Chris stared up at the ceiling. He was still trying to figure out that dream he had had about Stephanie. He couldn't figure out why it bothered him so much, but it was bothering him to the point where he couldn't sleep at all. He had honestly thought that she was there, honestly thought that he was awake, but she could not have possibly gotten back to her room, changed, and then climbed in bed and put up the illusion of sleep in the span of him getting out of bed and going into her room.

He was probably just exhausted and thought he had been awake in his dream, but he had really been dreaming. That wasn't Stephanie, it was just a figment of his imagination. He had to say that he was the tiniest bit relieved to actually be having a dream that didn't consist of Stephanie and some fictional family that he had dreamed up. At least right now, he was dreaming of her in the present.

He decided his best course of action was just to forget about it, like he tried to forget about all the other dreams that he had of her. He was staying in her house, keeping her company, she was bound to invade his thoughts, and you usually dreamed of things that were in your head when you went to sleep. That was the only explanation to be had over this peculiar dream.

He closed his eyes and laid there for a few seconds. He felt a soft breeze blow his hair a little bit, presumably from the fan over the bed, keeping him cool. He felt comfortable at the moment, like nothing could go wrong. He liked that feeling, wanted to sink deeper into that feeling and let the gentle wind caress his face, almost like a hand running down his cheek. He fell asleep with a smile on his face.

The next day was bright, at least that's what Chris could tell from the sunlight pouring in through the lacy curtains. He felt really sore though, and he was going to have to tell Stephanie to get a better mattress for this bed. Now it wasn't unusual for a wrestler to wake up sore, just because they abused their bodies so much that they were never without some sort of pain, but this mattress was probably old and that was probably contributing to why he felt so sore this particular morning.

He got out of bed slowly, shaking off the sore muscles and vowing to at least workout so he wouldn't feel so stagnant. Maybe he could even get Stephanie to come along; it would probably let her get some of her emotions out without having to discuss them with anyone. Stephanie wasn't crazy, she just took on too many things to handle. He walked downstairs and saw her sipping coffee on the living room couch.

"Hey," Chris said, from the bottom of the stairs.

Stephanie turned around and smiled, "How's your wrist?"

"Still a little sore, I think I did land on it wrong. I can hardly remember since I was so out of it last night. The dream really threw me for a loop," he told her as he walked over and sat next to her.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" he asked, sincerely confused.

"I don't know," she chuckled softly into her coffee mug. "I guess for being in your dreams. I mean, I figure if I had never met you then I wouldn't be in them in the first place."

"But then I wouldn't be a wrestler, and I wouldn't be with Trish, so I'll take the dreams."

"Well, I guess that's good then," Stephanie told him.

"Hey, just a heads up, the mattress in your guest bedroom really sucks, I woke up really, really sore, more so than usual," Chris said, trying to steer the conversation away from the more serious area.

"Oh, thanks, it's not like I have too many visitors though," she pointed out. "You're probably the first person that's slept in that bed in a really, really long time. But I guess I'll buy a new mattress."

"Just letting you know, I was really sore this morning."

"Oh, anywhere in particular?" Stephanie asked, looking him over.

He rubbed his shoulder a little, "My shoulder mostly. I don't know, I just woke up and it was feeling especially bad. Kind of weird how you just discover new aches and pains everyday. I guess that's the kind of life I lead though."

"Here, let me help you out," Stephanie said, setting her mug down and then getting up and walking around the couch.

"What are you doing?" he asked, following her with his eyes.

"Just sit up," she prompted. He obeyed her orders as he sat up straighter, wondering what was up. He found out soon as she laid both her hands on his afflicted shoulder. He was surprised and tensed up a little, but she just kept her hand there. "It's ok, I'm not going to hurt you."

He didn't know why he took her word for it, but something inside of him told him to trust this woman explicitly. She started to softly rub his shoulder, and he hated to admit it, but it felt so good. Her touch was definitely light and it was almost as if it wasn't there, but she started to get a little firmer in her contact and he bit back a moan at the feeling. She was eliciting a strange feeling in him and he closed his eyes and reveled in it.

He didn't know if he fell asleep, but it was like he could see something just beyond his eyelids, and it was Stephanie. But it was a different Stephanie somehow, and he couldn't quite place why she was different, but it was in the eyes. The eyes of this Stephanie sparkled like…like nothing he had ever seen before. He couldn't explain it adequately and words failed him entirely. If he could describe it, it would take an eternity, because they were so goddamn beautiful.

She was so spectacular, in all her glory, that he didn't want to open his eyes again. He wanted to float, like he was doing. He felt like he was floating, floating away from a place where Trish, and his friends, and his family, and his co-workers all just disappeared. There was only Stephanie, and she was simply…exquisite. He didn't move, for fear that he would disrupt her beauty.

"Chris…" Her voice floated towards him, and it was almost like he could see her voice, like they created colors that he could see and every sound was music and lilting and every poetic word that could do her justice.

