Sweet Dreams Ch. 02

Note: CH, this is one third you... one third will... and one third imagination. To my readers, thank you for sticking with me. Part three will follow shortly. As always this story is not to be reproduced without my permission.

Phoenix stood in front of the mirror, and tried to regain her composure. She took stock of the situation as she gazed at her reflection. "Okay, no big deal. You are in a strange mans bathroom, wrapped in his bathrobe." She began to towel dry her hair. " Nothing to worry about, you were dirty and he has a shower." She wrapped the towel around her damp hair and opened the door. Dillon was nowhere to be found.

Dillon grinned as he heard the shower start in the bathroom. He slipped quietly out of bed and pulled on a pair of jeans, a shirt, and some shoes. Grabbing his car keys, he slipped out the door without alerting her and headed towards the local coffee shop.

As he stepped up to the counter Debbie greeted him with a smile. "The usual?" she asked him as she grabbed a cup from under the register.

"Not quite, I need it to go. One of the usual, and one... hold on a second." Dillon pulled out his cell phone and dialed Glenn. "Hey, what type of coffee does Phoenix drink?"

Glenn laughed, "She doesn't, she drinks chai, cold with whole milk and whipped cream. What are you up to?"

"Thanks, I'll fill you in later." Dillon hung up the phone and smiled. "One usual and one cold chai, whole milk and whipped cream."

Debbie gave him a suspicious look as she started his order. "Are you seeing someone? If you are you should have told me."

"Met her last night," he said as he handed her the money with a shit-eating grin. "I'll see you at nine for practice!" He bolted out the door before she could say anything else, leaving Debbie with a slightly bemused look on her face.

~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`

When she couldn't find Dillon, Phoenix had curled up on the couch to wait. Her instincts told her that he would be back soon. He wasn't the type of guy who would just skip out like that. She almost jumped out of her skin when Dillon came waltzing in through the kitchen. He must have come in the back she realized. He had a cup in each hand, and he sat one of them down on the table beside her. "Sorry I wasn't here when you got out," He whispered a bit sheepishly. "I thought you might like something to drink."

Phoenix grinned, as she tasted the chai. "How did you know?" the aroma calmed her nerves and made her smile even wider.

"Lucky guess. I have a proposition for you. I have band practice in an hour, would you like to stay and watch?" He looked at her expectantly with the most adorable puppy dog eyes she had ever seen.

"I would love to stay and watch, but I had better get dressed." Phoenix replied as she headed to the bedroom.

Dillon groaned theatrically. "I thought you would say that, but I was hoping you wouldn't notice."

~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`

The band had been amazing, and aside from the billions of questions she had fielded it had been a pretty relaxing evening. Phoenix gently scratched Oberon's tummy as she contemplated the past two days. Nothing seemed real yet. Her eyes wandered over to the small wooden box resting on her bookcase. "Not yet," she whispered softly to a loudly purring Oberon, "Soon, but not yet." There were secrets in that box, secrets that she would have to face if she were ever going to truly let Dillon in. Memories locked safely away from daylight.

Phoenix closed her eyes and surrendered to sleep. The dreams began to form out of the darkness. Voices penetrated the peace of slumber. "It's your fault. No one will ever love you. Don't touch me. You know you like it." The words repeated themselves over and over again as the wind cut into her skin. "What did you expect? Did you think it was real? Why would anyone want you? I'll never see her again. You aren't enough. You are worthless... Stupid... You are only good for one thing." Tears ran down Phoenix's cheeks as she fought against the voices. She sat up. Her eyes wide open, tears falling down her face, her scream still echoing in the room. Her voice trembled as she glared into the darkness. "I'm not worthless, and I am going to prove it." Her hand moved slowly to the box, she sat it down on the bed beside her and stared at it. She couldn't open it, couldn't face it. She put it back on the shelf and made her way to the bathroom.

The steamy water scented with lavender soothed her body, but her mind was miles away in another bathroom, in another apartment, in another state. Her mind flashed back to eight months ago.

~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`

She stood in the shower, dripping wet and freezing, looking down in disbelief. Justin lay there sweaty, breathing hard, his eyes on her and his hands on Erin. She looked at Erin's face and saw a satisfied smile. This couldn't be happening. Completely numb she somehow managed to dry herself off and exit the bathroom. A few minutes later Erin came out. "See you later sweetness," she whispered as her lips gently brushed Phoenix's cheek. Erin smiled one last time and exited the apartment. Phoenix couldn't breathe, she couldn't speak, and she was frozen. Was that bitch wearing her favorite T-shirt? Phoenix grabbed a pair of jeans and a tank top and pulled them on as Justin walked into the room. He looked at her as if he were waiting for something.

"C'mon babe it's no big deal. Just a little fun between friends."

She slipped into her flip-flops and ran as fast as she could away from the apartment. She couldn't let him see her cry.

Flash back to six and a half months ago.

She tried to scream, tried to move, but she couldn't. She was paralyzed as his hands ran over her breasts, his eyes raping her, telling her what he was about to do. She fought it; struggled against the haze that was beginning to take over her brain. She lashed out, but she was too weak. It was another fifteen excruciating minutes before she could move. Her fist collided with his jaw and she heard a sickening crack. She grabbed her shorts off of the pavement and ran she ran until she collapsed on the beach. She was found there the next morning. The homeless man woke her gently. He held her head as she threw up into the sand and walked her back to her apartment complex.

Justin wrinkled his nose as when he saw her. "Where the hell have you been?" When she told him he laughed. "That's what you fucking get for going out without me."

Erin walked out of the bedroom and cooed in sympathy.

"Poor little sweetness, let me help you get cleaned up."

Flash back to six months ago.

The phone was ringing. "Hello," whispered Phoenix, afraid of hearing Justin's voice.

"Ms. Riley," the no nonsense voice on the other line made Phoenix breathe a sigh of relief. "This is officer McCord, I'm afraid that you are needed at County Hospital immediately."

The fear got Phoenix there in fifteen minutes. When she got there it was to see Danny's family in the emergency waiting area. "What's happened," she asked Danny's sister Kate? "Where is Danny?" Her stomach clenched up in knots as she read the look in Kate's eyes. She fell into a chair as a doctor approached.

"Are you Phoenix," the doctor asked kindly? "He's asking for you." Phoenix looked up into the eyes of Danny's mother, and as she nodded Phoenix stood to follow the doctor. "He doesn't have much time. He insisted on seeing you." The doctor led her to a room and pushed the door open. "I'll wait here."

Danny was pale; he gave a slight smile as she rushed to his side. "Shhh love, there isn't time for any of that," he whispered as she opened her mouth. "I love you, I could never say it. You were always there. My best friend, and so much more. I wanted you to know, I'll love you with my last breath." Phoenix leaned down and kissed him, not the kind of kiss she usually gave him. It was a real kiss, filled with love, passion, sorrow, and pain. She gently brushed her hand against the side of his face as his mother entered the room behind her.

"To the moon and back." She breathed.

"To the moon and back he echoed, as death descends like a pack of rabid donkeys." His smile was somehow broken as she ran from the room.

Phoenix heard the whispers as she waited to hear the worst. "A car accident...drunk driver...he was only twenty." She waited and trembled, but the tears wouldn't come.

~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`

Phoenix snapped back to the present, her bath water was cold and the sun was peaking above the mountains. She quickly dried herself off and walked into her bedroom. The box was sitting there, mocking her. It was time.