~ A Little Bird Told Me ~
by Mayhem Incarnate
Disclaimers: : No copyright infringement is intended. The characters and this story are mine, although we all know whom they resemble. There is no sex though there is a little subtext. There is also a bit of explicit language, but not much.
Special Thanks: I would like to send a heartfelt thank you to my beta reader, Dimples. She makes sure all the I's are dotted and the T's are crossed, while putting up with my write, read, and repeat mentality. Without her my stories would be a complete mess. Thanks Darlin.
Send comments to: budhownd@gmail.com
Week 1
I walked down a hall of the office building where I worked, listening intently for the soft sobs coming from a room on that floor. The closer I got, the louder the sobs became.
I searched office after office but to no avail, I still couldn't find the person who was crying. I came to the last door and opened it.
I saw nothing in front of me, but when I looked to my left I saw the figure of a woman.
She was small in stature, perhaps 5'4 or 5'5 and she stood balanced on the windowsill, ready to jump.
I couldn't comprehend what would drive this woman to take her own life but a force beyond my control compelled me to do something, anything to stop her.
"Wait!" I screamed as I began to move toward the small blond-haired woman. She turned toward me with a tear streaked face, her green eyes held a look of such profound sadness and despair that I burst into tears myself just from looking into them.
"Please...." I said, reaching out to grab her.
It was at that moment she jumped.
I lunged forward and grabbed hold of anything my fingers could reach and came away with her jacket... without her in it.
I peered over the edge of the windowsill and watched her plummet six floors to her death. I was unable to bear the sight, to witness the death of this woman who obviously needed my help, knowing that if I'd moved a little quicker; reacted a little sooner, she would still be alive.
I sank to my knees and began to scream. It was a scream of desperation, grief and
helplessness.
##############################
I bolted upright in my bed, still screaming. As my surroundings came back into focus, I realized it was just a dream. One of the most graphic dreams I'd ever had.
Unlike most of my dreams, this one didn't fade away. I remembered everything, from walking down the corridor of the office building, to the expression on the woman's face as she fell six floors to her death.
I shuddered, covering my eyes with my hands and realized they were trembling violently.
Looking over at the clock, I saw it was 3:23 in the morning and although my body was still tired, my mind was wide-awake.
With a sigh, I left my bed and went into the living room to watch a little television, knowing that sleep would evade me for the rest of the night.
Week 2
I was sitting at my desk, staring at the screen of my computer. I loved my job, proofreading for the large publishing company I worked for, but ever since I began having this strange dream, I wasn't getting enough rest and it showed in my work. I could barely keep my eyes open and I was already two days behind on meeting an important deadline. My boss took one look at me, took me aside and all but ordered me to explain what was wrong with me.
What was I supposed to say? How could I tell my boss that I'd been having dreams about a woman I didn't know, had never seen before, that these dreams were so real, I'd wake up sweaty and shaking, completely unable to return to sleep?
I shrugged it off and told her I was having trouble sleeping and was trying to work through it. It wasn't a complete lie, while it wasn't exactly the total truth. In her usual bitchy fashion, she suggested I get my shit together or find a new job.
##################################
By Friday, I was evilly moody, even snapping at my best friend, Roman, when she accidentally bumped into my desk and knocked over my stuffed 'Woodstock.' I knew it was just an accident but I was tired and all I wanted at this point was a good night's sleep. The dream had returned every night this week, jolting me awake in the early morning hours, just as it had every night last week, and I was at a loss as to what to do about it.
Roman suggested going out, figuring that a night on the town for dinner, a few drinks and maybe some dancing would tire me out enough to make me sleep all night.
I wasn't to sure about the dancing part but at this point I was willing to try anything.
We went out and by the time we'd had dinner and a few beers at a local sports bar, I was falling asleep at our table.
"Come on, studly, let's get you home. I can see you aren't gonna make it to the club tonight." said Roman, as she gave my shoulder a slight shove.
"Yea, I guess I better go home." I replied drowsily, not relishing the idea of going to sleep only to be awakened by the dream again tonight, even though I was dead tired.
Roman drove me home and made sure I made it into my apartment building before she pulled off.
###################
After changing into my Woodstock jammies, I went into the kitchen and got a glass of water before turning in. I stood in my living room and looked down the hall toward my bedroom. With a sigh, I started down the hall and after a few steps I stopped. I didn't want to go back there knowing I was in for another dream-filled night, but I was so tired. Confused and torn between my body's need for rest and my mind's need for a sane, dreamless night I felt tears of frustration filling my eyes.
