Chapter 21: Walking in a Horrible Dreamland
"Can this hunk of junk go any faster?" Melanie asked. She didn't even bother to hide the apprehension in her words; if it could get Stiles to move any faster she would flash him but she only suspected that would cause them to get in a wreck and the last thing she wanted to explain to his dad and hospital staff is the reason behind them getting injured.
Stiles's widened eyes, carrying massive amounts of offense in them, turned to her. "Hey, you're not exactly riding around in a treasure either!" he pointed out. He barely flipped on the turn signal before jerking the wheel and send them barreling around a corner. Melanie had to grab onto the door handle to keep from tumbling over into his lap.
"My truck doesn't take an hour to get from twenty to forty-five!"
He rolled his eyes. "Oh that's a gross misconception."
She motioned at the speedometer. "We're still going at thirty!"
"We're in a neighborhood for crying out loud!" He shot back, almost drowning her out before she could finish her sentence. "The last thing I want is a pancake for a kid on my conscience just because we're chasing after a werewolf! I have morals!"
Now it was her turn to roll her eyes. Of course she didn't want to run the risk of running over a stray kid, but if there was a kid running out into the street in the middle of the night then there were bigger problems at play than them potentially squishing one.
They rode the rest of the way in silence. Melanie bit her nails while Stiles rubbed his face every now and then. His eyes would bounce from the road in front of him to the street signs and back as they drove past. Her pocket buzzing made her jump in surprise, the squeak she emitted made Stiles swerve and then shoot her a look. Pulling her face down in a wince and an apology, she dug into her pocket and pulled out her phone to see that her father had texted her.
"Sorry, it's my dad," she relayed, brushing her hair out of her face, not that it mattered with Stiles's turns and the wind whipping her hair about it wasn't going to stay in one place. She grabbed onto the door handle when he turned again, holding onto her phone for dear life when she felt it start to slip from her fingers. "Stiles, I swear—"
"There they are!" Stiles called out, briefly taking his hand off the wheel to point.
Melanie squinted through the window of the car stopped off to the side of the road and then to the area surrounding them. The trees looked familiar, what she could see of the car interior looked familiar, the woman's hair looked familiar. "Yeah, it's them. What do we do?"
"Uh…" Stiles ran his hands on the steering wheel and drummed his fingers against it. "Okay," he finally sighed, "I'm going to hit them."
"I don't think that's a good—"
"Nope. I'm gonna do it. Hold on."
Her muscles tensed as he pressed his foot on the gas pedal, sending the car forward. Her heart thumped hard in her chest and the saliva she swallowed got stuck by the lump in her throat. The car loomed closer and she closed her eyes, waiting for impact. She barely heard it over the sound of her heart but she sure felt it. She surged forward, thankful that the seatbelt was holding her back and keeping her from slamming her forehead into the glove box. It didn't stop her phone from flying out of her hand and landing on the floor between his feet.
"Hold still," she ordered, unbuckling herself and leaning over his knees in one swift motion.
"Whoa, Mel, wait a second—" he protested from above her, trying to move. She grabbed onto his knee partially to keep him from breaking her nose and partially to steady herself as she grabbed for her phone.
"I almost got it. Just…need to inch…a little more…" she muttered, wiggling her fingers as if that was going to make her phone move closer. Turning her head to the side and sticking out her tongue, she felt the plastic brush against her fingertips. Stretching her fingers out a little further, the pads managed to get a grip and she curled her fingers in to pull it into her palm right as she heard Mrs. McCall yell out Stiles's name.
She immediately shot straight up, her hair flying out of her face as she peered out through the windshield to Mrs. McCall's angered expression. Her dark eyes slid over to Melanie and she could see the surprise fall onto her face before returning to anger. "Melanie! Both of you, get out of the car!"
Exchanging sheepish looks, Melanie and Stiles scrambled out of the jeep. She had to hold onto the door to make sure she didn't face-plant on the ground due to the drop. She slipped her phone back into her pocket and slowly worked her way around the front of the car, wringing her hands together. "Heyyyyy Ms. Melissa," she greeted her with a small wave. "What brings you out here?"
