DEFYING MY MATES

Premonition

It was dark all around me. There wasn’t a single ounce of light. My hearing senses were on high alert. I could hear the wind swishing past me and the irregular thudding of my heart inside my rib cage. I got gooseflesh from the coldness in the air while my mouth ran dry like a Sahara desert. I was dreaming and I knew it. But I couldn’t wake up. My body felt heavy, as if someone put an extra weight on it.

I licked my lower lip anxiously when I felt someone breathing down my neck. Abruptly, I turned my head. I thought it would break off with how much force I used. But, gladly and unfortunately, it didn’t. If I said I was scared out of my wits, it would be an understatement of the century. Slowly and steadily, I raised my arms to feel if someone was there. I felt nothing, but I could feel his presence somewhere near me. Until I heard him.

“Maria”, the voice whispered in a hushed tone, as if he was afraid someone would hear him.

Have you ever felt your surroundings disappear into nothingness?

Because I felt it at that time and my senses were solely focused on hearing anything that could pinpoint where he stood. I was exhausted and tired with all the mind games he was playing with me.

“Maria”, he said softly in an octave lower, which sent a delicious shiver down my spine. I know I should be freaking out of my mind right now, but still his voice turned me on so effortlessly that I felt annoyed with my body’s reactions.

“Maria”, when he called my name in a chilly voice, I lost it completely.

The exhaustion that I felt over the month, the annoying dreams, and my bottled-up emotions erupted all at once.

“Listen very carefully. Because I'm only going to lay this out for you once. What. The. f**k. Do. You. Want?” I asked in a threatening tone ever so slowly with so much aggression in it that I would have rambled whatever I wanted if it was me. But, this annoying piece of s**t laughed like a full blown laugh as if I was a stand-up comedian that cracked a f*****g joke.

His laugh was the most enticing thing that I had ever heard of. But, I had my priorities, which included finding out his intentions. So, I willed myself to not bask in his presence and relish myself in the moment as it was the last thing I wanted to do right now.

I recalled all the frustrating moments and encounters with him in my dreams when I felt my rage resurfacing under the skin. I could picture myself breathing heavily with my nostrils flared, trying to keep my anger in check, otherwise I would have hunted him down even if I had to search in every nook and cranny of the earth.

“You think you can play with me? Because I swear to the moon I’m going to snap that pretty little neck of yours like a stick in two when I get my hands on you. Till then, tell me what you want and I will gladly give it to you, but stop playing mind games with me because I’m tired of your shitty games. I’m tired of reliving all the shitty dreams, I’m tired of you, and I’m tired of not knowing what the heck is going on with my life. So, why are you here and what do you want? Just tell me already you motherfucking bitch.” I kept rambling and cursing him like a sailor until I felt a little light-headed with so much drama going on.

I didn’t know how a single word could change one’s life, but now I knew when he dipped his head in the crook of my neck and planted a little wet kiss. My thoughts did suicide in my head and I felt my heart skip a beat. I forgot to breathe for a second with the sensation that ran straight to my core. My mind was fogged with the sensation, but I could comprehend a single word that he said so smoothly as if it belonged to him, “You.”

A moan escaped my lips before I could stop it. When my mind recovered from the sensational overdrive, I came back to my senses and saw that I was in my office, but I wasn’t alone. My grandpa was there with me.

Seeing him here with me worked as a reset button for my undesirable state of arousal.

He was sitting lazily on the table with his one leg hanging in the air and the other one fixed on the chair for support while he stared into the blank space mumbling something incoherent that I couldn’t decipher. As I took a step towards him, he abruptly turned towards me. A chill went through my spine while he kept gazing at my eyes as if he could see my naked soul. It gave me gooseflesh as I felt the temperature drop in the room. Before I could comprehend what was happening there, he looked away and stood up while the chair made an annoying screeching noise against the floor.

Imagine seeing your dead grandpa roaming in your house. Even though it’s a dream, I can’t help but feel a little scared. He strolled towards the bookshelves as he kept repeating,” Not my granddaughter, not my granddaughter, take me instead of her, just take me and let her be. She’s only 15.” He whispered the last line heartbroken in the air while a few tears escaped his eyes trickling down his face. He pushed and pulled certain books in a random order when a clicking sound grabbed my attention.

The shelves opened, unveiling a dark tunnel and my grandpa went inside it, merging into the dark. My eyes popped out of my sockets with the astounding revelation. The tunnel piqued my curiosity when I couldn’t hear a thing from there.

Hesitating for a moment, I stepped towards the tunnel cautiously gathering my wits as if at any moment someone would attack me, which might happen just like a neck kiss, even though I was dreaming I felt it. It felt too real to be dismissed as a dream. Breathing harshly through my mouth, I held my shivering hands tightly and stood a couple of feet away from the tunnel’s entrance.

I peeked a little, trying to see or hear anything while stepping closer slowly and steadily towards the shelves till I found myself standing in front of the shelves c*m door. Taking a deep breath, I murmured,” Grandpa, Are you in there?” as I placed my hands on the shelves for support or I might collapse with all the wild thoughts running through my mind. To my bewilderment, my voice echoed off through the walls of the tunnel.