Why did I keep having this dream?
I walked back into the living room and my eyes fell upon the couch.
That's it!!
The couch!
Maybe if I stayed in the living room and watched t.v. until I fell asleep, my mind would focus on the last thing I watched instead of the suicidal young blond woman, who'd haunted my dreams for the past two weeks.
I went into my bedroom and grabbed a blanket and a couple of pillows and after brushing my teeth and washing my face, I came back into the living room and lay down on the couch.
I snuggled under my Snoopy and Woodstock blanket and surfed through channels until I came to an episode of "I Love Lucy" on TV Land. The episode was just beginning and I quickly lost myself in the show, I really would have enjoyed it if I could stay awake but I fell asleep before the first commercial break.
##############################
Once again, the dream came to me. This time upon waking, I found myself falling along with my mystery woman. I'd rolled over and fallen from the couch to the floor, hitting my head in the process. Now I had a small lump on my head and a pounding headache to go along with the fact that I couldn't go back to sleep.
The weekend passed excruciatingly slow and by Saturday night I found myself wishing for the workweek to start. At least at work I had something, other than my recurring dream, to keep my mind occupied.
Week 3
On Monday, I zipped through my apartment eager to get outside of the stifling confinement of the four walls.
I'd been up since 3:30 this morning, as usual, and t.v. offered little solace for my frazzled nerves. Not knowing what else to do, I'd begun to get ready for work at 5 AM despite that fact that I didn't have to be there until 8 AM.
It was a rainy day and I ended up soaking wet but was still relieved to be out of the house.
Roman took one look at me and couldn't hide her smile as she greeted me in her usual playful fashion.
"Hey Snoopy, been playing in the rain, I see." she said.
"I forgot my umbrella." I mumbled in explanation.
I'd had four hours to get ready for work and I walked right out of the house without my umbrella. Lack of sleep had my brain fried.
She chuckled again and I glared at her. As I stood at my desk, dripping water all over an assortment of papers, I sorely wished I had a towel or something to dry off with. I sat down with a soft 'squish' and grimaced, the day was already wearing on my nerves and it had just started. So much for thinking being at work would make me feel better.
I rummaged through my desk for something.... anything to dry off with, grumbling darkly at the smirk I was sure Roman had on her face. I refused to give her the satisfaction of looking her way to see said smirk.
I was ducked down behind my desk when I heard footsteps approach. Thinking it might be my boss, I raised my head quickly, just to make it look like I was getting ready to do some work, and was hit squarely in the face with a soft, thick towel.
I pulled it slowly off my head, tangling my long dark hair even more, and fixed Roman with a steely gaze. She shot back a look of complete innocence, even as her eyes sparkled mischievously.
"You better go dry off before 'The Hun' comes in and makes her rounds. I'll cover for ya if she says anything." she said, making a shooing motion toward me.
I knew there was a reason she was my best friend. Not only did she take care of me when I needed it, she was always ready to cover for me at a moment's notice. There had been many times over the years that I'd depended on Roman for something or another and she'd come through for me, every time.
As I made my way to the ladies restroom, I snickered at her use of our boss's nickname, a name she'd earned for her annoying habit of calling everyone 'hon.' That and the fact that she really did resemble Attila the Hun. I recalled how I sat wide-eyed one afternoon, staring at a picture of the ancient warrior that Roman had e-mailed to me, seeing the resemblance first hand.
##############################
The days came and went, and just like the previous two weeks, it had become a dull, nerve wrecking routine.
Come to work, try and stay awake and get my job done, then go home and try to stay occupied with something, anything, until sheer exhaustion forced me to go to bed.
When I could fight it no longer and finally did fall asleep, the dream came.
It was becoming too much.
#####################################
Week 4
I was sitting at the small table in my dining room when I heard someone knocking at my door. The series of knocks followed by silence followed by more knocks, told me exactly who it was. I smiled as I made my way to the door. Roman always knew when I needed company and right now, I really needed some company.
I opened the door, not caring how disheveled I looked, and took in the sight of my best friend, who stood panting at my front door. She took one look at me and her face scrunched into a half playful, half serious scowl.
"Geez, you look like shit." she said, in greeting.
"Yea, well you smell like shit." I replied, I meant it to sound playful and flippant but it didn't come out that way, and I immediately regretted it. I had been edgy and foul tempered for weeks now, since I wasn't getting enough sleep and I'd been taking it out on Roman.
I made a conscious decision to put that to a halt as of this moment.
Despite the rough edged comment she grinned sheepishly and ducked her head as she walked through the door.
