Yup, hit the snooze button one too many times. Okay maybe three too many. But the day is started now, so lets get rolling. Set those timers for fifteen minutes and let’s see what comes out of the brain.
I think that this is going to be one of those things where I have to figure out the two stories. One dealing with the dreams and one dealing with the conversation in the living room. Lots of figuring out, but I really like stories with intertwining lines. So this could be fun to work out. Many places it could go, which is nice. I do like the prompts that start with conversations. It feels like you’re jumping into an in progress story. They require more thought to figure out, but I am okay with that.
Wednesday, June 14th: I am off to bed.
“I am off to bed,” Janie announced as she headed towards the stairs. She yawned and stretched as she moved. Part of it was for show and part was to convince herself that it was time to sleep. The show part was put on for Harold and Francine. They had been looking at each other all evening. The looks hadn’t been friendly. But this far, the conversation had been avoided.
Janie and the others exchanged their own looks and one by one they each finished what they were doing and declared themselves for bed. All of them knew from past experience if all of them went at the same time the two of them would decide the evening was over and go their own separate ways. All of them hoped that this one at a time drifting would encourage them to stay and finally have the conversation they needed to have. In the kitchen they drew straws to determine the order and Janie with the short straw drew last.
“Good night,” she called as she started up the stairs. She received two “’nights,’ in response and nearly sighed with relief as neither of them moved from the space. Everyone knew the conversation wouldn’t be a pleasant one, but they had been dancing around it for far too long and it needed to be done.
Once she was up the stairs and heading down the corridor towards her room, it was herself she tried to convince that she was tired. For the past week her sleep had become increasingly restless. Snippets of nightmares danced in her head and startled her out of what sleep she found before the dream could fully form. She was left with vague impressions of an old house and half heard conversations but not much more.
She didn’t know the house, yet it seemed vaguely familiar, like it was part of a back drop used for several movies. Familiar, yet not really known. She had no idea what caused them. Normally she didn’t have nightmares. She didn’t tend to dream all that much at all in general. When she did it was the feeling of running but never getting anywhere and that familiar dream was triggered by stress and overwork. When she started having it, she knew it was time to take a break.
She had no idea what these dreams heralded.
“Hopefully, tonight,” she started to mutter. Tina’s head peeked through her door.
“Does that mean they are still downstairs?” she asked in a stage whisper.
Janie nodded. Tina smiled and gave her two thumbs up before retreating back into her room and closing the door. Janie kept her thoughts to herself as she opened the door to her own room and stepped inside.
“Sleep,” she told herself. “I am sleepy.” She thought of the old television shows featuring mesmerists. “You are getting very sleepy,” she told herself. She pulled her clothes off and dropped them in the hamper. She slipped on the oversized t-shirt on and glanced towards the bathroom. A lifetime habit of washing her face and brushing her teeth before bed tried to assert itself. She suspected the water might shake some of the sleep she could feel beginning to tug at her away.
“Dr. Jensen will just have to understand and I will brush twice in the morning to make up for it.” She continued towards the bed, ignoring the bathroom.
Ten til Midnight 