Waking up as daylight slowly brightened up the surroundings did not feel natural like every other day. Daniel’s head felt clouded, heavy, as if he was coming out from under the depths of a dark and troubled sea. He opened his eyes and found that he wasn’t in either of his rooms. Instead he was in what looked more like a library, thanks to the endless books and manuscripts he saw stuck in the numerous shelves, or laying all around the room.
On the couch opposite him he saw a young man sleeping, whom he did not recognize. His face was turned the other direction, so he could only make out his short brown hair. Sitting on a chair by the table in the middle of the room there was someone else, a girl with long curly blonde hair immersed in a thick hardcover book, the likes of which he saw plenty in the library where he worked. He thought she was very pretty and familiar. He had seen that face recently, well not quite; she looked so much like someone else he had seen recently. He just could not think of whom exactly.
He coughed and that got their attention. Sam lifted her piercing blue eyes towards him, putting the book down, while Freddie got up immediately, as if he wasn’t even sleeping.
‘Where am I?’ Daniel asked.
‘You’re safe,’ Freddie replied first, brushing his brown hair with his fingers. ‘You’re with friends. How do you feel?’
‘My head feels like it’s got a twin growing up inside, but other than that I think I’m ok. How did I get here?’
‘Do you remember anything from last night?’ Freddie asked, coming to seat on a chair next to him.
Daniel suddenly had a flashback of the previous evening.
‘I remember getting out of the gym and walking home, when I saw these two guys coming towards me. Then someone grabbed me from behind and put something against my nose that smelt funny. That’s the last thing I remember. Was that you?’
‘No, no,’ Freddie hurried to explain. ‘We don’t know who they are exactly, nor why they kidnapped you. We were just lucky enough to be able to get you away from them. I’m Freddie by the way, and this is…’
‘Sam,’ Daniel finished his sentence, finally realizing who she looked like. ‘You’re Veronica’s granddaughter, aren’t you? What are you doing here?’
Sam, who had stayed silent until then, was caught off guard.
‘How do you know my grandmother or me? Who are you?’
‘I don’t,’ Daniel responded to her first question, ‘but you look the spitting image of your grandmother; except for the blonde hair of course.’
Sam felt like she was losing it. Too many things seemed to be going on these past few weeks that she couldn’t explain, and she had had just about enough.
‘What is going on here? How can you possibly know who my grandmother was and what she looked like?’
‘I told you,’ Freddie beamed at her, referring to their prior conversation, ‘he’s a Dreamer.’
‘A what?’ Daniel asked.
‘A Visitor,’ Freddie clarified for him.
‘And how do you know that?’ It was Daniel’s turn to freak out. ‘Who are you again?’
Freddie got up, raised his hands and put on a bossy attitude.
‘Okay, let’s just calm down everyone and take it from the top. Daniel, as Sam already knows, I am part of a very old society called The Guardians, whose only purpose has always been to protect the world from Dreamers gone bad. I have been keeping an eye on you for quite some time now, and it just so happened that I was forewarned you might be in danger last night. I was watching you from a distance, when I saw the men kidnap you and take you to the clinic where Sam was staying until last night. We met and she helped me get you out of there. That was my part of the story. Now you can tell each other the rest. Thank you!’
Having said all of that in one go, Freddie sat down again, taking one long deep breath. Sam and Daniel looked at him, then at each other and burst into laughter. Freddie gave them an evil look at first, but eventually joined in the laughter as well.
‘I can’t believe you said all of that without breathing, Fred,’ Sam said, while Freddie glared at her. ‘You must have some set of lungs in you, man.’
She now turned to Daniel.
‘Alright, I’ll go next then. Looks like you already know who I am, so I’ll skip the introductions. What you might not know however is that from the age of five I’ve lost the ability to sleep. At most, I may doze off with one eye open for about 10 minutes every night, but that’s about it. I’ve been to doctors and specialists most of my life, but nobody could ever tell me anything or do anything to help me. Then, about three weeks ago, while I was minding somebody else’s business, I ran into a stranger who told me that if I came here, I would meet someone named Daniel and that he would help me find the answers I’m looking for. So here I am, and here you are. Your turn.’
Daniel looked at the two of them giving him their full attention and waiting to hear his story. For the first time in his life he felt like he was important, and the feeling that this was more than just an adventure grew even stronger. But more than that, up until that moment, there had always been a possibility that what he was experiencing was all in his head, that it was all something he’d made up to deal with his loss and the desire to see his mother and brother once again. But now he knew for sure that he wasn’t crazy; that this was all real.
‘Well, I guess I don’t have to worry about you thinking I’m crazy, since you already seem to know a lot about what is going on. In a way, it feels good to finally be able to talk to someone about this. Here it goes then. A couple of weeks ago, the night of my nineteenth birthday to be exact, I dreamed for the first time ever in my life; I had never had a dream before that.’