"Well, I just did a five mile run, you asshole. I'm supposed to smell like shit." she replied, as she plopped down on the sofa.
"You can shower if ya want I'm sure I have something you can wear and I'll even cook ya breakfast since I've been such a grouch." I told her with a smirk. I knew she couldn't resist that offer, the only thing Roman loved more than women, was food, better yet, free food.
"You got a deal kiddo, and don't try and sneak in and look at my ass." she said playfully as she wiggled her butt.
"Yea, yea get ya ass in there before I kick it." I replied as I walked into the kitchen.
############################
I busied myself making breakfast for us as Roman took her shower, noting how much better I felt now that I had something to do other than just sit around. I threw together a simple breakfast of eggs, a nice ham steak that we would split, and fried potatoes.
By the time I was done, Roman came sauntering down the hallway wearing nothing but a towel slung haphazardly around her hips. I gave her 'The Look,' silently ordering her to find something to wear other than most of her birthday suit.
"What? I didn't wanna go rummaging through your dressers and stuff; I don't know what I might find hidden in there. Besides, it's better for your skin if you let it air dry." she said, a bright smile spreading across her face.
I continued to stare at her until she turned and walked toward my bedroom, grumbling something about blaming me if her skin became scaly and fell off her bones. Shaking my head, I set our breakfast on the table and had already begun to eat when she came back wearing a pair of gray sweat pants and a Michigan t-shirt she'd left over here about a month ago.
Just as I put a forkful of food into my mouth and began to chew she broke the silence.
"I'm wearing your favorite Woodstock boxers and they're riding up the crack of my ass." she said with a smile, her eyes glued to her plate as she began to eat.
"And I kicked that monster bird in your room." she said, referring to the three foot tall Woodstock I'd won two years ago at a carnival we'd attended.
She got the desired effect, as eggs and potatoes spewed from my mouth and flew over her shoulder to land with a splat on the floor.
She had the good sense to duck as soon as she told me that tidbit of information so the half chewed food missed her completely.
She KNEW how I felt about MY WOODSTOCK BOXERS AND SHE KICKED MY 'STOCKY'!!! They were my most prized Woodstock possessions.
Her eyes twinkled and she chuckled as she continued chewing.
I calmly stood up and walked toward my room. Spinning at the last minute, I wrapped my hands around her neck and began to squeeze.
I know she was my best friend but, damnit, I loved my Woodstock boxers and my three foot tall 'Stocky' and now her naked ass was rubbing up against my underwear and her stupid foot had connected with my stuffed bird.
"Ca... !!" she choked out, her eyes wide. "Casey!!"
Her usually light brown complexion was turning a deep red and I reveled in the fact that she was light enough for me to see the color change.
"I was..... joking... CASEY!!!" she managed to squeak.
I frowned and loosened my grip a bit.
"Prove it." I said, in challenge.
She squirmed out of my grip and pushed me away as I glared at her. Exasperated, she pulled down the sweats that she wore, revealing her naked bottom half.
"Ok. Ok..." I said, going back to sit down at the table. She eyed me warily as she once again slid into her seat.
"I'm sorry Rome, but you know I get a little crazy when it comes to Woodstock." I said, feeling really bad now that my handprints were beginning to show on her neck.
"You and that fucking Woodstock. If you love Woodstock so much why not marry him." she growled, rubbing her neck as she tried to continue her breakfast.
"Woodstock is a her, to me anyway, and if I meet her I just might. So, naaaaaaaaa." I said, sticking my tongue out at her.
"Naaaaaaaaaaaa." she replied, as she opened her mouth and showed me the contents.
"Nasty Bastard." I said.
"Damn bird fucker." she growled, which made us both laugh.
Deep, hard, stomach hurting laughter that reached all the way to our toes.
No one has ever made me laugh like Roman, and I had to admit, I really needed a laugh right now. I was more relaxed now than I had been in days, thanks to my friend.
###########################
After breakfast, Roman and I sat in the living room of my apartment. She sipped tea while I drank coffee as we talked. Inevitably the subject came around to my dream. I groaned inwardly when she mentioned the reason for my sleepless nights.
"Why do you think you are having this dream, Casey?" Roman asked me as her aqua blue eyes, a product of her mixed heritage, regarded me with genuine concern.
I sat and thought about it for a few moments. I'd never really sat and tried to analyze the dream at any length. At this point all I knew was, the dream was always the same and that I had it every night.
"I don't know Rome. I can't think of anything that would have triggered it." I replied.
