Dying Dreams

A Story by Vectra Mendonie

I dream of the dead, but not in the usual ways, like ghosts or just lost loved ones. No, I dream of those who will go past the veil, but aren’t yet. The first time, it was my grandpa. He showed up in my dreams three nights in a row before his nursing home called mom one day after dinner. I was young, so I didn't think much of it then, but that wasn’t the last time.

A few years later, when I was about ten, I had a dream about a strange man I didn’t recognize. For some reason, the dream scared me, so I was going to tell my mom about it. I found her on the couch, watching the funeral of some senator. When they showed a picture of the man for his memorial, I recognized him instantly.

When I was fifteen, I fell asleep in math class. I saw my dog running through a field before I was woken by my teacher dropping a heavy book on my desk. When I went home, she was laying in the backyard with a snake bite. She didn’t last the night.

I started to recognize a pattern when I dreamed of people, and animals. Yes, they died shortly afterward, but there was another thing too. Whenever I dreamed of someone who would die, they always spoke to me in the dream. Their advice usually didn’t make much sense, but I always tried to take it to heart. After all, they knew what happened after death, so they were probably smarter than me in other matters as well.

Granddad told me that eighty-three wasn’t a good age to start a garden, so I started one early. The senator told me that if I was patient, cheese would come. I tried to be patient in life after that, even though I wasn’t a big fan of cheese. My dog informed me that the squirrels were plotting my end. I already suspected that, so I didn't change my life too much for that one.

Anyway, there is a reason I’m telling you this, I promise. You see, last night, you were in my dream. Your advice didn’t make a whole barrel of sense either, but like I said, you would probably know better. Last night, you told me that the only way to protect you was to kill you. And I always take the advice I’m given.