I was outside again. The moonlight seemed almost as bright as day. The night was cooler than I remembered, but I didn't mind even though I wasn't wearing a jacket. I looked down at myself and saw that I was dressed like a heroine from the cover of one of those historical romance novels, and I had a figure to rival Jenny's body.
I pulled a strand of long, dark hair off of my face. My hair, I realized, hung down my back all the way to my waist. I longed for a mirror so that I could see my face. A moment later I didn't need one, because a young man emerged from the shadows of the trees. By the look in his eyes, I could tell that I was beautiful. That hardly mattered anymore, because he took over all of my senses.
Even though this time I knew it was a dream, I was still completely mesmerized by the young man in front of me. Neither one of us spoke as he moved toward me. Then there was only his kiss.
I awoke reluctantly, still drunk on that kiss. I wanted to return to the dream, but I couldn't fall back asleep. Finally, I gave up and got out of bed. The dream lingered in my mind the way it had the day before. I took only enough time to dress before I placed a fresh canvas on my easel and prepared my paints. Then I began to paint the young man from my dream.
I don't know how long I worked, since I hadn't glanced at the clock when I got up. I just remember being completely caught up in what I was doing until someone barged into the room without knocking. Of course, it was Alex.
"Aren't you ever going to get up?" Her voice was loud in the silence.
"I'm up," I replied calmly.
"Mom said to come down for lunch now," she said as she stepped closer to me.
"Okay, I'll be down in a minute."
"What are you painting?" She was standing beside me now.
"Someone from a dream," I said without thinking.
She lost interest. "Okay, I'm going to eat."
I put my painting materials away and went downstairs. The phone rang before I could reach the kitchen. I still felt like I was coming out of a trance. When I painted, it was like I was in another world, and I always felt slightly disoriented when I returned to reality.
"Allison!" Alex yelled at the top of her lungs.
"I'm right here," I said as I walked into the kitchen.
"It's Jenny."
"Thanks." I took the phone from her. "Hi."
"Hi," Jenny said. "I hope I didn't wake you."
"No, I was already up." I had forgotten that Jenny was waiting to hear the details from last night. Josh had kissed me. It all came back to me then.
"I remember I slept until two the day after my sixteenth birthday party. Anyway, I know you can't talk right now. I'll be over in half an hour to help you clean."
"Okay, I'll see you then." I hung up the phone and sat down to eat lunch. Jenny's birthday had been in November, which was why she already had her driver's license. She often drove me places, but I still couldn't wait to get my own license. I would have to borrow one of my parents' cars, but I would have so much more freedom.
I could tell that Alex was disappointed, because she hadn't been able to learn anything from my telephone conversation. Now she would have to take the direct route.
"So, how was the party?"
I took pity on her. "It was fun. I saved you a piece of cake. You can have it after lunch, and I'll show you all of my presents later."
She smiled. "Thanks, Allison. I had fun, too. Grandma read my cards."
Dad groaned. "That woman with her hocus pocus nonsense."
"It's harmless," Mom said lightly, but she had a serious look on her face.
Alex had been talking about tarot cards. Our grandmother didn't advertise herself as a fortune teller or anything like that. The occult was just something she had been interested in ever since I could remember. I agreed with Mom that it was all just harmless fun.
"She said that I have second sight," Alex continued excitedly. "Just like she does."
Dad just shook his head. "Well, maybe I should have you pick out the lottery numbers next time."
Mom ignored him. "Really," she said to Alex in a strained voice. "What else did she say?"
"She said that I had a struggle ahead of me, but that I would win."
Scott arrived then, prompting Alex to jump up and fling open the refrigerator door. She found the piece of cake I had saved for her. Grabbing a knife and two forks, she returned to the table. She handed Scott one of the forks and proceeded to cut the piece of cake down the middle. "You can have half."
My parents and I looked at each other and smiled. Sometimes Alex could be so sweet. I wondered what had been the matter with Mom, but she seemed to have relaxed now. We watched Alex and Scott polish off the piece of cake in what seemed like five seconds. I was still finishing my lunch when they went outside to play. Jenny arrived while I was loading the dishwasher.
"We're going to a movie," Dad announced. "Keep an eye on Alex."
"Okay," I said. "We'll be here cleaning up."
"Alright," Jenny said after my parents left. "Now we can really talk."
I grabbed a garbage bag and led the way into the basement. "Yeah, Alex is outside, too."
"So, was I right about Josh liking you or was I right?"
I laughed. "You were right."
"I want details."
I set aside pop cans for recycling and began to throw paper plates and napkins in the garbage bag. "It was nice."
Jenny was taking down the party decorations. "Nice! You've been lusting after this guy all year, and all you can say is it was nice?"
"Okay, I admit, there were definitely butterflies. It's just, well, there were so many people around."
"Once he gets you alone, you'll be swept off your feet," Jenny said knowingly.
Alone, I thought, remembering my dream. It had been like we were the only two people on earth.
Jenny broke into my thoughts. "When are you going out with him again?"
"Again? I haven't gone out with him at all yet."
"The party counts," Jenny said firmly. "He spent the whole night with you. Therefore, he was your date."
"Well," I said with a secret smile. "Not the whole night."
Jenny misunderstood. "Get your mind out of the gutter. Did he or did he not ask you out?"
"We're going to the movies next Saturday."
"Try to sound a little enthusiastic. What's wrong? Don't you like Josh anymore?"
I couldn't believe how distracted I was by a mere dream. "Of course I like him. I just have so much to do. I can't wait until school is over."
"I know what you mean. I can't believe I have so much homework due on top of studying for finals."
"I know," I said. "I still have to finish my report for English that I have to hand in tomorrow. I couldn't concentrate on Friday."
"I haven't done any homework all weekend either." Jenny smiled then. "Only two more weeks left until summer. I'm going to spend every day at the pool and have the best tan."
"You always do. Speaking of that, I have to get a new bathing suit."
Jenny's eyes lit up when I mentioned shopping. "Finally! I can't believe you wore that thing two years in a row. This time get a bikini."
"Okay, maybe."
Jenny looked determined. "No maybe. We'll go shopping together, and I'll help you find a skirt to go with the top I got you, plus a killer bikini. This is going to be your summer, Allison."
After we finished cleaning, Jenny sighed and said that she guessed she'd better go home and do her homework. I brought all of my books down and sat at the kitchen table working on my report until my parents came home. Then I took everything back up to my room and continued writing my report until dinner was ready. Alex had returned from playing outside by then, and she chattered about her adventures throughout dinner. Since it was her turn to load the dishwasher, I went back up to my room as soon as I was done eating.
After I finally finished my report, I took a shower and went to bed. I wasn't disappointed that night. I had the dream again.