"A date," she replied, crossing her arms. "And you two?"
"Uh…we, uh, were…on our way to…the movies," she replied, her words coming out a slow drawl. Stiles didn't have to look at her like that; she was trying her best to come up with a plausible excuse. It wasn't like he could think of anything better. Actually, it was probably better that he didn't say anything…but she wasn't liking the way Mrs. McCall was looking at her now.
"Look, I'm a doctor, I know everything there is to know about raging hormones. Trust me, I'm fighting a battle of them at my own house," she stated. Stiles made an odd squeaking noise and Melanie cocked her head to the side. "Be that as it may, it's incredibly dangerous for you to be…pleasing Stiles while he's driving."
"Oh my God," Stiles muttered, his hand coming up to cover his mouth. Melanie's eyes bounced back and forth between the red pooling in Stiles's cheeks and the stern expression on Mrs. McCall's face. What in the world was she missing?
"You could have hurt someone! And Stiles, I know you're a teenage boy and all, but you of all people should know when and where it's the right moment to engage in such activity! Driving is not one of them! You don't have to be at the same place as Scott is. …Though that's a completely different conversation I'll have with him."
Melanie lightly pinched the skin on Stiles's elbow and shook his arm. "What's she talking about?"
"…This is a conversation you and your parents really should have had three years ago, Mel," Stiles muttered, rubbing a hand over his buzzed hair. He sucked in a breath, his cheeks puffing up at the effort, and blew it out. The confused expression on her face didn't leave so he huffed, rolled his eyes and whispered into her ear.
Oh! Her eyes flew open and she hastily shook her head. "No! Oh, god, Ms. Melissa, I wasn't…we weren't…does he look happy to you?" She jerked her thumb in his direction and he rapidly shook his head from side to side to prove a point. "He'd be smiling like a freakin' jack-o-lantern if I…did that. Which I didn't! I-I wouldn't do that! You have to believe me. He crashed into you 'cause he…sucks at driving."
"Thanks," she heard him utter beneath his breath but her attention had strayed to Peter Hale, who wasn't looking at them anymore; the subdued anger that he held in his face once he got out of the car was gone. She could see a hint of a smile on his face as he began to pace, his eyes moving as if searching through the darkness. But what was he looking for?
"Honestly, Ms. Melissa, I wasn't doing anything," Melanie said, now squeezing her hands together so hard they were starting to lose the color in them. She bit her lip. Mrs. McCall had to believe her, she just had to. 'Casue it wasn't like she was interested in Stiles or liked him, not to that capacity, and she didn't want Scott thinking so either. Just because it wouldn't be true.
"Yeah, we're sorry we hit you. It looks like a bad bump. Maybe we could get the police involved?" Stiles continued, turning a stern gaze over to Peter who had whirled around at that moment.
"No, that won't be necessary," Peter replied, his voice as smooth as silk. "I know someone who can take a look at it." His body then turned towards Melissa but it took a few seconds for his lingering eyes to catch up, sliding from Stiles to his date. "Why don't we schedule for another day? I think it would be best to get this fixed so we don't end up broken down later."
"Are you sure?" Mrs. McCall asked, stepping towards him. "We can go somewhere closer. A diner."
Peter smiled and reached out his hand, brushing his thumb against her cheek. "That sounds wonderful, but I must insist. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if anything were to happen to you because I didn't get this fix. Another time."
"Okay…another time," she agreed.
Melanie shuffled forward and touched Mrs. McCall on the arm. She could feel the older woman tense beneath her touch. "Do you want us to drive you somewhere? Back to Scott's?" Her eyes flickered over to Peter who stared back at her. She swore his eyes flashed red at one point but no one else seemed to notice. She noticed the jolt in her gut like she had been standing by a speaker when someone plucked a string on a bass guitar. The nausea came back and she swallowed to try and get the ill-tasting saliva out of her mouth. "Get some ice cream, maybe?" Her lips turned up in a brief smile but it faded almost as fast as it appeared as she looked at Mrs. McCall and saw…something in her eyes. Something that tugged at her heart.
