The World Under My Pillow

Chapter 2: The Wave Back

I opened my eyes once again. My body is so heavy "Did I faint?" I look at the mirror to check if I already woke up from my scary dream. And I finally saw my face "Yes! this is me" but I'm a bit terrified when I noticed that my face is a bit wet because in my dream I remembered that I washed my face so scary thoughts are coming in my head. Maybe it is true? on the other hand maybe I sleep walked? and really washed my face. I prefer the latter and that was the idea that I believed so it would be a more realistic one.

I prepared myself and made some breakfast I am craving for some cold iced drink as if I have a hung over. So I made myself one, after sipping my iced coffee I got dressed for work and locked my house and drove to my office.

"Good morning Ma'am" my employees greeted me "Good morning" and I smiled back. I entered my office and I saw a lady sitting on my chair and that was Amanda my best friend.

Amanda is my best friend since college. She practically live with me until I got married. We were so close like a sister but she left to go to Canada to manage her family's company and just got home and came back right this day. She probably missed me so much to hurry here this early morning.

"Excuse me miss! I believe that is my seat!" I joked.

Then he stood up and hugged me "I miss you so much girl!" and I hugged her back. Then she looked at me so weird and said "Why are you so pale? are you sick? did you drink last night?" I just laughed and told her "No, Amanda I think I only woke up at the wrong side of the bed. A little rest will make me glowy again"

I sat on my chair and she moved closer to my table. "Are you sure Oli? Did you dreamed about something again last night? is it about your parents again? or did you had another nightmare?" he curiously asked.

"Well, it is not about my parents this time, not about them. I just felt that my dream is so real because it was too vivid" I told her. So she pulled an extra chair and sat beside me. "So what it is? tell me?"

"It is so weird Amanda, I woke up on a man's body." I sighed and turn my eyes to the window. Amanda became more curious and said "Oh, is this an anime? hahaha sorry sorry I'm only kidding, go on tell me in detail"

"So yeah, In my dream I woke up in a Man's body actually I woke up being a Man because I know it was me in fact I've seen my face but with just a different gender and a boy version. I freaked out there and I saw Julian and he told me strange things like: I am really a man, I am his best of friend for 26 years, and he even called me bro. But this time I didn't saw my parents. My dream didn't made me feel the guilt this time. Instead, it creeped me out." I explained to Amanda.

Amanda just patted my back and said "You know Oli that is just a random dream. I strongly believe, maybe your meds are taking effect of removing your past traumas in your dreams that is why your parents are not present in your dreams anymore? And maybe, just maybe you are just missing Julian, right?" she winked at me.

I shrugged my shoulders and said "Okay, I think you have a point maybe I am just troubled seeing Julian yesterday so he appeared on my dream."

"And Oli, please stop blaming yourself for what happened to your parents. It is been years, you already suffered and conquered a lot." she insisted and hugged me tight.

Amanda is really an important part of my life she always cheers me up and tells me that I am not alone. I am so lucky to have her as my friend she understands and even try to walk on my shoes so she can feel my emotions, for her I am not a weirdo.

I try so hard to hide my weird case to everyone that is not close to me, especially to my employees because I don't want them to get scared and loose their trust on me. Because who would want to have a not sane boss? No one! right? I am trying to protect the company that my parents gave me this is the one last thing that I have on their memory.

My parents disappeared out of nowhere. Detectives can't even locate their last foot prints. All I can remember is, I left home to attend a school party that night in 2010 and after I came home there are no where to be found. I waited for days at home thinking that they only had an important business trip and they will be home after a few days but they didn't came back. Months after their known disapperance I received a mail addressed to me it is their last will. I tried to track the sender of the mail but I found nothing as if it was only sent to secure my future and to officially transfer everything to me but they have no plans on coming back. I was very devastated of how rumors spread throughout the town that they purposely left me because something is wrong with me. I tried to fix myself and live a normal life even if its hard, I stood my ground. I bravely faced everything. Even though everyone was trying to get rid of me because of my parents' fortune.

Strange things kept on happening to me. Disappearance of some of my properties and those precious people to me. I just thought that some people may try to steal everything from me but I will not let my guard down.

Until I met Julian who helped me to manage everything and even handled my shattered self. He assisted me to almost everything and sacrificed some of his priorities for me. It saddens me how we ended up like this, I guess I am such a mess I can't selfishly let him suffer more just because I am not fortunate in life. And since I got these weird episodes I finally let him go for his sake.

Looking back, we tried everything, for what we believe "sleep walks" that is happening to me. We even installed cameras to monitor my activities at night but it is all useless. We can see that a random things like a gun would just appear on my hand in the video footages and both of us will just freaked out at the time we woke up. I won't ever let something bad happen to him just because I am a creep. I love him so much to the extent that I would be happy seeing him away from me.

Enough of my past...

Now, I am heading home again after a long day at work. I will rest and eat and sleep again. I am more scared to sleep than to walk in a dark alley at night but I can't skip sleeping every night.

I prepared myself to sleep after filling my stomach. Once, again I grabbed my favorite pillow and try having good thoughts so I would not have a bad dream later. For a few minutes I suddenly fell asleep. It's not even an hour that I heard a loud banging noise behind the door of my room.

I tried to open my eyes so hard and lift my heavy body out of the bed. I shouted to the person outside my room "Wait! I'm coming! don't destroy my door" It was so weird that someone is knocking my bedroom door at this door the only person that has keys on my house is either Julian or Amanda. But it is more possible to be Amanda however what is her concern at this late hour? I hurriedly opened the door knob "What is it Amanda? is their something wrong?" and I was so shocked of what I have saw. There was a woman standing but it is not Amanda she shouted at me "So, Amanda and you came back together?"... I was so shocked the one knocking on my door...is my Mom!

"Mother?" I rubbed my eyes if I am seeing the right person and I even slapped my face. She was wearing the purse that I lost on the café last time.

"Yes! Oliver! I'm glad you still know your mother!"

She pushed me and entered my room "What took you so long to open the door Oliver? Are you still sleeping? It is already 10:30 in the morning!"

For a second, I stepped back and uttered...

"O-Oliver?"

And I accidentally scratched my elbow on the sharp part of my door. It bled a little and I felt the pain...

I felt it... This is not a dream...