Emily stared at her phone, her hand trembling slightly as she reread the mysterious message. "The forest is waiting, Emily." The words seemed to pulse on the screen, each letter burning into her mind.
"Em, who sent that?" Sandy's voice was tight with concern. "Do you recognize the number?"
Emily shook her head, her throat dry. "No, it's... it's not a number I know." She looked up at her friend, eyes wide. "Sandy, what's happening? First the dreams, then I think I see the man on the street, and now this?"
Sandy reached out, squeezing Emily's arm reassuringly. "Okay, let's not panic. There has to be a logical explanation for this. Maybe... maybe it's just a wrong number or a prank?"
But even as she said it, Sandy didn't sound convinced. Emily took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart. "You're right. It's probably nothing. We should just go meet the others."
They got out of the car, the busy street a stark contrast to the eerie silence of Emily's dream forest. As they walked towards the cafe, Emily couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. She glanced over her shoulder, scanning the faces in the crowd, but saw no one familiar.
The cafe was a cozy spot, all exposed brick and mismatched vintage furniture. Their friends, Alex and Mia, were already seated at a corner table, heads bent close in conversation. They looked up as Emily and Sandy approached, their smiles fading as they caught sight of Emily's pale face.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Alex asked, his brow furrowing with concern. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
Emily slid into a seat, Sandy settling in beside her. "I... I'm not sure," Emily began, then hesitated. How could she explain without sounding crazy?
Mia leaned forward, her dark eyes intense. "Come on, Em. You can tell us anything. What's going on?"
Taking a deep breath, Emily recounted the events of the morning – the vivid dream, seeing the man on the street, and the strange text message. As she spoke, she watched her friends' expressions shift from concern to disbelief to something approaching fear.
"Okay, that's... that's pretty weird," Alex said when she finished. He ran a hand through his short blonde hair, a nervous habit Emily recognized. "But there has to be a rational explanation, right?"
Mia, always the most pragmatic of the group, pulled out her phone. "Let me look up that number. Maybe we can trace it."
As Mia tapped away, a waitress approached their table. "Can I get you folks started with some drinks?"
Emily ordered a strong coffee, suddenly craving the caffeine. As the others gave their orders, she found her gaze drawn to the window. The street outside was bustling with morning commuters, but for a moment, she thought she saw a flash of familiar dark hair in the crowd. Her heart leapt, but when she blinked, it was gone.
"Earth to Emily," Sandy said, nudging her. "You okay?"
Emily tore her eyes away from the window. "Yeah, sorry. Just... distracted."
Mia looked up from her phone, frustration clear on her face. "I can't find anything on this number. It's like it doesn't exist."
A chill ran down Emily's spine. "How is that possible?"
Alex shrugged, trying to lighten the mood. "Maybe your dream guy is a tech wizard. Or a ghost with really good cell service."
The joke fell flat, tension still thick around the table. Their drinks arrived, and Emily wrapped her hands around the warm mug, grateful for something to focus on.
"Okay," Sandy said, her tone determined. "Let's approach this logically. Emily, you said these dreams have been happening for months. When exactly did they start? Can you remember anything significant happening around that time?"
Emily furrowed her brow, thinking back. "It was... early March, I think. Right around my birthday."
"Your 27th birthday," Mia added. At Emily's surprised look, she shrugged. "I remember because we had that big party at the rooftop bar."
Something clicked in Emily's mind. "Wait, that's right. And... and that was the night I found that weird necklace, remember?"
The others looked blank, and Emily rushed to explain. "After the party, when I was walking home, I found this necklace on the sidewalk. It was really beautiful, with this strange pendant – like a tree, but the branches formed a maze. I meant to turn it in to lost and found, but..." She trailed off, realization dawning. "That's when the dreams started."
A heavy silence fell over the table. Alex was the first to break it. "Em, please tell me you still have that necklace."
Emily nodded slowly. "It's at home. I... I've been wearing it sometimes. It felt special, somehow."
