Beautifully Damaged

11. Nightmares

 I set down my purse on the counter as I sauntered into my apartment. Bear climbed onto the couch and slumped down, spent from a day of shopping.

"Yeah, me too," I told him before sitting down at my computer.

I was not going to waste any time before downloading music onto my new iPhone. Sleep weighed heavily on my eyelids, but my mind was racing and I doubted that I'd sleep if I went to bed. Bear didn't seem to be having much trouble with that. I glanced over again, at his sleeping form, curled up on my couch. A smile tugged at the corner of my lips at the sight. I plugged my iPhone into the laptop and searched through songs on iTunes.

After listening through a few previews, I settled for the three Marianas Trench albums and Paramore's 'Riot' album. Half way through downloading them, my phone vibrated. Stunned, I looked at the screen.

I'm sorry about earlier, I shouldn't have yelled at you. But honestly, try to stay out of trouble.

-Alex

Unintentionally, a smile crept onto my face. It didn't worry me that I didn't remember giving him my phone number, though somewhere in my brain, I knew that it should. I was just glad to know that someone was watching out for me- even if he was a total jerk most of the time. Yawning, I gave up on trying to stay awake and slipped into bed, falling mercifully into darkness.

Droplets of water cooled on my skin, the cold burrowed deep into my bones. Groggily, I forced my eyes open. To my surprise, a dark sky, devoid of stars hung above me. It was totally dark. It was the type of murky, inky black darkness that sent chills up your spine, as your brain played with you and created images that weren't there. There was no moon.

I took in a ragged breath, fought against the weight on my torso. The tarmac was rough against my skin as I compelled my limbs to move. My bones were made of lead, unyielding. Nonetheless, I managed to get to my feet. 

A group of panicked footsteps and coarse yells retreated down the street, leaving only shadows to tell me where I was. I felt like I should know.

A searing, sharp, stabbing pain pierced my chest, right through my heart. I coughed, my hands flying to the place where the pain originated. Warmth flowed through my fingers, coating them in something thick and sticky.

My stomach roiled, knowing the truth before my brain caught up with current events. I stared at my hands, dripping with a black liquid. It was like a black and white movie, everything devoid of color. My mind ran head first into the realization.

This was my blood.

My vision flooded with black, erasing the rest of the world. I felt the road beneath me once again, felt my head connect with the ground. It didn't even compare to the tingling in my hands, the white noise in my ears, the weakness in my legs; the blazing fire where my heart should be.

I blinked, not quite understanding what was going on. I wasn't able to get my head around anything. My thoughts were fuzzy, if existent. The low light in the street faded, leaving me with shadows. With each passing moment, I began to surrender.

Take me away from here.

The pain left me, but that was more worrying than its presence. I managed a last look at the sky, without the moon, without the stars.

My eyes snapped open, shuddering sobs wrenched themselves free of my throat. Tears fell down my face in rivers. I sucked in air, my hands over my heart where the searing pain had re-appeared. The tormenting anguish and fear I felt was bordering on hysteria. Bear leaped onto the bed, clambering into my lap and worrying over me.