The Tiger King (Chaelisa)

65| Trouble in Paradise

a wall of fire immediately bellowed out, rushing towards Lisa to engulf her with a roar.

Lisa leapt out of bed, fear transforming to anger as she frantically scanned the plain dank room for Rosé. "where's Rosie? what have you done with her?" she thundered, but the blazing inferno drowned out her shouting.

movement behind  Lisa had her spin on the spot and give chase: out through a passage and into a horribly familiar bleak corridor lit up by fluorescent light tubes that sparked and sputtered. at the end of the corridor, a figure in white stood still, their back to Lisa, looking out into the darkness beyond.

but this time Lisa recognised him right away: she knew that white labcoat anywhere, with that grey thinning hair, that tall stature and she knew the round rimmed glass he'd be wearing and the grey stubble he'd have on his face.

"M-Marco," Lisa choked out, terrified of what she'd see once he turned but desperate to see his face again. "Marco?"

he didn't turn but bolted off like a horse. Lisa bounded after him, shouting his name as she ran through the maze of corridors and soon, the hounds that infiltrated her nightmares appeared: big black dogs with snapping teeth, transforming into hulking shadows that rolled after her like oncoming waves, devouring everything in their path.

and Lisa ran for her life, heart pounding like it was about to burst out of her chest. she screamed as the shadows fell on top of her, burying her alive as she cried and shouted in vain, because nobody heard or was going to come and save her. 

she sank through the muffled murky darkness, pummelled by invisible fists from all directions and her brain was on fire, everything was fire and pain as she drowned....

"Lisa! Lisa wake up!"

Lisa came to with a huge heave, finally and properly awake as she gulped lungfuls of air and flopped on her back, still shaking with her face wet as she sobbed. Rosé was leaning over her, distraught. In the doorway stood Ella, wide-eyed in her nightdress and clutching Lego close to her chest while Leo huddled at her feet.

"Ro...Ros...I...I..." Lisa choked out. She shrank away when Rosé reached out to touch her, her body still thrumming like a livewire. Rosé withdrew her hand, failing to hide her hurt expression.

"It's okay, it's okay baby, it's just a bad dream. It's over now. I'm here, you're safe," Rosé soothed. She sounded breathless, her face anguished as she looked down at her. "You were thrashing so hard. I couldn't wake you up."

"You were shouting really loudly," Ella put in, cautiously approaching the bed. "Was it a nightmare? I hate those."

"I...yes...I'm, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..." Lisa panted, still fighting to breathe, still unable to wipe away the feeling of the hounds ripping her skin off with their white razor sharp teeth.

"It's okay. You gave us a little fright is all," Rosé said. She patted Ella's back. "Run along, sweetheart, Lisa is tired and needs her rest, and so do you."

"Will you be okay?" Ella asked Lisa shrewdly. "I can give you Flora."

"What?" Lisa said, dazed. Rosé steered Ella out of the room.

"Go sleep honey, I'll take care of Lisa, don't worry. It's just a bad dream, like what I have."

"You don't scream so loud." 

Ella finally went away and Rosé turned back to Lisa, who was rocking back and forth in distress in the middle of the bed while she clutched her knees.

"Not again, not again, not again," she mumbled rapidly under her breath. She didn't dare look at Rosé, fearing that her eyes were still that hateful yellow and that any second now, Rosé would see them and run for the hills. "Rosie, did I hit you?"