The warm sun on my face woke me up. Sighing in content, I rolled over and stretched. No fragments of memory this morning- my night had been peaceful and dreamless for once.
Pulling my blankets off, I squeaked as the cold hit me like a torrent. Tiptoeing over to the bathroom, I jumped into the shower. Hot water washed over me, wiping away the grime of the last few days. I wonder what my sheets look like, I thought guiltily as I watched water-died brown from the dirt all over me- swish down the drain.
Finally, I got out. Shivering, I went to the closet and put on the warmest clothes possible.
After doing my hair and make-up, I stepped lightly down the stairs and into the kitchen. Jonah was still snoring on the couch, clutching his pillow like a teddy bear. I grinned slightly and shook my head in amusement. Then my cheerfulness faded as I remembered what he had said last night.
Once in the kitchen, I pulled out the ingredients for pancakes. They were half way cooked before Jonah stumbled in.
“Good morning,” I greeted him, faking a smile. Seeing his face lined from being pressed into the couch cushions, my grin widened and became real. He blinked his eyes repeatedly, and didn’t reply. Looking past me, he seemed to notice the pancakes. He sniffed the air, and his eyes widened.
“You like pancakes?” I teased. With visible effort that I could tell he was trying to hide, Jonah looked me in the eyes and smiled.
“Yeah, I love them,” He replied. I handed the spatula to him timidly. “Can you watch these and get them off when they’re done? I’ve got to set the table.” He nodded, and I pushed the griddle over to him. Opening the drawer, I took a handful of dishes over to the table, setting up as quick as I could.
Jonah stepped into the dining room, bringing in a plate full of pancakes.
“Thanks, those look good,” I said, surprised. Jonah harrumphed.
“Oh, just because I’m a guy, you just assume that I can’t cook,” He said, pretending to be offended. I raised my hands in innocence.
“Hey, I said they looked good, didn’t I?”
“Whatever,” Jonah replied jokingly. Then he looked around. “Where’s your aunt?” He asked.
“Work, most likely. We woke up too late to see her off.” Too bad, I thought.
We ate in awkward silence; Jonah glanced at me and glanced away, with a look of confusion on his face.
“What?” I asked and he shook his head.
“Nothing,” He cleared his throat awkwardly.
What happened to the jerk I met yesterday? I thought to myself in bewilderment. Jonah finished eating, and stood.
“Well, you can clean this up,” He indicated the breakfast mess, “While I shower and get ready for the day,” He announced, striding out of the room before I had a chance to reply. Oh good, there he is, I thought in mock relief. I was beginning to get worried.
* * * * *
Breakfast was soon cleaned up, and I was back upstairs, writing in my notebook. Jonah knocked on the door, and then came in.
“Do you happen to have a plan for what we’re doing today?” He wondered, and I looked down at the list I had been making.
“I need to go shopping,” I realized, and Jonah’s eyes widened in horror.
“I meant for food!” I reassured him. He relaxed.
“Okay- I thought for a moment there that you were going to make me shop for dresses with you, or something along those lines,” He admitted, and I smirked.
“I could tell,” I laughed, and the sound brought a slight smile to Jonah’s face. When I looked up, he was giving me an odd look that I couldn’t read. When he noticed me noticing him, he quickly looked down and studied his feet. Glancing up again, I saw that he had molded the same hateful expression that he always had to his face. I sighed, and stood up.
“Come on; let’s get that shopping over with.” My phone beeped suddenly from my nightstand, startling both of us; picking it up, I read a text from Jessica.
Where r u??
I put the phone back down, not replying. Jonah looked at me questioningly.
“Just a friend,” I said, and he nodded.
“Why are you ignoring her?” He asked in confusion.
“I’m skipping school, and I don’t want to have to explain to her.” I said. “This way, she’ll just assume that I’m sick.” He nodded again, this time actually understanding.
* * * * *
“We just need some eggs, and that’s it,” I announced as I rounded the corner with the shopping cart. Jonah sighed in relief.
“Why do you need so much food, if it’s just you and your aunt living at home?” He asked exasperatedly.
“And you,” I grinned. “Anyways, Aunt Sarah eats a lot. And I try to go shopping about once a month, except for refrigerated things like milk,” I explained, lifting one carton of eggs up and setting it into the cart.
“Does it always take this long?” He groaned.
