The walk home is silent for the most part. Untill Anna pipes up
“Your pretty quiet today”
Ari continues looking in front of her contemplatively “yeah, sorry”
Anna drops the conversation for a moment allowing Ari to continue on with her thoughts, she then notices a blush forming across Ari’s cheeks and grins.
“Musta been a good dream huh?”
Ari turn her attention to Anna with a dumbfounded look on her face “Huh, why do you say that?”
Anna replies “ Well…your blushing for no apparent reason. So I don’t know lets call it a hunch?”
Ari remains quiet for a moment and then answers “ It wasn’t like your thinking. It was about this woman-“ she is cut off by Anna’s grin growing wider
“Really? A woman huh? Naughty naughty” Anna giggles and waves her finger at Ari.
Ari just shakes her head “ Anyway, I don’t know who it was, it was weird…but I dunno, confusing I guess”
Anna continues to smile “It’s…the woman of your dreams of course!”
A hint of a smile forms across Ari’s lips but she tries to hide it as her thoughts return to that woman, her blush increasing as she remembers the way the woman’s hand felt upon her cheek….
When they finally arrive home (a second story apartment) Anna unlocks the door and steps inside.i and Anna stop and stare, seeing 3 people sitting around in the living room, playing video games and drinking. One they recognize as Kae--- Anna’s girlfriend.
The girl quickly gets up and runs to Anna to hug and kiss her “Your finally home!”
Ari stands there staring at the other two people, and then at Kae, glaring at her.
Anna more confused than anything asks Kae “Who are these people?”
Kae responds smiling “Their my friends! I invited them over”
Anna sighs “And why did you let people in here we don’t know?”
Kae responds “You can trust them, they aren’t doing anything wrong!”
Ari shakes her head “Trust them? I don’t even trust you, We don’t know these people, yet you are letting them drink what’s ours and use our stuff. You don’t have the authority in this house to do that. You don’t even live here!”
Kae fumes “This may not be my apartment, but it isn’t solely yours either. I don’t need your permission, only Anna’s!”
The two of them look at Anna, whom seems frozen and unable to say anything.
Ari shakes her head again “I should have known, it’s ok Anna, don’t worry about it”
She then heads for the door.
Anna calls out to her “where are you going…?”
Ari shrugs her shoulders and closes the door behind her.
She walks down the sidewalk with the evening light fading into night, her breaths very visible as it hits the cold air. As she goes over the events in her head, she expected to feel angry and betrayed…but all she can feel is sorrow; in knowing her feelings were right.
She always felt like she didn’t belong in this world, like it was a mistake that she was even here…so of course finding a friend that was truly hers, a soul mate, was impossible. There was no one in this world for her, and thinking that there was- was just wishful thinking. She has grown to accept this fate along the years and just sighs, knowing she shouldn’t have gotten her hopes up. “…ohwell”
Before long Ari finds herself at a near-by park, she sets herself on a swing and holds onto the chains and stares up at the sky. Her thoughts begin wandering back to the woman in her dream, a smile creeps across her lips and she speaks to herself “I wonder if I’ll ever see her again…”
She chuckles to herself and shakes her head “I really must be going insane, speaking as if she were real” and then closes her eyes as she breaths in.
Ari’s then hears an oddly familiar voice “What if you were?” and she opens her eyes and quickly turns to face the owner of that voice.
She sees that it’s the woman from her dream, standing right before her. She quickly looks around to see that she still seems to be in the park, but now the light is different…still the same grey sky, but somehow brighter…and yet foggier.
Her focus is set upon the woman again and cant help but ask “I’m dreaming again aren’t I?”
The woman sits on the swing next to her and answers “Perhaps”
Ari watches the woman carefully for a moment before asking “Who are you anyway?”
She figures if this is a dream, what’s the harm in being blunt?
The woman begins to swing a little as she replies “Isn’t it obvious?”
Ari quirks her eyebrow in confusion “…no?”
The woman glances at Ari with a smile “I’m the woman of your dreams”
Ari can’t help but smile now, she doesn’t know why this woman feels so familiar, he actions…her attitude…her face…
“Ok then…why are you in my dreams?” Ari continues on her line of questioning
The woman ponders this question for a moment, before replying “Because I want to be”
Ari looks at the woman incredulously “ok ok…so then are you real? Or just a figment of my apparently vivid imagination?”
This question causes the woman to stop swinging, Ari wonders if this question might have upset her, but she can’t think of a reason for that either.
“ I am not just a figment of your imagination…but I am also not a part of your world either, so I guess it depends on what your definition of real is.”
Ari feeling even more confused, leans her head back to look up into the grey sky again. “Maybe I really AM going insane…falling asleep in the park now, and before on campus grounds in the snow of all places…and having a very confusing discussion with someone in my head.”
The woman reaches over and touches Ari’s arm. “You will have answers in time”
Ari stares at the woman’s hand for a moment, the touch sending chills all across her skin.
“You shouldn’t accept being alone.” She hears the woman continue “I’ll be here” she then notices a small smile playing on the woman’s lips, but still seeing the deep sorrow in her swirling blues.
And then the words hit her, her heart begins to race and a faint blush appears across her cheeks. As she feels she is going to pass out just from those words….she opens her eyes to see the woman gone…and the park back to normal.
She feels the cold air upon her skin, and hugs herself for warmth. Before she leaves she looks around one last time, staring at the swing next to her…and begins heading home for the second time that day.