"Nonsense, I can take her home," Peter replied. He put his hand on the small of Mrs. McCall's back and lead her towards the car before any of them could protest. "Might want to get those brakes checked, hmm?" he added to Stiles, scoffing at the jeep.
"Stiles, no!" Melanie jumped onto his back and grabbed onto his arms, leaning backwards to try and shift her weight to keep him from attacking Peter. "He could rip out your throat! Your jeep's not worth that," she said into his neck. "…I'm not sure it's worth anything, really."
"Ha ha! God, I just want to get my hands on that bitch," he growled, his chest heaving but he stood rooted to the spot as they watched Peter and Melissa get into the car and drive off. Only when his breathing got back to normal did she jump off his back.
Melanie brushed her hair out of her face, tugging on the end of it as she stared at the car driving off. "We're still going to follow them, right?"
"Yeah, something tells me not to trust him. I can't imagine why." Dropping his sarcastic tone he motioned for her to get back in the jeep. She climbed in and buckled up to check her phone again once she was settled. All her father had said was that they were going to talk tomorrow, about everything. She didn't know what 'everything' meant but she had a feeling she was going to have a long day.
The previous tension in the cabin of the jeep had dissipated now that they found Peter and Mrs. McCall but Stiles and Melanie sat quietly as they drove on through the night. Every now and then he would have some sort of conversation under his breath but it always petered out. Melanie, on the other hand, pulled on the end of her hair and stared out the window the entire car ride. They were lucky in being able to save Mrs. McCall in time. But would they always be that lucky? What if they couldn't get to someone in time? What if they couldn't do anything to help out those caught in the crosshairs? They were just teens. Kids even. Kids played games and tonight she got a full dose of reality of their situation: this wasn't a game.
She was buried so deep in her thoughts that it took Stiles honking her own horn for her to come crashing back to reality, finding herself sitting in the driver's seat of her truck. "Is it possible to sleepwalk with your eyes open?" she asked.
"I don't think it'd be called sleepwalking then, Mel. I think it's just called 'walking'," he pointed out. He chuckled at her quiet "oh" of realization and closed her door, resting his arms on the windowsill. "Okay, so, Scott got a crash course in all things werewolf. Now it's your turn. We can start tomorrow."
"My dad wants to talk to me tomorrow, so it'll have to be Monday," she replied, running her hands on her steering wheel. "But good luck. There's a lot of conflicting information; people still can't tell the difference between sirens and mermaids when it should be obvious considering birds and fishes are completely different species."
"Don't worry, we'll figure everything out. The Alpha, your abilities, how to cure Scott, everything."
"Can't dream this shit up, huh?" She asked, still not taking her eyes off the steering wheel in her hands. She wished she had control over it, but it seemed to be steering her life in a billion different directions and down a billion different unmarked paths that she'd rather not have to leave footprints on. It felt odd beneath her hands, the ridges where she once felt comfortable grasping now didn't fit the curl of her fingers. A mismatched glove of sorts.
"I think I'd be concerned if I came up with this stuff, honestly," Stiles commented. "This is like…if R. L. Stine and Stephen King had a kid, this is what they'd come up with."
"We should write a book." She turned to Stiles and managed a smile. "We'd be rich."
"We could call it Teen Wolf."
"Nah, that's stupid. Who'd pay attention to something called Teen Wolf? We could think of a much better name." Their soft accompanying laughter faded into the night like a passing breeze. Biding each other a quiet goodnight, Melanie undulated her fingers in a quick wave and backed out of his driveway. The wind buffeted her face as she flew down the road on her way home. Her muscles, body, and eyelids all fell heavy and all she wanted to do was crash on her bed rather than into a tree.
She felt like a zombie as she climbed out of her car and shuffled into her house. Her feet barely lifted off the floor, her pace was slow, and her breathing had grunting qualities thrown in, especially at the sight of the dishes in the sink. Not that it surprised her to see the mountain in the sink; their diet had basically transferred over to anything they had a craving for that could be delivered in thirty minutes or less. She rubbed the heels of her palms into her eyes and got to work. She hated washing dishes but it was normal, after her night normalcy sounded good.
