I ardently wished this was a joke. This was the moment when your family member or friend would laugh out loud and announce...

"Got you!" The women behind me whispered.

Her voice was like those vanilla voices which seemed sweeter than anything but the words would say a complete different story.

I froze. I wasn't able to scream. My throat completely dried up. It felt as if the delicate skin will dry up and crack like the grounds that suffered from the water drought. This was a dream. It had to be. I hope it was. I beg it was. I looked at the wall clock near the staircase in the living room. It showed few minutes past 3.

I read somewhere that if you don't know if you're awake or dreaming, look at the clock. The clock won't possibly be working properly or would show different time if you're dreaming. Unfortunately, the clock was working. This was not a dream. Damn.

"You will die." She said the words confidently in my ear. Her voice was totally inhumane.

I shivered. I trembled with fright. I hesitantly turned to look at her. I didn't even know why I was doing this. There was something in me forcing to look at her.

There she was, standing so close, eye to eye, smiling devilishly. The lights from the television revealed her glowing face. She was completely pale as if she has no blood. Her iris were completely pitch black. She had high cheek bones and chiseled jawline. And a side smirk on her big lips. Long waist length frizzy hairs completed her horrific picture. She was a beauty; a deadly and dangerous beauty.

I stared her with fear. She was sharply looking at me like a lioness looks at a stag. I was in danger.

No shit Sherlock!

The next moment, she stepped forward hurriedly and my reflexes answered automatically. I turned back and ran. I thought of getting out of the front door and scream as soon as I reach the front yard.

Where was Jake? He was already home. I saw him before.

Suddenly, I was pushed hard. Very hard. I was pushed with such a force that I went flying and hit the TV. All I remembered was the noise of glass shattering and an unbearable pain in my whole body. I was dead.

A door slammed behind me and I woke up with a jerk. I was heavily sweating; my heart was beating at a super fast pace.

"Oh dear, sorry." my mom's voice sent a wave of relief and I took a deep breath.

I was still sleeping on the couch. The TV was unharmed; playing some classic drama. I was completely unharmed and alive. I was alive. The memories of my dreams were so fresh as if it really happened. But it was a dream. A frikkin nightmare. My heart still didn't believed me though.

"Why are you down? Go upstairs and sleep." my mom said.

I nodded. I got up from the couch and walked towards the stairs when I noticed the clock. It showed few minutes past 3. Still?

Was this a dream? I looked at mom who was frowning at me, confused with my actions. I checked the clock again. It still said the same. I freaked out. I hurriedly ran upstairs. I entered my room and slammed the door.

I didn't know what was happening. I ran towards my bed and sat there. I checked the clock on my side table which showed 5:57. I am definitely dreaming. I closed my eyes tightly and opened them. The clock showed 5:57 and after few seconds it turned 5:58. I let out a huge sigh.

The wall clock in the living room had stopped working. Oh god! That incident with the lady was a dream, not this one. Everything was alright.

I got into my bed and hid in the cover. I was losing it. I was losing my cool. There was something wrong with me. No matter how much I tried to console myself that lady.. it was a just a dream, I couldn't believe.

I turned off my alarm and tried to sleep. I felt like I'm one of those protagonist of the cheesy tragedies. I can't even share to anyone what I felt. It was all so confusing.

'Let's pretend it never happened.' I said to myself sarcastically.

I woke up with a dizzy head. I needed a long bath. I drag myself to the bathroom and stared at the big mirror. I looked really tired with dark pools under my grayish green eyes.

I got my looks from my mom. Our short height, curvy body, olive pale skin, high cheek bones and coffee brown hairs are very similar although my mother, at this age, still looked young and beautiful. On the other hand, Jake got his looks from dad. Tall and skinny, broad face and a plastered smile which would shut their eyes when they truly laughed.

I missed those days when we would get together at breakfast and joke about anything. Dad would always take my side. I thought he'd never leave my side. He understood me so well. Even when I learned about the divorce I thought dad would ask me if I wanted to live with him. He didn't even looked back after he left, let alone talk.

I undressed myself, stepped into the tub and relaxed. Breathe in, breathe out... Breathe in, what the hell!! I saw a dark purple, almost black bruise around my left wrist. I examined it. It was bad. It was painful when I touched it. It was numb the other times. I thought I might have slept with my body's weight on that wrist.

That lady had secured her fingers around my wrist so tightly... That was a dream. I twisted my other arm to examine the area near my elbow, the place where that neighbor firmly gripped his long fingers. It looked unharmed and untouched. Weird.

I ignore all my thoughts forcefully and try to calm down. It will be OK. I was probably freaking out due to new environment and drastic changes. I hated changes because I didn't know its outcome.

'Bandage don't fix bullet holes' T. Swift's lyrics popped up in my thoughts and I let out a sigh.

Taylor always gets it right, always.

I took a long bath and got dressed in Khaki shorts and a white tank top with 'Summer, Bummer' printed on it.

How accurate!

I have a taste in fashion and the taste is 'funny'. I went downstairs after I got ready. Mom must be asleep. She came late from work this morning. I didn't had anything to do. I realized I still have two months before the senior year began. How will I pass this summer? It had just been two nights here and I was already going crazy.

The Lake! Being around water bodies always made me calm and refreshed.

I walked towards the back door when the front door creaked open. Jake came in and tiptoed upstairs.

"Jake, where were you?" I knew he goes for morning jogs sometimes but he was still wearing jeans he wore yesterday.

"Um.. I just came back. I slept over Rick's house last night." He wasn't home last night? "I was drunk."

I was astounded. He never drinks. Never. And if he weren't home last night, who was that guy on the other couch. I think I was paranoid. I should've heard Aria when she told me not to worry too much.

But Jake came home drunk and I was not imagining that. It actually happened. He scratched the back of his neck and waited for my response. I just shrugged and turned towards the kitchen.

Something stabbed my bare left foot and I twitched. I bent down and saw a broken piece of a dish. A broken dish? I picked it up and looked on the kitchen counter. I found the pieces of the dish on counter when I placed them yesterday..in my dream.

I closed my eyes and thought of all that happened last night. Yes, if that lady came in my dream, this dish too, cracked in my dream. Only if that lady came in my dream..

What if that was not a dream. The mere thought of it freaked me out. I shook my head and went to the backyard. I was barefooted but I didn't wanted to go in my house, not now. I felt I had made a place for dark fear at the bottom of my heart. I felt so suffocated when I was in my house as if someone placed a massive rock on my chest.

I craned my neck to look around in my backyard. The last thing I wanted, was to see my dear neighbor (note my sarcasm) pop up and ruin what was left of me. Fortunately, he was nowhere around. I saw the empty swing and strolled towards it.

I sat on it and swayed as the cool morning breeze brushed my face. I was finally having some good time. Weird, isn't it? How small tiny things in our lives could either make us joyous or completely destroy us.

My eyes glued to a pink sparkly notebook laying on the lawn. I stopped the swing and went towards it. I bent down to pick it. It was a personal diary. It of course belonged to a girl looking at the Disney princess cover. I knew it is not good to look in someone's diary but I needed to know who owned it.

I opened and saw a name scrawled on the first page. The diary belonged to:

Kasie and Kathy Monroe

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(Writing in past tense narration from next chapter)