COLD CREEK

Two: The Dream

The black cursor blinked ominously on the white page. The header, in simple but professional font, was the only text written. It read: RAIDEN MORITA with a faded straight-line underneath it. Raiden passed a sticky hand over his face and placed his fingers over the keyboard again. Even after the countless resumes he had written, he still was daunted by the task. It wasn't that he had too little information to write down, but rather the opposite. He always recycled each resume to correlate with whatever position he was interested in, whether that be adding or removing certain skills.

Getting up from his chair, Raiden went over to his little stove and began heating up his kettle for tea. He stroked his chin in thought and paced around in a small circle, hoping such stimulation would fill his brain with intelligent ideas, but nothing came to mind. Only intense worry. Checking his watch, he groaned. It was only two o’clock and it felt like five.

Thinking a walk would help clear his mind, Raiden whistled for Byeol and unhooked the leash he had by his coat. Once his shepherd made his appearance, Raiden pulled on his coat, clipped the leash on, and walked out the door. He, as always, latched the door behind him. The air was cool, one that eased the tension in his muscles. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, bringing a content smile to his face.

"Sāikō, Byeol."

The dog obeyed and trotted just a foot length ahead of his master.

The two of them took in the afternoon until an hour passed and it was time to go back home. There wasn't much for Raiden to think about, which was why he made it a priority to walk every night. It was the only time he didn't feel stressed or pressured by work. It was the only time he felt happy. On his way back to the house, eyes watching his feet, he didn't notice in front of him until his dog barked and he collided into the person.

"Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't see you!" Raiden stuttered, as he scrambled to his feet.

"It's all right," the other pedestrian replied in a strong female voice.

Raiden recognised it. Looking up, he stared into the dark green eyes of his now former colleague, Lana Carter. She was an American exchange student who was shadowing the interns and was one of the nicer people there.

"Raiden? Hey, sorry, I was distracted." Lana motioned to the earbuds and smiled in embarrassment. "Did you just get off work?"

"No. I don't work there anymore." Raiden stood up and brushed the dust off his jacket.

Lana's eyes widened, and she gasped. "What do you mean? Did they let you go?"

"Hai. This morning."

"I'm so sorry. Um, well, I'm kind of done with my running. You want to get something to eat?"

His stomach squeezed and knotted, reminding him about the meal he had skipped. Raiden nodded his head. "Okay." He gazed at her again, this time longer. He always admired Lana, and he felt as if he had feelings for her. But he never wanted them to get in the way of their work. He was also her mentor, and it would have been inappropriate for him to make any kind of advances.

"Listen, I know we haven't said much," Lana began, looking down at the ground. A strand of her brown hair fell across her eyes.

Right there, Raiden's heart knocked against his chest and his mind became light. He couldn't breathe for a moment until Lana lifted her head and their eyes met. Raiden's throat tightened. Verbal communication ceased between them and the only messages passed between them were the rising tension of uncertainty and curiosity.

"Where do you want to go?" Lana finally asked, bringing them both back to reality.

"I don't know. Maybe Subway?" He gripped the leash tighter as he waited for her to reply.

"Sure. Um, my car's parked just half a mile from me, if you don't mind walking some more? Or, maybe we don't have to go out. It was a silly thing to ask." Lana brushed the loose strands from her face. Her cheeks were turning red and Raiden knew it wasn't because of the weather. She began to turn away before Raiden stepped forward and lightly touched her leaving hand.

"No. It wasn't silly."

Lana looked over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow.

In a slower tone, Raiden repeated, "It wasn't silly. I'd like to eat with you. It's not like we work together now."

Lana sighed and turned around, facing him again. Glancing at her watch and then crossing her arms, she said in a soft voice, "I'm sorry they're letting you go. It's shocking to me and I'm sure to the rest of the department. You were really good. I mean, you are really good."

"Thank you," Raiden offered his arm to her and smiled widely. His eyes squinted in childlike happiness as he watched her slip her arm around his. His chest tightened and he felt his cheeks heat up.

"You lead the way."

Lana giggled and directed their steps towards her car. "How did you learn to speak English so well?"

"Online class and listening," Raiden answered. "My family doesn't speak any English. And they probably wouldn't like hearing that I'm talking to you outside of work."

"Talking to me? What do you mean?" Lana squinted her eyes and glanced over at Raiden.

Raiden cleared his throat and looked back at her.

"What? Does that mean something different in America?" His face grew even hotter than before. Seeing the look of surprise on her face, he stopped in his tracks and tried to explain himself. "I-what-I don't know how to say it. Are you offended?"

"No? Am I missing something?"

Raiden blinked several times, trying to dissect the conversation. He wasn’t sure where one of them began misunderstanding one another. “I was just explaining that my parents wouldn’t want me to have a conversation with you? Being seen with a woman other than a Japanese woman isn’t acceptable.”

Lana’s face went white and her cheeks began glowing, too. "I am so sorry, oh my gosh, I’m so embarrassed."

"Why? What did I say?"

Lana hid behind her hand, breaking into a large grin. “I’m so sorry, my mind was somewhere else and I was mixing words around and getting a different impression of what you meant.”