The stack diminished and she found herself staring at a sparkly clean sink much sooner than she had wished. She looked around to see if there was anything else she could clean only for her shoulders to sag when she saw that the house otherwise was neat enough. She made the rounds on the bottom floor: checking that all windows and doors were locked, checking that all electronics were off, and peering into the night to check if red eyes stared back at her; the usual.
She opened Nova's kennel and scooped the puppy into her arms. He blinked open his eyes and yawned. "Sorry to wake you, buddy. I was just thinking that it was better if we had someone to sleep with so we're not so lonely. Is that alright with you?" Nova licked her nose and she pressed a kiss between his ears. "Thought so. Come on."
She cradled him close to her chest and jogged up the stairs to her room, her legs moving her as if she were on autopilot. She pushed her door open with her foot and set Nova down on the ground. He trotted into the darkened room and she moved straight to her lamp. She turned it on and crossed her arms over her front, grasping the hem of her shirt, and pulled it upwards.
"Uhhh…"
"Yipes!" she shrieked, dropping her shirt. She whirled around so fast that her hair blinded her from being able to see who her visitor was. Well, it was an intruder to be frank but it sounded less scary and horror movie-ish for her to think of them as a visitor. She slapped at her face and spat to remove her hair from her mouth and once she could see who it was sitting on her bed and petting Nova her whole body relaxed with her sigh of relief. "Geeze, Isaac, don't scare me like that!"
"I'm sorry," he muttered, pushing his hand through his hair. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion as she took in his posture: back hunched, shoulders up to his ears, head pulled down. It was almost as if he was trying to make himself appear smaller. He continued to pet Nova but his hands shook and his words came out as wobbly has his hands. "I-I didn't mean to—I can leave. I'm sorry. I just…didn't have anywhere else to go and—I'll just go, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking…"
Melanie was by his side in a second. She took his larger hands in between hers and squeezed them, feeling his fingers twitching against her palms. His breaths hitched and he swallowed as if trying to swallow his tears. His hot breath brushed against her face as she peered at him. "What happened? Are you okay?"
He shook his head, now rocking back and forth. "No, no. I messed up. Like I…like I always do. I can't do anything right. I can't…"
"Isaac, what happened?" Nova nudged their clasps hands, his wet nose smearing across their skin. He let out little whimpers as she climbed onto Isaac's lap, curling up into a ball and settling down. "Is it about your dad? Are you in trouble?"
He nodded his head once and took in a shuddering breath. "I was just…he was so mad. I didn't even…it wasn't that big of a deal. I was a few minutes late to work. That's all. But he just…it was my own fault." His voice dropped to a whisper and his eyes lost focus as if he were looking off in the distance. "I shouldn't have made him mad. I should have just left early…"
She ran her tongue across her bottom lip, feeling the sting of where it had split from biting it so much. It was a welcomed pain, it distracted her from the bubbling rage inside of her that made her want to go straight over to the Lahey house and give Mr. Lahey a piece of her mind. And maybe a piece of her fist if she felt zealous enough.
"Did he hurt you? Isaac…did he hit you?" She still held onto his hands but her eyes searched every inch of visible skin for a new mark, a fist sized bruise, a fingernail length scratch. Something. Anything.
"No, he doesn't do that," Isaac denied, pulling his hands out of hers. "I know what people say at school…they're just rumors. They aren't true. My dad…he doesn't do that. He…he loves me." Her heart hurt hearing him utter those words. He sounded as if he were trying to convince himself more than he was trying to convince her. Like he tasted the words on his tongue for the first time and was trying to get acclimated to it.
"Love is apologizing, Isaac," she pointed out, her voice barely a whisper. She didn't trust herself speaking at full volume. Rumors or not, she just couldn't fathom that someone would turn their kid into…into this. A sad, scared, shell of a boy who turned his back on a world that he deserved so much more from.
