by just saying a few words and sharing a kiss? I guess anything is possible. oh no! Oxygen! blasted lungs! Can't you hold out for a little while longer? okay, maybe not. Light headed is a sign off needing oxygen, right?

Right, time to pull away now. I think my heart just broke. I don't wanna leave him. Just breath. You have to go now. He isn't your boyfriend and this can't happen between you two because he's so totally outta your league and just humoring you to pass his time.

"Thanks," just smile and walk away now. Throw him a wave...it'll be a nice farwell gesture. oh no, was that a girl asking him 'You have a girlfriend?' angrily. Well I did ask first so I'll just leave him to it.

Wow, I think I definitely like taking risks. But somehow I don't think any other kiss will ever measure-up to that kiss. I can't believe that was my first kiss...and it was with a guy I've never even seen before. Maybe I'm crazy but I definitely don't mind it.

"Miss James? Would you care to discuss the laws of physics?" My new science teacher asked. God, what a bitch. Here I was brand new to the school, not even here for a day, and a teacher was already yelling and embarrassing me.

"Um, no thank you." Yeah so I could be just as mean, in a less threatening kind of way. Oh who was I kidding? The only time I was ever really brave or strong or free, was in my dreams. The rest of the time I had to be a good little girl. It was expected of me.

"No?" The teacher raised her eyebrows, "Well, then at least pay attention. It would offend me if you had fallen asleep on your first day."

"Sure." I nodded and pretended to listen for the rest of class.

Part 2:

"What was up with that? You'd think that she'd at least try to be nice to the new girl. It was her first day. Sheesh!" I heard the girl behind me mutter to her friends as we tried to escape the terrors of science.

"Hey," I felt a tap on my shoulder. "I'm Joan." I looked at the girl; she was the one who had said it.

"Hey, Emily." I smiled. She seemed nice enough.

"This is Grace, Luke, and…Adam." She pointed to each person as she said their name but there was definitely a pause before she said 'Adam.' Had to be something weird going on.

"Hi." We walked out into the hallway. I went along to my locker and thought they were following me at first but turns out that their lockers were by mine. "Uh, well, bye."

I turned to leave my locker, in search of my next class when I spotted him. He was there, walking towards us. I stopped, shocked to see the cute guy from my dreams. I got goose bumps, remembering how we had kissed. It was just a dream, it was just a dream, I repeated to myself as he looked up and caught my eye. He smiled and I froze and suddenly became paranoid that he could read my mind. I tried to block out my dream.

"Are you okay?" Joan who had been standing by me was watching me carefully.

"Uh." My voice came out high-pitched. "I've gotta go." I tried to give her an apologetic smile but it came out all wrong and she looked at me funny. So much for having friends, again.

Part 3:

"Can I ask you something?" Joan, I guess in an effort to be nice to me, had invited me to sit at her table during lunch. I had waited until Luke, her brother, Grace, uh…Luke's girlfriend, and Adam, the quiet kid who kept sketching something in a notebook, had gone to buy lunch. Luckily, Joan had brought hers.

"Sure." She ate a Doritos chip.

"Well," I could go with the 'this is a hypothetical situation' or the 'my friend' but it was crystal clear that these were lies. "There's this guy that goes here…" I swallowed. "And-" And what? I had an incredibly good dream about him but I hadn't ever met him before and who was he?

I took a big bite of my sandwich. "And?" Joan smiled, this pity smile that had me blushing.

"And-" I said over my food. And oh my God! He was right there, coming closer, closer. I started choking and felt my face flush. I looked at Joan who was glaring at the guy I'd been watching. I tried to breath but it made it worse. Joan turned to look at me so I pointed to my throat and she realized what was going on, quickly getting up and coming behind me while I flailed my arms around, as if it would help me. Joan wrapped her arms around me and did the Heimlich maneuver. All I could think of while I started to get dizzy was, 'So this is how I'm going to die.' It wasn't completely terrible, at least I got to die while watching the first guy to ever kiss me, in my dreams, rush towards me with a concerned look on his face. I moaned inside my head and then my eyes started to water.

