Reverie

It was dark, the sky brimming with gray, ominous clouds and the air was filled with a bitter chill. The landscape was vast, rocky and green hills laid before my eyes, and as I looked down I saw my ivory dress was covered with dirt and I was barefoot. I faintly heard a voice calling to me and so I followed it, feeling the cool rocks beneath my feet as I walked. As I neared closer to the voice, I smelled the salt air around me and heard the crashing of the waves against the cliffside. I felt a sense of calm wash over me that I couldn’t explain. I just knew that whoever was calling me, was someone that I felt safe with. I looked out beyond the horizon, and then I saw a man with piercing, green eyes. His eyes seemed to hypnotize me, because I could not leave his gaze, it was as if time had stopped and I couldn't feel anything else around me. I walked closer to him and before I could blink I was suddenly standing on the edge of a cliff. I quickly went to step back, but I lost my footing and I felt myself falling. I heard myself scream out a name, and then I heard a voice through the rushing of the wind say, “Don’t worry Violet, I will find you.”

I awoke suddenly, gasping for air. It happened the same way every night for weeks now, I'd awake from a dream where I was about to fall into an ocean. I'd feel my legs shake, and it'd wake me right before the fall. The scenery in my dream was always the same, I was surrounded by lush green hills and at the edge of a cliffside, and there was always a man with piercing green eyes, and I would always wake with those eyes being the last thing I'd see. But this time, he spoke to me. His voice was soft, and he had an accent, Irish maybe? The moment before I felt myself beginning to fall he said to me, "Don't worry Violet, I will find you." Who's Violet? And who is this man with piercing, green eyes? My mind kept racing with questions that I didn't even realize my mother was at the door.

"Adelina, are you okay?" My aunt Heidi's voice brought me back to the present. I looked up at her and smiled.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I just had a strange dream," I replied.

She looked at me with concerned brown eyes and said, "Are you sure? You were screaming."

I looked up, trying not to show my surprise and asked quietly, "Did I say anything when I screamed? Maybe a name?"

"You said Hunter. Do you know a Hunter? And if you do, why haven't I met him?" she replied.

"He's just some character in a movie I watched last night," I lied. I smiled at my aunt, reassuring her that I was okay, even though now I had more questions than answers. She smiled back at me, and gently kissed me on the forehead. We hugged each other then said goodnight again, and she left shutting my door behind her.

I woke up a few hours later to the serene sound of birds chirping outside my window, and the early morning sun peeking through the shades. My kitten, Onyx, greeted me with meows and purrs as she curled up next to me. Her green eyes popped in contrast to her jet black coat and she purred louder as I pet her for a few minutes. Slowly, I pulled the covers back and crawled out of bed. I checked my phone for the time, 7:15 A.M. Shit, I'm going to be late for class. I quickly rummaged through my closet to find something to wear. I decided on a maroon skater dress sans stockings, black booties, and I threw my long auburn hair up in a high ponytail with an emerald velvet scrunchie. I quickly made sure I looked presentable in my freestanding mirror before running down the stairs. My mom was making eggs when I walked into the kitchen, where I quickly grabbed a protein bar, bottle of water, and filled my coffee mug to the brim.

"Want some eggs?" My aunt asked over her shoulder. Her jet black hair graced the top of her shoulders, and sometimes I wondered what my own mother's hair looked like. Did she have straight hair like me? Or was she all curls like my aunt Heidi?

"I can't, running late as usual. I grabbed something for the road," I replied. "Okay. Have a good day. Love you!" She yelled as I walked towards the door.

"Love you too!" I yelled back and then shut the front door behind me.