Fear.
Awoken by dreams of pain and agony. Breath heavy, shallow. Body heavy, perspiring.; Glistening skin, thin layer of moisture. Eyes wide, with nothing to see but the bitter darkness. Familiar smells of home filling his nostrils.
It was just a dream…
Though it was very real to him. He could feel the bullet through his chest like it had just happened. It sat there like led. The shock of pain pulled him into consciousness. Screams of his love filled his imaginary ears and his tears followed him back into his bed that was as warm as the blood that had puddled around him.
"Are you alright?" a small voice whispered softly from the blankets next to him.
"Yes, just a bad dream." He said in an exhale. Chills dominated his spine as he remembered her touch in his dream before the accident that had occurred.
She had reached up and touched his arm meant to comfort, instead it brought back memories of the nightmare.
"Would you like to talk about it?" She insisted, hoping to sooth the memory away from reality.
"We were at the border of town…I had somehow found a way to cross and you were seeing me off…the next thing I knew I had been shot…then I woke up…only a dream, sweetheart. Nothing to ponder. Nothing to worry about." He said, choosing his words carefully.
"Yes…only a dream…" she agreed. She pulled herself closer to her side. She stroked his bare torso with her fingertips. Her head leaned upon his shoulder as he rested himself against his pillow. He felt for face and patted her cheek lightly.
"Thank you." He said softly and closed his eyes.
He tried to push the thought of the dream out of his mind but something kept drifting into memory. The figure with the gun did not seem a stranger…he knew the figure but couldn't put his finger on it.
He decided he needed to rest for the big day tomorrow. He had figured out a way to cross the border of town without erasing his memory…and he was to tell his love about his discovery and say his goodbyes…he would come back with his son and be happy and have his family…
Before drifting back to sleep, he thought to himself:
Remember everything about her in the dream and leave out all the rest…