Sandy leaned back in her chair, blowing out a long breath. "Okay, this is starting to sound like the plot of a fantasy novel. Mysterious necklace, recurring dreams, cryptic text messages..."
"Don't forget the handsome dream guy," Mia added with a wry smile.
Emily felt a blush creep up her cheeks. Despite the strangeness of the situation, she couldn't deny the pull she felt towards the man in her dreams. There was something about him, a familiarity that went beyond mere physical attraction.
"So what do we do now?" Alex asked, looking around the table. "I mean, this is weird, sure, but it's not like Emily's in danger or anything, right?"
As if on cue, Emily's phone buzzed again. With trembling fingers, she pulled it out. Another message from the unknown number:
"Time is running out. You must return."
Emily read the message aloud, her voice barely above a whisper. The cafe suddenly felt too small, too crowded. She could feel her friends' concerned gazes, but couldn't bring herself to meet their eyes.
"Okay, that's it," Sandy said, standing up abruptly. "We're going back to your apartment, Em. We need to see this necklace."
No one argued. They left some cash on the table for their barely-touched drinks and hurried out of the cafe. As they stepped onto the sidewalk, Emily froze. Across the street, partially obscured by a bus stop, stood a familiar figure. The man from her dreams.
"Guys," she breathed, grabbing Sandy's arm. "Look. Over there. It's him."
Her friends followed her gaze, but at that moment, a bus pulled up, blocking their view. When it pulled away a few seconds later, the man was gone.
"I... I didn't see anyone," Alex said hesitantly.
Mia put a hand on Emily's shoulder. "Are you sure, Em? Maybe it was just someone who looked similar."
But Emily knew what she had seen. The man's eyes had locked with hers for a brief moment, and she had felt that same jolt of recognition, of connection. And something else – a sense of urgency, of warning.
"We need to go," Emily said, her voice stronger now. "Now."
They piled into Sandy's car, the usual banter and music conspicuously absent. Emily stared out the window as they drove, her mind racing. What did it all mean? Why her? And why now?
As they neared her apartment building, Emily's phone buzzed one more time. With a sense of inevitability, she read the new message:
"The key lies in the pendant. Open the door, Emily."
She read it aloud, her voice shaking slightly.
"Okay, this is getting seriously creepy," Alex said, voicing what they were all thinking.
Sandy pulled up in front of Emily's building with a screech of tires. They all but ran up the stairs, Emily fumbling with her keys at the door. As soon as they were inside, she made a beeline for her jewelry box.
The necklace was right where she had left it, the intricate tree pendant gleaming in the morning light. Emily held it up, and her friends gathered around, peering at it closely.
"It is beautiful," Mia murmured. "But I don't see how it could be a key to anything."
Emily turned the pendant over in her hands, running her fingers along the delicate branches. As she did, she felt a small click, and part of the pendant swung open like a locket.
Inside was a tiny, folded piece of paper. With shaking hands, Emily carefully extracted it and unfolded it. Written in flowing script were words that made her heart skip a beat:
"When the dreamer awakens, the forest will bloom. Find me where two worlds meet."
As Emily read the words aloud, a strange humming filled the air. The pendant began to glow with an otherworldly light, growing warmer in her hand.
"Em, maybe you should put that down," Sandy said, her voice tight with fear.
But Emily couldn't let go. The light grew brighter, enveloping her. She heard her friends calling her name, their voices growing distant. The world around her began to fade, replaced by the misty outlines of tall trees.
The last thing Emily saw before the real world disappeared entirely was the face of the man from her dreams, his hand outstretched towards her. Then everything went dark.
In the suddenly quiet apartment, Sandy, Alex, and Mia stared in shocked silence at the spot where Emily had stood just moments before. On the floor lay the necklace, the pendant now dark and lifeless.
Alex was the first to find his voice. "What... what just happened? Where's Emily?"
Sandy bent down, cautiously picking up the necklace. "I think," she said slowly, her voice filled with a mix of awe and terror, "that Emily just found out where two worlds meet."