Tomas took a sharp, sudden breath in and fell back - onto his bed. He lay panting, his heart raced as the events of his dream flashed before him. Of all the places he had visited at night, he found the precipice the most exhilarating. But it had gone, replaced by the lights dancing in the dark above him. It took a full minute for the drone of the early morning traffic to bring him back to his least, favorite world. The monster he knew as London stirred. Tomas groaned and raised his hand to his face, trying to deny the reality - a damp bedroom in his granddad’s house.

He shivered. The sheets clinging to his clammy skin, brought little comfort against the cold air in his room. Tomas let his head sink into the pillow and longed for a visit from Sky. Whenever life got tough, he would think of her and suddenly it would be summer like it used to be; glistening glasses of lemonade, the smell of the barbeque and larks singing high above. Her visits had become a regular occurrence, and at times, he could even see her when he daydreamed at his desk in school. He used to enjoy making her laugh with his monkey face, but now they were older it seemed childish. But if he’d tried to speak to her, she vanished. Like the squiggles in his eyes, he learnt if he tried not to look at her directly, she stayed a while longer and smile, her sweet smile.

Sky was his secret, he’d never told a soul. Not because he thought people might think he was mad, he feared if anyone found out, she’d be lost to him. He tried to imagine her face, but he could only remember her beguiling green eyes. He closed his own for one more attempt, but she belonged in the land of in-between and not here.

The green light from the alarm clock gave his room a ghostly hue. He rolled onto his side and glanced at the clock; it was 3:22am. His skin prickled. He sensed a presence in the room. He couldn’t move. Only his eyes responded, as they rapidly scanned the dark, unsure of whether he wanted to see what lurked in the shadows. A whimper escaped through his clenched teeth. Something moved. It came closer. A figure stood over his bed. Slowly, it bent forward, getting lower until its face was just inches to his left. Tomas felt its cold breath on his exposed cheek. Again, he tried to move, but could only manage to force his eyes to look away. Then he heard it. At first he wasn’t sure if it was a voice in his head, or in the room, but he clearly heard a woman whisper.

“I know who she is.”

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