Promptober

Audun was asleep in bed, her eyes closed but clearly moving back and forth frantically as if in search of something that could only be seen behind closed eyelids. In her dreamland things were no better off for her. She was convinced she was awake, but younger, and she was lost. She was running around, looking for something, or someone. Even she wasn’t really sure at the moment, just rushing through the streets in a panic. Her breath heavy from pushing herself to run despite being exhausted. She felt like she wasn’t getting anywhere, but then she finally saw what she was looking for and found the strength to run faster.

She rushed towards the backs of two figures off in the distance. Her hand outstretched as she desperately tried to reach them, but it felt like she could never close the distance. Finally, as if only just realizing she could even speak, she yelled out, surprising herself with the identity of the figures she was chasing, “Mom! Dad!” She cried out, “Don’t leave me!” She watched as the two figures stopped walking, as if willing to wait for her. She smiled with hope as tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. She finally made it merely a few feet away from the figures before they turned to look over their shoulders at her, revealing that they had no faces. She quickly sat up in bed and screamed out in horror. She was on the verge of breaking down into tears and sobbing when she felt a pair of arms wrap around her in a gentle hug. The soft familiar voice of her beloved soothed her from her night terror, “It’s ok baby, I’ve got you…”