Dreams
Heather laughed when she opened her front door. Though they hadn’t planned to coordinate outfits, she and Jade looked identical in ponytails, black dresses and high heels. As they giggled, they shook their heads in unison and each instinctively hid blushing cheeks behind a finger-spread hand. It felt as though an invisible lifesize mirror separated them and it filled the sisters with an eeriness that neither was ready to deal with just yet. Heather couldn’t help but think a passerby would have to be very confident in his mental health to drive by and not smash his car into a tree.
“Ready?” Jade asked, obviously refusing to reference the doppelganger moment. They knew instantly it was going to be an interesting night.
Jade’s smile was so big Heather thought she looked shiny. Before Heather had the chance to respond, Jade pushed passed her and sprinted toward the bathroom.
“Hey, you might want to think about lifting the toilet seat this time!” Heather called out, half laughing and half serious. In the past, she would have already jumped up to dampen a cloth or ooze emotional support but all that had changed a few months before. Sympathetic and filled with good intentions, Heather had sat with Jade at the base of the toilet when her sister was about five months and Jade’s lunch threatened to revive itself. Chunks of hot dog mistook Heather’s lap for the toilet bowl awaiting it and the odor sent a message to her own gag reflexes. Clean-up was even more disgusting than the vomit party and both agreed to just allow Jade some privacy in the future.
Heather walked into the living room and watched the boys play video games with Damon. They gave cheers of victory or groans of defeat every few seconds.
“Okay, we’re getting ready to go,” she said softly.
Damon started out as her boyfriend, became her husband, turned into an enemy, and ended up being family to Heather. He shot a look of disapproval her way but was careful not to let the boys see. She stuck her tongue out at him and ignored the silent plea in his eyes the best she could. Both he and Joey had asked her not to venture out into public until the weirdness was over and Heather had responded with a lecture about power and control issues and a husband’s lack of rights post-divorce. She tried to explain to both of them that she was going because of the weirdness.
When she didn’t get a verbal response or even a nod from either child, Heather cupped her mouth with both hands.
“Hello out there?” she called dramatically.
“Sorry, Mom,” Jack answered with a giggle.
“Yeah, sorry,” Tommy fibbed.
Heather leaned in to kiss them goodbye and she inhaled the scents that emanated from their hair and their necks. They had already showered and changed at Damon’s persuasive suggestion and both looked squeaky clean. Jack’s damp hair was brushed back neatly and Tommy’s hung mostly over one eye, as was his new skater trademark. When she asked if they had remembered to brush their teeth, Jack blew a minty puff of air toward her nostrils.
“Thanks, dude,” she said.
“You’re welcome,” he said still giggling.
“Food’s in the fridge, Damon,” she instructed as she walked toward the kitchen. She had to pass his chair on the way there and when she walked by his chair, she smacked a finger-kiss onto his forehead. Heather continued her walk but stopped abruptly and turned back.
“Thanks for watching them,” she said seriously. “You’re a good guy sometimes.”
“Yeah, whatever,” he mumbled.
Damon had never been good at accepting compliments and his responses made it difficult to dish them out very often.
“Who said food?” Jade asked as she wobbled back down the hallway.
Heather glanced at her watch and wondered if there were any possibility of getting her sister safely past the refrigerator and still make it on time for the dream seminar.
After they parked, the sisters practically jumped out of the car. They took the stairs that led to the building two at a time and jogged down the walkway that led to the main building.
“They better not have locked the doors yet,” Jade threatened.
“Or what?” Heather laughed.
“Or else I’ll be super-mad,” Jade said in a dumb valley-girl voice.
As they ran, Heather worked hard to read the bold type at the top of their tickets. It clearly instructed participants to arrive fifteen minutes early and they were about five minutes late. Heather had too many questions and Jade had too much of an appetite for them to accept being locked out so she hoped that wasn’t the case. She hated being forced to break into places.
Luckily for all involved, the doors were still open to stragglers such as themselves. They walked inside and oozed amazement at the dream-like room they found themselves in. A building-sized mural painted on one wall showed a woman floating above her bed. It was unclear whether or not she was supposed to be happy about the levitation because she was