I open my eyes
SOPHIE: What about you Lina, any plans this weekend?
Where am I now? Why are Sophie and Julia in my dream?
I look around
I know this road; we are in my neighborhood
I look at my watch, it's 6.40 pm. I must be on my way back from work
I look at them
Please let it be a good dream
Why is Sophie looking at me like that though?
Oh yes, the question
What was it again?
Right, my plans this weekend! ... Quick, make something up
ME: Oh I don't know, probably just chill, go for a walk maybe.
JULIA: You should go and check out this new coffee place that just opened near Thomas Park.
I am not sure about any Thomas Park, but ok
JULIA: My boyfriend went the other day, and he said that their matcha cake is to die for.
ME: Yes but I still hate matcha Julia, remember?
Geez girl, how many times do I have to tell you
JULIA: Yes, and I still think that you should give it another try.
SOPHIE: I think that matcha tastes like medicine.
ME: Well, I am definitely not going to waste my weekend going to a coffee shop anyway. Sorry.
But not sorry
I have more precious things to do
Wait
Where is Julia?
I look around and she's gone, only Sophie is left. And she doesn't seem to notice
ME: Sophie, where is Julia?
SOPHIE: What do you mean?
ME: Julia, she was just there!
SOPHIE: When?
ME: Seriously?
She doesn't seem to understand
SOPHIE: I don't understand.
VOICE: HELP!
What was that?!
I look around when Sophie takes me by the arm and pulls me behind a bush
SOPHIE: Get down Lina.
What is going on now?
ME: What is going on?
SOPHIE: Look!
She points at the corner of the street
Now I see it
4 gang-looking dudes standing under a tree
They are now shaking that tree
That doesn't make any sense...I look at Sophie, and it looks like it does make sense to her
Weirdo
ME: What am I looking at? Was it them yelling "help" just now?
SOPHIE: No. look, in the tree!
Oh my god, there are kids in that tree!
Are those guys trying to kidnap them?!
ME: OMG, what are they doing? We need to go and help them!
SOPHIE: Shhh, no, don't make any noise, they're gonna see us!
ME: But...
SOPHIE: They have guns!
ME: GUNS??!!
Did I just yell "guns" just when she told me not to?
Well done, Lina
Did they see us?
We both look at them
Oh crap, they saw us
ME: Oh crap, they saw us.
SOPHIE: What do we do?
I look at them
They look at us
I look at Sophie
She looks at me
She looks at them
I look at them
They look at each other
They start running towards us
I look at Sophie
ME: Run!
I take her hand and we both start running
I knew I should've stretched. I am so not prepared for this
I look behind us, they are getting close
Wait
I can't feel Sophie's hand anymore
I try to look at her but she is nowhere to be found. First Julia, now Sophie?
I look behind me again
The 4 guys did not disappear
I look in front of me and suddenly I am in a different city, which looks like Puerto Rico somehow
Ok, fine, as long as those gangsters aren't chasing me anymore
Quick look behind
Nope, still there
I need to go faster
I am still running when a very old and rusty bus pulls up beside me, doors open
I am not sure how this bus is still rolling but...
I look at the gangsters who are getting close, way too close
I look at the bus again
Yup, that will do
I get on the bus and look at the driver
Act normal
He looks at me and smiles
I smile back
I take the first seat and finally relax. The next stop is my house
I don't know how I know it, but I do
After a few minutes, I look at the driver
He seems nervous
I look ahead and there seems to be something blocking up the road
What now?
The bus slows down
I look closely, and it looks like people.
Oh, please let it not be gangsters
The bus stops
The doors open and I see the driver raising his hands in the air
Shit, gangsters. But different ones.
Maybe a rival gang?
GANGSTER: Alright everyone, hands in the air, now!
