2 diet cokes, 2 Dragon's Breath (lemonade, mint extract, vanilla extract and a lime wedge. 1 of 2 signature drinks) loaded nachos and 4 cheeseburgers with fries. The same order every night. Never any alcohol, which I found odd. The only ones who ever ordered a drink was Felix and Aiden and even for them it was one and done. I served them their food with a smile and went about my business. About 30 minutes later they got up to leave, I made my way there and Lex handed me my tip with a quick nod and they left out the back. I went ahead and started cleaning their table, it was busy and we needed it.

What happened next happened fast. I was scrubbing the table down with a cloth when I felt my unease grow. The fine hairs at the nape of my neck and on my arms started to stand and I could feel the prickling sensation. Tray of dishes in hand I began to look around. There was nothing strange, but then I saw her. A little girl, about 6, she looked related to me but I didn't know her. As far as I was told, I didn't have any biological siblings or cousins. I stood there frozen, staring at this girl who was so out of place in this room, staring at a face I knew but simultaneously didn't. 

Then, a flash.

**********

I'm in a grand living room, I've been here in my nightmares too many times to count. Cops are everywhere, checking things, snapping photos. Bodies are on the floor. The house is wrecked. That freaky symbol is on every wall, the blood dripping from every line. And as always nothing is moving, like mannequins in a store. They're real but they're frozen. The only thing moving is me and the 10 year old me. She's kneeling in front of the big bay window staring into the night, ragged breaths rippling through her body. I walk to the window beside her and look down, I've never felt so conscious in my dreams before. I know she's me, but she's such a stranger. Her face is stained with tears she stopped crying long ago, her hair is matted with blood and so are her clothes. She's making no noise other than her breathing, she's empty of any emotion. This is where I always wake up. I brace myself for the moment I startle awake... nothing.

I'm still here, in this nightmare. Everything is as it was. Then the most unsettling thing happens. She turns and looks right at me, like she really sees me. This can't be real, she's not real, she can't possibly be looking at me, dreams can't comprehend your presence. She lifts her finger to her mouth.

"Shhhh." She whispers.

My heart is in my throat.

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

My racing heart is all I hear in the thick silence between us as we stare at one another.

Her eyes grow wide.

"Run!" She shouts through clenched teeth, eyes wide in fright.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

He's coming!

Then, the flash.

**********

Everything is blurry and slow. I start to wake up and suddenly become aware that I'm on my knees in the cold winter air. There's a man squatting in front of me, I'm dimly aware that he's chuckling as he waves his hand in my face.

Things start to speed up. His eyes are light brown with a pretty honey color to them, his hair is bright white. Slightly to his left and behind him there's another man. He's silently watching me like a wolf eyes his prey before striking, but I can see a little concern in his eyes. They're stormy grey.

Things hit me at full blast. I can hear the commotion of the bar behind me.

"Hellooooo!" The white haired man is cooing.

"You with us?" It's Ari.

"What happened?" I ask weakly, taking in my surroundings. I'm on my knees out the back door.

"You walked outside, stopped, stood still a moment, dropped to your knees and started sifting glass though your hands!"

I looked down. There was food and broken dishes everywhere, I lifted my hands and they were covered in my own blood. Ari sat there looking at me half smiling, waiting for me to explain. The other one, who I now realize is Lex, is still watching me. I can't tell if he's confused or genuinely concerned. We lock eyes and he looks away. The twins aren't far behind, peeking at us to see whats going on and if this is a prank they can use later.

"Hey..."Ari said, bringing me back to the moment. "Are you alright?" He looks worried now.

"I'm fine..." I said weakly "Just lost my head a bit"

I quickly stood up and rushed inside, I didn't need to look back to see that they were confused as I hurried away. I hurried into the bathroom and bolted the door. I began to run my hands beneath the cool water, dimly aware of the sting from all the little cuts. I was trembling now, not because of the cold, but out of fear. I didn't know who he was. But he was coming for me. I began to sob as I gripped the sink for stability.

"God..." I cried between sobs. "Please help me!"

_____

 I spent several minutes taking deep breaths and calming myself, I didn't want to look like the mess I was. When I left the bathroom I was worse for wear but functioning. Thankfully, the cuts were shallow and had stopped bleeding, so I threw on some latex gloves and finished my shift. I didn't know what was happening, I had never had a nightmare happen while I was wide awake, and it had never made me sleep walk before. It certainly hadn't made me harm myself. My head was throbbing, I knew deep down all my emotions were making me tired but I was terrified to sleep. If I'm seeing all this awake, what's gonna happen when I sleep?

"Hey!" I heard Kirstie call out from behind me.

I turned sharply and it must have been very evident I was stressed and on edge. She gave me a worried look.

"Are you ok? Where did you disappear to? And why are you wearing gloves?" She asked in quick succession. All reasonable questions, but this had been an unreasonable day, my mind wasn't able to fully process both sides right now. I started stammering like an idiot trying to think of something to say that would explain this without saying I'm crazy.

"Hey, hey, hey." She said as she gently grabbed my shoulders.

"It's ok, relax. Did something happen? Did someone try something? Just tell me who, I'll bloody kill them!"

At that I smiled. She was such a big sister, and I knew she'd back up every word.

"I'm fine." I sighed. "I just need to get home and sleep."

"Alright..." She started to calm down but she was still concerned. "Do you want me to walk you home, maybe make you some tea?"

"No, I'll be fine."

"Well, text me when you walk through your door or I'm gonna come barging in to check on you."

"Ugh, fine." I laughed and hugged her tight.

I wasn't closing that night so I didn't bother locking anything up, I just grabbed my things and headed out the back. I stepped out and immediately noticed the Ryker boys all gathered at the half wall. They didn't usually hang around here, and definitely not as this time. Lex was casually leaning on the wall with his feet and arms crossed, he had a small cut on his lip so I assume they just got out of a tousle with the Ghosts. The twins had their backs to me, they were telling some kind of story, it must've been funny cause they all were laughing along with it. Felix was standing in front of the twins not quite touching the wall but close, he had some small blood splatters on his white shirt making my stomach clench. Ari was lounging on top of the wall like a cat. And Aiden was standing in between Lex and Felix looking perfectly intact. They were all a little ways ahead of me, and hadn't noticed me standing there, I was hoping it would stay that way. As I walked I tried to just ignore them, but I'm nosy, I heard one of the twins -I could never tell them apart- say something that made my steps falter. Something about a family named Vause. That wasn't a common name, but it sounded strangely familiar. I glanced up just as Lex glanced at me, we locked eyes and this time he didn't look away. I started to get this strange feeling in my head, something unnatural, I wanted to look away but it was like staring at the accident on the road as you pass, you're eyes just can't turn away. Ari was the first to notice our staring, he lit up and reached down to tap Felix. Now they all were looking at me. Ari was talking quietly but I felt it was safe to assume he was filling them in on my behavior earlier. I set my eyes firmly on the ground as I began to pass them and prayed they didn't stop me. They just stared in silence. I let out a sigh of relief, then everything slowed.

My ears felt foggy.

My vision came out of focus.

There was someone walking up to me.

I slowly lifted my head, he was wearing a long black trench coat.

My eyes were almost at his face.

He was gone.

It was so sudden I stopped dead in my tracks as everything rushed back. I looked around for the man in front of me, but there was no one else.

"Hey..." Ari said. "Are you alright?" He was smiling as he spoke. He thought this was amusing, I did not. A few of them began to chuckle a bit and whisper amongst themselves, everyone but Lex and Felix, they hadn't moved. I set my eyes ahead, and marched off without a word.

I didn't have any nightmares that night, but then again, I didn't really sleep.