He wanted to speak, but found himself unable to. He tried, he opened his mouth and tried to form a word, any word, but none were forming. He tried to cough, but nothing helped and he just saw her there. He couldn't move forward and he couldn't move back and it looked like she couldn't either. He wanted nothing more than to go over to her. He wanted to go over to her and talk to her and touch her, but nothing was working.

"Chris…please…"

"What?" he said, finally able to talk.

"Chris," Stephanie said and he felt her shaking his good shoulder and his eyes shot open and then squinted under the light.

"Huh?" he said, obviously disoriented. Where had he just been?

"You fell asleep on me," Stephanie laughed. "I knew that I was good, but I had no idea that I was that good."

"Wow, I guess I was just tired from last night. I don't know what came over me," Chris told her, even though what he saw was so vivid in his mind, so clear that he could tell anybody any detail, any color that he saw, and he could tell you every square inch of the Stephanie that he had seen.

"You were tired, and I'm sure I wasn't helping you any, I hope that I was able to help your shoulder," she said.

"I think you did," Chris said, rotating it. It did feel a little bit better, but he didn't have the heart to tell her that it was still sore. It felt odd to be this sore and not really do anything to himself. But maybe he had just been sleeping the wrong way. It happened to everyone, and it could surely happen to him.

"You know Chris, you can go back to Trish if you want. I really appreciate everything you've done, but I really am feeling better so you don't have to stay."

"Oh," Chris said, furrowing his brow. "I guess if you want me to leave."

"No, it's not that, I don't WANT you to leave, I'm just saying that you don't have to stick around if you don't want to. It's completely your decision."

"Ok, I guess," Chris said. "I mean, if you want me to go."

"I'm not saying that."

Chris noticed that the tension in the room had risen to dangerous levels. He didn't exactly know why it was going up so high, but he could feel it. He wanted to look at Stephanie, but felt like he couldn't. Nothing could live up to that vision that he had had. Nothing could compare to that, and for some reason, he felt like that was a reality, and this, this was nothing. But this couldn't be nothing, because this was his life.

He sat there, feeling Stephanie's eyes on him and he slowly turned around. There she was and she wasn't the same as his vision, but she was there, and he felt an urge. He got up, not believing it, but feeling this power that was greater than he was walking over to her. She stared at him the entire way, her eyes following his every movement. He stopped in front of her.

She couldn't move, and he couldn't stop moving. He held her face in between his hands as he licked his lips slowly. He leaned in towards her, and he couldn't stop himself. It was like he wasn't even in control of himself. It was like he was being pushed and if he wanted to stop he couldn't, because there was a force at his back.

And so he kissed her. And it wasn't a safe, friendly kiss either. No, this was like the mother of all kisses, all consuming and passionate to the point where Stephanie thought she was going to completely lose her balance because her knees were shaking so bad. She wrapped her arms around him, holding onto him for dear life, letting herself get swept up in the moment.

"I miss you."

Chris pulled away abruptly and looked at her. "What just happened?"

"I don't know," Stephanie answered, because honestly she didn't.

Chris had returned to himself now, no longer feeling that push, that invisible force, "I don't know why I did that."

"I don't know either."

"Well, at least we both don't know," he said, trying to make a joke. That didn't even begin to explain why in the hell he had heard Stephanie's voice while they were kissing. But how could he even attempt to explain that.

"Yeah," Stephanie said, still dazed. "You have a girlfriend."

"I know I do," he said. "But you're beautiful."

"You think so."

"You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen in my entire life."

Now he wasn't in control of his words. They were coming out too fast, he couldn't stop them, he couldn't catch them before they got away from him. But Stephanie's eyes were changing. They were the same from his dream, the same light was in them, the same…everything. They were her eyes.

"I need you," she whispered, her voice sounding pained almost.

"Steph…"

"Come back."

"I haven't gone anywhere."

"Just come back," she said, and she raised her hand, caressing his cheek with the back of her hand. Her touch felt so good, so soothing that he suddenly forgot that he was sore. He forgot so many things and felt like he was being sucked into another realm.

"I told you Steph, I'm not going anywhere if you don't want me to."

"How did you get yourself into this mess?" she asked with a wry laugh. "How did this happen?"

"I'm not entirely sure," he responded.

"I just wish…" Her voice trailed off as her eyes darted anywhere and everywhere all at once, like if she focused on him, they would tear up and she'd never gain her composure. He wanted to get her to look at him, but it seemed impossible, like he couldn't get her attention.

"Stephanie, what do you wish?"

"I just wish…I just wish that none of this had happened. My life…our life, I don't know which is which anymore, and I just know that if I lose you, if I lose…I just…I don't know what to think anymore."

"Stephanie, please, tell me what's going on in that head of yours?"

"I don't know up from down anymore, and I don't know left from right, I feel cooped up in this place, and I can't get free and I try, but I just can't leave here…I can't leave you. I mean…they…I just can't."

Chris stared at her, and her eyes were finally fixed on his. But they weren't. They were staring through him. It was like he wasn't even there or something. Like she was looking somewhere that he could never touch. But he could see fear in her eyes and he couldn't explain it. He let the tear roll down her cheek and just stared at her.

He was starting to feel like they weren't even in the same universe.