I JUMPED in my sheets. The nightmares I had often made me frantic, but I shouldn’t have a reason to be scared. I assured myself that the girl who had just entered the nurse’s office was nothing like Cassandra. Cassandra wasn’t the type who’d engulf me in a bear hug and nuzzle against my cheek.

“Quinn,” the new girl beamed. “I’m so glad you’re okay!”

That was Harumi, my roommate and number one invader of personal space. She always had a floral scent attached to her, and at times, I would stifle a gag due to the overwhelming fragrance. However, it became less and less of a deal as I got used to it. In fact, I would sometimes wonder how she smelled so nice all the time—even after gym class.

“Yeah,” I chuckled. “Thanks.”

I gingerly patted Harumi’s back as I gently pulled away. That was when I noticed the paper bag in her hand, making my stomach churn.

The recurring nightmares had pretty much wrecked my appetite, and apparently, Harumi noticed how little I’d been eating those past few days. She didn’t like it.

“Here, have something to eat first,” she said, opening the bag and placing a styrofoam bowl of soup on my lap. It was sealed with a plastic lid, a little disposable spoon taped on its surface.

Curtis peered into the bag. “Hey, is there something in there for me?”

Harumi snatched it away. “Hey! You’re not the patient here.”

He grinned mischievously. “You can’t hide that burger from me forever, you know?”

She snarled. “My burger.”

Rule number one: Never get in between Harumi and food. Ever. Don’t you dare even think about it.

Curtis raised his hands in defeat. “Fine. I’ll just head to the caf myself. I’ll be right back.”

He then spun on his heel and left, and I just stared at the door as his footsteps faded down the hall.

“Hey, aren’t you going to eat that?” Harumi then asked.

I sighed. “Thanks, Harumi, but I’m just not hungry.”

“Quinn, you have to eat something. Otherwise, you’ll just end up passing out again.”

“I appreciate your concern; I truly do, but—”

You know, the nightmares themselves wouldn’t bother me if they weren’t so constant and recurring, but because they were,
I was brought to a whole new level of derangement. I didn’t want to see my reflection in the mirror; Cassandra was creepy that way. I became terrified of dark places, and oh, there was this time I developed an irrational fear of trees—good thing I lived in the city.

“But what?” Harumi leaned against the wall. She eyed me, and then the soup, and then back at me with a worried look on her face. “Quinn, what’s going on?”

I took a deep breath. “Oh, nothing. I just had a nightmare.”

There it was. I finally let it out.

“Oh, I see.” Harumi took the burger out of the paper bag and began munching on it. She chewed audaciously and swallowed with a satisfying gulp. “Well, don’t worry about it, okay? Everyone has bad dreams from time to time. Mind telling me about it?”

Then, I chuckled. “I think my evil twin’s out to kill me.”

When I said it that way, it was actually quite laughable. Maybe I was just overthinking. For sure, my mind wasn’t the friendliest place I’d ever encountered.

However, Harumi didn’t think it was funny. From the way she furrowed her eyebrows and stroked her chin, she actually looked quite nervous.

“I dunno, Quinn,” she mused. “Don’t nightmares always have a meaning to them? Like they’re trying to warn you of something?”

I tensed. “What do you mean?”

“Remember when I was too lazy to study for that mythology quiz? Well, that night, I had a dream that I was running late, and then the halls began magically turning into Greek temples. And guess what?”

“You flunked the quiz?”

“Nah, I actually passed. Barely.”

“What’s your point again?”

She blinked. “You know what? Forget it. Since you’re okay now, you’d better eat up.”

I looked at the bowl of soup in my hands and thought that Harumi was evil—well, not really, but perhaps she had strategically planned to give me something that smelled so good that I just had to give in.

“Fine,” I said, “if you insist.”

I took my first spoonful, and all my worries melted into hunger. Scrumptious flavors danced on my tongue, and before I knew it, I was scarfing down the whole bowl.

Harumi smiled. “Feeling any better now?”

I slurped the last of my soup. “Yeah. Thanks a lot!”

“Well, that’s good to hear. When Curtis gets back, we have a lot to discuss.”