He swallowed, the audible gulp amplified in the quiet room. His leg bounced on the ground in such quick succession that it made the mattress vibrate. "I just…I think he needs space. I dunno. I-I can go, I barged in. I'm sorry. I—"
"Okay for one, you can stop apologizing," she interrupted him, putting a hand on his arm. "And two, it's fine if you stay. In fact, I insist." She gave his arm and squeeze and then got to her feet.
"What about your dad?"
"He's at the hospital. I'll go get some of his clothes for you to change into. You look about the same size. Are you hungry?" He started to open his mouth but she continued speaking before he could ever utter a sound. "Doesn't matter, I'll make you something anyway. I think we still have some left over lasagna. You like lasagna right? Who'm I kidding, who doesn't like lasagna? Okay, you wait here and I'll be right back."
She darted out of the room and headed straight for her parents' bedroom, stopping at the doorway as if she had hit a brick wall. Her breath stopped for a second as she peered into the dark room. Was this where her mother was when she tried to…? She licked her lips and swallowed as a jolt of realization hit her that she still didn't know the whole story. Was her dad around when it happened? Was he the one who found her? Were they still at the restaurant or had they made it back home first?
She flicked on the light switch and peered inside. Everything was in the same place as she had last seen it. In fact, nothing seemed to have been touched at all. The plate with crumbs from her mother's cheesecake still sat on her nightstand, her mother's robe still lay across the foot of the bed, her father's shoes still lay haphazardly on the floor, and the newspaper still lay open to a half-finished Sudoku puzzle. How could everything keep on moving but this room stayed frozen in time? She swallowed the sour tasting saliva that collected in her mouth and went in search for clothes that would fit Isaac.
She finally decided on an old pair of lounge pants and an old t-shirt that she was sure her dad wouldn't miss. She stopped by her room, handing the clothes over to Isaac who muttered a quiet "thanks" and closed the door behind her. She then went downstairs, flipping on lights as she went, and made a beeline for the refrigerator and grabbed the lasagna that was leftover. She popped it into the microwave and drummed her fingers on her arms as she waited, pacing back and forth across the linoleum. She stopped the countdown before it reached the ending time and pulled out the steaming food. She grabbed a couple of forks, grabbed cookies from the pantry, and headed back upstairs, turning the lights out on her way back up.
"Da da da da! Steaming hot lasagna and for dessert, Oreos!" Melanie gushed as she pushed back into the room. She dropped the package at the foot of the bed and curled up against the mountain of pillows. "What are you still doing up? You should be asleep," she added, leaning forward to bop her nose against Nova's who was once again sitting in Isaac's lap. "He really likes you," she noted, holding a fork out to him. "You can't take him home, though. I'll search your pants if you try to stuff him there."
"You'll search my pants?" he repeated with a bewildered laugh.
"Don't think I won't," she warned, waving her fork in his face. She cut off a piece of lasagna and popped it into her mouth, only to roll it from side to side when it burnt her tongue. "Boundaries don't exist to me. Ask Erica."
"I think I can tell," he commented, cutting off a slice himself. He chewed and swallowed, a thoughtful look on his face. As much as she wanted to jump on it she pressed her lips together to keep from blurting out anything that came to her mind. But the suppression only made her fidget. How did everyone else have such strong filters? How did it not bother them to have to keep quiet? Was there something that she missed obtaining as she grew in the womb? "Thank you."
"Oh, it's no big deal." She waved her hand. "Doesn't take long to heat this stuff up and my dad has so many clothes, I don't think he's worn it all."
He shook his head. "No. I mean…for this. Not kicking me out. Letting me crash. Just…having someone there." He poked around at the lasagna a few times before cutting another piece off. "It's…it's nice."
She hummed. "Should have started talking to you earlier."
He bobbed his head from side to side as he shrugged. "Well…someone's talking to me. So…that's fine."
Melanie cut her own piece of food and held out her fork. His blond brows crinkled for a second but when she motioned with her fork his confusion lifted and he tapped his fork against hers. They then took a bite and smiled around their forks. They ate in comfortable silence which was interrupted every now and then by Nova's loud snores.
