Book 1: Through a Tiger's Eyes
Book 2: Through the Eyes of a Secret Tigma
Chapter 2 – Daily Dream Goes On
“Are you sure they’re not going to find us here?” I whispered to Brittany.
“I’m sure,” she said, “When’s the last time you saw anyone back here?”
“Never, but it’s also against the rules.”
“Exactly so no one will figure to check back here. Everyone else follows the rules.”
“Okay okay,” I gave in, “What do we search for first?”
“Let’s start researching dreams.”
“But I’ve done that before. It gets me nowhere.”
“What was that last word you remember from the dream? The one that the middle aged man said after he shot you?”
“He said ‘goodbye Tigma’.”
“Did you ever think to check that?”
“No. Why didn’t I?! I should have known! As soon as I said that word yesterday, your mom’s face went completely pale. It must have to do with the word Tigma.”
“Let’s look for something.”
“Yeah let’s go.”
The back of the library is what they called “the restricted section” because it was off limits to everybody. Not even the librarian or certain members of the government could read the books in this section. Brittany and I could get into serious trouble if we get caught. Considering we’re under 18, it can’t be that bad, but I don’t want to see the look on my mom’s face if she finds out I’ve been back here. We searched for a few hours through every book we had time to look through and not one book mentioned the word Tigma.
Brittany and I sunk down against the wall out of sight.
“How is it not here?” Brittany asked, “It’s like the word doesn’t exist. How is that possible?”
“Do you really think I’m psychic?” I asked her, avoiding her questions, “What if that’s why we can’t find the word Tigma anywhere?”
“This is crazy,” Brittany said, “How is it possible? I even searched for psychics and it still doesn’t seem possible.”
“What’s happening to me?” I looked over at her, “Why is this happening?”
“We’re all destined for greater things,” she said, “Maybe you’re destined for something even greater than this world.”
“You think so?”
She smiled, “I’d like to think you’re destined for greater things than here.”
“What do you think is out there?” I asked her, “Do you think Murera is all there is? What if there are other worlds? Other places to travel to and other worlds to be in? Would you go?”
“Would you?”
“In a heartbeat.”
After a long pause I added, “We should probably go now. Our moms were expecting us home already.”
“You leave first,” she said, “I’ll follow.”
“Okay.”
I snuck through the gate of the restricted section and walked back to the normal part of the library. The librarian was on the computer and no one else was in the library. I quietly left and walked down the stairs outside. I got to the bottom step and my bag fell off my shoulder as someone bumped into me.
“I’m sorry,” I heard a guy apologize. He picked up my bag and gave it to me, looking at me for the first time. It was a guy I’ve never seen before.
“That’s okay,” I smiled, “Are you from around here?”
Things got really weird. His face went pale almost like Brittany’s mom’s did yesterday.
“Uh… other side of town,” he stuttered, “I usually don’t come over here… bye.”
He went running into the other direction, but it was the wrong way. It he was really from the other side of town, he should have gone the other way. Brittany’s hand suddenly waved in front of my face.
“Are you okay?” she asked, “You didn’t get far.”
“Did you see that guy?”
“Yeah. He was in a hurry.”
“We have to follow him,” I said and started running after him. Brittany sprinted after me.
“Why? What’s going on?” she asked as we ran.
“I’ll explain later. Let’s just follow him.”
We ran a few minutes and out of nowhere a building appeared where the wall was supposed to be. It was a giant golden palace. I have to be hallucinating. The guy ran up the stairs next to the palace and up into a balcony before disappearing.
I stopped running, causing Brittany to run into me as she screamed, “What the hell?!”
“Did… Did you.. Did you see that?” I stuttered as I could feel my face going pale.
“Did he just fly up the wall and disappear?” she asked.
“Don’t you see it?” I turned to her and threw my hand up and pointed at the palace, “How can you not see that giant palace right there?!”
“Palace?” she looked at me confused, “All I see is a wall like usual. The wall ending our world. The boundary. The wall that no one knows what’s on the other side. There’s not a palace there.”
“You really don’t see it do you?” I asked her.
She shook her head, “Explain it to me.”
I shook my head back, “I’m going crazy. That has to be it. The dreams were the start and now I’m hallucinating. Oh my God what’s happening to me?”
“Calm down, I believe you. You’re not going crazy.”
“How can you say that?” I asked her, “I’m seeing a palace that’s not really there!”
“Or I’m not seeing a palace that IS there,” she replied.
“Why do you always believe me?” I asked her.
