Chapter 4.

My heart is pounding and I'm sweating. I only told my friends. They wouldn't do this to me and they wouldn't tell anyone. I know they wouldn't. I try to breathe so that I can figure out who could possibly know. Who could possibly want to do this to me. I can't think of anyone. No one knows, except for my friends. No one would want to do this to me. I wouldn't say everyone loves me, they don't. I don't think anyone dislikes me though. I decide to forget about it for now and send a quick text to Gabriel.

"Wanna hang out tomorrow? Your place."

Maybe that will take my mind off the mystery text. I really need something to take my mind off it. He texts back almost immediately.

"Yeah, sounds great."

I smile. Knowing that I'm going to see Gabriel tomorrow makes me feel better and I fall asleep with a blissful look on my face.

In the morning...

I wake up in the morning, surprised that I didn't dream once during the night. I always have at least one of those dreams each and every night. Oh well, I'm better rested than usual so at least that's good. I get up and head for the shower, hoping that some hot water will wash away the troubles from last night's text. It does. I turn the heat up way too hot, like I always do because it's better that way. My skin is always red when I get out of the shower but it just feels so nice. When I'm done I just stand under the water for a while, feeling all the tension pour out of me. Then I get out and dry myself off. Afterwards I have completely forgotten about the text. That is, until I check my phone and see I've gotten another one.

"I know why you're having them. I bet you haven't figured it out yet."

What is that supposed to mean? They're just dreams, dreams like that don't come for a reason. But maybe there is something... I've thought there was something weird with these dreams ever since I started having them. And it seems like they have something to do with Gabriel. He's the only real person except for myself who has ever been in one of them. He couldn't be the one sending these texts, could he? I mean, even if the dreams mean something and even if he's somehow connected to them, he doesn't know I'm having them. But who does? I'm thinking like a crazy person. I should stop. I try to stop thinking and head downstairs for breakfast, mom's at the table talking to someone on the phone. About me. And Gabriel.

"Who are you talking to?" I demand angrily. She has no right to be telling people about that. She doesn't even have the right to know about that, not really. She hushes me and keeps talking.

"... no, they just met." she says and whoever's on the other line answers with something inaudible. "Yes, I can see how that will be a problem." she answers.

"Mom, what the hell is going on?" I demand, even angrier.

"What are you yelling about?" she asks. All of a sudden the phone is gone and she's just sitting there, eating her breakfast and staring at me.

"You-you were talking on the phone. About me." I say, knowing that I probably sound insane.

"I wasn't on the phone. I was just sitting here when you came in here and started yelling at me." she says with that concerned look on her face. I stare at her. I heard her. She was on the phone, I know she was.

"I'm not crazy." I say. "I know you were on the phone. Don't lie to me mom. Who were you talking to? And why were you talking about me and Gabriel?" I continue, on the verge of tears.

"Honey, are you feeling alright? Maybe you should stay home today." she says.

"No. I was going to see Gabriel after school. Is that what this is about? You're trying to make sure I don't see him?" I ask, exasperated.

"Of course not honey. I just think that since you're clearly not well maybe you should go back to bed. Did you get enough sleep last night?" she asks, she looks worried. She looks like my mom. But then she doesn't. On second my mom was sitting there and the next something is hurling itself at me and my mom is gone. That's when I wake up.

In the real morning...

So much for the dreamless night then. That was the most terrifying and realistic one yet. My pulse won't go down and I can't breathe. Maybe I really should stay home today. It's just that if I do I won't get to school anyway. Or maybe I could get him to come over and hang out with me after mom leaves for work. I pick up my phone to send him a text and there it is.

"I know why you're having them. I bet you haven't figured it out yet."

It's exactly the same as the text in my dream. This isn't another dream, is it? I pinch myself. It hurts and other then that, nothing happens. So I guess I'm probably awake. I ignore the mystery texter and send Gabriel a text.

"I really don't feel like going to school today, want to come over and hang out after my mom leaves? Because that would make me feel a lot better."

I cringe at the last part, wondering if it's too much but I send it before I can change my mind. Hanging out with him will probably take the dream and the texts off my mind, maybe even make me feel happy again. I should shower though.

Once I'm done, I check my phone. Gabriel answered.

"Sure. Did something happen? When can I come over?"

I smile. He's worried about me. And he wants to come over. I respond immediately.

