Fever Dreams
1823 Words
The nightmare began with darkness.
Not ordinary darkness.
The kind that swallowed sound, air, and movement until breathing itself felt impossible.
Maureen Green ran barefoot through a long hallway she could not recognize. Her chest tightened with panic while shadows stretched endlessly around her.
The walls were stained black.
The lights flickered violently overhead.
Then came the footsteps behind her.
Slow.
Heavy.
Getting closer.
“No—”
Her voice trembled.
The footsteps quickened.
Maureen’s breathing became uneven as fear clawed through her chest. She tried reaching the door at the end of the hallway, but the corridor only seemed to grow longer.
“Please…”
A hand suddenly grabbed her wrist violently.
She screamed.
The world shifted instantly.
A dark room.
Broken glass on the floor.
The smell of alcohol.
A familiar terrifying voice.
“You think you can ignore me?”
Maureen shook uncontrollably.
“No… please don’t touch me…”
The shadow moved closer.
She could barely breathe now.
Then another memory struck her without warning—
A younger version of herself locked inside a bedroom.
Crying.
Begging.
The sound of fists pounding against the door.
“Open this door!”
Maureen covered her ears desperately.
“Stop…”
The nightmare twisted again.
The shadowy figure grabbed her arm harshly.
“You’re just like your mother.”
Fear exploded inside her chest.
“DON’T TOUCH ME!”
She woke up screaming.
Her body jerked upright violently while harsh breaths tore from her throat.
Sweat soaked her clothes.
Her entire body trembled uncontrollably.
For several seconds, she could not understand where she was.
Apartment.
Bedroom.
Safe.
Yet the fear remained.
The room spun around her while her fever burned hotter beneath her skin.
Her head hurt terribly.
Even breathing felt exhausting.
Maureen pressed trembling fingers against her face as tears slipped down silently.
Another nightmare.
Again.
It had been years, but the memories still followed her like shadows that refused to die.
The digital clock near her bed read 1:17 AM.
Outside, rain hit the windows softly.
Maureen tried standing up to get water, but dizziness slammed into her instantly.
Her knees buckled.
She collapsed beside the bed with a painful gasp.
The fever had become worse.
Much worse.
Her breathing shook as she tried reaching for her phone on the nearby table.
Her fingers barely touched it before another wave of dizziness blurred her vision completely.
Then darkness swallowed her again.
—
Miles away, Jordan Rodriguez sat alone inside his penthouse office.
The city below glittered through massive glass windows while silence filled the room.
A half-finished glass of whiskey rested untouched near his hand.
Jordan stared coldly at the financial reports spread across his desk.
Numbers.
Contracts.
Meetings.
Acquisitions.
Normal.
Predictable.
Unlike people.
His phone buzzed once.
Jordan glanced down briefly.
Clara Bennett.
His expression hardened slightly before answering.
“What?”
Clara sounded worried.
“Sorry for calling this late, but Maureen isn’t answering her phone.”
Jordan remained silent.
“She has a fever,” Clara continued quickly. “I went to check on her earlier tonight, and she looked terrible. I’m worried something’s wrong.”
Jordan’s eyes darkened faintly.
“And why are you telling me this?”
“Because she mentioned she gave you her address yesterday.”
Cold silence followed.
Clara sighed heavily.
“Look, I know you don’t like involving yourself in personal things, but she lives alone.”
Jordan leaned back slowly in his chair.
Rain tapped softly against the windows behind him.
Finally, he stood up.
“I’ll check.”
Clara sounded relieved instantly.
“Thank you.”
Jordan ended the call immediately.
Ten minutes later, his black car cut through the rainy streets silently.
His expression remained unreadable the entire drive.
Cold.
Detached.
Exactly the same.
Yet his grip against the steering wheel tightened slightly the closer he got to Maureen’s apartment building.
Annoying.
He should not be doing this.
She was an employee.
Nothing more.
Then why was he driving through rain at nearly two in the morning?
Jordan parked outside the building before stepping into the rain without caring about the water soaking his coat.
The lobby guard recognized him instantly and looked startled.
“Mr. Rodriguez?”
Jordan ignored the surprise completely.
“Open the elevator.”
“Yes, sir.”
Minutes later, he stood outside Maureen’s apartment door.
Silence.
Jordan knocked once.
No response.
His jaw tightened.
He knocked harder.
Still nothing.
A bad feeling settled heavily in his chest.
Jordan pulled out his phone and called her directly.
Inside the apartment, faint ringing echoed weakly.
No answer.
His expression turned dangerous instantly.
“Move.”
The startled building guard quickly stepped forward.
“S-Sir?”
“Open the door.”
The guard hesitated only briefly before obeying.
The second the door unlocked, Jordan entered immediately.
Darkness greeted him.
The apartment was quiet except for the distant sound of rain.
“Maureen.”
No response.
Jordan moved through the apartment quickly before stopping near the bedroom doorway.
His eyes narrowed sharply.
Maureen lay unconscious beside the bed.
The phone rested near her hand.
Jordan crossed the room instantly.
“Maureen.”
He crouched beside her and touched her forehead.
His expression darkened immediately.
Burning.
Her skin felt dangerously hot.
Maureen stirred weakly beneath his touch, small broken sounds escaping her lips.
“No… please…”
Jordan frowned.
She sounded terrified.
Even unconscious.