"Oh, no. Sorry. I don't mean it that way. I mean." Raiden pressed his hand against his forehead and groaned in frustration. He rambled something to himself in Japanese and then turned back to Lana. "I didn’t mean it that way, I didn’t think you’d take it like that unless?"

Lana blushed and stared back down at the ground. "I was just running away with my thoughts again."

Understanding the awkward tension between them, Raiden patted her on the shoulder and made a closed smile. "This shouldn't stop us from getting dinner together. I like your company."

"I like yours, too. I know we don’t talk alot at work except for asking to pass the sugar to one another in the coffee room, but, you know, I’m fine with that."

Raiden smirked to himself and shook his head. "Why did you say you're fine when you're not?"

"What do you mean? I'm fine."

"Your voice got lower and your cheeks aren't red anymore."

Lana rolled her eyes and crossed her arms tightly across her chest. "Listen, I just misunderstood what you said. I thought you meant…" She bit her bottom lip again and her foot began tapping.

"Do you not have a boyfriend?"

"Not anymore. But it's fine. Let's go eat. I'm starving."

Raiden dipped his head in the courtesy bow and smiled. The two of them and Byeol continued down the road, neither really saying another word until they got to the car. He was happy to hear she was single, but he knew they couldn't be together because of his culture's relationship expectations. When they reached her car, Raiden cleared his throat, getting her attention.

"I'm sorry about earlier. Whatever you feel towards me, I feel the same."

Lana tilted her head to one side. "Why are you telling me now?"

"Because I know we can't make it work. But I'd like to be good friends?"

"I'd like to be friends, too."

With those words, the two of them got into the car and sat there for a moment. They both knew their words weren't strong enough to hold back the growing heat between them. And they certainly knew being alone together wasn't a good idea.

Raiden felt his chest tightening as he looked over at the driver's seat. He buckled his seat belt and waited for her to do the same. Raiden wasn't sure if it was the stress of the day finally coming over him, or his built-up passion towards her. He bunched up his shoulders and puffed his cheeks out in exhalation. He locked his eyes on her, not once looking away. His heart did a somersault and he found himself unbuckling his seatbelt.

Lana's eyes widened for a moment. "Are you okay?"

"I think I'm going to go home. I'm sorry. Today has been unpredictable."

"Want to go somewhere else?"

"I don't know. I'm sorry." Raiden opened the door and practically jumped out of the car. He stood for a moment, gathering his sense of direction before Lana rolled down the passenger window.

"Don't forget your dog." She motioned to the backseat.

"Oh, yes. Sorry." Raiden, with shaking hands, took hold of the back door handle and pulled. The door didn't open. He tried again, this time harder and faster.

"Stop! Sorry, it's child locked." Lana pressed a button and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Thank you." Raiden opened the door and snatched the dog's leash. Without looking back, he made his way back to his house. He checked his pockets, making sure his house key and phone were still there. They were. He wiped the sweat from his face and checked the time. He was an hour and a half off schedule. "Baka." He stomped a foot and continued towards his house. "Now I'll only get six and a half hours of sleep."

Once he made it back home, he closed and locked the door. He took the leash off and hung it on its hook. Byeol trotted over to his bed beside the recliner and waited for his master. Raiden went into the kitchen first and got out a mug and his favourite tea. He started the kettle and dragged his tired feet to the recliner. He fell into the cosy, cushiony chair and closed his eyes, meaning only to relax them.

He didn't mean to fall asleep, but when he did, he began dreaming. And it was a dark and terrifying dream.

His dream began in a concrete room. Four walls. Silence. Raiden stood in the centre, staring at a door in front of him. The door was open, but only darkness could be seen. Complete silence—not even the movement of air could be heard. Raiden took a few steps towards the door before catching his face in a mirror that wasn't there before. There were words written along the frame that Raiden could only read in his dream, but wouldn't remember what they were when he woke up.

While he read the letters, music began playing. He didn't know what the lyrics were, or the tune, but it sounded much like background music played in a waiting room. Poetic, yet boring.

Raiden turned to the door and reached out for the doorknob. Just as his hand wrapped around the brass knob, another hand from the other side appeared and grabbed onto his hand. The hand was white and looked like a mannequin's. Raiden pulled as hard as he could, but he couldn't free himself. He yanked and twisted, and he even yelled, but not a sound came from his lips. He planted a foot against the wall, braced himself, and pulled again. At last, his strength was able to pull the figure from behind.

Slowly, a person with ragged hair and dark eyes appeared. Raiden couldn't tell if it was a male or a female, he just knew it was scary. The figure dragged itself across the floor, hissing and groping the air. Raiden staggered backwards, trying to get away, but the figure was right in front of him. The room began spinning. The creature stared Raiden straight in the eyes, pulled its shoulders back, and inhaled deeply. In a soft voice, one that contradicted the monstrous appearance, the figure spoke in a feminine voice.

"Help me."

Raiden's body jerked and he awoke to the sound of the kettle screaming. For a moment, he forgot where he was. It wasn't until Byeol licked his hand did he remember he was in his house. He rubbed his eyes and stood up. A hazy presence slipped from his mind and he could finally stand straight. He tried to forget the woman in his dream, but the harder he tried, the clearer her face became.