From Chex: My first attempt at a dark fic. Bear with me. Also, if you are NOT a fan of dark fics, do not attempt to read this. You will NOT like it. And the fact that I know this means that you do NOT need to tell me in a review that you don't like dark fics. That's all. Let the story commence.
A beautiful, intelligent young red-headed woman sat at a desk, reading a novel in the dim lighting of a desk lamp. It was late. Alone in her room at night, the quiet atmosphere provided the perfect opportunity for reading. Her busy schedule during the day didn't allow so much leisure time.
On the other side of her perfectly made bed, a digital clock read: 1:42.
It was entirely too late to be up on a school night; such a well-adjusted girl like her knew that. She'd have to be up early to fix breakfast. She'd be taking extra notes in school for a friend who would be absent. There would be a test first thing in the morning that she was, of course, well-prepared for. Club meetings. Volunteer work. Possible criminals to apprehend or monsters to destroy. Anyone else in her position might cave under the kind of pressure she shouldered each and every day. But she was very serious about her work, fastidious even. Every job or responsibility she undertook she did very, very well.
Sleep was essential. Vital. If she wanted to be energized enough to tackle another day, she'd need to get to bed soon.
I'll just finish this chapter... she thought, turning away from the clock that now told her it was a quarter til two in the morning. No sooner had she thought that did she once again become enveloped into the fictitious world of her novel.
It was well after 3AM when she closed the book, completely finished with it. She was scheduled to be up in less than three hours. She yawned, setting her book aside and clicking off the light. She didn't move until her eyes adjusted to the dark and she could make out the outline of her bed.
She didn't want to sleep.
She needed to sleep. She had to sleep. It was inevitable. If not now, she'd sleep later, at a more inappropriate time.
But she didn't want to.
The idea of sleeping made her wary. Lately, sleep had become an entirely new experience for her. She didn't so much rest as she lost consciousness. Her eyes would fall shut. Her body would become numb. A force, an energy, something would consume her, willing her mind into a passive, comatose state. She didn't fight it. It felt...natural. Somewhere, deep in her subconscious, she'd become aware of it as it happened. But she'd do nothing to stop it.
In the morning, she fought to open her eyes; to clear through the thick haze that overtook her mind. She could never remember a thing, never recall even a glimpse of any dream she'd had. Assuming she'd dreamt at all. Occasionally, she'd find something out of place in the morning. A shirt hung over her chair. Her shoes beside her bed instead of in her closet where they belonged. It unnerved her.
It's nothing. I've been staying up later, so I've been sleeping deeper than usual as a result of being so tired. It's perfectly natural, she told herself. Logically had always been her way of approaching things. It had yet to fail her.
No sooner did she approach her bed than it began. She felt it, the soporific numbing her mind and body. She was barely under the covers when she lost consciousness completely.
From Chex: And so completes the prologue. I honestly can't believe I'm starting another story when I can barely keep up with my other two. But I know if I'd tried to keep this story bottled up too long I'd forget all about it and then hate myself. So here you go. Feedback of the helpful variety please.