The Fall

I opened my eyes as the sunlight hits my face. There he is, in front of that huge tree. He is sitting with his back against its trunk and his eyes closed. I walk into him and watch as he opened his eyes, this time I can almost figure out his face his eyes it was brown like a pool of honey where anyone would drown once they stare into it, he have this long eyelashes that every girl would envied, his nose is too perfect that it looked like it was molded by an artist, and his lips how can a boy have lips as pink as his.

"You came." He said in excitement.

"Wala naman akong choice, this is my dream after all." I sigh as I sit next to him. Unlike the others I have no control of this dream which doesn't happen before.

"I want to apologize for what I did, I just wanted to know if you are real." He said while looking at the sky.

"Of course I am real, you are the one who is not real." I told him

"Maybe, I don't really know anymore, I have been stuck in here for as long as I can remember and the only thing that I know is my name. That is why I'm really happy to see you." He smiled brightly as he said those things to me.

"My name is Justine anyway." I was confused all this time I never met a single person in my dream who have a name. Maybe they do have names but I never bother to ask, why would I anyway they aren't even real. I just nodded. We sit quietly under the tree as I listen to him humming. All of a sudden my eyelids became heavy and before I knew it I'm starting to fall asleep.

I opened my eyes and saw in my window that it is already dark. I have been sleeping for twelve hours straight. I groaned in frustration and get off the bed. I went outside and started walking heading to the hospital. I visit my mom every now and then but not as frequent as I used to when I was a child. After the accident, when I started dreaming of different strangers I also started seeing souls specially in dark places and in this hospital. I was walking in the hallway when something caught my eyes, I automatically froze.

There he was, lying on the bed with numerous tubes inserted to him. It was Justine, I couldn't be mistaken. I was shocked, they are real after all, all those people that I saw. I started running outside, I lost consciousness of the surroundings and all that I could hear is the beeping sound of the apparatus stuck in my ears. I head upstairs and cried. That kid, that old woman, those teenagers that I saw, why would they show up in my dreams. Im really confused and afraid, I don't know their reasons I don't know why this is happening to me and that alone is enough for me to be afraid of falling asleep again.

All night I was awake, staring in my window as I watch the moon. Exhaustion hit me and I'm no longer in control of my eyes. Before I know it I automatically stand up and lay in the bed and then it came. Before I knew it I was already dreaming.

Like the last time he welcomed me with a huge smile on his face. I couldn't take this anymore I had to ask him.

"What do you want from me?" I yell at him. This time I am the one who is afraid, I'm afraid that if I stay for too long in this dream I may not wake up again. Is this a nightmare? And the thought brought panic all over me.

"Nothing, I just want you here." He told me with concern in his voice. I can't tell him, I just couldn't bring myself to tell him the truth that he is already dying.

I take a sigh and just nodded. There is nothing that I can do, if I can at least bring comfort to him like those others until they vanished then I will do it. The thought pinched my heart, I faked a smile and asks him.

"Fine. What do you want to do?"

"Will you stay with me?" He asks nicely. I just nodded.

I didn't even noticed how time flies. We accomplished tons of things while I was here, he asks me to posed for a portrait and I was really amazed by how good he was on it, I accompanied him as he picks flowers and he arranged it beautifully, he is also good at singing which he asks me to listen to as if I could deny him. He really is artistic, those that I met before would have wished for much more greater, much more impossible things like attending a huge ball, flying across the sea, such things you could only experience in dreams but he is different. The dream ended with me listening to him playing a piano in the middle of the garden, it really soothes and comfort me enough to wake me up in my dream.

I woke up and felt intense exhaustion, I spent the day sitting and lunging at home to regain my energy.