Then it was done. The chunk of ham sandwich that had been blocking my windpipe moments ago flew out of my mouth. Unfortunately, it hit the guy I'd been staring at, right in the middle of his forehead with a disgusting smack.

Part 4:

"Are you okay?" I closed my eyes on the vision of him with my slimy piece of sandwich sliding down his face and leaned against the table, wheezing.

"Yeah." I said as soon as I had stopped panting. But then again, just the sight of him had me going again. I took the bottle of water he handed me and sucked it down. "Thanks for saving me, Joan."

"Whoa. Uh," Joan looked from me to the guy with one eyebrow raised. "Do you both know each other?" Most of the people had gone back to their lunches but I could see the rest of Joan's gang coming at me.

"Not really." I blushed again, thinking of the kiss. I barely managed to keep the sigh inside.

I snuck a glance at the guy and saw that he was looking at me with a small grin on his face. "Um, I'll be right back." I took the chance to hurry away to the bathroom. Once inside I washed my face and leaned against the wall. It was really pretty sad. I could've choked to death on a piece of pig, but I was more upset and confused about the guy. "What is his name?" I asked aloud.

"God." I looked at the doorway where Grace had come in. "That was…pretty amazing. And hitting that dude on the head? Nice."

"Thanks?" I bit my lip instead of screaming in frustration. "Is he still out there?" It came out before I realized it.

"Yeah. Joan is talking to him." Grace looked at me closely. "Rough first day, huh?"

I couldn't help the laugh that came out. It all suddenly seemed so funny. The stupid dream, seeing the guy, the Heimlich for the ham. "Sorry, sorry." I wiped my eyes. "It's just been an…interesting day."

Part 5:

To Joan's amazement, the nurse wouldn't let me home so I could skip out on some rumors that were sure to arise. "That's just wrong." She shook her head as we walked down the hall with Luke and Grace. Adam had disappeared.

"I'm probably just cursed." I sighed. "At my last school I walked in on the principle after school. With the secretary. And the vice principle."

"Really?" Luke asked, he seemed shocked, or maybe interested.

"Yeah. It was a messed up school." I shuttered as the picture flashed in my brain.

"I'd really love to talk more about this, really, but I have to go to class." Luke said, grinning, earning a punch in the arm from Grace.

"You're sick, dude." But she went along with him anyway.

"So what were you going to ask?" Joan walked with me to the algebra class that we shared.

"What?" I was actually feeling pretty happy. Yeah, so almost everything wrong had happened, but at least the people here weren't mean and obnoxious.

"At lunch." I didn't say anything. "You were talking about some guy."

"Oh, I was just wondering what this guy's name was." I took two steps. "That guy that I pegged with my food." It didn't seem so embarrassing now. It's not like anyone could know about my dream anyway, well, maybe God, but didn't he know everything.

There was a moment of silence as she looked off into space, almost tripping. "God."

"God?" God as in God God? As in the holy figure from above?

"No." Joan said quickly. "No. His name is Jesus." She waved her hand in the air. "But you know they pronounce it like 'Hey-Zeus.' Like Hey, what's up, Zeus. You know, Zeus from-"

"Yeah, yeah." Something weird was definitely going on and I couldn't help but think the whole day, starting with the dream, through. This school didn't have rich, bitchy kids, no, it had secrets.

Part 6:

"Hey." I wasn't surprised to see Adam in my art class, well; I wasn't surprised that I was in his class. "Mind if I sit here?" There was one other spot but it was by a creepy looking gothic kid.

Adam looked up and shook his head. "Are you okay?" He seemed…I don't know how to explain it. Ticked off maybe.

"Yeah." He kind of laughed. "Guess I should be asking you that." He kept on sketching.

"Oh, God, that's good." There was a picture of Joan, lying down on a couch, wrapped up in a blanket.

"Thanks."

"Are you guys…together?" It wasn't really any of my business, but there was definitely something between them.

It took him a long time to answer. "No."

"That's too bad." He looked up at me. "What? Sorry that I pried, I was just wondering." 'I am so strange.' I thought. 'How can I act like this to him, but be totally scared and embarrassed around Jesus?' Geez, that sounded weird, that couldn't be his real name. "It's obvious."