"Well, how about we work backwards, what do you know about the dream so far?" Roman asked. I could see she wasn't going to give up on the subject. Roman fancied herself as an amateur psychologist.
"I already told you what the dream is about, Rome." I said, beginning to get a bit perturbed.
"I know, but is there anything at all that's different about the dream? Anything different about how it makes you feel now as opposed to when you first started having it three weeks ago?" she asked calmly, she could see I was starting to get upset.
"It's the same Rome, I look for her, I find her, she jumps, I try to grab her but miss and she dies." I said miserably.
"But..." I began.
"But what?" said Roman.
"Well, every night I have the dream it's as if there's something pushing me." I said.
"I don't know if pushing is the right word, but it's as if there is a sense of urgency every time I have the dream. Like something.... some force is.... trying to tell me something." I explained as best I could.
"Maybe it is." said Roman, a look of complete seriousness on her face.
"What? What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, really confused now.
"Maybe some... thing is trying to send you a message." she replied.
I laughed, not meaning to take her comment lightly but my sleep-deprived brain simply couldn't handle something that abstract. Thankfully, my friend didn't take offense at my outburst.
She sat and watched me, her ocean blue eyes staring straight into my sky blue ones, waiting for me to get over my brief fit of laughter.
"Sorry." I said somberly.
"No prob, if I were in your shoes I'd probably react the same way. But seriously, Case, think about it. You have been having the same dream for weeks now, and it gets more intense every time you have it. You say you feel as if someone or something is trying to tell you something, that the feeling of urgency is growing stronger and stronger right?" she asked.
I nodded.
"Well, call me crazy, but I think you've hit the nail on the head. I feel there is a message hidden in this dream. Why else would it keep repeating itself? Never changing and yet getting more intense. If I were you I'd stop fighting it and try to find out what it is the dream is telling you. Or?trying to tell you." she said, watching me to gauge my reaction.
I hadn't thought about it like that. I suppose I was too disturbed by the dream itself to even think about trying to analyze it.
"Ok, I'll make an effort to pay more attention to my dream from here on out." I promised.
Roman nodded and smiled. I guess she probably thought she'd have to argue me into agreeing with her.
###################################
As the day wore on, I got more and more antsy and by the time the sky darkened into night I was a nervous wreck.
I'd napped briefly and I thanked every God I could think of for the fact that it was a dreamless nap.
Roman noticed the change in me and she made the most wonderful suggestion I'd ever heard come from another person's lips.
"Hey Casey, I was thinking ... um.... maybe you should have someone here to keep you company. You know, that way when you wake up, you can tell me what, if anything, you figured out about the dream while it's still fresh in your mind." she rambled without looking up from the floor.
I hugged her tightly and kissed her cheek. I couldn't explain how relieved I was at her suggestion. Anxiety about having the dream made me begin to hate sleeping in my apartment alone.
"Thanks Rome, that would be great and this way you'll make it to work on time for once." I said, releasing her and quickly looking away so that she couldn't see the moisture in my eyes. This whole ordeal had shaken me up more than I wanted to admit.
"Yea, 'the Hun' will be impressed," she said and we both laughed.
"Look, I have to go get a change of clothes and I have a couple of steaks in the freezer at home, if you get some fixin's together we can make a halfway decent meal. I'll be back in about an hour and a half, ok?" she said, as she pulled on her running shoes.
"Sounds like a plan. I'll pull out a couple of potatoes to bake, steam some ears of corn, and fix this chocolate cake I have on the shelf. As slow as your ass is, I'll have the cake baked and cooling before you get back." I replied with a smirk.
She flipped me the finger and made her way to the door.
She turned the knob, walked out and began to sing, loudly, as she sauntered down the hallway.
My best friend is a Bird fucker,
She a birdie clit sucker.
She loves the birdie for sexual things,
She loves to hump on the birdie's wings.
Hump, Hump, Hump!! (emphasized with hump - jumps toward the stairwell)
On it's wings and thingssssssss!!
My best friend.... CASEY, is a bir-irrrrrddd
FUCKER!!
'Asshole.' I thought, as I shook my head and chuckled at her silly song. Peeking around the corner and down the hall outside my door, I noticed several sets of eyes looking in my direction.
'Oh Gods!!' I thought to myself.
My neighbors had heard Roman's off key warbling and a few of them had opened their doors to see what all the commotion was.
Ms. Mushnik, my 83-year-old neighbor, whose cat I'd watched when she went in for gall bladder surgery looked at me with undisguised confusion and a little trepidation.
