Author's note: So I sort of screwed myself with that last chapter. I know
where this story is going; I just got stuck after that last part.
Disclaimer: Okay. On with the show. I own nothing. Still. **************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** *****************************************************
She woke up.
It took Jenny a moment to realize where she was, which was on the floor in Aba's house. She felt the hardness of the floor through the blankets. Jenny was panting, the aftereffects of her most recent dream still coursing through her veins.
Soft light streamed in through a window behind her, indicating that it was probably just after dawn. She stretched for a moment and looked around at the hazy outline of the furnishings in the room, not really seeing them as her mind began to race.
Really, that she woke up should not have been a surprise to anyone, she mused. Especially after being delivered a bombshell like that.
Not a dream? What the hell?
She almost let out a groan of frustration before remembering that there were other people in the house with her. She knew without trying that she was awake for good now. Her mind was whirling with the unanswered questions, trying to make sense of it all.
How could it not be a dream? She was asleep when she saw him, right? She woke up after every dream, right? So what part of that process was not a dream?
It was true that she was physically affected by the dreams. But the same thing happened if she had a nightmare.
But there was something scarier than not knowing the answer to what made her visits with Julian real. And that was what it meant if they were. If the visits with Julian were real then she had been dangerously close to participating in something her now-conscious self wasn't sure she was ready for. She had almost slept with Julian.
She didn't bother pretending that she didn't want to. Oh, she wanted to, all right. The fact that she was currently on the floor with a physical ache for Julian's presence was testimony to that. And there was really never a question as to whether or not Julian wanted to. She smiled as she took the time to relive some of his reactions to her kissing and caressing.
But all the reliving in the world wasn't going to help her do anything but get all worked up again. And seeing as she was already so keyed up that she couldn't sleep, she figured it was best to return her attention to the problem at hand.
Wanting to sleep with Julian and being ready for the consequences were two different things. Was she ready for what that step meant?
If somehow he was right and these dreams were reality then there were some hard truths Jenny had to deal with.
Among other things being with Julian for real meant she was cheating on Tom. Despite their current situation Jenny and Tom were technically still a couple. So was she ready to let Tom go?
And if she wasn't with Tom anymore and made the decision to be with Julian what would happen to her friendships? It was no secret that her friends didn't like Julian, especially Tom and Zach. If being with Julian meant not being with her friends anymore, could she do it?
It was so easy to say that her friends' opinions shouldn't matter. But the reality was that they did.
Jenny knew that deep down her friends only wanted her to be happy. But chances were pretty good that they didn't see Julian as the key to that happiness.
Sighing audibly Jenny rolled over and attempted to calm her mind and distract herself from these thoughts. But they wouldn't be banished.
So as she considered every scenario she continued to find herself getting more and more tense until she noticed that she held the edge of the sheet in a vice grip.
Worrying about all this was ridiculous. Not ridiculous in the sense that she had nothing to worry about, mind you, more like ridiculous because she couldn't solve anything on her own.
She needed to talk to her friends as soon as possible, preferably before her next encounter with Julian.
And she needed to talk with Tom before anyone else.
As she continued to lay there she was surprised to find herself becoming drowsy. Realizing that there was still a few hours before anyone else was likely to be awake she gave in to the temptation and fell asleep.
This time when she woke up it was due to the smell of coffee and bacon and the sounds of her friends chattering and making breakfast. She smiled as she listened to them but the smile soon faded as she realized something.
She was dismayed to discover that she had been engaged in a dreamless sleep. Not that she didn't need to catch up on some solid sleep, of course, it was just a little sad that she didn't see Julian.
But it was for the best that she didn't, she assured herself as she got up and went to work folding the blankets. Because she now had the time to talk with her friends before she dealt with Julian again.
It was just a matter of getting that pesky courage up to handling the task.
"Good morning Sunshine," Dee called out as she noticed Jenny arranging the pillows and blankets on the nearby couch, "Did we wake you?"
"It's okay," Jenny responded with a smile, "I needed to get up anyway. Besides, those smells are so tempting I wouldn't have been sleeping much longer."
"You got that right," Michael agreed as he set the table, "Especially when you realize Audrey has been in charge of cooking. My woman knows how to make some mean scrambled eggs."
Audrey simply rolled her eyes and shook her head at this statement.
As they ate breakfast together they reviewed their plans for the rest of the week and before they knew it the dishes were washed and dried and it was time to go.
Tom's dad met them at Sarah's house and Jenny was going to ask for a ride home from someone else but before she could Tom beat her to it. "Jenny, would you mind waiting for us to fix the flat? Then I can take you home."
What else could she do but agree? With a nod of her head Jenny agreed. She and Tom bid their friends adieu and she sat back to wait for the car to get fixed.
