The unseen thread
616 Words
Aeris shot up in bed, her breaths ragged, sweat clinging to her skin.
The air in her room felt wrong. Heavy. Stifling.
Her fingers trembled as they ghosted over her wrist—over the fresh, darkened mark that hadn’t been there before she fell asleep. It pulsed faintly beneath her touch, as if alive.
Another one.
Her stomach twisted. This wasn’t just a dream. It hadn’t been for a long time.
The memory of it was still vivid—his voice, deep and commanding, curling around her like a phantom. The way he looked at her. He had seen her.
And worse—he had touched her.
Aeris curled her knees to her chest, trying to steady her racing heart. Who was he? Why did these dreams feel so real?
And why did the lingering sensation of his hands on her body make her feel so—
She squeezed her eyes shut, forcing the thought away.
She needed answers.
Aeris threw off her blanket and padded across the room, her feet cold against the wooden floor. She rummaged through her desk, pulling out a notebook where she had scribbled down everything about her dreams since she was twelve. The fragmented memories, the sensations, the strange symbols she sometimes saw in the visions.
She flipped to a fresh page, grabbing a pen with slightly shaky fingers.
March 29th
• The dream was different this time.
• I wasn’t just watching. He saw me. He touched me.
• The mark is back.
• I could hear him clearly. Deep voice. Commanding. Dangerous.
Aeris swallowed hard, tapping the pen against the page. Had he always known she was there? Or was this the first time?
The thought sent a shiver through her.
A sudden vibration from her phone made her jump. She grabbed it off the nightstand.
Lyria: Are you awake yet?
Lyria: I’m outside. Let me in before I freeze to death.
Aeris exhaled a breath, setting the notebook aside. She had been so caught up in the dream that she hadn’t even heard Lyria arrive.
Hurrying to the door, she unlocked it and found Lyria standing on the porch, arms wrapped around herself.
“Finally,” Lyria grumbled, stepping inside. “Do you know how cold it is out here?”
Aeris gave her a small smile. “Sorry. I didn’t hear you.”
Lyria narrowed her eyes. “You look like you didn’t sleep at all.”
Aeris hesitated. “Nightmares.”
Lyria sighed, shaking her head as she flopped onto the couch. “Again? You seriously need a dream exorcist or something.”
Aeris chuckled weakly, sitting beside her. If only it were that simple.
Lyria leaned forward, propping her chin on her hand. “Okay, spill. What happened this time?”
Aeris hesitated, fingers curling over her wrist.
What could she even say? That she had been trapped in the presence of a man she had never met, yet felt disturbingly drawn to? That he had touched her in a way that still made her shiver? That the mark on her skin felt like an invisible thread tying her to someone she shouldn’t know?
No.
She had kept this secret for years. She wasn’t about to start spilling it now.
“Just the usual,” she muttered instead. “Dark figures. Confusing voices. The works.”
Lyria gave her a skeptical look but didn’t push. “Well, at least you’re consistent.”
Aeris forced a smile, but the weight in her chest remained.
She wasn’t being honest with Lyria. But how could she be?
Something was happening to her.
Something she didn’t understand.
And for the first time…
She wasn’t sure she wanted to.
- Writer