"I thought you liked girls Casey. Now you know I'm not one to judge dear, but... birds? Now that doesn't seem quite right. I'll find someone else to watch Mittens for me from now on," she said and quickly closed her door.
I growled and made a mental note to kick Roman in her ass when she got back. If anyone went to the rental office and complained about me having sex with birds, Roman would find herself with the responsibility of housing me until I could find another apartment.
#####################################
After Roman made it back to my place, we had dinner and decided to have desert in the living room as we watched t.v. I was still a bit nervous but having Roman there helped calm me a lot.
Before I knew it, the time had come to turn in for the evening. I could have stayed up longer but that wouldn't have been fair to Roman. There was no sense in both of us being zombies at work tomorrow.
She settled in on the couch, assuring me that if I needed her, all I had to do was give a shout and she'd be in my room in a flash.
I lay in my bed and tried to relax. It made it a little easier knowing that this time I had a mission, to remember all I could about the dream and take mental notes of any differences, if I could. I must have been more tired than I thought because I slipped into a deep sleep after only a few minutes.
#####################################
I recognized instantly when the dream began.
It always started in the same place.
I walked down the hall of the office building, taking note of all the familiar offices I passed everyday. Then I saw something that I'd never noticed before. The numbers on the office doors weren't the numbers on the doors of the floor I now worked on, rather they were the numbers of doors on the floor that I'd worked on when I'd first started working in this building.
I wasn't on my floor, but the floor directly beneath the one I presently worked on.
That was something I'd never noticed before; I'd simply assumed it was the floor I'd worked on now.
Then I heard the sobs, the soft crying that drove me to find the woman in my dream.
I walked over to a door but something stopped me, a feeling of urgency telling me that I didn't have time to search door to door as I'd done in every other dream before this. I stopped for a moment and concentrated on the sound of the soft sobbing and my eyes fell to the closed door of office 602.
Purposefully, I strode over to the door and threw it open. It was a large, corner office. Directly in front of me was a large desk covered with papers that were being blown onto the floor.
I looked around the corner of the door and saw the woman standing on the edge of the windowsill and for the first time, I took a good look at her.
I was correct in my earlier assessment of her; she was about 5'5", short blond hair, dressed in a faded Levi's jacket and khaki pants.
"Wait." I said to her, as I did in every dream so far.
She turned to me, tears falling from her eyes, and it seemed as though right then she saw into my soul ... and I saw into hers.
I saw immense loneliness, sadness and such a feeling of being unloved that I too began to cry.
The tears fell from my eyes as I reached out for her, wanting to do something, anything to make things better.
In that instant, I realized that I had come to love her. This woman who had visited me every night for the past three weeks had somehow found a place in my heart, despite the fact that up until now I saw her as just a figment of my sleeping mind.
I didn't know her but in that moment I knew that this was ... my soul mate, my destined chosen. This woman that I'd never seen before in my life had been waiting for me to rescue her, and each and every time I'd gotten there too late.
I had to save her. Had to. There was no longer any mistaking the meaning of the dream. I was being given this temporary gift of premonition in order to save a life that was not meant to leave this world.
I reached for her and just like in every other dream, she jumped.
"NOOOO!!!" I screamed, lunging toward the window.
My fingers grabbed for her arm and this time instead of coming away with just her jacket, I felt a heavy weight swing against the side of the building.
I looked down to see her still in the jacket that I barely had a hold of.
Then to my horror she slipped out of the jacket and fell. Her eyes locked with mine as she screamed my name, her arms and legs flailing as she fell the six floors to the pavement below.
Once again I screamed, even though I was asleep I was acutely aware of the pain at my loss, my inability to save her.
Why couldn't I get to her in time? Why?
##################################
I gasped as I sat upright in bed, my hair plastered to my face with sweat.
I took ragged breaths and tried to remember every single detail of the dream.
"ROMAN!" I called.
I heard a thump and then footsteps rushing down the hall.
Roman burst into my room and ran toward the bed, tripping over my giant stuffed Woodstock.
"OW! Piss up a fucking rope, Casey. That thing almost killed me." she said, gruffly.
She pulled herself up onto my bed and looked at me.
"You ok?" she asked.
"Yea, I remember all of it. I know why I've been...." I began, and then stopped as an indescribable feeling of foreboding suddenly came over me. It gripped my heart with an iron fist and did not let go. I felt like I was having a heart attack but I knew that wasn't what it was.
My hand went to my chest and I could feel it beating so fast and hard, I couldn't understand how Roman couldn't hear it herself.