“My aunt makes me pay for the groceries with my own money, so I look for the best deals possible,” I said. We had been at the store for about forty five minutes, and Jonah was ready to leave.
Turning to go, I twisted the cart around and began walking. Jonah quickly sped ahead. He looked back in confusion.
“What’s the hold up?” He asked. I held one finger up, gasping for air and clutching at my side. It had suddenly become very hard to breathe- the atmosphere around me seemed to thicken and solidify, slowly giving the illusion of gray fog. I looked around in bewilderment.
“Jonah,” I cried out desperately. Swiping my hands around, I searched for something to grab ahold of. My hand caught the edge of the shopping cart, and I held on tightly; it too, soon seemed to dissolve into nothing.
My knees trembled, and I collapsed. Waiting for my head to smack against the ground, I felt nothing- and then it all went black.
**********
I woke up to the feeling of water on my neck. Startled, I jerked up and looked around me. With a gasp, I realized I was back in the rainforest. Glancing up, I blinked against the light water sprinkling through the tree tops, and my eyes widened.
“How could I possibly get here?” I mumbled in confusion. I slowly rotated around, staring into the trees. Something rustled in the bushes behind me, and I jumped. Turning around slowly, my jaw dropped.
“Napa?” I asked; Napa lowered her bow and stepped closer.
“Finally, I have succeeded.” She sighed in relief, and I frowned.
“What do you mean?” She looked confused.
“I told you I would call you, didn’t I?” She asked, trying to remember. I nodded slowly.
“But… I thought that meant…” I began, but Napa interrupted me.
“What, you think we have cellphone connections here?” She laughed, and I blushed.
“How else would you get a hold of me?” I wondered; she gestured around her.
“Dream calling you, like I’m doing right now,” She said, implying the fact that I was an idiot.
“So this is a dream?” I realized; Napa sighed in impatience.
“Yes,” She stressed. “I can’t hold it for that long either, so shut up and listen,” She said seriously. I had about a million questions I wanted to ask her, but I held them in and tried to focus.
Somewhere farther into the rainforest, a twig snapped and Napa’s head whipped around like a snake. Rubbing her neck nervously, she turned back to me and began speaking.
“You need to come back to the rainforest,” Napa said. I opened my mouth to interrupt, but the look she gave me shut it right up again.
“Come here,” She repeated, “And bring Jonah with you. Be as fast as possible; no delays. We don’t have much time.”
“How do I get through the door?” I wondered, and she wrinkled her brow.
“Let’s just hope that it will appear on its own again. If it doesn’t,” She paused. “Well, it would definitely take you a lot longer to get yourself here,” She explained worriedly, and I nodded.
“What do we do once I get here?” I asked her and she frowned slightly.
“I would tell you, but these dream calls aren’t much guaranteed. You never know who might be listening in,” She said. “Just get here and I’ll reveal the rest,” She decided.
Suddenly my vision started to go foggy again.
“What is this?” I asked, panicking.
“Relax,” Napa called out to me. Her voice was already hard to hear. “I’m letting go of the dream, and you are waking up,” She said. That was the last thing I heard before everything went black for the second time, and I woke up.
I was lying on the cold floor, feeling strange pressure on my arms and head. A large object hovered over my face, and as my vision slowly cleared, I realized it was Jonah. His hands clutched my shoulders, gently shaking me.
“Sienna,” He said worriedly. Seeing that I was awake, he let go of me, but then leaned back over in concern. He searched my face, looking for signs of trauma.
“What just happened?” He demanded. I winced, blinking at the bright lights overhead. Taking my hand, Jonah pulled me up and leaned me against the cart.
“Now,” He said, “Tell me what’s going on.” I looked around- people were staring.
“It’s all right,” Jonah assured them. “This happens all the time- she has narcolepsy,” He waved them on, and I frowned. Narcolepsy?
“I uh…” I searched for words, “Had a dream,” I concluded.
“You’re telling me that you collapsed in the middle of the grocery store, and it was just because you needed more sleep?” He asked, incredulous; I sighed.
“It was Napa- she ‘dream called’ me, apparently,” I said, and his eyes widened.
“Oh, I’ve heard of that,” He said excitedly, and I nodded.
“That’s what made me fall asleep. She wants you and me to go back to the rainforest,” I said.
“Right now?” Jonah asked, and I nodded again.
“Yes, right now.”
