Sell Your Soul

Cali's body shook, and she turned over on her side. She closed her eyes tighter, the dream pushing her further toward insanity. She buried her head in her pillow.

"I don't have a choice," said Charlie.

"Why now?" Cali asked. "I didn't do anything."

"I guess it's just how the world works," Charlie replied. "People betray each other. Can't do much about it, can you?"

Maria wrapped her arms around Charlie's shoulders, and they began walking away. Cali shook her head and ran after them, but the faster she ran, the farther away they were. She tripped over something, and she fell to the ground. She looked back to see what she had tripped over.

It was Paul, Maria's old boyfriend with whom she'd cheated on. He was laying there, dead as a doornail, but he was slowly crawling toward her. She tried to stand up, but he caught her ankle and pulled her back.

"Charlie!" she screamed. But no sound emitted from her throat. "Maria!"

She tried crawling away again, but Paul grabbed her and pulled her back again. She was kicking and screaming for dear life, but it felt like she was swimming through tar. Her breathing sped to an ungodly pace, and Paul pulled her head back by her hair.

"Now you're gonna know what it feels like to be me," he hissed in her ear.

She screamed again, and Paul cackled.

"Cali! Cali, stop!"

Someone was shaking her, and her eyes flew open. It was Matt, holding her by her arms and making her sit up. He stood over her on her bed, and she looked around. She was still in the apartment, so why was he here?

"I-I-I don't..." Cali mumbled, her eyes flooding with tears.

Matt pulled her close. "Shhh...it's okay. It was just a dream."

Cali pushed her face into his chest and clutched his arms. She rocked back and forth, and he comfortingly pulled her tighter.

After awhile, she looked up at him. She sniffed back a couple more tears and said, "Why are you here?"

"I couldn't just let you be here by yourself," Matt said. "Maria said you went home, and you weren't at the house. This was the only place left. I didn't know if you were gonna be okay. When I came in, you were screaming. I thought somebody'd broke in."

Cali shook her head and replied, "Just a bad dream."

"I figured," Matt said. He ran his hand through his hair and said, "If it's too weird for me to be here, I can leave."

He stood up, but Cali grabbed his arm. He looked back at her, trying to read her emotions.

"Don't go," she said, beginning to sob. "People always leave."

Matt sat back down immediately. "I won't leave, then."

She lied down on the bed, and he did the same. She turned to look at him, and he brushed a lock of her hair out of the way. His hand rested on her cheek. She half smiled, starting to drift back off into unconsciousness.

As she fell asleep, she never felt his hand leave her cheek.