Hello all! Without giving too much away, this is an AU real world story mainly focusing on David and Mary Margaret. This story will also feature most of our favorite characters and some new pairings. This first chapter is a little short, but it's just to set up the story. The rest will be longer. I have quite a bit planned so this will be at least a 5 chapter adventure. I'm excited about this story and very much hope you'll enjoy it. Please review!

Chapter 1: Nightmare

Blood was starting to pool around her knees as she knelt and clutched his hand. It was as if she was trying to anchor him there in that moment, afraid he would leave if she let go. He looked at her with the softest expression she had ever seen him give, and squeezed her hand weakly. His eyes began to close. Panic started to set in as she shook his shoulders.

"No, no, no you can't leave me. Wake up!" she cried.

His slow breathing hitched as her shaking brought him back again. He opened his eyes, searching for hers. "It's ok… It… It'll be ok," he replied softly. "This is… right." Her tears started to spill over and run down her cheeks at his words. He lifted his hand to stroke her face, and she closed her eyes at the touch. "It's ok," he reaffirmed, taking her hand with his again and resting both on his chest. His eyes fluttered, then closed for the last time, and Mary Margaret screamed.

Mary Margaret could hear herself scream as she was falling out of her bed, sheets wrapped around her body so tightly that she could barely do anything to stop her momentum. She lay there in the tangle of blankets on the floor, the paralyzing fear from her dream still causing her heart to beat hard and fast. She sat up, leaning on one hand, trying to get her breathing back under control. Her left knee and cheek stung from falling, but that wasn't what brought the tears to her eyes. Her dream, no nightmare, had been so vivid. So real. It was like she was there again, covered in his blood. She took deep, shaky breaths, willing her body to calm itself.

"Guess I'm done sleeping," she muttered after a few minutes, disentangling herself from her blankets and sitting shakily on the edge of her bed. Her nightgown was sticking to her clammy skin, causing her to shiver. She rubbed her eyes, trying to wipe the images of her nightmare away. They continued to sneak into her thoughts, too vivid to block out so easily. She stood and walked into the bathroom to rinse her face with cold water. She dried off with a hand towel and looked at herself in the mirror. She saw the red mark on her cheekbone that would most likely bruise by morning. Her fair skin was unforgiving in times such as these. She sighed, placed the towel back on the rack and made her way to the kitchen to make some hot chocolate.

After the milk was set to warm up, she pulled a stack of papers out of her work bag. She checked the clock and groaned at the sight. "Nothing like grading papers at 4:00A.M. to start the day off right," she commented to herself, trying to focus on anything else besides what had awoken her. She shook her head and went to get her favorite mug to pour the hot milk in. "Great, now I'm talking to myself. Get it together Blanchard." She finished preparing her drink, sprinkled some cinnamon on top to finish it off, and brought it to her lips. She enjoyed the warmth the mug brought to her fingers.

She sat at her counter, wrapped in a red throw blanket, grading her students' papers and sipping her hot chocolate. She could almost feel her tension start to dissipate, for which she was grateful. After a while, a yawn interrupted her work and she turned her bleary eyes towards the clock that read 5:10A.M. As much as she wanted to curl back up in bed, the thought of returning to her dreams again made her shiver. Shower, get dressed, then go get coffee, she decided. The early bird catches the worm...