"Kind of. She's just leaving."

"Bye Ira! I hope you feel better when I get home!" my mother yells from downstairs.

"Bye mom!" I answer, already feeling much better. Gabriel's going to come over soon and we're going to talk and have fun. My phone pings, Gabriel already answered.

"On my way."

I feel myself calming down more and decide to text my friends. I send off a group text to all of them.

"Not feeling very well. Staying home today but I'll see you guys tomorrow. Love you!"

I lay in bed trying not to think about my dream when the doorbell rings. I quickly run downstairs and open the door and there he is. My Gabriel, though I suppose he isn't really mine yet.

"Hi." he says, reaching out to hug me. I smile and hug him back.

"Hi." I say and I know I sound pathetic but it doesn't matter because he's here and it's all better now. "What happened? Are you okay?" he asks, with the same concerned look on his face that my mother wore in my dream. I hesitate. What if he thinks I'm being silly? Or worse, what if he thinks I'm crazy. I hesitate and he notices.

"You can tell me."

"I've been having these weird dreams lately. Really weird and realistic ones. They're terrifying. The one I had last night was the worst one so far." I say, looking down on the ground. And he gives me this look, not the whole 'I think you're crazy look', but more of a 'I know what you're talking about look'. But it's gone in a second and I probably just imagined it. Instead, he smiles at me.

"Let's go upstairs and you can tell me all about it." he says. So we head upstairs and sit on my bed.

"What are they about?" he asks.

"Huh?" I respond, a little bit dizzied by the fact that we're alone in my bedroom.

"Your dreams." he says with the most adorable smile ever, sparkling eyes and dimples and all.

"Oh. Right. Usually they're about this girl. She's got red hair that looks like fire and she's kind of tiny. At least she looks tiny next to other people. There's this boy too, he's got hair like gold and he's the fastest one of them. There are others as well, but they're the ones who are most often in my dreams. There are vampires and werewolves, fairies and warlocks. And they're are demons. Some of the Downworlders, that's what they call them, are good. But the demons are all bad. The golden boy and the girl with the red hair fight them, along with others. They're called Nephilim." I say, barely taking a pause inbetween sentences. When I finally do take a pause I notice how he's staring at me. A flare of recognition in his eyes.

"Continue." he says, looking very suspicious for some reason. Shouldn't I be the suspicious one? What if he's the one sending the texts? I continue anyway though. I want to tell him.

"It's not always about them. Sometimes I'm fighting the demons. And... you've been in a few of them" I say, hesitating to tell him that he was in my dreams. "The one last night was different though. I thought I was awake. My mother was on the phone, talking about me. And then she wasn't and she pretended like she didn't know what I was talking about when I asked her about it. Then-then she wasn't my mom anymore" I continue, feeling the anxiety come back. "She was my mom one second, staring at me with a concerned look and the next she was this thing. She looked like on of those demons." I say, crying. He hugs me then, holding me while I cry he whispers:

"They're just dreams. Dreams can't hurt you."

"But I'm not sure they're just dreams. That's not it you see. I started getting these weird texts, about the dreams. And the last one, I got it in the dream and then I saw that I had gotten the exact same one when I woke up." I say, trying to stop the tears. Red puffy eyes aren't exactly attractive.

"Show me the texts." he says, looking stern. Looking like-like one of them. The Nephilim. I shake that thought away and hand over my phone. He looks at the texts.

"And you have no idea who they're from?" he asks. Still with the stern, Nephilim look on his face.

"None." I say.

"Did you tell anyone about the dreams other then me?" he continues. It feels like an interrogation. It's like Gabriel disappeared when I started talking about the texts and someone else entirely, someone Nephilim, appeared in his place. I hesitate about telling this Gabriel about my friends. If it was Gabriel like he usually is, of course I would tell him. But telling him like this feels wrong. Besides, I know that none of my friends sent that and they would never tell anyone.

"No. No one." I say.

"Okay, good. Let's keep it that way." he says.

"Thanks for coming." I say, hugging him again, hoping that it will bring him back. He hugs me back and when I look at him again it is him. He's smiling at me with his eyes sparkling and dimples showing I still can't shake the feeling that something is wrong though. But I look into his sky blue eyes and I lose myself in them. That's when he comes closer. I hold my breath and then he's kissing me.