Away From The Grey

Chapter 6: Grey, Grey and more Grey.

                She jolted awake, her body feeling shaky and weak. The moment her eyes adjusted she knew where she was. She could feel it. The Grey. She had woken up in a dimly lit hallway this time. The floor beneath her cold, metal and covered in rust. The walls themselves seemed to be bleeding the same red. The lights above her flickered, as if they themselves no longer wished to feel. There had to more than one hundred doors because as far as her eyes could see it continued on. This time in the Grey was different though. She was aware of her feelings of fear and urgency that she needed to leave. She began to hear banging noises coming from behind the prison like doors. She stood and decided that she could no longer sit here and wait. She needed to get out. Her feet felt like lead but she wouldn’t let that stop her.

                “Dallas!” She heard her name again in the distance. This again sparking more fear than before. As she approached the first door on her left she could see through a tiny window near the top, a soul just starring blankly at the wall. His head snapped in her direction causing her to let out a scream. He noticed her. But Why? Not waiting to figure this out she picked up her pace and continued walking by each door without sparing a glance. As she walked by the banging began in each room. She wanted to get out so badly but knew that it wasn’t going to be easy. She stopped and sat back down and focused on what she remembered.

                “I had fallen asleep in bed at the castle after Killian left” She whispered to herself. The lights around her seemed to grow a little brighter. “I am asleep in the kingdom of Zemira.” The lights were no longer flickering. She had an idea. The only way for her to get out was for her to snap herself back into reality.

                “I am Dallas, 19 years old. The daughter of Arianna and the niece of Queen Amelia.” Her confidence was growing as the banging noises from the behind the door began to fade.

                “I am next in line for the throne of the Peace keepers and I do not belong to the grey!” She shouted.

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                Dallas shot up out of bed, breathing heavily and covered in sweat. In an instant Killian was by her side with a concerned look on his face. She looked around and realized with relief that she was back in her bed in Zemira. She laid back down and attempted to catch her breath.

                “Dallas, are you ok?!” Killian asked.

                “Yeah, I’m fine I just had a super fun adventure in the Grey. You know, no big deal.” She chuckled a bit.

                “After I can back and realized you had fallen asleep, I tried to call your name. I wasn’t sure if I should come after you or just wait. You were only asleep for a few minutes.” At this Dallas sighed.

                “Great. It felt like forever but I’m super glad that I still have an entire night left to sleep.” She said sarcastically. She looked over at Killian to see his face full of guilt and sadness. “Hey, no, It’s Ok I promise I will be fine. But I do have one quick question. Is it normal for the souls in the Grey to notice us? Like all of them at once? Because when I was in there, they had been staring off into space but the moment I felt anything at all they looked at me. They all looked so angry. They were banging on the doors as I passed. Is that normal?” Killian looked shocked and confused.

                “No Dallas, only the souls who we are there to see should be able to see us. This is very bad. We will need to see Queen Amelia as soon as possible about this. But for now, I will not leave your side this entire night. I will even accompany you into the dream realm if you wish.”

                “I would love that Killian. If you don’t mind, I’d really love that bath now.” They both let out a small laugh in relief that for right now everything was going to be alright. Tomorrow Dallas would hopefully be able to get more answers and not have to take another trip into the Grey tonight.

                She allowed herself to sink into the sudsy water and let the warmth take over her. She needed this. It was helping her to relax and push out all those grey thoughts from her insufferable nap she had taken. As she sat in the water and thought of how the bubbles on the water shone in bright rainbow colors, she thought to herself, “I won’t fall asleep. But I am going to close my eyes for a bit.”  Before she knew it, a hand was on her cheek. She wasn’t startled by this; in fact, she enjoyed it and pressed her face into the hand.            

                “Oh, thank goodness I thought you had fallen asleep again.” Killian said. Hey eyes shot open. Her face flushed with embarrassment.   

                “Oh my god what are you doing in here?!”  Killian stood up and looked at her annoyed.

                “Well I am your body guard and you had fallen asleep for only a few minutes not too long ago and was almost attacked in the Grey. I didn’t want that happening to you again, Ok? I was worried about you.” She felt guilty. He was right. And it’s not like he could see her body under all these bubbles anyway. She couldn’t even see herself.

                “Fine. Will you hand me something to dry off with I’m ready for bed.” He handed her a towel and walked back into the bedroom. She quickly got dressed and dried off her hair. Even though she was worried she was genuinely excited to go to sleep. When she had opened the door to the room, she noticed a shirtless Killian on her bed. Waiting for her. His tan skin almost flawless except having a few freckles on his shoulders and chest. His muscles were toned and refined. He wasn’t a large guy but underneath his clothes she could tell that his body was strong. She felt her heart racing and realized yet again that Killian had caught her staring.

                “Uh..What are you doing in my bed?” She asked pointedly.

                “Well how else am I supposed to accompany you into the dream realm if I am not asleep?” he asked with a slight smile.

                “Well do you have to sleep so close to me?” Not like she didn’t want him to.

                “The closer we are the stronger the connection we will have in the dream realm so if anything does go wrong, I will be right by your side.” Well that was good enough for her and she no longer wanted to fight him on this anyway. His arms looked so inviting. Dallas had never had a serious boyfriend before back home and never even cuddled with a guy before. She shook off her embarrassment and confidently walked to the bed. As she approached Killian pulled the covers for her and tucked her in. “Ugh why does he have to be so damn dreamy.” She thought. “And why does he smell so freaking good too.” Her mind was racing and focusing on each and every little detail about this man laying next to her. She was excited but not too excited to forget about her exhaustion. She closed her eyes and this time drifted off into sleep knowing she was safe.