I looked at her, with wide, panic stricken, eyes and I felt my mouth moving but I couldn't make any sound come out.
"Casey?? Case?? What's wrong? Oh Gods, Casey don't do this to me man." said Roman, as she gripped my shoulders, giving me a slight shake. I could feel her hands trembling slightly.
I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself just long enough to explain.
"I .... We..... gotta go. NOW!!" I screamed at her.
It took her a second to register what I said but once it sank in she flew off the bed and down the hallway.
I grabbed my jeans and a sweatshirt and after hastily pulling them on, I hopped down the hall as I pulled on first one shoe then the other.
Roman was already dressed and doing the same hopping shoe dance that I'd been doing a few seconds ago, by the time I made it to the living room.
She reached into the pocket of the sweat pants that she wore and tossed me the keys to her truck as she grabbed her thick Carhartt hoodie and my favorite Woodstock jacket, just in case I needed it.
Dressed for the chilly weather, we headed out the door, raced down the hall, and jumped into the elevator. I cursed the slow speed all the way down to the garage.
When the elevator came to a stop, we raced toward her truck. I hit the electric door lock button and we slid into the seats of her Ford Expedition, breathless and panting.
The tires screeched as I tore out of the parking garage and we sped down the nearly deserted streets toward my destiny.
"Alright, Tiger. Let's not break all the land speed records getting to.... to... where the hell are we going anyway?" she asked, as she gripped the handle just above her head in an effort not to slide around in the leather seat as I rounded a corner.
"Work." I said, ignoring her look of astonishment as her head snapped in my direction.
#####################
Since it was the middle of the night and, for once, the lights were with us, we made it to our office building in less than ten minutes.
I started to park in front of the building and get out when Roman stopped me.
"No! The security guards will want to know what we're doing here and they may not let us in. Go to the parking garage and we can take the elevator straight up." she explained.
Man, it was wonderful having a rational thinking friend in a time of crisis.
We pulled around to the side of the building and after I slid Roman's parking pass through the magnetic reader, the gate opened, maddeningly slow, and we drove into the underground garage.
I came to a screeching halt in front of the elevator and threw the truck into park.
"Go ahead, I'll park the truck and then come up and find you." said Roman, hopping out of the passenger side door.
"Sixth floor, office 602." I called over my shoulder as I punched the UP button.
She nodded and I watched her pull off toward a parking space as the elevator doors closed shut in front of me.
I punched the brightly lit number six and was all but hopping up and down by the time the elevator stopped on the sixth floor.
##########################
When the elevator doors opened I raced toward office 602. When I finally reached it I turned the knob and, to my surprise, found the door unlocked. I flung the door open and looked around.
She wasn't here! I looked around the office in disbelief, not understanding how I could have been wrong. The dream had been so vivid, so real. However, another glance around the office told me that I was in here alone.
I still couldn't shake the ominous feeling that I'd had earlier and the dull ache in my chest had yet to subside, these two things told me I still had something to do.
But what? And if not here, in this office then... Where?
I walked back to the door of the office and closed it. I was just about to turn and walk back toward the elevator when something told me to look again at the number on the office.
It clearly read 602. What if it wasn't office 602 that I was supposed to walk into?
I concentrated, trying to focus on the dream, my mind grasping at minute tendrils of memory. I closed my eyes and tried to go back into the dream, right to the point just before I had found her.
My brow furrowed and a bead of sweat ran from my temple as I tried to concentrate, but I couldn't bring it into focus.
Tears filled my eyes and I prayed, harder than I ever prayed in my life, to any Deity that would hear my pleas.
I fell to my knees and sobbed, my forehead touching the cool tiles of the floor beneath me.
"Please... Gods please help me?. help me find her. " I whispered. I was getting desperate.
Still confused and feeling more helpless than I ever had in my life, I rose to my feet. I was determined to search every office on this floor if I had to. If I didn't make it in time, I'd just have to deal with that, but I had to try, had to at least make an effort to find her.
Just as I took a step toward the next door, something ... someone... spoke to me.
'Turn around.' came a soft, unmistakably female voice.
Once again I turned and looked at the door of office 602, seeing nothing but the numbers.
In a flash, the dream came back to me.
Images swirled in and out of my consciousness and finally the image I'd tried so hard to bring into focus came to me. For the first time since I began having the dream, I could see the number of the office clear as day.
I'd read it wrong! It wasn't office 602 it was office 607, the office directly under the office where I worked now.
