In Between Dreams Read Free

Rodney came over to her. Rodney was an older gentleman, he reminded her of Sean Connery meshed with a rough-and-tumble, street-smart guy from Brooklyn. He always wore a fedora, and his white hair popped out horizontally below the hat in the strangest way. He could solve the problem with a larger hat or better haircut. He would scoff at both suggestions. He used to be the leader of the group in the episodes; however, about a year ago, he abruptly left the dream scene.
    “Come with me,” he growled, pulling her by her arm out of the diner. She pushed him off of her and crossed her arms in a huff. Rodney’s face softened as he tilted his head as he looked at her; she would never forget how his face softened in that moment. “Bailey,” he said softly. “I know, I
know
you’re upset.”
    Bailey shook her head, “You have no idea, Rodney. No idea.” Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked at him. “It feels like we’re always watching people who are in pain or hurting. It’s so hard to deal with, so difficult to watch unravel. I feel helpless, and I don’t understand why I’m here.”
    Rodney nodded. Something in his light blue eyes comforted her. Bailey wondered if his eyes were the same color as her father’s. His gaze was sympathetic, and sympathy was not his strong suit. Rodney was a hard-ass, he was a take-no-prisoners type of guy. He didn’t believe in excuses or apologies.
    “Bailey, listen to me,” he said. She nodded lightly, putting her attitude on hold for a moment as she listened to him. “I am sorry you’remissing this dance. If I
could
send you back to school to dance with your date, I would. If I promise to get you back before your senior prom, will you help?” he asked softly. “You have a gift, Bailey. And I’m going to be honest with you…it could always be worse.”
    Bailey stood there, completely astounded, a sliver of resignation appeared on her face as she nodded softly. She knew maybe things wouldn’t get figured out to her satisfaction, but this was her life. She knew that at least she had Rodney, at least she wasn’t alone in this adventure. It
could
be worse. Rodney was spot-on about that. “Okay.” she whispered.
    Everything about that moment reminded her of her dad; she thought that maybe, just maybe, that was her dad’s way of being there for her. Coming to her in a dream, or maybe she had projected what she thought her father would have said to her in that moment. Either way, she was thankful for the moment, because it changed the relationship that she had with her disease. It was a moment of acceptance.
    From that day forward, Rodney and Bailey were allies in her dreams, and she was able to give in to them. She thought of her dreams as a coping mechanism to her sleeping condition. She thought each person in them was something her subconscious had created to help her through each bout. She helped Rodney, because she now believed that if she finished her dream mission, she could get back to her life faster. She was efficient and pleasant, and she let go of all the teen drama and the anger and decided to learn from her dreams instead of fighting them.
    Bailey got out of the shower and slipped into another pair of pajamas—some thick sweats that would be more comfortable. She walked to her tiny kitchen (she was in a studio after all) to make herself a couple peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches to fill herself up before she crawled back into bed. Bailey grabbed her favorite DVD from the rack next to her television. She didn’t know how much longer it would be until the sleep took over, and she didn’t want to wait for sleep to come. She was right in the middle of her attack, and when she was given a chance to wake up, she wanted to take every minute of this time and use it to her advantage.
    The Big W
was a movie from the late 1940s Bailey always watched. It was old, dark, and cheesy, but she used to watch it with her father when she was younger and something about it