‘You had your nineteenth birthday a few weeks ago?’ Sam interrupted him.
‘On the 15th, yes,’ Daniel replied, slightly annoyed. ‘Why?’
‘That’s the same as my birthday; we were born on the same day. What do you think that means?’
‘I don’t know,’ Daniel answered. ‘Maybe it’s just a coincidence.’
‘Aren’t we a bit passed coincidences by now?’ Sam insisted. ‘I mean, we’re born on the same day, you’ve never had a dream and I cannot sleep, which obviously means I’ve never had a dream either, as far as I can remember. And now I hear that there’s a whole other world out there, accessible only through our dreams; c’mon guys, this cannot be just a coincidence.’
She turned now to Freddie.
‘Well, Fred, you’re the one with all the conspiracy theories; what do you think?’
‘Honestly, Sam, I don’t know what to think. You seem to have a point there, but why don’t we let Daniel finish with his story before we jump into any conclusions? Go on, Daniel.’
Sam relented for the moment and did not interrupt again. Daniel continued where he’d left off.
‘Anyway, in my dream I visited this place called Endërland. It’s a beautiful place with wonderful people that live a simple and happy life, completely different from what we know here. It’s like a little piece of heaven, everything is so, surreal. There’s no pain, no hate, no hunger or death there. I’ve been visiting this place every night in my dreams, and it’s just amazing. Two days, or should I say nights ago I met there my own mother, who died fourteen years ago, and I spent the whole day with her. You can imagine my shock and disbelief; it took me a long while to convince myself that she was real. Like me, she was a Visitor too, and just before she died, she crossed over and she’s been living there ever since.
‘That same night, I was also introduced to a woman called Veronica, who apparently had been waiting a long time to meet me. She told me her story of how she ended up in that place and also told me about you, about what she promised you before she died. She said, not keeping that promise has weighed heavy on her heart ever since, and that I was her only chance at making things right. So, she gave me this for you.’
Sam watched with her eyes open wide as Daniel took off his little finger a ring, the very same ring that her Nan had promised her. She took t
he ring in her trembling hands and recognized it straight away. Hot tears began running down her flushing cheeks, as she too realized that this was indeed all real. She thought of her Nan and suddenly felt like she was back in her arms again.
‘She asked me to tell you that she is very sorry for not leaving you the ring like she promised, and she wants you to know that she is still looking after you.’
Daniel stopped there, realizing Sam was no longer listening to him. With her face hidden in her palms, she walked out of the room, leaving the two of them alone. He was about to go after her, but Freddie stopped him.
‘Give her some time, she will be fine. It’s a lot to take all in one day. By the way, you should call your father; he must be worried.’
Daniel jumped out of the bed, realizing he had been missing since yesterday and his dad would be out of his mind.
‘I’m such an idiot. Where is my jacket?’
Freddie passed him his jacket and Daniel checked the pockets for his mobile.
‘It’s not here; they must’ve taken it. Can I use your phone please?’
Freddie handed him his own mobile.
‘Do not tell him where you are. We need to be safe.’
Daniel looked at him, confused. How was telling his dad where he was, going to hurt him? He didn’t even know where he was anyway. He dialed the house number and heard it ring. David answered right away.
‘Dad, it’s me.’
‘Danny, where are you? Are you alright? I’ve been going out of my mind here.’
‘I’m fine, dad. I’m so sorry; I didn’t mean to scare you. You didn’t call anyone, did you?’
‘Well, I am the police, Danny; I got some of the guys looking around for you, but nothing official, if that’s what you mean. Where are you, Danny? What is going on?’
‘I’m with some friends, dad; I’m safe. But dad, something happened last night.’
‘What do you mean? What happened?’
‘Some people tried to kidnap me, and dad, if I come back home, they might try again. They were waiting for me outside the gym; they must know where I live too. I don’t know what to do, dad.’
David wasn’t answering. All of a sudden, he remembered some vague instructions Diane had given him before she died about moving town and changing their last name, which he had dismissed as the mumblings of a sick woman. He now felt he had made a big mistake. She had always claimed that after Damien had been kidnapped, Daniel was not safe either, but he had not believed her. And now it was happening all over again.
‘Dad? Are you still there?’ Daniel’s voice shook him out of his thoughts.
‘Yes, Danny, I’m here. Listen, are you sure you are safe where you are now?’
Freddie, who was listening to the conversation, affirmed with his head.
‘Yes, dad. They won’t know how to find me here.’
‘Ok, son. Stay there tonight and do not go out. I want you to call me tomorrow on my mobile. I will try to come up with a plan, ok? Until then, be safe son. I love you!’
‘I love you too, dad. Talk to you soon. Bye!’
