"Don't wake me up like that!"
I yelled at Senne, who immediately looked confused, then whimpered.
"But I'm really hungry…"
"Argh, what time is it now?"
"I don't know. But the sun has been up for a while."
I checked my phone, which still flickered randomly from the 'damage' that Senne's stupid surge of power inflicted.
"It's not even ten."
"An hour or two is but a blink of an eye in my time."
"Then surely you could have waited a few more blinks."
"But I'm really—"
"I get it. I get it. I'll get up now."
I groaned as my bare feet touched the floor as if I'd stepped on ice.
"Why is it so cold in your room?" Brian asked, walking into my room.
"Oh, Brian! Are you okay?" I jumped out of bed instantly and ran up to him.
"Chill, Bree. What's wrong with you?"
I ran my hands over his face, and gently pressed on his eyelids as he instinctively closed his eyes before I poked them.
"Bree, what—"
"You still have them."
"What the heck?"
I then grabbed his jaws, pulled them down to open his mouth and inspected inside.
Nothing.
"Good," I said with a sigh of relief.
"What's wrong with you?"
Brian was confused. Rightly so.
"Don't forget to brush your teeth, Brian. Some nasty things can grow in your mouth."
Brian narrowed his eyes, and asked me,
"You are one to talk. When was the last time you even took a shower?"
Ignoring him, I walked out of the room and went to the stairs, flinching for a moment as I took my first step onto it, then feeling calm again seeing that they didn't crumble beneath my feet.
"You are acting odd today," Brian said, following me from behind.
I didn't mind, just enjoying the sense of normalcy again, but when I entered the kitchen, I froze on the spot. The table was set exactly the way it was in my dream, every single object on it pixel-perfect in the same spot it had been.
"Did you… set the table?"
"Yeah, I need to leave the house soon. So I prepared the breakfast for you."
"Where are you going?"
"I got a job."
I felt a pang of guilt.
"You didn't have to," I said.
"It's temporary. Only until you become a big Internet star," he said, without even a hint of sarcasm.
What a foolish boy I have for a brother…
I sat by the table and started to eat my toast. It was as crispy as ever.
:Bree, your phone's buzzing:
A voice that I instantly recognized as Senne's boomed in my head.
"Kyaa! How are you in my head?!" I squealed, unable to hold myself back.
"Are you really alright?" Brian asked.
"How are you doing this?" I asked Senne, leaving Brian confused.
"Hello? Do you hear me?" Senne asked instead.
"Yes, I hear you!" I yelled again.
"Hello? Anybody in there?" Brian and Senne said exactly at the same time as Brian knocked on my forehead.
I shook my head hard.
"I'm fine, Brian. I'm fine."
He looked at me suspiciously, but let out a sigh and headed out of the kitchen, saying, "Don't stay up too late."
As soon as I heard the front door close, I put my toast down on the plate and ran upstairs.
"What the hell was that?!" I asked Senne.
She jumped up from my bed, which she was sitting on, and immediately dropped her shoulders.
"Where's my toast?"
"I told you to stay away from my bed."
"No toast?"
"I was still eating."
"But I asked you to bring toast."
"You didn't!"
"You didn't hear me?"
"I heard you, but nothing about the toast."
"I see…"
Senne turned and walked toward the window again, deep in thought.
"How did you get inside my head?"
"Bree, a duck flies to the north," she said, avoiding my question.
"Whatever the heck that means, don't you ever do that again."
"My power is growing. I can feel it."
"Good for you."
"But in order for it to continue—" she said, turning around to face me, "I need to be fed."
"Yeah, and my privacy must be respected."
"I'm sorry. But, Bree—"
"Yes?"
"Marmalade."
That brought a sudden chill down my spine as it brought back the memories of the dream.
"Okay…"
Without saying anything further, I turned to leave the room.
"Aren't you going to check who called?" Senne asked.
Remembering why she called me over in the first place, I checked the phone I left on the bedside table and immediately winced.
Abigail.
There were two missed calls and a text message sent by her. I hesitated for a long time before checking the message.
'Hey, girl. Wanna hang out tonight?'
I threw the phone onto my pillow. It landed with a muffled thud.
"What's wrong? Who called?" Senne asked. Curious.
"A devil."
"Eh?"