“Go on,” Bray said. They were inching through Main Street. He rolled down the windows letting fresh air into the car.
“Look at this!” Lil held up her right hand, showing him the one finger with distinctive nail polish. She wasn't capable of such intricate detail. It was stunning.
Bray looked at her hand before returning his focus to the traffic ahead of him. “Okay, you painted your fingernail.”
“I didn't do this.” Lil gestured with her left hand. “I dreamt about it. I've never had a dream where I woke up and something from it was real.” She hoped he didn't think she'd gone off the deep end.
“It's weird, but maybe you were sleepwalking. Or sleep nail-painting?” he joked. “I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation for what happened.”
Lil wanted to believe everything was normal, but the dream felt real. She didn't tell him how it frightened her—the sky, the wind, the creature that landed on her house. “I don't think so. It gets stranger, Bray. During English class, I saw this guy from my dream. Outside . . . He stood by the clearing. I took a hall pass and went out after him, but he was already gone when I got there.”
“Did anyone else see him?”
“I'm not hallucinating.” She crossed her arms and stared out the side window. “The guy I saw was definitely from my dream.”
Bray sighed. “Maybe he was. Is it possible you’ve seen him around town and then dreamt about him?”
“If that were true, how would it explain my fingernail?”
“I'm sure whatever it was won't happen again.”
“I hope you're right.” Lil didn’t want to revisit the dream world.
“I can crash at your place tonight. My dad's working all weekend, and Mom doesn't even notice when I'm not home.” Bray turned right, into the Cedar Heights subdivision, away from the stream of traffic.
“Are you sure?” Lil's face perked up a bit at the thought of Bray staying over for the night. It wasn't as though he hadn't spent countless nights at her house while they were kids. They'd been best friends as long as Lil could remember, and they shared a ton of things in common including movies, junk food, and video games.
“I promise that if any weird dreams happen, I will be there to witness them and protect you,” Bray said. “Could be fun, trying to get into the mind of Willow Porter.”
Lil hated being called by her given name. “You are not getting into my mind, Braylon Presul!” She laughed. “You can hang out, but if you so much as try to suggest any dreams to me . . . ” She held up a finger at him, warning him she wouldn't put up with any dream manipulation.
Bray grinned. “Don't call me Braylon.” He nudged her. “And you have a deal. Do you want to hang out now too?” He pulled up in front of his house and put the car in park, waiting for her answer.
“Yes. I thought you'd never ask.” Lil grinned. He always knew how to distract her. “Grab your bag. I'm holding you hostage for tonight.”
“Are you sure your mom won't mind if I stay over?”
Lil always asked permission before inviting friends over, both out of respect for her parents and because she had to. “She has this rule that no boys are allowed to stay over but you.” A hint of a smile formed on Lil’s lips. “She finds you harmless, and besides she loves your parents.” They grabbed their school bags and walked across the street. Lil unlocked the front door and opened it, stepping inside. “She'll say yes, and Dad leaves everything up to her. Mom!” She laughed, shaking her head. She had forgotten her mother wasn't home. “Oh right. She's got work today.”
“Your mom's working again?” Bray asked. “That's good, right? Gets her out of the house?”
Lil dropped her bag and shoes by the door. She walked into the kitchen and nodded. “Yeah, but I have to watch Jamey and start dinner.” She hated babysitting her little sister. She only had one, but it was one too many.
“Oh, such a tough life. Jamey isn't that bad. What's your mom doing anyway?”
“Your dad got her a job at the Awareness Initiative.” Bray's father worked for a technology company in Cosima. They were at the cutting edge of innovation, or so they claimed. Lil didn't quite understand what they were doing—and most projects were top secret, which ensured she'd never find out. But that didn't stop her from repeatedly asking.
Bray frowned. “Really? Your mom has a degree in science?”
“Yes, girls can be just as smart as boys. Don't you forget that,” she warned.
Bray held up his hands in surrender. “I was not implying otherwise. I just don’t remember your mom ever being interested in science or talking with my dad about it.”
Lil paused. She couldn't recall a discussion between their parents about anyone's profession. It wasn't that she cared though. Most of the time when Lil and Bray were together, they hung out, joked around, and had fun. They rarely paid attention to their parents. Besides, if her mother's projects were hush-hush, she was certain Bray's father’s were as well. “Okay, you have me on that one. I do remember Mom telling me your dad got her a job.”
