It's dark, pitch black. Zaya seemed to be standing in the middle of nowhere, with nothing but a torch in her hand.
Goosebumps crawled against her skin as the hairs on her neck stood erect.
Something was out to get her, she could feel it. The world around her seemed to bend and warp, shifting the scenery to a more familiar one.
Now she was on the street and she could see her house in the end. Tightening her grip on the torch, she started to march towards her house.
At least she was home now. A loud crash sounded from behind her. Instinctively she ducked, covering her head with her hands.
The car behind her let out a high-pitched grating whine, and she could vividly hear a horrific scream coming from behind her.
She turned. It was coming close. Her breath got caught in her throat as she started to run, moving as fast as her legs carry.
Granted that she had a head start, it was hard to outrun something moving that fast. Her foot struck the asphalt with heavy thuds as she zoomed.
It was gaining on her.
Then she tripped, landing on her sides with a smack. In the end, her lungs were knocked right out and she winced.
She looked over her shoulders, it was close, and it cast a shadow over her face. Her eyes widened in pure terror.
This was it, this Was the end of the road, it was going to get her.
With a sharp gasp, Zaya jerked up from her bed, her eyes shooting open. She instinctively had her arms on her chest as her breath was heaving.
Beads of sweat had begun to form on her forehead and some tendrils of her hair plastered against her skin.
Her lips were dried and her throat was even dryer. Her body was still shuddering with adrenaline, and her senses were sharp.
She got down from her bed and stuck her feet into her slippers, slowly making her way out of her room to the kitchen.
The lights in the fridge came on as she opened it and reached for the jug of water.
"Why are you up by this time?" Rick asked, putting down the newspaper that he used to cover his face.
He was seated on the dining table with a bowl of nuts by his side.
"Gosh you scared me," she muttered under her breath. "Also why are you in the kitchen eating mom's peanuts?" She shot back.
"Shh, nobody has to know."
Zaya nodded. "Hmm, I see." She poured herself a glass of water.
"You got up from bed just to drink some water?"
"I… uh–" she had completely forgotten the details of the dream she just had. The only thing she remembered was the vivid feeling of crippling fear.
"Yes I just woke up to get a glass of water," she lied, taking a gulp.
He pointed at the fridge, "You should close that."
"Right." She shut the door.
The water hit the right spot and she was able to quench her first. "I want some peanuts," she said and practically grabbed a handful from the bowl without waiting for his approval.
"Just know that when your mother starts asking why her peanuts have reduced, it's on you."
A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips. "Yeah right, I'm going to get some sleep."
When she returned to her bedroom she found it hard to sleep. She reached for her journal on her nightstand and then turned on the light in her room.
"Day four of having another nightmare and not remembering what it's about," she said out loud as she scribbled down the words.
She had a look at the previous days, squinting her eyes in concern. Nobody in the family knew about her nightmares, at least she thought they would qualify as nightmares since they made her feel scared.
She closed the journal with a thump and then turned off the lights, snuggling up to her blanket as she tried to get some extra sleep.
The next morning when she woke up, she could already smell something flavorful coming from the kitchen.
Her belly growled in protest and she had to step out of her room. She still seemed spaced out as she stared blankly, the thoughts from yesterday recurring in her mind.
Rick was sitting on the dining table on the same chair she had seen him last night and it made her raise an eyebrow as she wondered if he even went to sleep.
Her twin Zayn was seated on the opposite end, tossing an apple in the air and catching it as his form of entertainment.
Josh, her younger brother, was in the kitchen with their mother Dianne, trying to beg for some extra pieces of pancakes.
"Would you look at that, sleeping beauty is finally awake," Zayn remarked.
She snatched his apple as she walked past him and before he could protest, she took a huge bite out.
"Awake and ready to devour."
"Hey no fair that was my last one, ugh I'll get you for this."
Dianne interrupted the moment when she came from the kitchen with a tree filled with pancakes. "Chocolate chip pancakes coming right up," she joked, placing it on the table.
"Zaya honey I see you just woke up, how was your night?"
"It was…" she noticed the side eye that Rick shot her away. "It was great, and in case you're wondering who ate your peanuts it was Dad," she quickly added, throwing him under the bus.