"What?" It was a mutter, I could barely hear it.

"That you both still care for each other." Some how, I don't know, I got him to tell me the whole story. Almost everything. I'd been told that I could be very persuasive, but I'd never expected him to tell me the whole deal while we sketched ideas for an upcoming project.

"Well, at least there's some hope left." I picked up a number 2B pencil, "It's not like she hates you."

"But I hurt her." Adam said quietly. "Are you a witch?" I raised an eyebrow. "It's just," he paused and looked down at his project idea, "I've never told anyone that."

The bell rang. "Don't worry." I smiled. "It's not like I'm going to tell anyone." I felt him watch me leave. I didn't feel good about the situation, but there had to be something I could do. They so belonged together.

Part 7:

I fell asleep at about ten. It was early for me but I felt exhausted, totally drained.

I'm here again. What was this place? My safe haven? My make out mystery land? What is going on here? I'm turning, looking for him, I know he's here, I can feel his presence. "Would you mind if I kissed you?" I'm turning around to grin as he walks towards me. When did I become so brave? So addicted?

I lick my lip, "Nope." Is that my voice? I'm watching him walk the few feet to me but I can't wait and I'm suddenly stepping forward to meet him sooner.

"I missed you." Who said that? Me? My eyes are closed and I can feel him press a kiss to each eyelid. He's kissing the tip of nose, my lips. "Oh, Jesus," I muttered. I hadn't said it like Hey-Zeus, it didn't sound right.

"I can't do this." What? Now who was that? I couldn't think about it long. My mind is spinning, sparks are running down my spine where his hand is moving. "We shouldn't." I know that he said that. He said it but he doesn't seem to be paying attention, which is fine by me.

"Mmm." I sigh and he kisses my neck. The spot that had been hurting ever since my choking incident.

"You idiot!" I hear a distant male voice call. The guy is laughing at us.

"Shut up." I mutter as he tugs on my bottom lip.

The laughter gets louder. "You're completely sick, God. Seducing an innocent girl." The laughter is fading away.

"What?" I mutter against his lips as I run my hands up chest and tangle them into his hair. Something sparks in my brain and I remember to ask. "What's your name?"

"God." I'm aware that he said it but it doesn't make sense so I don't let it interrupt us.

I almost cry out when he pulls away. "You taste good." I say as I breathe heavily.

"You too." He grins and then licks his lips, looking down at me. "Ham." My eyes widen and I can't help but blush.

Part 8:

I woke up sweating. I noticed that there was a sweet taste in my mouth as I got up to go into the bathroom. "You're losing it, Em." I said to myself as I flipped on the bathroom light. "Eh." It was too bright but my eyes got used to it quickly.

I walked over to the sink and rinsed my face. It was only when I dried my pale face that I noticed the hickey on my neck, in the mirror. "Oh, God." God? Oh, oh, shit! He'd said his name was God. Was it possible? Was I really getting hot with God, God?

"You're crazy." I tried to laugh but I sounded insane, even to my own ears. "Shit." I said again as I touched the hickey. It was still warm.

Part 9:

"Hey, Emily." I smiled at Joan who was pulling something out of her locker.

"Uh, do you think I could talk to you later?" I bit my lip; I could almost taste the ham that 'God' had been talking about. Damn, I could never eat pig again. "Alone?"

Joan raised her eyebrows. "Is it important?" She wasn't being mean; I think she was genuinely interested.

"I think so." The bell rang. "Later?"

"Yeah, why don't you come with me to my house after school?" She smiled. "It's okay, it's just the only time I'll ever really be alone."

"Oh, okay." She said to meet her by our lockers when the final bell rang. I wasn't even sure why I was going to tell her. Maybe it was because she was the only one that I knew that had talked to 'Jesus.'

Part 10:

"So what's this all about?" Joan pulled a spiral out of her locker and stuffed it in her messenger bag.

"Uh, my dreams." I felt my face flush.