“Grandpa”, I whispered again, hoping for some kind of reply, and took a step into the darkness. I could feel my heart pulsating under my skin and was on the verge of losing my s**t. Before I could call him again, I saw those icy cold eyes twinkling in the darkness and adding to its perilousness. I froze and felt myself hyperventilating when I couldn’t break off the stare even though I was trying hard.

I tried to take a step back cautiously to not alert this man, whoever he was, when he held my wrists on the door and dragged me inside the darkness. A high-pitched, piercing scream escaped my lips while I tried to break free from his hold when he stopped mid-way and dropped it. Unconsciously, I took off towards the door for my dear life, but he caught me sooner than expected, as if he had predicted my reaction. Holding my waist in his strong arms, I could feel his ripped muscles on my body; shivering from the terror of his motives while he whispered in his husky voice, “You think you can get away from me?”

And, I woke up with a jolt, panting heavily. That was one kind of f****d up dream. Calming my edgy nerves, I took a couple of deep breaths, rubbing over my heart to soothe it. I felt shitty but a little relieved to know that it was just a dream and not real and somehow I was glad about it.

Rubbing my eyes with the back of my hands, I got up from the bed, stretching and releasing the tension in my bones as I popped a few one by one.

Trudging towards the window, I glanced out of the window. The weather wasn’t any better than yesterday. Stormy, cloudy and cold, I went to the washroom to take a piss. Washing my hands, I saw my beautiful face in the mirror, a pretty nest sitting messily on my head like a crown, swollen eyes and eyebags. What a pretty view?

Splashing cold water on my face to get rid of the sleepiness, I did my morning routine, showered and made coffee pancakes with fresh sliced fruits. There is no better start to the day – a combination of coffee, classic pancakes, some fresh fruits and a bit of chocolate in one dish.

Feasting upon the heavenly meal, I savoured the bitter sweet taste with a tint of freshness in it while my thoughts drifted back to the dream with the man.

Fuck. It was insane to find some kind of explanation in a jumbled up dream. But definitely, it will make a hell of a beginning to a story. I should definitely add this type of scenario in my next book.

Chucking the stupid thoughts out of my head, I decided to work on my next article, which includes the mysterious happening in the forests of Rosemore. About 2 females in their mid-20s have disappeared since last month. Most of the witnesses have blamed it on the forest, as the victims were last seen near the forest minding their own business. It wasn’t a k********g case as no ransom was asked from their families. During the police investigation, they found blood trails identical to the victim’s DNA leading to the forest while the bodies were nowhere to be found.

I wonder if a psycho killer was on the loose and picking up random victims from somewhere near the forest as it was easy to conceal the evidence in that gigantic forest. The victims' families were traumatised, while everyone avoided being in the vicinity of the forest, including me too. Even that didn’t stop the disappearance of the young women. Aside from the blood trails, no one knows whether they were dead or alive.

But, the crucial point was, if they were dead, then where the dead bodies were hidden and if they were alive, then where they were confined to. Till now, no one had a single clue about it.

After working for hours to perfect the article and proofread it, I was starving. Mailing it to the chief editor, I breathed in relief. I made a few sandwiches and poured myself a glass of red wine. Not the best time to drink, but who cares?

Eating to my heart’s content, I had this creepy feeling in my stomach as if someone was watching me. With the cases of the disappearance of young women, I became a little more alert and double checked my windows and doors before retiring to bed. At times, I kept sharp tools on the bedside table as a precaution. I didn’t inform my parents about it for two reasons. Firstly, nothing was for sure and secondly, I didn’t want my parents to board a plane to Greece the next thing in the morning.

But, I’m not sure anymore.

Picking up the baseball bat lying idle in the corner, I took a glance around the house. I don’t know how, but somehow I knew that particular someone wasn’t in the dining room, drawing room, or any of the bedrooms, because I vaguely remember I closed all the windows in it.

So, I stepped towards the office when I felt the cold wind gushing inside from the space in-between the door and floor. Now, I was certain there was an intruder in my house. Tightly holding the bat in my hands, I unlocked the door and stepped inside. Everything was in the same place before I left it. Nothing suspicious except the window which was widely open, inviting nature openly. It might have slipped from my mind.

Taking a deep breath of relief, I locked the window when my eyes landed on the bookshelves and I remembered the dream from the other night about the tunnel.

What if it was real? It never occurred to me that it might be possible or I might be having some kind of premonition, as I dismissed the mere idea of it as a wild imagination cooked up in my head.

Unconsciously stepping towards the shelves, I remembered the pattern my grandpa used in my dream. My breath felt stuck in my lungs when I followed the pattern and heard the oh-so familiar clicking sound while my thoughts were jumbled up in a mess which seemed unfathomable at the moment.

With the creaking of the shelves, it opened exactly like in my dream.

It was real. That was the first thought that I could comprehend.

Holy s**t!