1 Am I Dreaming?

*Jenny*

It always starts with me walking in the woods. I walk slowly until I see a lake. It was a beautiful lake, with the moon shining so bright right above it. Though the moon was a bit larger than it normally is, I paid no mind to it. It is a dream and it's normal to have something weird into it, right? Then as I stopped near the lake, sensing that something was moving behind me. I should be scared, being all alone by this lake but a warm and comforting feeling was engulfing me. I turned around and saw a figure walking towards me. It was a person, a man to be exact. As he approached, my heart was thumping so loud. Was I expecting this man to come? Why am I feeling this longing? It was very confusing. Slowly, with the help of the moonlight, the man was becoming more visible.

The man, as I look at him, has bright blue eyes. He was also red-headed and had wavy hair though not long enough to tie. And he has this intense stare that seems to dazzle me, I can't look away from it. I then ask him who he is and what his name is. He was about to tell me but then it suddenly went blank. My alarm then started ringing.

I've been having this dream ever since my eighteen birthday, at least once a month. And as I got older, it became more frequent. Now that I am turning twenty-five, it occurs almost every night. I wouldn't call it a nightmare because I wasn't scared.

We have a belief that if you keep on dreaming the same dream over and over again, it will come true. And I wanted to see if this dream will come true and if this man that I keep on dreaming of is a real person. How would I react if it did come true, I don't know, but somehow I'm kind of excited.

"Good morning, sunshine." My roommate greeted me as I got to our kitchen to make a cup of coffee.

"Morning, Ebony."

"So? Did you have that dream again?" She asked as she sipped her coffee. I lazily nod at her while getting bread and butter to make a simple breakfast. "Well? Did you manage to get his name this time?" She then follows me to our dining table.

"No. It's still the same as before. Every time that he is about to tell me, I wake up." She sighed at the reveal.

"Don't you think it's time to consult someone about your dream?"

"Why would I? It's not that bad… Wait," She looked at me and hummed, "Oh ho, you just wanted to see that cute doctor again, right?" She almost choked at her drink and fanned herself.

"What?! No..."

"Uh-huh… well, yeah, that doctor is kinda cute."

"I know right? I couldn't believe having a sprain would lead to some cutie."

We giggled at our little girl talk. Ebony has been my roommate ever since I came to this city, Portland is not that bad, just a bit colder than my home country. Yes, that is right, I am an overseas worker. I came to the US due to work purposes, I got selected for the global rotation system that happens every year within our company. And I forgot to mention, Ebony is also my coworker.

"Oh! And by the way..." She briefly stood up then went to her room. After I washed our dishes, a loud pop surprised me.

"Happy Birthday, Jenny!" She used a confetti popper above my head before greeting me. It startled me but I smiled at her, she remembered my birthday. "And here's my gift to you TADA!" She handed me an envelope and when I saw its contents, I was again surprised. "Yep, I got us a dinner reservation at that restaurant you've been wanting to go at."

"Holy moly, isn't this too much?"

"Pfft, what are you saying? It's for my best roomie's birthday, nothing is too much for today."

"Aww, thank you so much, Ebony."

She then smiled at me proudly. I can't believe Ebony took the effort to do this. Heck, I didn't even realize it's my birthday today, maybe that is why Mom left tons of missed calls earlier. I'm officially twenty-five! I'm so delighted.

Work today seemed to go so fast and before I knew it, it was dinner time. Though I don't like wearing fancy clothes, Ebony insisted that we dressed for the occasion. Saying that I should be in my best self since it is my birthday and it only comes once a year. If I knew her better, she just wanted to show off her new dress, a blood-red backless cocktail dress. I wore a simple emerald green cocktail dress, matching my deep forest green eyes.

"Why don't you let your hair down for tonight, Jen?" Ebony asked while observing me combing my hair.

"What? No, I like my hair up." I replied as I started to form a bun from my hair. She then flicked my hands away and started fixing my hair.

"No, we're gonna let down our hairs tonight. You've got such shiny black hair girl, don't hide it." I was protesting silently at her but she insisted yet again. "It is your birthday, I want you to be the prettiest girl out there tonight." I knew from here, she won't listen to me so I just sighed and accepted my fate. She also made a move at my eyeglasses but I stopped her. I can live with my hair down, but my eyeglasses, oh no, it will stay. I don't care if I look weird but, nope, it will stay. Thankfully she didn't pursue it, we then hopped at Ebony's car and went to the restaurant.

As expected, the restaurant was so classy and the ambiance was high-end. As usual, Ebony got looks from some men as we walked inside, surprisingly I got some too. It is uncomfortable though, especially if it's unwanted. However, we did have a great dinner. The food was superb and we chatted for hours. Some brave souls made contact but as sassy as Ebony can be, no one was successful in gaining our interest.

"So? How was your night?" She asked me while we waited for her card in payment. I gave her the best smile I could make.

"Wonderful. Thank you so much, Ebony, I really appreciate it." She smiled back and was satisfied with my answer. As we waited for the valet to get Ebony's car, I somehow felt the need to look back by the restaurant's entrance. I don't know, I felt like I was compelled to look back. And then, a few seconds later, I saw a person whom I had never expected to see. A wavy redhead with the brightest blue eyes I have ever seen. It was him, the man who kept appearing in my dream.

I forced myself to blink, am I dreaming? How can this be? I glanced at Ebony who was busy with her phone at the moment. I wanted to tell her what I was seeing but a car that was passing us by took my attention which was a mystery to me cause I don't fancy any car. The car led me back to where the man was standing. It seemed that it was his car as he took a step closer when it stopped in front of him. It was intense looking at him, I gulped almost thrice now. It confused me why am I feeling like this to someone I never even met before, even though he keeps popping into my dream.

I was watching him quietly when he was about to get in the car and then he suddenly paused and looked back at me! He freaking looked at me! I wanted to look away but his gaze was so intense, I just couldn't. He just stared at me like he knew I was looking at him. My mind went completely haywire when he grinned at me. It was ultimately directed at me, I couldn't comprehend what was happening but it seemed that he knew why I was looking at him. It was a mixed feeling of confusion and excitement. I wanted to go to him and ask him who he was but a tap on my shoulder took me out of my thoughts.

"Hey, Jenny, are you alright? You look sweaty." I couldn't tell her what was going on because I, myself, did not even know. I looked back at the man but he was already gone. The car also went out of its way and I was left wondering what the heck just happened.

One thing is for sure, the man in my recurring dream is a real live person.