Her mind was restless, but that didn't keep her from falling asleep. It was 2:00 AM when she finally drifted off into dreamland.
"Where am I?" Danielle stood her ground, unaware of where she was and who or what could be there with her. A colorless mist encased her, and then faded away into nothingness. Her mind was filled with voices, pounding within her ears, all talking at the same time. She couldn't name them, although they were familiar. She found herself within a void between time and space. The voices continued to pulse, playing her eardrums slightly too hard. She clutched her head and kneeled down in a pain that grew and spread throughout her whole body. She couldn't breath, she tried to scream, but nothing came out. The pain bloomed excruciatingly, and the voices pulsed louder in unison with it. She felt all the blood rush into her head; she could feel her veins throbbing beneath her skin…
She woke up in a bed that was not her own. She sat up the second her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting in the room, and noticed she was no longer in her bedroom. "What's going on, where am I?" She looked down to the crimson red, satin sheets that pooled around her. The walls were painted an empty black, dead and depressing. Candles were scattered across the aged stone floor, their blue flames danced and flickered, giving some life to the room.
Danielle locked her eyes in front of her; they focused on a shadow in the afar, down a hall that was lit by wall torches. The shadow didn't walk, but slithered forth, coming closer, closer into sight, until it was just a silhouette before the flames.
"Hello? Who's there?" She squinted, trying to catch a glimpse of any distinct feature. It was just a shapeless cloud of darkness.
As it came into the dim lighting, it now appeared as a man.
"Oh my-" Danielle was muted as the man stepped closer to her. He leaned over the bed, casting his shadow over her. He curled his lips into a gruesome smile, revealing rotten gums and crooked yellow teeth. His breath smelled of sulfur as he blew on her…
Danielle awoke with a start. She gazed around the room, now her room once again. Suddenly a loud noise blared from beside her, causing Danielle to jerk in surprise. She slammed her hand flat on top of the alarm clock that made such a ruckus, and flopped backward onto her pillow. She let out a sigh and then slid her legs over the side of the bed, allowing her bare feet to touch the beige carpeted floor. She sat up once again and stood.
Before she could even attempt to remember what she had dreamt last night, Alex pounded on her door. "Danielle! Wake up!" Alex knocked continuously with both fists.
Danielle sighed impatiently and dragged her feet across the floor. She reached out and grasped the doorknob; as she began to twist it, Alex burst inside, colliding with his older sister.
They fell onto the floor, Danielle hitting the floor bottom-first. "Alex!" She screamed her voice high-pitched and raspy from just waking up.
"Sorry" Alex got to his feet and helped Danielle up.
"Look!" He started, "The new bakery is open now! There's a bake sale going on until 1:00 PM, get ready so we can go!" Alex chewed his words up in excitement. He was almost bouncing off the walls with anticipation.
"Alright, alright." Danielle huffed, walking toward her bathroom. "Let me go to the bathroom first, dweeb." She rolled her eyes as she reached the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.
Danielle had just turned 18 about 2 weeks ago. She'd graduated high school and was now finally able to relax without the stress of doing everything on schedule. She was finally living a free life… for now that is.
She flipped the seat up on the toilet, pulled her flannel, blue-checkered pajama pants down and sat.
She masked her face with both hands and sighed heavily.
"I need coffee." Danielle murmured, muffled by her palms. She enlaced her fingers through her straight sandy-blond hair and brushed it back.
Once finished with emptying her bladder, she unrolled a wad of toilet paper, cleaned herself and got up.
"Hurry up, Danny! I wanna go!" Alex called from Danielle's bedroom, jumping up and down. His blond hair moved with him, flying up then dropping back down to frame his chubby round face.
"Okay, Alex! Give me a minute, damn it!" Danielle scowled, looking into the mirror/medicine cabinet door. She turned the faucet all the way, snatched her toothbrush from the coffee mug that sat on the lid of the toilet tank, squirted a straight line of toothpaste on the bristles and raised it up to her mouth to scrub her teeth.
Alex paced back and forth, waiting in Danielle's room. Diagnosed with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), he was not able to stand still for long. And he couldn't hold a train of thought for too long, either.
To entertain himself for the time-being, he lifted up the piece of newspaper to his face and began to read the ad for the new bakery, (again).
"Red Delights, A new kind of bakery." It read at the top of the ad. Centered in the middle, displayed a picture of a delectable cake. Adorned in fancy icing and designs. You would salivate just by looking at it.
Alex licked his lips and suddenly his stomach began to growl. It rumbled and gurgled, poking at him from the inside.
Danielle rummaged through her hamper, behind the bathroom door, and pulled out a not too wrinkled short sleeved top and blue jeans. She shrugged and pulled the top on over her head, smoothed it out over her stomach, and then stepped into the jeans.
"Danny!" Alex moaned, drawing out on the "e" sound.
"I'm coming, Alex…" Danielle opened the door and flipped the bathroom light off before stepping back into her room.
"Just let me get my shoes on, ok?" She said, padding over to the closet.
"Yay!" Alex squealed, resuming his jumping fit.
Alex was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 5. He's now 11 and even more hyper than when he was younger.
Danielle slipped into her plain black flip-flops and grabbed her purse.
"Alright, let's go." She led her little brother out of her room, shutting the door behind her.
"Last one to the car is a rotten egg!" Alex yelled, darting down the stairs and out the front door.
"You're still a rotten egg, no matter what people say, Alex." Danielle whispered to herself.
She trotted down the stairs, sliding her hand over the oak railing at her left. Alex waited at the car door, jittering from side to side. Danielle stepped out the door and walked down the lawn to her black SUV. She pressed her thumb on the key remote, and the car unlocked, allowing Alex to get inside. He hopped onto the tan leather seat, and buckled up. Danielle got inside the driver's side, tossed her purse into the back and also buckled her seatbelt. They drove off to Town Centre, heading for the newest bakery, Red Delights.
Her mind was set on getting there just to keep her little brother quiet, she had forgotten all about her dream last night.