"See you later, Joan." A gothic guy with spiky hair and purple lipstick said as he walked towards us. I was surprised when I felt a pull of attraction. What had happened to the other guy? Was I just turning into a hobag slut who changed her mind about a guy every other day?

"No." I accidentally said aloud. No, there was something familiar about him. Oh, geez, look away.

The gothic kid looked over my face and passed us, grinning. I watched him leave and then touched the hickey on my neck that I had cleverly hid by wearing my hair down. "No way." I muttered. The hickey was a lot warmer than the rest of my neck. It was him, it had to be.

Part 11:

"Uh, what was that all about?" Joan asked after an awkward silence. "Do you…know him?"

"Um, that's part of what I need to talk to you about." Joan closed her locker and we started to walk in silence.

"So…your problem has to do with dreams," She pushed a string of hair away from her eyes, "and…the guy back there?" I nodded. "Well, are you going to tell me what happened?"

"Yeah, I guess." I pulled on my backpack strap. "But," I sighed, "Here come your friends." Well, friend. Luke was with Grace.

"Did you have a better day than yesterday?" Grace asked.

"Yeah, I guess." I watched a butterfly fly across the sidewalk.

"So…" Luke took Grace's hand. "We never got to finish our discussion." I raised my right eyebrow. "About your incident at your last school."

"Shut up, dork." Luke smiled at Grace and I couldn't help but grin, they were so good together.

"Thanks, but I'd rather not talk about it." I shivered. "I can still picture it today and it was not something you'd like to see, hear, or even read about."

"My sick brother was just joking." Joan explained.

"Yeah. Got that." The conversation went on and I halfway listened to them talking. It didn't take as long as I thought to get to the house. "Wow. You live here?" It was gorgeous.

"Yup, pretty cool, huh?" Luke pulled Grace up the stairs.

"Totally." I followed Joan up and into her room.

Part 12:

"Catch." Joan tossed me a granola bar.

"Thanks." I opened it and took a bite.

"Careful. I can only do the Heimlich so many times." I couldn't help but laugh, which almost did make me choke, but I managed alright. "So…what's been up?"

"It's just that my dreams have been freaking me out." Joan nodded as she chewed on the snack. "I think I'm dreaming about God." I was met by coughing. "Are you alright?"

Joan nodded. "Yeah, it's just that," cough, "You caught me off guard. Hang on." She opened her Coke and took a sip. "Okay. Sorry. So you dream about God?"

"I think."

"Well, what are they like? What happened?"

"This is really embarrassing for me…but they're…intimate dreams." I felt myself blush.

"Intimate?"

"Yeah, like kissing and…"

"And it?" Joan's eyes looked like they were going to pop out of her head.

"No, no. We were kissing and someone was laughing and I woke up and there was this." I started blabbering, stopping only to show her the hickey.

"Geez." Joan reached out, like she was going to touch it, but pulled back. "Uh, do, do you like it?" She seemed interested.

"Yes. It sounds so sick, but yes."

"Okay, start from the beginning." And I did. I told her how it was the guy from school. I told her how he had said his name was God, how there was someone laughing. I even told her how he had said I tasted like ham. Unfortunately, she laughed at that part. "Typical, God."

"Wow." Joan said as she leaned against the wall when I was done. "Wow." Then she told me about her relationship with God. There it was again, the 'tell me the whole story' thing, like there'd been with Adam.

"I know, but the whole hickey thing freaked me out. It's almost like the dreams are real. Like everything really did happen."

"They are real, Emily." Something inside my head said. For a second I could've sworn it was God. And for another second, I thought about going to sleep right there and then, just to go meet him.

Part 13:

I was too anxious to fall asleep that night, well, at least right away, so I watched some old reruns of King of Queens and was laughing by the end of them, not nervous or feeling gross at all. "You should get to sleep soon kiddo." My dad kissed me on the head. "G'night."

"Ditto." I closed the bag of chips, flipped the tv off, and turned off the lamp before going into my room.

I washed my face and then changed into my favorite silk nightgown. Actually, it was my only silk anything; maybe that's why I loved it so much.