"Soooo, you and Erica," Isaac spoke up. Melanie turned her questioning eyes over to him, stopping in mid chew. "You're friends?"
"Yeahhhh," she replied, stretching out the word. She didn't know how he wouldn't have noticed that. Hell, a blind monkey could have noticed that.
"Just friends?"
"Yeah. Why?"
He shrugged. "Just asking." He was silent for a moment and she thought that was the end of that strange and sudden conversation when he added, "'Cause, y'know, it'd be kinda hot…if you two were…"
"You're such a boy!" she said with a laugh, shaking her head. "Erica and I can't just be friends?"
"I'm not saying that. I'm just saying it'd be hot if you two were together, that's all."
"And I think it'd be hot if Jackson and Danny kissed but you don't see me just blurting that out to them," Melanie replied, indignant. "Jackson'd probably hit me and for one thing and Danny'd probably be repulsed. I mean, not that I blame him. Jackson is attractive but his personality fucks that up. Don't know how Lydia managed to not puke making out with him. I mean, damn, his lips are as thin as a lizard's." She jammed another forkful of food into her mouth only to shift it to the side with her tongue when she noticed the way Isaac was looking at her; his lips were a thin line as he tried to hold in a laugh. "What? I can't be the only one who's thought of it."
"I think you are because I've definitely never thought of that," he replied.
She swallowed and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "So you've thought of Erica and I being together but you've never put much stock in Danny and Jackson being together?"
"Nope. Jackson's not Danny's type," he replied, as if the notion were obvious.
"Ah." She nodded her head and pursed her lips. "What about Scott and Stiles. Ever think about that?"
He grunted. "Yeah. They're both really weird. A bit too weird, really. Too weird for each other, anyway. Besides, isn't Scott into Allison? And Stiles into Lydia? They're both out of their leagues. Not that I blame Stiles for Lydia."
"Wait!" Melanie gasped, sitting up straighter and turning sideways to face him. Her eyes were wide and a smile split her face. "You like Lydia?"
"Liked," he corrected, "And it was for a split second. I asked her out two years ago but she said to ask again when my bike gets a motor." He sighed. "I dunno, I just thought…asking her out would make my dad proud, I guess."
"How?" She set the plate and her fork down and propped her chin in her palms as if she were watching a riveting movie. "It's just Lydia."
"But she's the most popular girl in our grade," he explained. "So, I figured if got a date with her…maybe he wouldn't be angry with me for once."
The smile slowly slid off her face. She twisted her mouth to the side and tugged on a loose thread on the hem of her shirt. "Why is your dad so angry?" she ventured to ask.
His eyes moved from her to look out at the wall opposite them, the faraway look settling in his eyes again. He slowly ran his hand along a still sleeping Nova's back. "He hasn't really…been the same since Camden died."
"I feel you," she stated, her words wrapped up in a sigh. And then she flinched. I feel you? That was the best that she could come up with? She could have said something more sincere, something more heartfelt, something a little less…Melanie-ish.
"It's okay," he stated. She blinked and cocked her head to the side. He turned a half-smile in her direction; her muscles relaxed beneath his smile and she mentally punched her fists in the air. Victory! "Hey Mel, why do you have stars on your ceiling?"
"Because it'd look funny if they were on my carpet," she replied, looking down at the drab carpet that covered the floor. "No, but uh, I used to have them on my ceiling back at home. Er…my other home. Back in Canada. So, to keep me from being homesick, they painted stars on the ceiling. They glow in the dark too. It's super cool." She shrugged. "Makes me feel less alone, in a way. Cause while you can be alone up in space you're really not. How can you feel alone with pretty stars surrounding you? As far as the eye can see. And then…you're one of them. You're up there with them." She brushed her hand across her nose and then brought her knees up to her chest. "I know it sounds silly—"
"It doesn't," Isaac interrupted her.