########################
It took a second for me to focus and recall the layout of this floor. Office 607 was a corner office like mine, which meant that it was on the other side of the building.
I began to run like Cerberus himself was on my heels.
I turned a corner and sprinted another few yards then I came to a fork. This was new. I hadn't been on this floor since they'd done some renovations, which were needed after a small fire broke out in the break room. Cursing the architect for straying from the original plans of the building, I stood looking down both sides of the hallway.
Right or Left?
I stood, panting, feeling the seconds slip away, and tried to slow the pounding of my heart.
I don't know how, but I knew she was here, I could feel her and although, at the time, it felt like a silly thing to do, I sent out a thought to her.
'Where are you?' my mind cried out.
I closed my eyes and listened, my head tilted slightly to the side.
My brow furrowed when I heard a noise.
It sounded like.... sobs. Soft, barely audible sobs coming from my left.
I opened my eyes and took off down the hall to my left. Sure enough, I began passing cubicles and beyond them I saw the doors to the two corner offices up ahead of me.
I ran up to the first door that I came to. It read 605, which meant the next one down, would be 607.
With growing dread that I was too late, I ran to office 607 and turned the knob.
It was locked!
I hit the door with my shoulder. It didn't budge. I hit it again and it felt as if my shoulder dislocated from the socket. I didn't care; I had to get into that office. Somehow I knew that my life, as well as the life of the woman I knew I would find inside, depended on me getting into that office.
I steeled myself for another blow and with every ounce of strength I had I plowed into the door.
It gave way under my assault and shattered inward. The momentum I'd put behind the last hit carried me into the office and over the desk that was directly in front of the door.
I picked myself up off the floor and looked toward the large window when I felt a chilly blast of air hit my face.
My breath left my lungs when my eyes met hers. After almost a month of seeing her in my dreams, it was still a shock to see her live and up close.
I stared into her green eyes shiny with tears as I began to move slowly toward her, my hand outstretched. I was less than a foot away from her when I finally spoke.
"Please, don't do this. Whatever it is, it can't be that bad. Let me help you. Just come back inside and let me help you." I managed through chattering teeth.
I'd only been in this room for a minute or two and I was shivering with cold, so I knew she had to be freezing.
"Take my hand." I said as I reached for her again.
She looked over her left shoulder, down to the street below then back to me and for the first time she spoke.
"You... you'll help me?" she asked timidly, with the softest, most angelic voice I'd ever heard.
I smiled at her and gave her what I hoped was an encouraging look as I nodded my head.
"With anything that you ask me to help you with. Whatever you want, whatever you need, just ask." I replied, dropping all barriers, baring myself, my soul for the first time in my life.
Never before had I made such an offer to another person, not even Roman.
Fresh tears streamed down her face as she looked over her shoulder and then back at me once more. I moved even closer to her, slowly letting her get used to my physical presence, not wanting to make her uneasy.
She gripped the windowsill with her left hand and began to reach for me with her right, when a blast of air came through the window. It shook her small frame and hit me hard enough to make my eyes begin to tear up.
Everything began to move in slow motion, one moment she was gripping the windowsill, the next moment she'd lost her grip and began to fall backwards, out the window.
With reflexes I never knew I had, my arms shot out in front of me and I grabbed the lapels of her denim jacket. She screamed as she hit the side of the building with a bone-jarring thud. I gasped and held onto her as tightly as I could. This woman was my future and there was no way I was letting her go. If she went, I'd go with her and pray on the way down that we'd meet again in another life.
The mystery of how she'd gotten this window open became all too apparent when I felt the small shards of glass digging into my waist just below my navel.
Despite the pain, I still held on. My eyes finding hers as I gripped her collar with increasingly numbed fingers.
She was getting heavier and to my horror, my hold on her began to slip.
"Oh Gods, please." I said without even thinking about it. Prayer had become a staple with me tonight.
She looked up at me with frightened eyes and reached up to try and grip my shoulders, but her fingers were numb and her arms were a little too short, so she covered my hands with her small ones and held on.
I felt myself slipping closer to the edge, the glass digging in further. I tried desperately to anchor myself with my feet and knees but the extra weight was pulling me out the window along with her.
She knew what was happening, she could feel me slipping and knew that I couldn't hold her forever. It was still entirely possible for me to save myself, but I'd have to let her go in order to do it. That wasn't an option for me.
Her bright green eyes locked onto mine and once again she spoke to me.
"Let me go." she said softly, although it was loud enough for me to hear.
"NO!" I answered.
"Please, save yourself and let me go. I know the glass is cutting you, just let go, it's ok." she said once again.