“Mind if I start up the game,
Death Run
?” Bray asked.
“Yes.” Lil laughed. “You don't get a head start, and I want a snack. Are you hungry?”
Bray sneaked up behind Lil in the kitchen, startling her. “When aren't I?” His breath tickled her neck.
Lil let out an anxious breath. A current of butterflies oscillated through her at his proximity. It wasn't as though they'd never stood close. In fact, Bray was always the boy who offered to put suntan lotion on her back when they went swimming at the community pool. She didn't think anything of it. They were best friends. She pushed all thoughts aside. “Fine, fine.” Lil opened the cabinets, leaving it up to Bray to decide what to eat. “Help yourself,” she said, slipping away, trying to hide her discomfort.
Bray seemed oblivious as he glanced through the cabinets. “Don't I always?” He pulled out chips, pretzels, and snack mix. Lil gave him a look.
“What? You said help yourself.”
Lil laughed. “Yes, but I didn't say eat all our food.” She rolled her eyes and shut the cabinets behind him.
“Semantics.” Bray grabbed the bags of junk food, taking them into the living room where the video game console was. “When does your sister get home?”
“Around four.” Lil checked the clock. “If the bus is on time. You know how the good ol' Cosima Public Transportation system is . . . crappy as ever.” There were two hours of free time until Lil had to entertain Jamey, which consisted of sitting her in front of the television and putting a movie on.
Bray powered up the console while Lil turned on the television. “It's Missouri,” Bray said. “What do you expect? At least you don't have to pick her up every day.”
“Put the game on. It's time for you to lose to a girl.” The grin never left her face as she plopped down on the sofa, controller in hand.
Two hours later, Lil paused the game with a frown. “Did you hear something?” She glanced around the room. Not seeing anyone, she shook her head, returning to the game at hand.
“I think that was your sister.” Bray caught sight of the muddy shoes in the foyer. “Must be raining or she fell in a swamp.” There weren't any swamps in Missouri, let alone on the way home from the bus stop. The room darkened, but Lil didn't notice. She was focused on winning.
“Must be.” Lil shrugged, pushing harder and faster on the controls as her character in the game died. She cursed beneath her breath. “I can't believe you distracted me!”
“
I
distracted
you
?” Bray asked with a smile. “You've got to be kidding me. You didn't even notice Jamey.”
Lil turned off the console and stood, stretching as she glanced up toward the balcony. After a moment, she heard a commotion upstairs and eyed her watch. “I should put on dinner.” She headed for the kitchen. Thunder rumbled in the distance. “Clean up the living room, will you?”
“Me?” Bray grabbed the half-eaten bags of snacks and lifted them into his arms, carrying them back into the kitchen to put back in the cabinets. “I'm the guest. You should be waiting on me.”
Lil stopped and turned around. Bray's hands were full with the junk food. “Don’t hold your breath.”
Bray grumbled, pushing past Lil as he juggled the bags and opened the cabinets, placing the snacks back where they belonged.
After several hours of video games, junk food, and dinner, both Bray and Lil found themselves in front of the television, watching movie after movie. Her parents had come home late, cleaned up the dinner dishes, and gone to bed. Bray and Lil struggled to stay awake. “I swear I'm not tired.” Lil said, fighting the urge to sleep. After the previous night, she didn't want to shut her eyes, afraid what she’d seen this morning hadn't been a dream.
“I'm not going anywhere. I told you that and I meant it.” Bray shifted closer beside her, both of them buried in blankets on the living room floor.
The upstairs hallway creaked, and Lil turned around, glancing up toward the balcony loft where Jamey hid behind the railing. “Jamey, go to bed!” Lil hissed.
“I'm not tired,” Jamey whined, climbing down the stairs, her hands playing with the banister railing as she peeked into the living room at them. “Can I watch a movie with you?”
“No.” Lil shook her head. “It's late.”
“Lil's right, Jamey.” Bray pushed himself up from the pillow. “It is way past your bedtime.”
“You two are no fun.” Jamey pouted, crossing her arms as she stomped back up the stairs.
“Bet that'll wake your parents.” Bray shifted and put his head back down on the pillow.
