THETA
I regained consciousness. All around me was the familiar smell of my room and the feel of my bed. I tried to open my eyes but I couldn't make out anything in front of me. The light was too bright in my face, I closed them again. I felt a cold comforting hand on my forehead.
"Mom, I had the strangest nightmare..." I said. The hand rubbed softly.
"It wasn't a nightmare."
The voice that replied was not my mother's, but I had heard it once before.
I opened my eyes, forcing myself to keep them open to see who was with me. My heart was pounding against my ribs. I could feel it in my throat.
Someone turned off the big lamp next to my bed, and my world dimmed and became more manageable. Sitting next to me was William's sister, gazing at me with sadness in her eyes. William was standing at the foot of the bed, looking more curious than anything, although a small smile was playing on his face. For some reason, I felt better knowing who they were.
I sat up, trying to organize my thoughts. My memory was filled with vivid and incredible images and sensations. I was completely speechless, but it looked like William and his sister weren't expecting for me to talk this soon anyway. After what felt like practically an hour, all I could say was:
"Do you mean that everything was real?"
Hesitantly, I placed my hand on my chest. The hole was still there.
I looked down, touching the burned edges of it. Wondering, thinking, trying to find an explanation for all that I just saw and felt. I glanced at William. He was looking at me, his eyes fixed on the hole. Maggie was doing the same.
"What does this mean? Why didn't I...?"
Maggie looked at William like she wanted him to explain. When it looked like he wasn't going to say anything, she said.
"We don't know, Gabrielle. This is the first time we've encountered something like this in a thousand years."
She stopped herself, looking once again at William. He just sighed and turned away, walking to my window and staring out into the suburban California night.
"It doesn't make any sense to hide anything now," He said. "She knows too much already and then..."
William glanced at me, a frown creasing his brow, then turned his back to me again.
Maggie seemed to understand and helped me lie back down, gently tucking me in as she did so.
"You're still tired," She said softly. "We have time to talk about this later."
She offered me a glass of water. I reached for it, but then it hit me.
"These people were in our house!"
I shoved the water out of my face and tried to get out of the bed. "My mom..."
In a split second, Maggie was standing between the door and me, her arms out to catch me in case I fell.
"She's sleeping," she reassured me. I looked at her quizzically. "Did you...did something to her?" She smiled.
"When you have vodka, you don't need magic," She said, amused. I looked down at my feet.
"How embarrassing."
I was probably even blushing.
"I'm sorry I didn't mean to…" Maggie began, but I interrupted her.
"It's okay. At this point, that should be the least of my worries." "Having an alcoholic mother can be a painful experience,"
William spoke up, still staring out the window, "but you shouldn't be embarrassed about her. It's not your doing."
I was actually not so sure about that.
"She only married Thomas because I was coming..."
I kept silent, not knowing what to say. I felt naked and mortified. My deep dark secret was now exposed to these two strangers, who were stranger than they looked.
"Don't worry, we won't say anything and we won't judge you," Maggie said trying to reassure me again.
Still somewhat on autopilot, I nodded. Too much had happened in and I just couldn't think about it