A Stranger

Sitting up in bed, sunlight peeking through the curtains, alarm gently chirping . John has always found it hard to remember the details of his dreams but something about last night’s is different. He was someone else. He had a different body. Not for very long, but the sensation he’s been left with is impossible to ignore.

John gets out of bed and gets dressed. Throughout the day he can’t shake the feeling the dream has left him with. Moments crop up in his mind without warning, a pleasant distraction from the slow and uneventful work day he’s plodded through on autopilot hundreds of times.

He is joking around with coworkers when he gets a text from Mara:

“Thanks for bringing the snacks the other night! I can’t believe Ellie made us do that ritual xD. You free this weekend?”

The ritual! How had he not thought of that. It was so stupid, some simple sleepover fun, but is there any chance it actually worked?

“Should be free! If only the ritual could have made Mondays a holiday!”

After a long day John finally gets home. He grabs a beer from the fridge and drops onto the couch, turning on the final period of the Rangers game. A second and third beer follow and just before sleep is about to take him he’s met with an overwhelming sense of anticipation. Could last night’s dream repeat itself?