Her face looked pale and exhausted while tears remained against her cheeks.
Another nightmare.
Jordan lifted her carefully from the floor and placed her back onto the bed.
She trembled slightly even in sleep.
The fever clearly worsened.
Jordan pulled out his phone immediately.
“Get a doctor here now.”
—
About thirty minutes later, an older doctor finished checking Maureen’s temperature while Jordan stood silently near the window.
“She has a very high fever,” the doctor explained. “Exhaustion and stress likely made it worse.”
Jordan’s expression remained cold.
“She’ll recover?”
“Yes, but she needs proper rest. No work for several days.”
Jordan nodded once.
The doctor packed his medical bag before leaving instructions for medication on the table.
After the apartment became quiet again, silence settled heavily inside the room.
Jordan remained near the window for several moments before glancing back toward the bed.
Maureen looked smaller somehow while sleeping.
Fragile.
Too fragile.
Rain continued falling outside while the dim bedside lamp cast soft shadows across the room.
Then suddenly—
“Don’t…”
Jordan’s eyes shifted toward her immediately.
Maureen tossed weakly against the blankets.
“Please stop…”
Her breathing became uneven again.
Jordan walked closer.
“You’re dreaming.”
Another frightened sound escaped her lips.
“No…”
Her face twisted painfully like she was reliving something horrible.
Jordan stared at her silently before finally sitting beside the bed.
Awkward.
Unfamiliar.
He hated situations like this.
Emotions were messy.
Pointless.
Yet when Maureen suddenly grabbed his sleeve weakly, his body froze.
“Don’t leave…”
Jordan looked down at her hand gripping his coat tightly.
Even unconscious, she looked terrified.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then finally—
“You’re safe.”
The words sounded stiff coming from him.
Unnatural.
But Maureen’s trembling eased slightly.
Jordan remained still beside the bed while rain continued tapping softly against the windows.
Minutes passed quietly.
Then slowly, Maureen opened her eyes.
Blurred vision greeted her first.
Then confusion.
Finally recognition.
Her voice came out weak.
“…Mr. Rodriguez?”
“You’re awake.”
She blinked slowly while trying to process the situation.
Why was he here?
Jordan handed her a glass of water calmly.
“You had a high fever.”
Maureen tried sitting up but winced immediately.
Jordan steadied the glass before she dropped it.
“Careful.”
She drank quietly before whispering, “You didn’t have to come here.”
“I know.”
The same answer again.
Cold.
Simple.
Yet somehow not enough to hide the fact that he actually came anyway.
Maureen lowered her eyes.
“I’m sorry.”
Jordan looked irritated instantly.
“You apologize too much.”
The blunt statement surprised her.
Silence filled the room briefly.
Then Maureen spoke quietly.
“Did I… say anything strange?”
Jordan remembered the fear in her voice.
The tears.
The desperate pleading.
But his expression remained unreadable.
“You were delirious.”
Relief mixed with embarrassment crossed her face.
“I see.”
Jordan studied her silently for several seconds.
“You have nightmares often?”
The question made her body stiffen slightly.
“…Sometimes.”
He noticed the immediate tension in her eyes.
Interesting.
But he did not push further.
Instead, he stood up.
“The doctor said you’re not working for several days.”
“What?”
“That wasn’t a suggestion.”
Maureen looked horrified.
“But there’s too much work.”
“It’ll survive.”
“You sound exactly like Clara.”
Jordan ignored the comment.
He walked toward the kitchen briefly before returning with medicine and placing it beside her.
“Take it.”
Maureen obeyed quietly.
After swallowing the medicine, exhaustion pulled heavily at her again.
Jordan noticed immediately.
“Sleep.”
“You’re still here.”
“And?”
She hesitated slightly.
“You don’t have to stay.”
Jordan stared at her calmly.
Then, without emotion, he replied—
“You grab people’s sleeves while unconscious. Leaving seems inconvenient.”
Maureen’s face turned red instantly.
“I did not.”
“You did.”
“…I’m sorry.”
Jordan almost looked amused for half a second.
Almost.
Then the expression disappeared completely.
“Sleep, Maureen.”
This time, she obeyed.
Within minutes, exhaustion dragged her back into unconsciousness.
But unlike before…
The nightmares did not return.
—
Across the city, another storm brewed entirely.
Inside an expensive private lounge hidden above the financial district, several men sat around a glass table.
Expensive suits.
Dark expressions.
Dangerous intentions.
One older man placed a file onto the table slowly.
On the cover was a single name:
Rodriguez Corporation.
A younger man leaned back with a faint smile.
“So it’s true.”
The older man nodded.
“Richard Rodriguez’s condition is worsening.”
Another voice spoke quietly from the shadows.
“And Jordan Rodriguez is becoming a problem.”
The room fell silent briefly.
Jordan’s name carried weight everywhere.
Cold.
Untouchable.
Ruthless.
But even powerful men had weaknesses.
The younger man smirked slightly.
“Every empire falls eventually.”
The older man opened the file slowly.
Inside were photographs.
Business reports.
Financial movements.
And one particular photo—
Jordan standing beside Maureen outside her apartment building earlier that night.
The younger man’s smile widened.
“Well,” he murmured softly, “this just became interesting.”
The lights dimmed quietly across the room while rain continued falling endlessly outside.
And somewhere far away—
Danger had already begun moving toward Jordan Rodriguez.
- Writer