I looked her dead in the eye and voiced the decision I'd made moments earlier.
"If you go, I go. We're in this together." I said with such finality that she knew to argue with me further would be pointless.
She shut her eyes and fresh tears streamed down her cheeks.
I slipped out the window a few more inches and knew this was it; another sudden gust of wind or a few more minutes of my fingers getting number and it would be over. I was too far out now to be able to pull myself back into the window anyway. It was no longer a choice, but a fact. If she fell, I would fall too.
No matter, I'd made my peace with everyone and everything that meant anything to me. I sent a wish of good health and long life to all those who touched my life in any way. Everyone from Roman to my kindergarten teacher Mrs. Lambert, who taught me that reading really was fundamental. My only regret was that I hadn't had the opportunity to kiss the lips that were only an arms length away from me. That I hadn't had the opportunity to hold her in my arms and comfort her, confident that if I'd had that opportunity, this desperate situation would never have come about.
A small smile curled my lips as I looked into her beautiful green eyes once more and I was surprised to see her return my smile with one of her own. I was in love with her and I didn't even know her name.
It seemed as if we'd been up here forever but I'm sure fewer than ten minutes had passed.
My arms began to tremble from the cold and the strain of holding her and I felt the final slip that would pull us to our deaths. It was a small gust of wind but it was enough to make me lose what little footing I had.
"I'm sorry." I whispered to her.
I shut my eyes tightly and tightened my grip as much as I could and I felt myself slide out of the window.
################################
Before my thighs got halfway over the edge of the windowsill, I felt the forward motion of my body come to a halt as strong hands gripped the waistband of my jeans. At first I thought it was a hallucination, then I felt myself being pulled backward. Back into the office.
I didn't know how it could be happening, until my emotionally drained mind fixed on a name. The one person on earth that I could depend on to have my back, when I needed her most.
Roman.
I heard her straining with each pull and I gave her as much help as my exhausted body could muster. I was bent over at the waist again and I planted my knees on the floor at the edge of the sill, which was raised about a foot from the floor. I also tried my best to pull my little jumper up toward the window so Roman wouldn't have to bend so far over to reach her.
"Roman, I'm in. Grab her, please." I pled, my voice raspy with emotion.
Roman reached over my body, planting her knees against the wall on either side of the windowsill and grabbed the collar of the jacket the small blond was wearing.
She struggled for a moment then, with a mighty heave, finally pulled her the rest of the way back inside the office, landing on her back with the young woman lying on top of her heaving chest.
She lay there for a second, and then realized I was still hanging out the window like a limp rag doll. Roughly grabbing the back of my sweatshirt she pulled me the rest of the way into the office as well.
We were safe.
Both of us were now safe inside the office.
#####################################
"You ever pull some shit like that again and I'll kill you myself." growled Roman, pointing a finger at me.
All I could do was smile back at her.
"Roman I could kiss you." I replied as tears of gratitude rolled down my cheeks.
"You kiss me and I'll kick ya so hard your tits'll swell up. Damn Bird fucker." she grumbled as she stood and walked out of the office door and into the hallway.
I crawled over to the young woman and took her in my arms, wincing at the cuts on my waist but not caring about them one bit.
I stroked her light blond hair as I tucked her head under my chin, chuckling softly to myself as I thought of how she reminded me of Woodstock.
How could I think of my favorite cartoon character at a time like this?
"You ok, Woodstock?" I asked, calling her by the nickname I chose to bestow upon her.
She shifted in my arms and looked up at me, green eyes full of adoration.
"How did you know I was here and how did you know my name?" she asked, the wonder evident in her voice.
I simply stared at her.
How could I tell her that I'd been dreaming about her and this night for almost a month now? How could I tell her that some force had blessed me with the gift of foresight, putting me in the right place and time in order to save her life?
How was I going to explain all of that to her, not to mention the fact that I'd fallen in love with her?
"It's kind of a long story and what do you mean how did I know your name?" I asked, confused by this question.
"You called me Woodstock. That's my name Adrian Woodstock." she said with a completely straight face and I knew she wasn't joking.
"Care to share the long story with me?" she asked again, a bit shyly this time.
A smile curled my lips and I hugged her close to me again, trying to reassure myself that she was indeed real and that all this was truly happening.
We helped each other to our feet and began to walk toward the door of the office, leaning on each other for support.
"I'd love to share it with you, Woodstock, and I will very soon, but for now let's just say ... a little bird told me." I said, as we walked down the hall toward the elevator and our future.
The End :0)
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