"So you told Joan?" I'm turning around and I feel a cold rush of air hit my skin. I'm in my nightgown. Does that mean that, should the occasion arise, if I were to go to bed naked…

"Stop that." God laughs and comes closer so he can tap my head. "Don't do that to me."

"Sorry." I'm hugging him and now we're on a couch, with our arms around each other. "Yeah, I told Joan. Was I not supposed to? It's not like you told me not to." I'm looking up now and I see a glint of light in his eye. There's a fire in front of us.

"She'll never let me live it down." He grins.

"Uh-huh." I'm kissing him with everything I have. Tired of talking about Joan, tired of worrying about other people's problems. I just want to let go, be free. "No more hickeys." His laughter is shaking me, making me want to be all over him.

"Sure." His hands are rubbing my cold arms and then a flash of heat is running down them and there's no longer a chill. "You knew."

"Knew what?" My hands are in his hair; his fingers are trailing down my spine.

"You knew." I'm kissing him, kissing him and then I feel the change. His lips are changing but are still as sweet, still as soft. I sigh and let my hands return to his hair. "Eh." I'm pulling away and opening my eyes. I'm looking at gothic God.

"You could've at least said hi to me." I'm feeling so happy that I swear my heart is going to explode.

"I will next time. Too much talking." And I hear one of the straps on my nightgown rip. I'm thinking, this is God, what a dirty man, and he starts laughing.

"You're all about action, huh?" I kiss each piercing on his face; let my tongue swirl around them. I want him, I want him bad, and then it's happening.

"Don't you think her parents will be mad when they realize the age difference between you to?" I'm pulling away, turning to look behind the couch. I see a shadow of a large man but no one is in front of the fire.

"Go away." God rubs his forehead; his eyes are closed while I look for the intruder.

The laughter is light but has hidden darkness. "Can't find someone your own age, huh? I'm sure it gets lonely up there." The shadow is starting to become 3D. "You've probably haven't had sex in what? A couple thousand years?" I flinch at the rude language.

"Who are you?" I'm whispering. The figure is dark, too dark to see clearly.

"Oh, she talks? I thought you could only moan and be a little-" God is standing up, taking on his cutest form.

"Leave." I think he's talking to the guy but no; he's talking to me.

"What?" I'm looking at God, but he's watching the guy, the guy that's walking towards me.

"Leave. Wake up." I'm trying to stay. Maybe to help protect God, but I can't help myself. God's done something and I see myself fading. "No!" I yell as I see God go flying into the wall.

Part 14:

It's almost four in the morning when I woke up. I was sweating like crazy and my stomach was in knots. I got up quickly and ran to the bathroom. I barely made it.

I washed my face after getting sick and go to my bed. I sat there, wishing I could call God up. Had it been real? I turned onto my side and noticed that my nightgown was torn. It was real. What happened to God? I think about calling Joan but it wouldn't do anything but worry her.

"God." I moaned as I pulled the covers up. I was cold but hot at the same time. Who was the guy? The devil? He sure hadn't seemed to like either of us. I closed my eyes and tried going back to sleep. It didn't work so I stayed in bed until my alarm went off.

"You're up early. It usually takes you ten snoozes to get up." Mom was in the kitchen, her hands wrapped around a steaming cup of coffee.

"Nightmares." Hadn't been, until the dumbass had come around. If the whole God thing was real, did that mean he was?

"About what?" I opened the fridge and grabbed a mini bottle of Sunny D, even though my stomach protested in a growl.

"God." She didn't know anything about it; there was no harm in some truth. "He was being thrown into the wall." Goosebumps crept up my arms.

"Didn't know you were so religious." Mom smiled and I sat on the chair across from her.

"I'm not. It was just…" What? Great? Bad? Weird? "Different." My mom didn't say anything. "You know, it's not like people think of God having to battle it out. With someone bad." There wasn't something right about the dream.

"Ookay." Mom went back to reading the newspaper so I finished my drink and then went upstairs to get ready.

Part 15:

School was bad. I didn't see any form of God at all and I could feel Joan watching me through out the day. I knew my eyes were red. "Are you okay?" I had just gotten into art and Adam looked me over.