Everyone raises their hands
We are all going to die
Oh my god
There are now 7 gangsters on board, all wearing leather jackets, ugly haircuts, and holding guns
We are so going to die
I realize that I have all my papers, passport, phone, and wallet in my backpack. I can't let them have it, they are all I have
I look around and pray for them not to notice me
If invisibility could be a power, now would be a good time to have it
I pull my backpack closer to me, holding it very tightly on my knees, and pray like I never prayed before for those invisibility superpowers
Please let me be invisible, please let me be invisible
I open my eyes and here he is
Gangster number seven, sitting very comfortably with his gun pointed at me
I look at him looking at me
I guess I am still visible
I am so going to die
He smiles at me, showing me his ugly yellow crooked teeth. He is also wearing a very old leather jacket, with a giant popped collar and an ugly mohawk
I hate mohawks
GANGSTER: Well, what do we have here? What are you hiding in there?
I am trembling
Why am I so scared?
Is it the mohawk?
I look around. All the other passengers are giving up their belongings. But I can't, not my phone, not my wallet, and certainly not my passport!
I find myself saying no
ME: No.
Maybe I shouldn't have
GANGSTER: Empty your bag!
His gun is now pointed directly at my face... my beautiful face
This is it
Please let it not be it
GANGSTER: Now!
I can't help myself but look at his mohawk
He loads his gun
Oh my god, I have to give him something!
I raise my hand to make him stop
He smiles
Now I can't help but look at his teeth
Gross
GANGSTER: Give me what's in your bag.
ME: Ok, but please don't kill me.
I open my bag and reach for whatever I can find inside
There it is
My hand cream
I take it out and give it to him
ME: This is all I have, I swear.
He looks at me
He pauses
He looks at the cream and takes it
He looks back at me and smiles. Those yellow crooked teeth again
He stands up and looks at his friends
They all look pretty contempt
He looks at me again and they all get off the bus
The driver closes the doors and starts driving
I look at my bag, happy about what I just did, but also super traumatized by what just happened
I was so close to death, and now all I can think about is how I need to buy a new hand cream
The bus finally stops in front of my house and I get off
I take a deep breath, look at the front door, and try to act as less traumatized as possible
I open the door and step in
The house is full of all my relatives
I head to the kitchen, passing through the living room and waving with a very graceful hand at every member of the family I encounter
Very graceful indeed
I enter the kitchen and greet my mom
ME: Hi Mom.
MOM: Hi Lina, how was your day?
ME: The usual.
She hands me a sandwich
I am hungry, so I take it
I decide not to tell her, nor anyone, about what happened earlier
I thank her
ME: Thanks Mom.
My little cousin enters the kitchen
She is so cute
I pat her head as she passes me by
I leave the kitchen and head to the living room
While eating my sandwich, I pass in front of the front door
Wait, I think I just saw something
I stop and look at the front door
There is a man behind the door, but I can only see his shadow. He seems very tall...
Or is that his hair?
Oh no
It's him
The mohawk guy is here, he found me!
I start shaking again and hide behind the wall, hoping that he didn't see me
What am I supposed to do now? He is here because he knows
He knows that I lied to him
Hand cream is not "all I have"
He knows I have more, and he is here to take it from me
I look again, and I see his shadow, holding his gun and trying to open the door
Suddenly I see my cute little cousin coming out of the kitchen
This is too dangerous. I try to gesture to her not to come closer and to go back to the kitchen but she does not get it
I insist for a solid minute
She finally realizes that I am freaking out and gets back in the kitchen
10 seconds later I see my uncle in his police uniform walking slowly toward me
He knows something is wrong
UNCLE: Lina, what is it? What is wrong?
ME: Some gangsters robbed my entire bus 10 minutes ago. That guy is the one who was supposed to take my bag but I lied to him and said that all I had was a hand cream.
UNCLE: He believed you?
I nod
ME: He took the cream and left. But now he is back, he must have followed me, I don't know. I am freaking out right now.
I am so freaking out
ME: What do we do?
UNCLE: Wait here. I got this.
He takes his gun out and slowly heads toward the door
This is becoming way too scary for me
I can't look
I have zero desire to see what happens next, so I decide to just wake up
I wake up
It's the morning
I sigh
I hate mohawk