Note: Sorry for the wait! I apologize, I have a lot on my plate and haven't been able to manage free time for my hobbies. I don't know what my schedule is so I can't promise a soon update but I'll try. Enjoy!
Chapter 2
It was the sound of that miraculous laugh that made Adrian Monk aware of his subconscious. It was a dream... it had to be. That laugh, that same laugh that made him smile and warmed his heart, wasn't anywhere he could find in reality.
Only when he dreamed. A blissfully freed dream where he didn't have a care in the world. He allowed himself to enjoy it while it lasted and sighed when he finally catch sight of her in her lovely illuminate form.
She glowed in the center of a field filled with flowers and nature. He sat up unconcerned about brushing himself off and took a step forward never taking his eyes off the gleaming angel.
Her brilliant eyes settled on him piercing through his soul filling him with the unexplainable joy and happiness to see her.
"Hi Adrian." Her soothing voice warmed his ears.
"Hello Trudy." His voice felt like an echo in his own mind.
She frowned with a knowing look, "What's troubling you darling?"
His smile faded and his eyes became downcast. "I miss you." He responded miserably.
She sighed gracefully sitting on a white marbled bench that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. "Oh Adrian you need to stop this." She said patting a spot next to her for him to sit down. The scenery around them suddenly began to change from it's cloudy form to a greener one. To a place he knew of all to well, the park. The same park he had taking her to many years ago when she was still alive.
Monk was on the bench next to his deceased wife within seconds not even feeling the movement of his legs when he glided over to her.
As he sat, the marbled bench they were sitting on began to fade as well become an ordinary red bench with bright yellow flowers growing wildly on the ground around it.
"Why? Is it wrong for me to miss you." He mumbled looking with awed at the realistic features of her glowing face but sadly couldn't help but realize that she had a pleading look on her face telling him what he so knowingly recognized.
His head dropped not wanting to see her disappointment.
"Just tell me what I can do," He muttered "I don't know where to go from h-here." He stuttered feeling a sob coming from deep within.
"Adrian, look at me." She instructed him.
Slowly, almost reluctantly, he turned toward her. As he finally let his gaze meet her heavenly ones, the sunshine struck upon her face.
He sighed taking in every detail not wanted to ever wake up again.
"The time will come when you know where to go, when that happens you won't need me anymore." She smiled
He froze utterly baffled. "W-what? No, Trudy I need you I-
"Shh." She whispered stroking his face with her finger. "You waking up now.
"No! Stay with me! Don't go!" Monk pleaded wildly.
"Please don't worry darling, "she smiled "My smart detective will figure it all out soon enough. Your answer is right in front of you."
The orange sunlight began to fade as well as her lovely image.
"Goodbye, Adrian," Trudy whispered releasing her hands from his and disappeared.
" No! Trudy!" He screamed.
Monk woke up with a jolt, beads of sweat where falling from his forehead. He felt disoriented and alert at the same time. His eyes were wide with fear and his whole being shook.
'Right in front of me..' The sentence replayed in his mind without his permission and kept repeated.
He raised his trembling hand to his cheek where she had stroked it so gently. He could still feel her soft hands touching his skin, he shivered feeling cold all of the sudden.
Usually, he welcomed the dreams of his late wife without any fear or dread of going crazy because it was the only way he could stay in contact with her.
This dream though gave him an odd eerie alone feeling like he had been deprived of something he once had but never knew he had.
And he ached. His heart was pounding in his ears and he thought for sure he was going to have a panic attack but It never came, just that same eerie feeling and restlessness he had felt before.
He was visibly shaking now, no dream of "her" had ever been so empowering over him, so clear as if he lived it. Her response terrified him.
Right in front of me.....
Unconsciously, he looked up testing out her advice but saw nothing but what he expected.
"An empty room." he thought bitterly. He pushed his covers off of him and sat up.
Now fully awake and aware, Monk checked his clock. It was to early to call Dr. Bell....or was it.
He picked up the phone on his bedside table and held it into his hand for a moment staring off into space. The number he had had memorized suddenly escaped him.
He blink confessed at the uncharacteristic forgetfulness and put the receiver back down.
We'll he wasn't about to confront this feeling alone.
He got up and headed to living room. After his shower, he was going to clean his entire apartment mercilessly.
"Oh look, here's Julie when she was five. She was having her little tea party!" Natalie cooed at the photo pressed neatly into the album and remembering the day as if it were yesterday.
It was several hours later at the Monk apartment and Natalie was there as usual, sitting on Monk's leather couch.
