Bianca awoke from her sleep in alarm! The bed was shaking. This being Pine Valley her first thought was 'earthquake'! But then she realised it was only the mattress, not the room, that was moving. Marissa was dreaming.

Marissa didn't dream often these days but when she did it often involved twitching, mumbling… and on one memorable occasion Bianca was woken by a full on flail to the head. As she turned over Bianca observed Marissa's lips moving and her legs and arms were jerking about under the covers. Bianca watched her for a while, wondering what she could be dreaming about.

Suddenly Marissa jolted and the fidgeting stopped and after a beat she slowly opened her eyes.

Bianca gave her a smile as she sensed Marissa's eyes focusing on her in the dark.

"Were you dreaming?" she whispered quietly.

Marissa gave a tired moan before she replied.

"Yeah… did a wake you?"

"Yeah, you were doing your puppy dreaming again."

"Oh, god, I didn't kick you?"

"Not this time." said Bianca with a soft chuckle. "But what were you dreaming about?"

Marissa groaned again as she wriggling round onto her back so she could look at Bianca from a more comfortable position.

"It was a weird one." said Marissa. "I think I was trying to talk to your mom, only she wouldn't let me get close. First she ran and I followed …and then she got in a car and I got on a bike to follow her… and then the car turned into or drove onto… a boat and I carried on following on my bike from the shore and just when I was about to catch her the boat went up a ramp onto plane and she started flying away. I kept following but I couldn't catch her..! And then I ran out of road…"

Bianca nodded.

"That was a weird dream." said Bianca, "I can understand all the flailing now but why did you want to talk to my mom?"

"You know why!"

Bianca sighed.

"Please just let her be, Marissa. If we try to play her at her own game we'll only be giving her what she wants. Please keep your distance. I don't think you understand the kind of damage my mother can do!"

"I can also see the damage she has already done." Marissa said quietly, reaching out in the dark to stoke Bianca's cheek.

"Promise me!" said Bianca firmly. "Please promise me you will stay away from my mom!"

Marissa was silent for a long while.

"Marissa?" prompted Bianca.

"I don't want to make a promise I can't keep." she said quietly.

"But you don't know her like I do! What she can do!" Bianca insisted, hurt in her voice at the thought of Marissa going against her wishes.

"But isn't that the problem." said Marissa softly. "I don't know her and she doesn't know me …and she never will unless she gets the chance." Marissa reached out in the dark again and found Bianca's hand, pulling it to her chest. "I'm not saying that I am going to charge up to her and make trouble, even though all I want to do is give her a piece of my mind. What I'm going to do is let her come to me and I will prove to her that I am the most intelligent, thoughtful, wonderful and loving girlfriend you have ever had!"

Despite the hurt from before, Bianca smiled at Marissa's teasing words.

Then she sighed.

"Just promise me you won't make trouble."

"That, I will promise you." said Marissa firmly.

…