She ducked her head to hide her smile. "It's 'cause my old friend from home, she used to love stars. Wanted to be an astronaut so bad. I told her that she better bring me back stardust if she ever got up there…" her words trailed off and a sad smile formed on her face. Now it was her turn to stare off in the distance as she thought back to second grade and how much simpler everything seemed to be. Where one day they could be monkeys and the next they could be Power Rangers and the next dragons. Where everything was bright and shiny and covered in the protective seal of bubble wrap so the abrasive lessons of reality wouldn't rub their pure skin raw too early. "So, yeah, with this I don't forget her."
"Must've been important."
She nodded, tucking her hair behind her ear. "She was." She rested her chin atop of her knees and rocked from side to side. "How do you remember your mom? Do you know anything about her?"
"Not a lot. I…" he paused, tension building in his lips and then they relaxed as did the rest of his body. "Sometimes I can hear a woman's voice in my dreams. I don't know whose it is but I think it's my mom's. It just…feels like it could be her. Sometimes it feels like she's trying to tell me something. Or get into contact somehow."
"It's possible. It's called Dream Visitation. It's easier for ghosts and spirits to interact with us through our dreams than through concrete actions, like…writing on a board or moving an object. She could be trying to deliver a message to you or she needs your help or something. Maybe just trying to tell you she's okay?"
"Maybe," he hummed.
"Do you have a picture of her?" She watched as Isaac pulled his phone out of the pocket of the lounge pants and swiped the screen with his thumb. After watching him swipe with his screen a few times she leaned forward when he held the phone out to her. "Damn! She's gorgeous!" she breathed, taking in the photo of the pregnant woman holding her swollen stomach. Her skin was sun-kissed and a large, white flower sat behind her ear, nestled in her golden curls. "Why are all my friends' parents' so hot? And more importantly…what the hell happened to you?"
She shrieked and tried to bring her arms up to protect her face but Isaac moved faster than her, grabbing a pillow from behind him he walloped her across the face with it. It was a harder hit than she expected from him, her laugh morphing into a laugh of disbelief. "Isaac Lahey!"
"Ssssh!" he shushed, holding his finger up to his mouth. "Don't want to wake up the puppy," he added, pointing down at Nova.
"Gasp!" she uttered, placing her hand on her chest. "I can't believe you'd use my own dog against me! That is low, Isaac, low!" He grabbed the package of cookies from the end of the bed and took one out. He wordlessly waved it around, motioning to offer her one. "No thanks, I'll get one later. I'm gonna take a shower. You can watch TV or use my computer if you want. It should just be in sleep mode."
She grabbed clothes out of her dresser and went into the bathroom. She dropped the clothes down on the floor and turned on the water. As she waited for it to heat up she started to read the back of her shampoo bottle only to put it back when she had trouble sounding out some of the big words. She piled her hair atop of her head in a messy bun, stripped, and stepped into the shower, feeling goose bumps rise on her skin as the warm water touched her skin.
The warmth of the water massaged her tight muscles and washed her worries down the drain. The sound of water splashing at her feet dripped like rain, swirling around her feet, warming up the bottoms. She stood beneath the steady stream of water for a few minutes, feeling the rivulets run down her body and corkscrew down her legs to reach the tub floor.
After standing beneath the water for a while she scrubbed herself with body wash, rinsed, dried off and changed into her pajamas. She wiped off the fogged up mirror and poked and prodded at her face, growling when she noticed the start of a pimple forming by her nose. She brushed her teeth, momentarily cursing at the sight of the gap by her top right canine, flossed, and had a quick five minute dance party to wind her nerves down and empty her mind.
Melanie pushed open the door to her room and paused in the doorway, smiling at the sight of Isaac fast asleep, Nova rising and falling with every breath as he slept on his stomach. A half eaten cookie was clenched in his hand. She closed the door behind her with her foot and flicked off the light. Using the light of the moon trickling in through the window as a guide she approached her bed, picked up the forgotten food, set it on her desk, and pulled down the covers and slid into bed. She pulled the covers up to her chin and turned to the side, tucking her arm beneath her head.
"Goodnight Isaac," she whispered in the dark and closed her eyes.