She held a frilly looking photo album with the labeled "Baby album."on the front in bright pink letters. Her smiled lingered while staring at the photo, fingering the outline of the photo.
Tears started to built up in her eyes when she thought of all the years that had suddenly seemed to be going to fast. She brushed the fallen tears away convincing herself that those where happy tears and regain her composure.
Adrian Monk, on the other hand, was standing several feet away not even stopping to look at what Natalie was going on about. He just absentmindedly nodded from time to time in response, but his gaze however was concentrated on the already immaculate floors he was cleaning.
He had been at this for over two hours but it didn't matter how many times he went over that floor he couldn't get rid of the streaks.
Frustrated, he did a few more quick scrubs with the mop he was holding tightly in his hands.
Still there. He groaned aloud.
"Mr Monk?" Natalie's eyes looked up to see Mr. Monk looking distress and tiresome.
He didn't answer.
She sighed inwardly frustrated, he had been like that ever since she arrive this morning. Not even surprised that she had stopped by since the night before, he had reluctantly gave her the day off so she could finish up her shopping for her daughter's party.
The truth was she had looking forward to come over and shocking him only to be shock herself, only not in a good way. She had come with Julie's baby book, wanting to be with someone to share her precious memories but instead he didn't even notice. Even when she would talk from time to time he didn't respond.
He just keep cleaning.
Of course she was use to his obsessive cleaning but he didn't even stop to greet her. It was unlike him to just brush her off.
Something was definitely bothering him.
Monk stopping for a second feeling weary but he dismissed it. He had to keep his mind busy or he'd think about that dream again. The first couple of hours that he'd been up, he didn't remember cleaning but he did. He even mopped the floors twice according to Natalie.
It never hurt to do it twice anyways. Monk thought blinking his blurry vision away.
He paused to observe the floors again when he spotted the kitchen in his train of thought. He silently figured it had been at least three hours since he dusted the top of the cabinets and decided that was next on his agenda.
Suddenly, he heard a sigh coming from his assistant and cringed. He was becoming less distracted from his cleaning and remembered him not having greeted her this morning. Or maybe he did, he certainly didn't remember.
Unattentively he began to mop again in slow stokes as he tried his hardest to clear his mind of all his scary thoughts.
It was that damn dream! Monk inwardly moaned, it was consuming him.
He stopped again, he folded his arms and rested on top of his mop, chin tucked into his forearms. He let out a silent sigh and let his shoulders sag.
At that same time his shoulders muscles released a warm feeling of contact gently touched his left shoulder causing him to jumped slightly waking him from his thoughts.
Subconsciously, he imagined Trudy who had touched his shoulder that same way in his dream and smiled, he turned half expecting his late wife when Natalie's concerned face reach his gaze.
"What's wrong." Monk questioned her alarmed. He noticed right away that her eyes where wide with red outlining from tears and began putting together the worst case scenario.
"You that's whats wrong." Natalie looked down at the floor then back to him," Do you even realize you have been mopped your rug?"
At her statement, He eyes widen and he looked down at the soaked rug.
"Augh?! He jumped back, "Why didn't you stop me?!" He yelled.
"I wasn't in here the captain called and I left my purse in the kitchen." She yelled back with frustration of her own.
"We have to clean this.. go grab as many paper towels as you can. Hurry!" Natalie hurried to the kitchen and came back with several paper towels.
Monk ripped them out of her hands and started to scrub profusely into the rug. " Mr. Monk, he needs us to be at the scene right now."
"He can wait, this can't! He argued heatedly increasing his scrubs to where he couldn't see his own hands. He felt the heat of his skin being rubbed against the fabric and realized he had made a hole in the towels.
We need more towels! He barked his orders to his assistant.
"Mr Monk it's just water by the time we get back it'll be dry and good as new, I promise." She encouraged only to realize after exactly how ridiculous it would sound to even him.
Just as she predicted he paused and looked at her with a mix of disgust and horror.
"Are you nuts?!" That "water" is filled with germs and dirt from the floor and you just want me to leave it?? If I don't do this now it will never come out germ free!"
Within seconds, he whipped his head back around and continued scrubbing like a mad man.
Natalie groaned closing her eyes and massaging her temples. Why did I ever come here. She questioned herself silently.
She reopened her eyes and pulled back her sleeve to looked at her digital watch.
She sighed, realizing that they where going to be late. Her days off somehow always managed to become work.
There's some parts I'm not proud of like the fact that this chapter didn't cover a lot. Please review! I'd appreciate it!