The King of All Night's Dreaming sat on his throne, his hand on chin, watching the woman in front of him. Contrary to what she said, she didn't look confused. She looked resolved. Like she was accepting the reality of whatever he may say.
"So you are aware that you lost consciousness, and that I had brought you here." He said, watching her, but his mouth was not moving. It was like he was talking to her through telepathy., "Most people normally seek me out in different ways. But you… I had to bring you here. Your story… is fascinating to me."
The girl merely watched him, nodding a little bit at his words.
He straightened and held his hands in front of him, his fingers touching each other, as if he was deep in thought. "I have seen your dreams. They are, as you can imagine, normal to every other human. When humans want something, they dream of it so much. And when they cannot bear the wanting anymore, they do what they can to achieve it. If it's money, love, friendship, material things.. they'll do whatever they can to get it." He looked at her, his head inclining a bit, "And yet you… you who dream about this man so often it is beyond wanting… do not do anything to try and get him. Why?"
The girl's composed features floundered a little bit, and her confusion revealed in her nervous smile. "What do you mean, 'why?', my King?"
The King, strangely, smiled, "Why have not tried to tell him of how much you love him? Why do you not go and try to get him for yourself?"
The girl blinked in shock, her mouth opening a little bit, but no words were coming out. Instead she looked down at her hands and twiddled with her hands as she thought. The King merely watched her and soon she spoke.
"I think… I think I have reasons." She said finally, "I was afraid of being rejected. I loved him so much that it hurts, but I fear him saying no would hurt me more. I am just human after all. I am as prone to having my heart broken as any other human in this world. And… I believed I was doing the right thing. He was happy now, even if in the past he had been hurt so much. He's smiling now, and laughing and anticipating whatever life will be giving him. Perhaps the woman to whom he talks to on the phone so much… maybe she was making him happy. I didn't want to take him away from her. I didn't have the heart to make her suffer if it meant I would be happy."
The King's eyebrow lifted, "You prefer to have this man in your dreams, rather than in reality?"
She thought about it for a while, but soon nodded.
"Why?"The King asked again.
She seemed to shrug, "Because… it's much more… 'safer' in my dreams. I can have him to myself, without having to take him away from his son or his new fiancé. It's… almost like living two different realities. There's the reality that he is in love with somebody else, and then there's that 8 hour reality in my head that he loves me back. I know it seems weird, but… that is how I see it."
The King was thoughtful as he looked at her, "It is not wise to dwell in dreams, child."
She shrugged again, more noticeable now, "It does not do well to dwell in sadness either." She scratched her chin as if she was thinking, "My dreams take me away from my sadness that I face during my reality. In my dreams I can be happy in his arms, which is what I wanted. It's probably not real, but it makes me happy enough to make me wake up every morning, and still smile at him even though I was hurting."
The King was silent and merely gazed at her for several minutes, that it made her self-conscious and she blushed. It was a while before he slowly stood, his black robes falling to the floor. He was tall, that when he looked at her, he had to look down, and she had to look up. He stared at her for a minutes and he turned to his left. He started walking to what looked like a long hall and he raised his hand to indicate that she follow him. A raven flew down from somewhere and landed on his shoulder. The girl watched as it bent down to the King's ear and sort of whispered. The King nodded.
"Do you know what happened to you?" The King asked.
"I know I am not dead." The girl said, "If I were dead, I know I'd be in Heaven or Hell… wherever I am supposed to be."
"You are right." The King said, "Your body is currently in a hospital, in a comatose. That is why you are here in the Realm of Dreaming."
"Will I… will I live?" The girl asked nervously.
The King stopped and was silent for a while, "I do not know." He said finally, before walking again, "That will depend if you want to wake or dream a little longer."
"Is that how it is… with all comatose patients?" She asked, and the King turned to a corner. She followed.
"Some of them. Others did not want to live or dream anymore." The King said, and he approached a door. He turned to her and looked intently into her eyes, "If you wish, I shall leave you in this room and let you dream for a while."
"And if I want to wake up?" She asked, as the King laid a hand on the door handle.
"I will know of your decision, and send you back to your reality."
The girl looked at the door, and nodded, "Can I dream for a while before I decide to come back to reality?"
The King nodded slowly.
She laid a hand on the door, "What will I dream about?"
The King smiled a little, "What you've always dreamed about, child." And he opened the door.