“Because I’ve known you my entire life Lily, you wouldn’t lie. You have never once been crazy. You agreed with me yesterday when I said that something’s going on here. I think you’re getting to the bottom of the truth.”
“But the truth of what?” I said, “We have no idea what’s going on. Even the most top secret books in the world that are restricted to everyone don’t have any information on what’s happening.”
“What if they don’t know?” she said, “What if you’re figuring out some sort of myth or legend?”
“I don’t know. I just feel like I’m losing it. Why would God or whoever choose me to figure this out anyway? All I want to do is live a normal life. I want to go to school and get a job and get married and have kids then die.”
“A little dramatic are we?” she smirked.
“This isn’t funny,” I smiled, “But I’m serious. I don’t want this to be happening to me. I’m just going to do what my mom says.”
“Come on,” Brittany said, “You can’t just ignore it. There’s something here! We are so close to figuring it out. You can’t give up.”
“I don’t want this,” I told her, “Whatever’s happening to me, I don’t care. I’m ignoring it. I don’t care what the secret is.”
“Lily-“
“We have to get home. Our parents are going to freak out and then we’ll get punished more when they figure out we’ve been together.”
“Fine,” she said, “Let’s go.”
I tried as hard as I could to forget about everything that happened. I walked home alone and went straight to my room. The next two weeks blurred by. I stopped talking to Brittany just like our parents wanted and I ignored her phone calls. I’m too angry and upset so it’s easier to listen to our parents anyway. The dream came again. For the first time in years the dream changed. It started out the same but it continued. It did not end with the words “Goodbye Tigma.” I saw what happened after that. When I woke up and it was not me; I was looking through someone else’s eyes. The dream was never about me.
When I opened my eyes I almost expected to see a bright light waiting for me, but that’s not what I saw. I was back in my bedroom. I raised my shirt to reveal my chest, but there wasn't even a scar. It was so real I couldn’t have made it all up. I thought it was all a dream, but I sat up in bed and glanced around my room. My clothes from yesterday were on the floor. I walked over to the clothes and picked them up. My jeans looked perfectly fine, and when I picked up my shirt I was hoping for the same thing. My white shirt was red with blood. What was going on? How could I have recovered from a gunshot wound to the chest? It didn’t make any sense. No one could survive it. My phone started blaring It's Your Life by Francesca Battistelli and I slowly got up to answer it.
"Hello?" I asked.
"Where have you been?!" my mom started yelling.
"Mom? What happened last night?" I asked.
"I'd like to ask you the same thing. You didn't come home until after midnight"
"Oh, uh I don't know. I'm sorry mom I have to go. There are some things to figure out" I told her.
I clicked my phone closed and opened my computer. When I was 14 my parents bought me my own laptop and I started a blog named Tiger’s Eye. I made a post three or four times a week. I didn’t know what else to do. I’ve been homeschooled for most of my life so blogging was the only way to get out in the world other than sneaking out at night. There were only two things open on my computer: my email and my blog. I had one new, unknown email.
Rolla,
Wish I had time to explain. Burn your clothes, leave no trace. Hide.
I woke up at midnight and snuck out of my house and ran over to Brittany’s window. Forget ignoring her, things changed now. Knowing she always leaves the window unlocked, I opened it and climbed inside. I pushed her in her bed until she woke up.
“Lily? What the hell?”
“Shh!” I whispered, “I had another nightmare tonight.”
“So?” she sat up in her bed, “You woke me up to tell me you had another nightmare after not talking to me for weeks?”
“I’m sorry, but the dream changed.”
“What?! Why didn’t you start with that?”
“I’m sorry,” I sat on the bed next to her, “It wasn’t me. I was looking through someone else’s eyes. Whoever I am in the dream, she didn’t die when that guy shot her.”
“She didn’t? What happened? Leave nothing out!”
“Okay, well in the dream I wake up freaking out and immediately start lifting up my shirt but there’s not even a scar there. It was like it didn’t happen, which is what I thought. Then a phone started ringing and it played this song I’ve never heard of before and it was my mom I think. Not my mom but that girl’s mom.”
“I got it,” she said, “Continue.”
“Okay well after I hung up with mom I went on the computer and I checked my email and my blog or something I think. I had an anonymous email from someone…”
“What?” she asked, “Why’d you stop?”
“The girl’s name was Rolla. In the email, the anonymous sender called me Rolla.”
“Yes but what else? Don’t tell me I woke up for nothing.”
“No, sorry,” I said, “The email said something like, ‘Wish I had time to explain. Burn your clothes, leave no trace. Hide.’”
“Oh my God…”
“Brittany, I’m scared… What do I do?”