Daniel hung up and handed the phone back to Freddie.
‘I didn’t expect that,’ he said, seating down. ‘I was afraid he would have insisted I go back home right away.’
‘Maybe he’s thinking like a policeman; he’s trying to be safe. Or maybe he knows more than you think. He was married to a Visitor after all.’
‘I don’t know about that,’ Daniel replied. ‘My mom told me that we are forbidden to tell anyone about us. She never said anything to him.’
‘There are no strict rules against that, Daniel. Sometimes even a non-Visitor can earn the right to enter Endërland, and it’s not thanks to anything they might say or do, but more about what’s in their heart.’
Daniel found that very interesting to hear. He thought of Veronica, who had not been a Visitor and yet she had ended up living in Endërland. Was she an exception, or other people like his dad could have the same chance as her?
‘Are there a lot of non-Visitors who end up living in Endërland?’ he asked.
‘I don’t have that answer, I’m afraid. I’ve studied the history of the Dreamers, the ones that are known, what they’ve done in this world and what they’ve said of the other world to people they’ve trusted. But what happens there, I’m afraid you have more access to than I. You are the first Dreamer I’ve ever met Daniel; you are my big chance to find out more.’
A while later, the door opened inwards and Sam walked back into the room, trying to hide her puffy eyes by avoiding their gaze. They did the same as to not make her feel uncomfortable. She went back to her chair, sat down again and spoke without looking at them.
‘I’m sorry about that. Everything that’s been happening recently it’s just crazy, and I’m feeling a bit lost to be honest. I still don’t know why I’m here.’
She raised her beautiful blue eyes that now looked even more enchanting because of her tears, and looked straight at Daniel.
‘He said that you’d help me find the answers I’m looking for. How are you gonna do that? How are you going to cure me?’
Daniel wasn’t sure how to answer that. He knew he could not do anything about Sam’s insomnia, just like he couldn’t do anything about the fact that he hadn’t had a single dream all his life.
‘Look, Sam,’ he began. ‘I don’t know why the oracle said what he said to you; I’m as new to all this as you are. I gave my word to your grandmother that I would pass her words and ring on to you, and I did. I don’t know what else I’m supposed to do for you.’
‘Well, that’s just great,’ she said, leaning back on her chair and staring at the two of them, not particularly happy. ‘So, now what? What’s next?’
‘I don’t know,’ Daniel answered. ‘I don’t know what these people want from me, but I have a feeling they’re not going to stop until they get me. I’m going to stay here tonight until I talk to my dad tomorrow and see what he’s got planned. I’m sure my mom’s got something to say about this as well; I’ve got to tell her what’s happened. But I can’t ask you to put yourself in danger any more than you already have. Maybe you should go back home, Sam.’
But that was the farthest thing from Sam's mind now.
‘Yeah, that’s not happening anytime soon. I was told to stick with you until I got my answers, and stick with you is what I’ll do, whether you like it or not. Besides, seems to me like you might need protection 24/7, and guess what, I’m your girl.’
‘But you don’t know what you’re getting yourself into,’ Daniel tried to protest.
‘Oh, I think I have a better idea than you do so far, my friend, so don’t even think of trying to scare me off.’
She made a point of sounding angry with her last words, though the boys didn’t really buy it.
Daniel looked at Freddie as if asking for his support. Freddie went to stand next to Sam and turned to face Daniel.
‘I’m sorry, Daniel, but I’m with Sam on this one. The oracle clearly meant for her to be here, and I dare not go against that.’
‘This is insane,’ Daniel exclaimed. ‘It’s not safe to be with me; I cannot protect you.’
‘Who says I need your protection?’ Sam yelled, now really angry. ‘What, just because I’m a girl? I am more than capable of protecting myself, thank you very much. In fact, I might even help keeping you alive. You just concentrate on finding out how to cure me, and I’ll take care of the rest. I am not leaving you until I’ve gotten what I came here for, and that’s the end of the it.’
Daniel tried to say more but she shunned him and went to the kitchen. Freddie couldn’t help but smile.
‘Damn it she’s stubborn,’ Daniel scoffed. ‘Well I won’t be held responsible if anything happens to her.’
‘I wouldn’t worry about her, man; she’s a tough one. Besides, maybe she is right; maybe she was sent here to help. Which reminds me, I’m gonna have to go out for a while. I’ll have to visit the order and as
k for their advice and help with this. Maybe they know something.’
‘When will you be back?’
‘Late afternoon, if everything goes well.’ He went to his wardrobe and picked up a jacket for himself. It was 30th of September and whatever summer London had enjoyed that year, was now truly over.
‘Try not to kill each other until I come back, please, will you?’
Daniel smirked at him.
‘What do I do until then?’
‘Improvise,’ Freddie said, grinning, and closed the door behind him.