The Nerd Can Fight

"Casey!"

I heard the urgent tone under his voice as he yelled and felt a hand shaking my knee in a frantic gesture. I sat up abruptly and forced my blurry vision to focus on my surroundings. When I realized what the pair of blinding lights was, I immediately strapped my seat belt on and curled my body up and tried to protect my head by shielding them with my arms. A weight settled on me as I squeezed my eyes shut and the next thing I knew, I was facing gravity head on.

I woke up with my heart beating hard against my rib cage and my breathing was shallow. A thin sheen of sweat covered my forehead and back as I tried my hardest to get myself to calm down. It wasn't long until I felt my breathing ceased back to a regular rhythmic inhales and exhales but I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep anymore. I felt around my bedside table for my phone and when I finally got a hold on it, the harsh light from the screen caused me to squint and I barely managed to check the time before my eyes watered from the sharp sting of staring at the screen. I took a brief glimpse on the time, only to find out that I still had 2 more hours before school.

I untangled myself from the sheets, swung my legs to the side of the bed hastily, my foot easing onto the cold hard surface of the floor. I walked the small distance to the door and twisted the doorknob before pulling it open gingerly, cringing at the creaking of the rusty hinges. Stepping out of my bedroom and shutting the door quietly behind me. I immediately made my way to the staircase that was located down the corridor.

I went down the stairs quietly. The only noise heard was the creaking of stairs bearing my weight and I flinched when the last step I took made the loudest one of all. I wouldn't have any explanation as to why I was wandering around the house. If my parents caught me, I don't think they would appreciate being waken up at the first dawn early in the morning. I threaded my steps carefully and headed to the kitchen, grabbing a drink to quench my thirst.

After I relieved my dry throat, I covered the small distance between the dispenser and the sink and bent my body after opening the tap, watching the water gush out and cupping my hands beneath it to catch some water and splashed a handful onto my face to try rub all the traces of the dream off.

I turned the faucet off and held on to the edges of the sink, staring at the water that circles the base of the sink before going down the drain and disappearing. It had almost been two long, hard years and I still had dreams about that night. I climbed up the stairs again and entered my bedroom, flicking my nightlight on.

The dim light illuminated the two beds in the room. I requested that the bed, a few feet from mine, to not to be taken out of the room. One was neatly made and the other was mine, obviously messed up with the duvet strewn everywhere.