Lil ran down the hallway. She knew someone was after her. She knew who it was, and unfortunately, it was someone she had trusted.
"No! Stop! Get away from me!" She shouted.
Lil continued to run down the halls, making sharp twists and turns as they unexpectedly switched direction. It was like a maze, and she was the rat who was forced to find her way out. But that was the problem- there was no way out.
"Lillian!" The boy sang. "You can come out; I won't hurt you. I swear." The voice was followed by a sinister laugh.
Suddenly Lil stopped. She was trapped. There was a wall blocking her from running any more. The only alternative was to go back the way she came- but there he was. Cornering her.
"Come on, Lil. I know you want to." The boy looked at her, dirty blonde hair falling into his eyes as he talked.
He caved in closer.
"Come on, Lil." He whispered in her ear. "It will be fun."
As Brad leaned away from her, his features suddenly changed, but the same malign smile remained on his face.
"Tommy!" She gasped. "No!"
Tommy's face grew soft for a moment.
"Wake up Lil." He whispered to her. "Wake up. You're living in a nightmare."
Before she knew what was happening he grabbed her by the shoulders and began to shake her.
"LIL!" He yelled. "WAKE UP!"
Lil sat up in bed, shaking.
"Lil, sweetie. You were having another nightmare." Tommy told her softly.
"Tommy?" She asked quietly. "What time is it?"
"Four-thirty." He answered her, brushing her hair off her forehead. "Are you alright?"
Lil nodded. "Yeah." She paused before reassuring him. "Yeah. I'm fine."
Tommy nodded, not completely believing her.
Lil smiled at him. "It was just a nightmare. That's all it was." She told both him and herself. "Just a nightmare."
Tommy kissed her on the forehead. "Do you want to tell me about it?"
Lil shook her head and smiled. "No. I want to try to get back to sleep."
Tommy nodded. "Okay." He said softly.
He turned around and laid down.
Lil sighed before she did the same. But there was something bothering her. Something in her dream...
"Wake up, Lil. You're living in a nightmare."
Why was that bothering her so much?
Lil shook it off and squeezed her eyes shut.
There was no way she was living in a nightmare. She had great friends. A terrific father and supportive brother. She had the best fiancée, and they were expecting a baby. What more could she ask for?
Lil woke up a couple hours later. She glanced at the clock.
"7:30." She groaned.
She looked over to Tommy who was still sound asleep under the covers.
She pulled herself out of bed and grabbed clothes from her closet. She ran a hot shower.
Once Lil was through with her shower and everything else she was obligated to do before she left, she ran into the kitchen and was surprised to see Tommy sitting at the kitchen table with a full cup of coffee in front of him.
"Good morning." Lil greeted him cheerfully.
"Good morning, birthday girl!" Tommy greeted in return.. "How'd you sleep?"
Lil sighed as she got the pot of coffee boiling. "Okay I guess. How about you?"
Tommy shrugged. "I was worried about you."
Lil looked at him quickly. "I'm sorry sweetie. I didn't mean for you to worry."
"No. No, it's fine. It's just...you've been having nightmares periodically since we first started sleeping together. And now...now they're getting worse. Lil, are you alright?"
Lil dropped her coffee mug. "I'm fine." She laughed. "I'm just fine. You know, being raped has a big effect on most people." She said coldly as she picked up her briefcase and headed out the door.
Tommy sighed as he heard the door to their apartment slam.
"I am such an idiot." He told himself as he remembered something he had seemed to have forgotten. "Shit! Damnit! How could I forget that she was raped on her birthday? Damnit!"
Lil regretted what she had said to her husband the second it came out of her mouth.
"He was only trying to help." She sighed to herself as she stepped into a cab that stopped in front of her. "It's not his fault."
Lil got out of the cab and started her walk to her office building.
"Hey, Lil." One of her coworkers greeted her.
"Hey!"
Lil made her way to her desk and began her filing...
"Hey, Lil, we're going out to lunch. Want us to bring you something?" Linda asked.
Lil shook her head. "Nah. I'm going out in a minute. Don't wait up."
Linda smiled. "Okay. Happy birthday, by the way."
"Thanks."
Lil finished the last of her work before her lunch break.
Lil finished her lunch at the new Snap Dragon Chinese Restaurant. Just as she was coming out, someone was coming in.
"Ooh!" Lil gasped as she collided with the person, sending her purse flying out of her hands and onto the sidewalk.
"I'm sorry, ma'am." The man told her sincerely. "Let me help you with that."
The man bent down and helped Lil pick up whatever had fallen out of her purse.
"Thank you." Lil told him as he helped her up.
"No problem." He said. "I'm such a klutz. I tend to either walk into someone or drop something atleast once everyday."
They both laughed.
Lil noticed the man's crystal blue eyes and the dirty blonde hair. For some reason he looked oddly familiar...
"Well, I'm sorry that I bumped into you, Miss..."
"Deville." Lil said, interrupting her previous thoughts. "Lillian Deville."
The man looked at her thoughtfully. "Lillian. Such a pretty name for such a pretty lady."
The man smiled at her as she blushed.
"My name's James. James Garaghey. Do you think it would be out of line if I asked if I could take you out some time? I feel awful about delaying you. Someone as pretty and professional lookin' as you must have somewhere special to go."
Lil found it awfully hard to resist. He was so kind and so sympathetic...
"I'm sorry." Lil said, trying to hide the regret she was feeling. "I'm kind of seeing someone."
James' face dropped. "Oh." He stammered. "I should've known a girl like you would be seeing someone."
Lil gave him a weak smile.
"Hey. No big. Maybe I'll be lucky and bump into you again sometime." With that he gave her a wink and started his walk down the New York streets.
Lil sighed. "He was cute, too."