DREAM ON

Dream On by Rick Haynes

I never remember my dreams but tonight, everything changed.

Lying in a room with a fan overhead told me I was somewhere hot. But the silence confused me as even the spinning fan above my bed was noiseless.

I tried to shake off the blankets and leave this bed of confinement but no matter how hard I tugged, the thick covering refused to budge. I could feel sweat oozing from my open pores. My back was soaked, drips were running down my face and I could smell my fear. It stank like an open sewer running with effluent. My brain was urging me to move, to do something, anything, to release me from my dream.

Should I continue to fight or give in to the inevitable? I chose the former, closed my eyes, and thought of my loved ones. I wanted my wife more than ever before and told my brain to show me her face. Her image, long blond hair, curvy body, and her stunning smile flashed into my head before vanishing into the mists of time. I tried again, this time to see my beloved daughters but all I heard was the sound of their laughter growing ever stronger. The clock above my head rang out the midnight hour and like a tap being turned off, their laughter disappeared. No matter how hard I tried to reconnect with reality, something or someone was blocking my thoughts and making my sight hazy.

Far away, I could hear distant voices. Like ghostly echoes, the sounds came closer. I couldn’t move but I didn’t want to as surely those were the sounds of my children playing in the garden. My concentration levels were dropping faster than leaves fluttering down from a tree. Alas for me, the pain in my head was climbing up towards the topmost branches and I prayed for them to change places. Thankfully, my prayer was answered.

As all sound died away, I remained motionless and felt safe.

I hadn’t noticed the mist around me before but now it was slowly dissipating. At last, I could see my room clearly once more, the wardrobe, my comfy chair, and my bed, this was my normality and it was time for my dream to end.

I opened my eyes and looked up at a huge pendulum with a swinging axe attached. I could feel the rush of air on every pass.

Now awake, my nightmare should end.

Yet, I see a multi-coloured face and hear the sound of laughter as a clown pulls on the rope.

The End

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