Through Her Shattered Eyes ✔

Chapter 10

He smiles back. "That's what friends are for."

I sit back against the seat, staring out absently at the cars driving by us. A red Toyota passes by, then a beige Ford pickup truck. A black SUV.

"Hey, can I tell you something?" I ask.

James shrugs. "Sure, anything."

"That dream I just told you about..."

"Yeah?"

"There's more to it, actually. Not really to the dream but things that have followed with it. Like, very strange things."

"Strange? How do you mean?"

"Aside from the nightmare, these weird flashes come up every time I awake. It appears to be a different bedroom each time for at least a minute. There are these DC Comics decorations everywhere, literally covering every inch of the room. There's this window that outlooks a parking lot. It seems the bedroom I'm in is situated in an apartment complex or something. And then, every night I wake up at one thirty-five in the morning. I can't go back to sleep after that. It's like I'm hit with a severe case of insomnia." I sigh, looking over at James.

"So...this happens a lot? You have dreams about seeing a room with superhero posters and a window that outlooks a parking lot?" he asks.

"Well, the DC Comics décor isn't a dream. I'm actually awake and it's a flash that I see," I correct.

"Interesting."

"None of the things I'm experiencing have anything to do with me or my life. These flashes and dreams aren't mine. Another thing I'm freaked out about are my eyes."

"Your eyes?"

"Yeah. For one thing, I'm able to see crystal clear when it hasn't even been six months yet. Secondly...well...James, it's the strangest thing. But when I looked into the mirror a couple weeks back, my eyes changed color."

"Really?" By the tone in his voice, he sounds intrigued.

"My parents didn't even notice it but I did. They're not green anymore, they're blue."

James turns to look at me the same time I look at him. The expression on his face is one of confusion.

"Ali, what are you talking about? Your eyes have always been blue," he points out.

I do a double-take. "What?"

"What color did you think they changed to?"

"Always been blue? James, my eyes are green. They've never been blue," I respond, feeling bewildered myself.

He shrugs. "All right, if that's what you think the color of your eyes are."

If that's what I think the color of my eyes are? I don't think, I know. We've been friends for ten years so he totally knows.

"You think maybe you're just having side effects or something? From after the surgery, I mean?" James asks, his voice breaking through my thoughts.

Really? We're going to start with the post-surgery symptoms crap again? My blood begins to boil.

"Why? You don't believe me?"

"No, no, it's not that I don't believe you. It's just...I dunno. It's impossible to experience memories and visions that aren't yours, for one thing. Where'd you even get those things from? The only option I can think of would be having nightmares. Also, speaking about your eyes, I don't know what made you think they're green," James counters.