Lil laughed. “I doubt it. Those two can sleep through anything.”
“I bet that's what they want you to think, so they don't have to deal with your sister.” He smiled, pointing up toward Jamey where she crouched once again in the loft.
Lil's voice rose. “Go to bed, Jamey!”
Jamey scampered off down the hall and shut the bedroom door behind her.
Lil shifted back down, resting her head on the pillow. Bray reached for the remote, shutting the television off as the credits of the forgotten movie rolled in the background.
“I'm still not tired.” Lil stared at Bray in the darkness.
“You have to fall asleep eventually.” He reached out, his hand brushing a stray hair from Lil's eyes. “If you have a nightmare, and I'm sure you won't, I'll be right here.”
Lil nodded. At least she wasn't alone. The dream hadn't been that horrific. The reality of it after she woke up had frightened her. “I'm sure I'll be fine.” Lil yawned, her eyelids growing heavy. “I didn't tell you about the rest of the dream. There was a girl who looked exactly like me.”
Bray smiled. “Then it must have been a dream, because your only sister is six years younger than you.”
Lil slid a hand beneath the pillow as she closed her eyes. “I guess so. Goodnight.”
Watching the rise and fall of her chest lulled him toward sleep. “Sweet dreams, Lil. Sweet dreams.”
Lil shifted onto her back, rolling around as the morning light stirred her awake along with the soft sound of footsteps against the floorboards. “Bray?” Lil mumbled, half-asleep, knowing if he was beside her then she wasn't dreaming.
“Hmm?” He refused to open his eyes and wake up just yet. He was not a morning person.
Lil breathed a sigh of relief, grateful she hadn't experienced any weird dreams. Perhaps whatever had happened was a simple oddness in passing with no explanation. It didn't explain the boy outside school during English class, but she pushed that thought aside. Her eyes opened and she caught a glimpse of her mother heading into the kitchen. It was earlier than she expected to see her, but stranger things had happened. If she expected anyone, it was her sister, but Jamey was up late and was probably still asleep. Lil slipped out from her blankets and pattered off to the kitchen.
“You're awake early,” her mother said.
“Looks like I’m not the only one.” Lil had been surprised her mother was up and out of bed. It seemed like Lil never saw her these days.
Her mom smiled, dropping a kiss to Lil's head. “You and I need to talk later.”
Lil rolled her eyes, assuming it had to do with Bray spending the night. “It's just Bray.” Lil didn't see the big deal in him spending the night. “We're friends. We have been as long as I can remember. Don't turn this into something that it's not.”
Lil's mother sighed, watching her daughter, but let the subject drop. “I have somewhere to be.” She glanced at her watch. “Your father should be up soon to make breakfast.”
“You’re working on Saturday?” Lil frowned. Her mom hadn't worked weekends in a long time. “Are you working on a big project?”
Her mother nodded, packing up her purse. Only then did Lil realize her mother was dressed for work. “I'll see you later. Stay out of trouble,” she warned, before grabbing her keys and heading out the front door.
Lil tiptoed back into the living room, careful not to wake Bray.
“Hey, how'd you sleep?” Bray's voice rasped from the comfort of his blankets on the floor.
“I don't remember any dreams. I guess that's good.” Lil glanced down at her fingernails. The polish was still there. She’d never bothered to find the nail polish remover. Would it even take the polish off? She picked at her nail, finding it impossible to chip away.
“Everything okay?” Bray asked, sitting up on the floor. “I thought I heard your mom.”
Lil nodded and sat beneath the covers, keeping herself warm. “Yeah, I guess she had work. She went out, somewhere. Did you have any weird dreams?”
“Only dreams of you and me together.”
With a laugh, Lil leaned forward, pushing his chest and knocking him onto his back. He let out a loud groan as he hit the floor. “You're gross,” she said and shook her head, staring down at him.
Bray smiled up at her. “That's why you hang around me.”
“I hang around you because you know all the physics answers,” she said.
Bray raised one eyebrow. “Is that so?” He glanced past Lil as Jamey descended the stairs. “Maybe from now on we shouldn't be lab partners.”
Lil's eyes widened in horror. “You wouldn't dare!”
Jamey padded down the steps. “What are you talking about?”
Bray smiled. “How Lil needs to find a new lab partner for physics.”