Us In the Dark || S. Fisher

Chapter 4

September - 1992 {Y/n Pov}
My time here at the apartments has been a breath of fresh air and I owe it all to Rob, Sal, and Larry. They all helped me forget my troubles and actually try to see the positive in my move here. Rob and I are starting to get used to living together. We've been hanging out a lot and it's been helpful getting to re-know him. Before I moved, I only saw Rob like once or twice a year. Because of that, I didn't really know him, but now I do and I'm more than happy with that. As for Sal and Larry, we became inseparable. They mentioned that at some point I should meet the rest of their friends and I was down. If they were anything like Sal and Larry, then there was no need to worry.

I mean I was having so much fun that I genuinely forgot that today was the last day of summer break. My junior year starts tomorrow and I'm nowhere near ready. I was able to go to the school for a quick preview tour so I wouldn't get lost on my first day. Sal offered and I accepted. We got my schedule with my classes then we walked around so he could show me where everything was. Once we got back home we reviewed our schedules with Larry and it turns out that I had most of my classes with them. That was a relief because now I wasn't gonna be completely alone.

Back in my room, I gathered my backpack and school supplies, neatly packing them away in the bag for tomorrow. Then I went over to my closet and looked for a decent outfit; my favorite bottoms and its corresponding top, a classic. I threw together some matching jewelry, shoes, and prepared my hair for styling in the morning. By the time I was done, it was only 8 pm. I decided on going to bed early so I could get some rest for tomorrow. So I took my sleeping pills and waited for the effects to kick in.

As I was just about to lay down, there was a knock on my door. I yelled out a quick "come in" then Rob walked through holding a few of my favorite snacks. "Hey, would it be cool if we talked for a minute?" I gestured to him to come take a seat on my bed and he did, placing the food beside him as well. "Whatever I did, it wasn't me. Blame Larry."

"Nah It's nun' like that. You're not in trouble and neither is he.. surprisingly." Rob then went quiet for a bit and the feeling of uneasiness settled in the pit of my stomach. He was never this quiet. Growing up he was always laughing and talking; never serious, always this ball of energy. But now? This was unlike him. "Rob? You good over there?" He looked up at the wall and stared off, lost in thought.

"Something has been bothering me for a while and I didnt want to ask your parents because they're not a reliable source. I trust you will tell me the truth since the topic is about you anyway," he finally says. I look at him more confused than before. Usually if he had any concern about me, he'd just straight up tell me. This was something bad then.

"C'mon man, you know I'd never lie to you. I'll tell you anything and everything. You know more about me than my own folks do at this point." He let out a small chuckle and turned to face me. Out of instinct I sat up a bit straighter to prepare myself for what he had to say. "That's good to here...,"

He lets out a shaky breath.

"I have a feeling insomnia is not the only reason you don't sleep. It's not the whole truth is it?" Damn, he saw right through me. He's right though. Insomnia is not the only reason I don't sleep. "Uh-"

"And like I said, don't lie to me. I'm not stupid."

He sounded even more serious than before, I was getting kinda nervous. "Listen, If you're gonna be living here, we can't keep stuff from each other. I tell you my shit, you tell me yours. So... what's been going on?" I stare down to the floor and place my head between my hands. Damn, straight to the point, huh?

"Look, I don't really know how to answer that without sounding like I'm crazy," I confess, "but, I'll try." He nodded and waited for me to start explaining.

"Ever since I was a baby, I've been having these vivid dreams or nightmares. They felt so real to the point where I couldn't tell if I was actually dreaming or not. And everytime I fell asleep, this dark, shadowy thing would appear in the background of the setting. At first I thought it was just my imagination conjuring it up to scare me but then it became a constant in all of my dreams. And then at one point, it manifests into real life. The amount of times I'd wake to find it standing in the corner of my room staring at me is enough to make me just stay awake and not sleep at all."

I paused to see if he was still following the story. He seemed to be in deep thought, thinking intently as he hung onto every word. So I continued...

"After the death of my mother and attending her funeral that night, I had woken up from another crazy real dream. When I opened my eyes, the thing was standing over me, piercing me with its dark, soulless eyes. It had moved. It had moved from the corner of my room to right next to me. It wasn't my imagination, it was real. I was paralyzed and couldn't do anything about it. It then reached its arm out and reached into my chest, wrapping its cold, calloused hands around my heart and it began to squeeze. I didn't want to believe I was awake, I wanted it to be another bad dream. But I could feel myself dying. The pain was real. I tried to scream or shout but nothing. It was the knock at my door from my father that stopped it from succeeding. If it weren't for him, I think I might have actually died that night.."

Once I was done, I gave myself time to breathe. I've never told anyone this before; keeping it to myself just in case my parents, or anyone for that matter, wouldn't believe me and send me away to psychopath jail. I didn't want to be sent there over something that could very well have been fake. But the thing is it wasnt fake and knowing that makes me not telling someone even worse. It wasn't worth leaving my family for god knows how long. I looked over to Rob who had an unreadable look on his face. I couldn't tell if he believed me or not, it was kind of a grey area.

"Rob?... You still here?" I waited for him to respond all while the room got uncomfortably quiet. I was starting to think he now thought I was insane and the fear of being sent away rose from my stomach to my chest then to my throat. I think I might vomit.

"Night terrors can be troublesome. And sometimes they can feel real, but you have to remember that your dreams can't hurt you. You're safe, Y/n."

He doesnt fucking belive me. He thinks it's all in my head. He thinks I'm crazy. He thinks it's not real. Don't cry. Don't cry. DO NOT CRY! "Y-yeah... I'm safe. I know."

"I care about you alot. You are family, you're my sister whether it's by blood or not. I want to help you, I want to see you get better. Let me help you."

I look up at Rob. He was genuine about that, I can feel it. The problem is, there's nothing he can do to help me. I don't think anyone can. But for the time being, I can entertain him and let him think he's helping me. I brought him into a hug and we both let out long sighs, filling this silent room with easy breathing and the breathing of both our hearts. He's alive, I'm alive, we're alive. Everything will be fine.

I let go of Rob and he got up from the bed.

"Well I'm gonna let you sleep now. You have to be up early and you need to be well rested." I nodded and he walked out of my room while I sank back under the covers. I rolled over and faced the wall trying not to think too much about it all. So on top of my dad leaving me and my mother passing away, Rob does not believe me.

I rolled back over and grabbed my headphones and plugged them into my phone. I took a handful of my night medication to contradict the effects of the sleeping pills, then began rewatching all seasons of my favorite show. There is no way in hell I'm going to sleep tonight.