"No, not really." I lowered my voice. "Has anyone ever told you that they talk to God?"

"Jane." It came out as a whisper.

"Yeah, besides her." Maybe someone talked to the other guy.

"How do you know Jane talks to God?" He ignored my question.

"She told me."

"And you believe her?" I nodded.

"Don't you?" He slowly nodded.

"Do you talk to him?" Adam asked after a long moment of silence.

"Sort of." I laughed inside. Did making out with him in a dream count? "Do you?" I thought it was weird how he sat completely still, staring at the floor, not moving. "Adam?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you okay?"

"Not really." Joan's mom started talking so Adam and I didn't talk anymore.

Part 16:

"I think Adam maybe talks to God." I said to Joan as I walked to her house, once again.

"Yeah, right. He didn't even believe that I did when I told him." She had this far away look in her eyes.

"Okay, whatever."

"So what's wrong with you?"

I glanced around us, making sure no one was around. "Well, it was another dream."

"I figured."

"Well, we were," I cleared my throat. "Kissing and all and then this guy started talking. I think it was the same guy who had been laughing last time."

"What did he say?" She looked intrigued.

"Something about how my parents would react to finding out the age difference between us or something. Then he said something about God not having had sex," I blushed. "In a long time. It was really weird and then the guy like, started coming towards me because I asked who he was." There was a flash from the dream.

"Yeah? And?"

"Then God told me to leave. It was like I was trying to reach him, to, you know, protect him, and he sent me away. The last thing I saw was him flying into the wall." So yeah, I had skimmed over it, leaving out the change to the gothic form and my ripped nightgown, but yeah, that was the important stuff. "And I didn't see him today."

"I didn't see him either. Hmm, that's weird."

"What?"

"Ryan."

"Ryan?"

"Maybe he's getting into your dreams. Maybe it's some sort of warning." We could see her house now.

"Wait. Who's Ryan?"

"Ryan Hunter. The guy who supposedly saved Adam." Joan pulled on her messenger bag.

"Well, if he saved Adam then I seriously doubt that he was the guy from my dream." I bit my lip.

"Em, Ryan's evil." I looked at Joan to see that she was being completely serious.

Part 17:

"What's going on? Where are you?" I'm yelling into the empty room. All I'm hearing is the echo of my questions. "Are you okay?"

"Em." I'm looking to the left, the right, and then I'm looking at him. He looks tired, not like he had only hours ago. "You shouldn't be here."

"What am I supposed to do? This is the only place that I go to when I fall, fall asleep." I had been watching a movie with Joan, Grace, and Luke a while ago. "Are you alright?" I'm walking towards him and he sits heavily on the edge of a couch.

"We can't do this. I can't." He's putting his head in his hands.

"What happened?" After you made me go.

"Don't do that. I was protecting you." I'm sitting down next to him, wrapping my arms around him.

"It's okay. What happened?" Whenever we were actually together I didn't think of him as God. He seemed normal.

"He'll come after you. You should leave." I'm kissing his shoulder.

"I don't want to."

"I can't always protect you. You have to watch out for him."

"Who?" He's lifting his head.

"He's in town."

"Who?" I feel frustrated.

"You'll know. Just go, I'll be around."

"Emily?" I slowly opened my eyes, letting them adjust to the light. "Em? Are you okay?"

"Huh?" I feel sick but keep it in.

"Emily, yoo-whoo." Joan waved her hand in front of my face. "You okay? You were dreaming."

I looked at the tv. It was playing the credits for Elektra. "Oh, uh…yeah. It's him."

"What's him?" Luke asked. It was only then that I remembered that they were all still there.

"Oh, nothing." Joan got my secret message.

"I'm gonna go get some more food. Need anything?" She stood up.

"Uh, I'm gonna get some water." I followed her into the kitchen.

"What happened?"

"He was there, he looked so tired." I leaned against the counter. "He said that he's coming. That he's in town."

"Who?" She opened the fridge and handed me a bottle of water.

"I think he was talking about Ryan. He said that I'd know." I rubbed the water against my forehead before opening it to take a sip.

"Great."