In My Dreams It's Me And You

“Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!” Sarah’s loud and impatient voice brought me out of the most peaceful sleep I’d had in over four years.

“What the fuck Sarah?” I mumbled groggily. “Shouldn’t you be hung-over or something?”

“Not after I’ve had three cups of coffee,” She squealed.

My eyes scrunched up and I groaned, “Why are you always so irritating?”

“Because you love it.”

Without even opening my eyes I could picture the smirk on her face. I grumbled to myself and tolled onto my side and opened my eyes to look at the clock on my bedside cabinet- 9:30a.m.

Suddenly I was on my feet after jumping out of bed, “I have to open the shop in half an hour! Why didn’t you wake me before now?”

She shrugged, her brown eyes going wide, “You looked like you were actually sleeping peacefully for once and I didn’t want to disturb you.”

I relaxed and nodded in understanding. Every night since my attempted suicide I had had terrible nightmares that made me scream and often awoke Sarah. It must have been a relief for her that I had slept through the night.

“Well I’d better get ready for work,” I picked up some clothes from my shelves and made my way to the bathrroom.”

Once inside I stripped my body of the yellow Hello Kitty pyjamas that I adored and started the shower, stepping in under the hot spray. As I shampooed my hair I could hear Sarah moving around loudly in her room and wondered what she was up to.

What cry for attention will she try now?

I loved Sarah to pieces and I accepted all her quirks and faulrts, but sometimes her attention seeking pissed me off. Everything she did was to get someone’s attention. She had grown up in a family of seven children, she was the middle child and, for the most part, forgotten about. She’d do anything for a bit of love and attention- she had dyed her hair, pierced her lip and nose, dressed as every stereotype and then tried to kill herself. The young blonde had attempted suicide just to get some attention from the parents who couldn’t care less.
Now, four and a half years since her failed suicide attempt, she was a lot better but still craved the attention of those around her and would give anything to a guy who told her he loved her.

I sighed and finished my shower before turning off the water. I grabbed my big fluffy towel from the rack and used it to dry myself and then quickly dress myself in black skinny jeans, a purple blouse and black ballet shoes. I then brushed my hair until it was completely untangled and hung in waves around my face. I applied no make up as I was in a hurry and was only going to work where no one important would see me.

I looked at the time as I ran out of the bathroom- 9:45a.m. I’d have to rush breakfast if I was to get to work on time. I ran into our apartment’s kitchen and saw that my friend already had coffee and pop tarts laid out on the table for me while she sat opposite sipping her own drink.

“Thanks,” I smiled as I sat down and began eating my breakfast.

“No problem,” she replied, “It’s my fault you’re running late in the first place.”

She smiled and just watched me as I began drinking my coffee, taking my daily lithium with it, as fast as I could without burning my tongue.

“Uhm. Eva?” she asked suddenly.

My head popped up and I saw her running her finger nervously around the rim of her mug,

“Yeah Sarah?”

“Who was that guy you were with last night?”

I stared at my friend curiously; it wasn’t like her to be nervous, especially when asking about a guy.

“Like I told you, he’s an old friend,” I told her honestly while wondering where this conversation was going.

She nodded, her curls bouncing. “That’s what I thought you said but I thought you didn’t talk to anybody from Cali anymore?”

“I don’t usually. But I ran into him last night and it was nice to catch up,” I told her, my right eyebrow cocked quizzically as I wondered what she was getting at.

She nodded again, chewing her bottom lip, “Ok.”

I looked at the kitchen clock and saw that I was supposed to open the shop in five minutes.

Fuck it! Getting to the bottom of this is more important that opening on time.

“What’s going on S?” I asked. “It’s not like you to ask so many questions about some random guy.”

She smiled, “Yeah but some girl said it was Synyster Gates from Avenged Sevenfold and I wanted to know if it was true.”

“I don’t even listen to Avenged,” I smirked in a joking manner but inside my heart was thumping erratically.

“Yeah. . . I guess the girl was mistaken,” She mused quietly to herself.

I decided now was my time to escape. Before she began to ask anymore questions.

“Gotta go to work,” I announced getting up from the table and grabbing my jacket off the back of the chair.

“Bye,” Sarah replied absentmindedly as she began mashing her mug in the sink.

I pulled my grey trench coat on as checked from my key, money and phone. Once I was sure I had all three I called goodbye to Sarah and left the apartment.

I walked briskly through the streets of Newark with the bitter wind biting at my cheeks as thoughts ran in circle through my head.

Why didn’t I just tell her?
I couldn’t think of a real reason for not telling Sarah that had been Synyster Gates or, as I knew him, Brian Haner. But I guess I was afraid she wouldn’t believe me.

What is there to not believe?
I knew she wouldn't believe me. I mean I told her I didn’t like Avenged Sevenfold. Who says they don’t like the band and then, the next day, claims to be childhood best friends with their sexy lead guitarist? And, anyway, even if she had believed me she’d be so pissed off.

Why would she be pissed off?
I never told her who Matt really was, partly because I knew she was a huge fan. Instead I had lied to her.