She opened them again and her eyes rested on…lockers? What? Her head tilted to the side as she approached the closest row of lockers to her. School lockers. Her eyebrows furrowed and that's when the thumping bass shook and rattled her bones. She fell against the lockers, holding her stomach as it throbbed in time with the loud music.
She turned her head. It felt as if she were moving underwater, her movement was slow. Her eyes caught sight of shimmering sparkles down the hall. She blinked. The sparkles shifted into focus, her eyes adjusting like a camera lenses. Metallic silver and gold streamers hung from the door header. Colored lights strobed against the opposite wall. People mingled in and out of the doorway, arms around one another, laughter pulling at their smiles, cheeks stained a flushing red.
She pushed herself off the lockers and stood in the middle of the hall, still gripping her stomach. The pain stabbed and twisted deep in her core. Her forward steps jerked and buckled with each passing pain. Her breaths burned in her chest with every inhale and exhale as she approached the door.
And then…
A heavy bump on her shoulder spun her around. A figure ran down the hall, towards the square of bright light at the end. Their hair swayed to and fro with every bounce in their step. Their heel clacking against the ground sounded off, a series of gunshots in the empty and quiet corridor.
The white light shimmered; the figure became a wavering mirage at the end of the hall. Melanie followed the figure, stumbling along. Her feet dragged and caught up in one another but she kept going. The pain clawed at her stomach, fighting for a way out, fighting to slow her down.
The light got brighter. Her eyes hurt with every shit beneath the bright light. Tears collected on her bottom lid and ran down her cheeks. She closed her eyes but the white light seared through. The clacking heels and the loud bass faded off. The silence slammed her all at once, throwing her back against the lockers again.
She swallowed the lump in her throat; the tears left tracks on her cheeks. The bright white light contracted into a pinpoint and then melded into the darkness. Melanie's shaky breath slipped into the darkness surrounding her. A bead of sweat dripped down her hairline. Hot breath engulfed her face and the metallic stench of stale breath wafted past her nose.
Her eyes flew open.
Red eyes stared back at her. Hypnotic eyes. Psychotic eyes. Feral eyes.
For a brief second neither moved…and then her body pushed out the loudest, bloodcurdling scream she could muster.
She woke up on the floor. The rough textile of the carpet rubbed against her cheek, smearing the hot, sticky sweat. Her heart galloped in her chest and she sat up, peering around the dark room. She could see Isaac on the bed, still fast asleep. She brushed the back of her hand on her forehead, wiping sweat away. She stuck out her tongue to wet her lips only to find them already wet with a smooth, salty substance.
Getting to her feet, legs shaky, she shuffled to the door and quietly slipped out and went straight for the bathroom. The sudden appearance of the fluorescents made her blink rapidly in an attempt to adjust to the light but she didn't need her vision back to see the bright red trails of blood beneath her nostrils.
They tracked straight down, over her lips, and down her chin where they had begun to dry at the bottom. She pinched the front of her shirt and checked it to see if any blood had dried there. It was clean. She lifted her eyes up to the mirror. Bright blue eyes rimmed with dark circles stared back at her. She slowly turned her eyes out the door and across the hall to where her room waited with an open door. She gulped, her hands trembling against the edge of the sink.
The safe haven of sleep didn't feel so inviting anymore.
a/n - Well, Melanie had a very interesting dream didn't she? Not gonna lie, I love writing Mel/Isaac scenes. Their friendship is just so special, I want to hug 'em both. It will be explored further once we hit season 2, which will be in the next couple of chapters! But not just their relationship will be touched on, there will be a significant Mel/Allison scene coming up as well as a Mel/Danny scene and, next chapter, we get a super important Mel/Erica moment! I can't wait for you all to see what I have up my sleeve. Muahahahaha! *rubs hands together*
Thanks to all those that have fav'd, alerted, and reviewed my story! Please let me know what's going on in your minds with this story, I love getting feedback, much like all the other authors on this site. Also! If you would like to see chapter sneak peeks and get excerpts before chapters are posted head on over to my tumblr (mack-intosh). You can message me on there too to talk about this story or anything, really. Please leave a review!
~C.M.