Disclaimer: Okay. On with the show. I own nothing. Still. **************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** *****************************************************
She woke up.
It took Jenny a moment to realize where she was, which was on the floor in Aba's house. She felt the hardness of the floor through the blankets. Jenny was panting, the aftereffects of her most recent dream still coursing through her veins.
Soft light streamed in through a window behind her, indicating that it was probably just after dawn. She stretched for a moment and looked around at the hazy outline of the furnishings in the room, not really seeing them as her mind began to race.
Really, that she woke up should not have been a surprise to anyone, she mused. Especially after being delivered a bombshell like that.
Not a dream? What the hell?
She almost let out a groan of frustration before remembering that there were other people in the house with her. She knew without trying that she was awake for good now. Her mind was whirling with the unanswered questions, trying to make sense of it all.
How could it not be a dream? She was asleep when she saw him, right? She woke up after every dream, right? So what part of that process was not a dream?
It was true that she was physically affected by the dreams. But the same thing happened if she had a nightmare.
But there was something scarier than not knowing the answer to what made her visits with Julian real. And that was what it meant if they were. If the visits with Julian were real then she had been dangerously close to participating in something her now-conscious self wasn't sure she was ready for. She had almost slept with Julian.
She didn't bother pretending that she didn't want to. Oh, she wanted to, all right. The fact that she was currently on the floor with a physical ache for Julian's presence was testimony to that. And there was really never a question as to whether or not Julian wanted to. She smiled as she took the time to relive some of his reactions to her kissing and caressing.
But all the reliving in the world wasn't going to help her do anything but get all worked up again. And seeing as she was already so keyed up that she couldn't sleep, she figured it was best to return her attention to the problem at hand.
Wanting to sleep with Julian and being ready for the consequences were two different things. Was she ready for what that step meant?
If somehow he was right and these dreams were reality then there were some hard truths Jenny had to deal with.
Among other things being with Julian for real meant she was cheating on Tom. Despite their current situation Jenny and Tom were technically still a couple. So was she ready to let Tom go?
And if she wasn't with Tom anymore and made the decision to be with Julian what would happen to her friendships? It was no secret that her friends didn't like Julian, especially Tom and Zach. If being with Julian meant not being with her friends anymore, could she do it?
It was so easy to say that her friends' opinions shouldn't matter. But the reality was that they did.
Jenny knew that deep down her friends only wanted her to be happy. But chances were pretty good that they didn't see Julian as the key to that happiness.
Sighing audibly Jenny rolled over and attempted to calm her mind and distract herself from these thoughts. But they wouldn't be banished.
So as she considered every scenario she continued to find herself getting more and more tense until she noticed that she held the edge of the sheet in a vice grip.
Worrying about all this was ridiculous. Not ridiculous in the sense that she had nothing to worry about, mind you, more like ridiculous because she couldn't solve anything on her own.
She needed to talk to her friends as soon as possible, preferably before her next encounter with Julian.
And she needed to talk with Tom before anyone else.
As she continued to lay there she was surprised to find herself becoming drowsy. Realizing that there was still a few hours before anyone else was likely to be awake she gave in to the temptation and fell asleep.
This time when she woke up it was due to the smell of coffee and bacon and the sounds of her friends chattering and making breakfast. She smiled as she listened to them but the smile soon faded as she realized something.
She was dismayed to discover that she had been engaged in a dreamless sleep. Not that she didn't need to catch up on some solid sleep, of course, it was just a little sad that she didn't see Julian.
But it was for the best that she didn't, she assured herself as she got up and went to work folding the blankets. Because she now had the time to talk with her friends before she dealt with Julian again.
It was just a matter of getting that pesky courage up to handling the task.
"Good morning Sunshine," Dee called out as she noticed Jenny arranging the pillows and blankets on the nearby couch, "Did we wake you?"
"It's okay," Jenny responded with a smile, "I needed to get up anyway. Besides, those smells are so tempting I wouldn't have been sleeping much longer."
"You got that right," Michael agreed as he set the table, "Especially when you realize Audrey has been in charge of cooking. My woman knows how to make some mean scrambled eggs."
Audrey simply rolled her eyes and shook her head at this statement.
As they ate breakfast together they reviewed their plans for the rest of the week and before they knew it the dishes were washed and dried and it was time to go.
Tom's dad met them at Sarah's house and Jenny was going to ask for a ride home from someone else but before she could Tom beat her to it. "Jenny, would you mind waiting for us to fix the flat? Then I can take you home."
What else could she do but agree? With a nod of her head Jenny agreed. She and Tom bid their friends adieu and she sat back to wait for the car to get fixed.