Why didn’t I just tell her the truth from the start?
When I’d first turned up at Sunnyvale I had wanted to forget all about Matt and just everybody that he was a friend who had moved away. Then when Sarah and I became friends and I learned that she was an Avenged fan I was a bit apprehensive of telling her who my friend was, afraid that she’d want me to befriend him again just so she’d get attention from famous rock stars.
And, since I’d lied about him from the beginning she’d hate me if she found out now that I’d lied and I couldn’t stand to lose one of my only friends from the four years.

I was so caught up in my thoughts, wondering whether it was time to tell Sarah the truth about Matt, that I didn’t realise I had reached my music shop.

“Hey, Miss Murray, you okay?” A familiar voice brought me back to reality.

I shook my head vigorously to rid it of my current predicament and then looked at the boy in front of me.

“Hey Teddy,” I smiled at the sixteen year old boy who was my only employee. “Yeah I’m fine and what have I told you about calling me Miss Murray?”

He smiled ruefully showing his white teeth, “Not to.”

I laughed, “Then why don’t you listen hon?”

He shrugged and I noticed he was shaking with cold. I looked at my phone and realised that I was half an hour late meaning that the teenage boy had been standing outside on the cold for at least that long. And, by the looks of things, he was frozen through his lightweight hoody.

“Shit Ted!” I exclaimed. “It completely slipped my mind that you were working this morning. I'm so sorry I’m late. You must be frozen!”

He smiled and shook his head but I could see his teeth chattering and his shoulders shaking underneath the think black material. I quickly opened the shutters and unlocked the doors, shoving my freezing employee inside before following him in.

“Go to the back and make yourself some coffee or something,” I ordered him as I close the door and flipped the sign from closed to open. “And get yourself warmed up before coming to work. I’ll manage without you.”

The sandy haired boy smiled at me, “Thanks Miss. . . Uh. . . I mean Eva.”

I laughed lightly and shooed him into the back of the shop where the small kitchen was located. I then set up behind the register, preparing for yet another slow day.

The shop hadn’t been doing too well as of late. Very few customers had been in and I was struggling to keep the place open. In fact, I couldn’t really afford to keep Teddy working for me and I didn’t even need him but insisted on keeping him employed.

I had first hired the boy last Christmas when he was just fifteen. I needed some help with the sudden rush of customers and he was an ideal candidate. In the end we got along so well that I couldn’t bear to let him go after the holidays- especially after I learned of his family life.
His parents hated each other and argued all the time, only together for the kids- Teddy and his two older brothers Gary and Darren.

I knew his situation all too well. I had once been like Teddy, desperate to get out of a house where everyone screamed at each other and the air was always hostile. I related so well to the young boy that I had taken pity on him and kept him as my employee.

As I was thinking about the teenager he came walking out of the back room looking a lot better.

“You look good,” I smiled at him as he approached. “Your lips aren’t blue anymore.”

He chuckled, his grey eyes sparkling, “I feel better. Thanks.”

I shook my head and waved a hand to dismiss his thank you, “It was no problem. I mean it’s my fault you were stuck out there so long anyway. If I hadn’t let myself oversleep and then leave my head in the clouds I would have been here on time.”

He shrugged, those grey eyes betraying no emotion, “It’s okay, you obviously have something on your mind. You want to talk about it?”

Straight away I knew something bad must have happened. Teddy rarely asked me about my problems unless he wanted me to ask about his.

I forced a light smile, “Just some old friends coming back into my life after a long time. You wouldn't want to be bored by it. What about you though? Everything okay at home?”

By the look that now came over his face I knew that everything was not okay.

His eyes focused on the floor as he mumbled, “Dad was drinking again last night.”

My hand flew up to my mouth in worry. Teddy had already told me that his father, Willy, was a raging alcoholic who often became violent when drunk.

“Did he hurt you?” I asked softly, worried sick for the boy I saw a little brother.

He nodded his mutely in reply and pulled up his shirt so I could see the bruises that dusted his stomach and ribcage.
I felt overcome with both rage and worry at the same time as I saw the blue-black marks on his pale body.

“The fucking bastard!” I exclaimed with fury, my hands balling into fists. “I’ll fucking kill him!”

Teddy’s eyes widened in shock and fear at my sudden outburst of rage.

“You’re scaring me Eva.”

I took a deep breath before speaking again, now in a calmer voice.

“Do you want to crash in my place tonight?” He had stayed on the couch before when things had gotten bad at home.
Sarah never minded because, although she didn’t know exactly what happened to him, she knew it was something bad. She also had a soft spot for the blonde boy just like myself.

He forced a smile and it ended up looking more like a grimace, “Thanks for the offer but I’m staying at a friend’s house.”

I just nodded in reply sensing that he wanted the conversation to be over.
I looked at the time and saw it was nearly noon.
Time to hit the accounts.

“You can handle the register for a bit, yeah?” I asked, knowing the teenager was well capable of running the shop even if I wasn’t around.

He nodded, “Yeah sure.”

I smiled and made my way to my office In the back of the shop just of the small kitchen.

Time to face those red numbers again.