Page 34 of (Un)wise
“No, she wouldn’t. At least, not purposely. But, who does she believe she can trust? She could say something to the wrong person. If we stayed on our own, we might actually make it to the gates of the Compound.” I swung my leg over the back and settled behind him offering the strap. “I’ll do my best to stay awake,” I promised.
Chapter Ten
Birdsong and sunlight drifted along the spring breeze that teased my hair.Myhair, not someone else’s or a past me.I recognized where I stood. It was the meadow of my others dreams. Only, the great stone monoliths had aged and weathered to stunted broken pillars.Was this then a real dream, pointless and meant to be forgotten as soon as I woke? Unsure, I waited for the Taupe Lady to appear.
Nothing moved in the open field surrounding the stones. I turned in a slow circle. The dream felt empty, a shadow of what it should be if it were a memory. Yet, real dreams, the pointless kind, were so rare now. I couldn’t believe this was one of them.
“We need to talk,” I called out. I wanted to shout my questions and make threats, mostly just to vent, but I held it all in hoping she would come to me if I was nice.
The wind carried her answer to me. “My daughter. Your path is your own to choose. I can influence it no more than I have already done. Remember,” she whispered. “Dream.”
The dream shifted.
I sat on a bed covered with a light pink quilt and squeezed the teddy bear in my arms as I listened to the footsteps pause outside my door. Using my sight, I checked everyone’s location in the house.
Justin had come home for winter break just tonight. I hadn’t met him before but had talked to him on the phone. He’d been so nice to me. His mom usually fostered two kids at a time. They had the room, she’d said, in their hearts and in their house. I’d hoped it would be different here. The other foster girl with me didn’t really like me, but the other girls usually didn’t. Justin, though, had seemed so nice. I’d hoped he would just stay away at school.
When he’d given me a hug in greeting, it had been just a little too tight. When he’d pulled back and looked me in the eye, I knew.
I gently lifted the phone from the receiver with a heavy heart. I’d already disabled the sound so he wouldn’t hear me dial from in the hallway. The knob on the door turned, and I quickly set the phone to the side.
“What are you doing, Justin?” I asked calmly as he opened the door.
“I just wanted to check on you,” he said with a smile. He stepped in and closed the door behind him.
I clutched the bear tighter. “I’m fine. I think you should leave.”
“Don’t be like that,” he begged softly as he sat on the edge of the bed. “I see you got the bear I sent,” he nodded toward the bear I clutched. I’d hoped it would remind him of my age.
“How old are you?” I asked.
“Twenty-one. Why are you asking?” He smiled and reached a hand to smooth over my hair.
“Because I’m twelve, and you shouldn’t be touching me. Not even my hair.”
He sighed and dropped his hand, his eyes growing puzzled. Then he nodded slowly. “You’re right. I’m sorry. Good night, Gabby.” He leaned forward with the intent of kissing me. I dodged out of the way, bumping the table that held the phone.
“Don’t,” I warned. “Justin, I like your mom, but with you here, I can’t stay.”
The door to my room opened, and Justin’s mom looked from me to her son. Her face was white with shock, and she loosely held a phone in her hand. Justin looked at her phone then the phone on the table by my bed.
“What are you doing in here?”
He scowled. “Nothing.”
His mom’s eyes shifted to me.
“It’s time I leave,” I said softly. She nodded and dialed the phone.
The dream shifted.
My foster dad leaned over my chair, his arm brushing against my breast as he served me mashed potatoes. I met the eyes of my foster mom at the end of the table. Her eyes filled with tears, and she looked away. After dinner, I rushed to the phone and dialed a number I knew by heart.
The dream shifted.
Alixe and I had gotten on well for three months before services called asking if she could take on another teen. She assured them I was an angel and that she would have no trouble adding another. When she hung up, she told me that Brandon would be joining our happy home. I tried not to show my disappointment. I asked his age. Fourteen, same as me. Maybe that would make a difference.
We worked together to make the single bed in the third room. She told me to let her know if there was any trouble. Brandon came to the door an hour later. He stood with his head down trying to hide his face. His swollen eye and nose told his story better than his slumped shoulders and dirty clothes.
