Day 2

I have got to be more careful. I didn't know Shelly would come into my room. I was heading to the bathroom to change my underwear when I heard Shelly's door creak (it was a very quiet night). I launched myself as silently as possible back into my bed and pretended to be asleep. My door soon creaked open, and Shelley tiptoed in. We were both so quiet that I could hear her breathing.

By opening my eyes just a little I saw her checking the area where the door was in the dream. Of course. I couldn't see her, but I could imagine her wearing a sheer nightdress, cum trickling down her thighs. Then she knelt down beside me, which meant I had to close my eyes, just in case. Then she got up and left.

Although I couldn't see her beautiful naked body in our dream (I definitely could if I wanted to, but patience!), I know she had seen mine. I know she had masturbated me, secretly, in that tunnel that existed only in our shared dream world.

"How tall are you, John?" She asks me at breakfast.

"Uh, it's been a while since I last measured. Why?"

"No reason," she says.

When she's done eating, she puts the dishes away and stands behind me, suddenly resting her hand on my shoulder. Her thumb kneads the back of my neck as she does so. I flinch a little, because she had never done this before.

"Dad," she says, "are you going for any working trips this weekend?"

"Well, yes, dear," he says. "I'm actually leaving this Saturday morning. Won't be back till Monday. Your mother's going out of state to visit Aunt Jessica this Saturday too. So please take care of the house. If you want to have a party, remember to clean up."

"Oh, no parties," she says, and turns to me, and smiles. "Just us."

"Okay, dear."

When she leaves, her hand doesn't just depart but trails the length to my elbow, gently, snugly, sisterly. Mom and dad saw none of it.

Hours later, I'm at class. Ms. Thompson is talking about parallel universes, which is way out of our syllabus but she does it for the love of science. Maybe that's what these dreams are? And somehow I've found a way to connect them, align mine with someone else's? I peer over and see Ellie asleep in the back. She always sleeps in class, or daydreams. She's been like that since I knew her, which makes me wonder how she's not failing. I doubt she'd even care.

Can my dreams work with naps? Only one way to find out.

I close my eyes, take a few deep breaths, and I'm in.

-- Ellie's POV --

I'm at high school again... this brings back memories. Mostly sad ones, but I'm glad they're only memories now.

I know this is a dream, for some reason. But it feels so real. My sneakers still squeak on these floors, and I can see all the pretty little paint blemishes on the lockers. Nobody else is here. I find it kind of peaceful.

Then I hear Stephanie's voice. Stephanie, and her gang of girls, even in my dream! I try my best to rid them, to wish them far away, but I still hear their laughs inside the girl's locker room. I turn to run away, but then I hear a familiar voice. A boy's voice, in the girl's locker room.

"Help!" he cries.

John?

I can't just run away.

I push the door wide open. Stephanie and his girls turn to see me. But John, poor John! A rope is suspended from the ceiling, and his hands are tied with it, hoisting him in the air. It doesn't look comfortable at all. And he's blindfolded, and... wearing only a towel around his waist...

"Who's there?" he says, and I make no noise. I can't imagine what he'll think if I see him like this.

"Who are you?" Stephanie says.

She doesn't remember me?

I don't say anything, I can't move, I'm scared. But, at last I manage to say, "can you let him go?"

Stephanie cracks into laughter. "Who do you think you are?" she says, and the girls surround me and block the exit. I try my best to not cry, because this is a nightmare I thought I would never face again.

"Why are you doing this to him?" I say.

"That's none of your business," Stephanie hisses back. She wets a ball of toilet paper and throws it at me. It's the same thing all over again. "But, we'll offer you a choice. The bell is going to ring, and soon everybody will come rushing in here. Your ass, in the toilet bowl, or strip him."

I know what that meant. They always did this when they catch me after school. I don't know why they hate me, but they do. They'll push me into the toilet bowl and flush it and throw toilet paper at me and I have to miss the buss because my pants are really wet and I'm crying and I have to get all the wet toilet paper out of my hair.

"Whoever you are," John says, "I understand. It's fine." Oh, John. He looks just like how he is right now, outside of the dream. He's tall, he's kind, and his body looks kind of nice. God, what am I thinking! But his body does look nice. If it weren't for that towel...

"So?" Stephanie yells.

I step forward and I can't believe I'm stepping forward to John. His arms are still dangling. It's a dream anyway, right? But that's not the point! I can't do this. John is my friend. I can't be this selfish.

But he doesn't know. He's blindfolded. He won't know. It's just one little pull. But I can't! But his body looks even better up close. But that's selfish! I can't let him suffer that embarrassment just to save myself.

"Just do it," John says. Even he agrees!

Suddenly it's so quiet. I look around and Stephanie isn't here anymore, neither are her girls, and it's just John's body and his abs and his towel in front of me. I can just pull it. Just one little pull. My fingers are shaking. It's just a dream, right? I want to know how John looks like, down there. I'm just looking. I'm not doing anything. I'm just going to -

The world is going white and I'm back in class.

"See you next Tuesday," Ms. Thompson says, and everybody is exiting the room. I swipe my hair away from my face.

It's just a dream. Don't be stupid, Ellie. It's just a dream.

But I was so close!

I immediately search for John. He's packing his books, and sees me, and smiles, and approaches me, his bag a sling on his shoulder. Oh, I remember how his body looks like under his shirt, I can imagine it when he moves.

"Ellie?" he says, bringing me out of my daze. "You okay?"

I realize I'm staring at his crotch and snap away. I wonder if he realized anything. "Um, yeah, yeah, I am. Thanks for asking." I smile.