Dream Catcher

3

Brayden, seeming to not to have noticed, answers me. "Yeah, I'm taking him out to The James and we're just hanging out for the day." A couple kids back then apparently got tired of calling the James River 'the James River' so they started calling it 'The James'. I guess it stuck around, because that's what us kids still call it.

"Oh, it's your six month today?" I ask, remembering the conversation Hunter and I had at the café five days ago.

Brayden beams while Hunter looks at him adoringly. "Yeah!"

Seeing them look at each other like that, like it was only them in the world, I felt a little awkward. It's not that I was jealous of them, I don't really care for being in a relationship. Being single can be just as fun! But sometimes, feeling like the third-wheel isn't always the best way to go. Just feeling the gushy love between them makes me want to hide under a rock.

Don't get me wrong, I do believe in love and falling in love, but that's just not me, right now. Instead of searching for 'The One', I tend to sit in a corner and read.

After talking with them for a little longer and then saying goodbye to the both of them, I continue on my jog.

I try getting back into the rhythm of my jog:

breathe in,

step step,

breathe out.

But my brain keeps going back to the dream I had this morning. Just thinking about it, the girl running, the feeling of being scared out of her mind, gives me the shivers. Just knowing that I couldn't do anything to stop it makes me so mad. What's the point of having this so called 'gift' if I can't do anything about it? There has to be a reason why I have this curse and not someone else, right? Are there others like me? Am I the only one?

Too caught up in my own head, I don't notice I've headed off the trail until I look up and find myself surrounded by trees. Slowing to a stop, I can't see any trail from where I stand. I must've traveled really far. I look down at my watch, noticing that it's been an hour since I left home.

Thinking I should turn around and head home before Sean worries, I choose to follow my tracks back to where I came from.

It's only a few minutes of unusual quietness until I hear a twig snap. Startled, I look around but find no one. My heart starts pounding. It's probably just a deer, Jen. Don't freak. I keep my eyes trained on my next step, careful not to make sudden noises just in case it was a predator on the hunt. Living in a small down with lots of trees, we are all aware on the basics of handling wild animals.

I hear more twigs breaking, but this time, it sounds closer than before.

I hear a twig snap in the distance behind me.

The hair on the back of my neck stands on end as I remember my dream from this morning.

I'm stumbling through a forest.

I start to walk faster, not daring to look behind me.

...My fear of getting captured again...

My walk turns into a full-out run, the wind blowing in my face and my hard breathing keeping me from hearing anything else. This would be really bad if it was just a bear.

I run as fast I can while dodging the trees and underbrush around me. I don't slow down until I see a concrete road, and then a house, and then more houses. I don't fully stop my jog until I see my house. Until I open the door and find Sean standing in the kitchen, in the middle of putting groceries away. I quickly shut the door behind me, my breathing rugged, heart pounding.