"Aha! I knew that I left a fuller bowl of peanuts! Mr Rick Owen Howard, you tried to gaslight me."
"I'm innocent! I mean she ate out of it too," he defended. "Also Owens isn't my middle name."
Dianne shrugged. "Who cares, I think it would make a great middle name, it's better than that name that we shall not name in this household."
We all chuckled. "Keep laughing, I'm cutting you all off from the will."
"Awwn poor Josh, he was looking forward to inheriting that hunk of junk you call a car in the garage," Zayn said, stuffing his face with pancakes.
"Dianne, your kids are being mean again, control them."
"Certainly not after you ate my peanuts."
"It was an honest mistake."
She held her arms up in the air, not having any of it.
Zaya and Zayn were twins, fraternal twins, but somehow they still had a very deep resemblance. They both worked in the mall as shop attendants, and since it was summer break today was their last day.
Rick had planned a family outing trip, they were supposed to go camping in the mountains.
Immediately after breakfast Zaya and Zayn got up and went to get dressed. They made their way to the city mall where they worked.
The manager Mr Huncho walked out from the inner room. "Zaya you're handling the reception today, Zayn I need you in the back."
His shoulders dropped as a frown formed on his face. Working in the back meant he had to assist with the kitchen duties while his sister would stay in the register and only record payments the whole day which was relatively easier.
A grin formed on her face as she waved him goodbye sarcastically.
As she settled behind the counter, tying on her apron which had the store logo, her mind drifted back to the dream.
The sense of unease lingered and she couldn't fight the feeling that something was watching her. Although she forced a polite smile and attended to the customers as they came.
Most of the schools were on summer break, so today was a particularly busy day and lots of parents came with their kids.
Zaya worked efficiently, noting down the right orders and passing them to the kitchen inside. Zayn would always ring the bell to signify that the order was ready and then she would pick it up and hand it over to the customer.
The day went by so slowly and before she knew it it was already mid-day. She wiped the bit of sweat on her forehead, taking a deep breath. "I have been standing for four hours," she muttered, turning to face Zayn who stuck his head out from the kitchen through the window and into the main store.
"Time for a lunch break, I can't wait to try those sandwiches mom made."
Mr Huncho usually gave them about thirty minutes to enjoy their lunch break and they were allowed to sit in the store and just rest. So to make it more efficient the staff would take their lunch breaks at different times so that nobody would leave the counter empty.
The fluorescent lights flickered faintly causing her to grip the edge of the counter as a shiver ran down her spine.
Zaya looked up from the register, scanning the lobby.
The hum of the background music in the store as well as the lively chatter of customers suddenly faded into the background, she couldn't hear a thing.
"Zayn?" she called out instinctively, her voice barely above a whisper. She felt ridiculous, but the stillness was unnerving.
She noticed a man standing by the entrance. He was tall, with a face partially hidden beneath a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses.
His presence sent a ripple of unease through her. He didn't seem to be shopping, just standing there... staring.
"Can I help you, sir?" she asked, her voice steady but her stomach twisting into knots.
The man tilted his head slightly, as if acknowledging her, but said nothing. A moment later, he turned and walked away, disappearing into the crowd as the noise of the mall abruptly resumed.
Zaya exhaled, realizing she had been holding her breath.
"What was that about?" she muttered, shaking her head and trying to focus on her work. But she couldn't ignore the prickling sensation on her skin, the feeling that she wasn't alone.
Zayn walked up to her, wiping his hands on his apron. "You look like you've seen a ghost," he joked.
"Did you see the guy near the entrance earlier?" she asked.
"Uh, no. Should I have?"
Zaya hesitated, her thoughts racing. She knew what she saw, but explaining it sounded absurd. "Never mind."
Zayn held up the pack of food they had brought from home. "So… let's go eat?" He prompted, completely oblivious to her inner turmoil.
"Sure."
He kept trying to have a conversation with her throughout the lunch break but she just seemed distant and distracted. "Zaya? Earth to Zaya, do you copy?"
She snapped out of her trance-like state, "Yeah sorry I was just… thinking of something."
He wasn't buying her alibi and he looked at her with a suspicious gaze but at the same time, he also didn't want to press further so he just respected her reply and shrugged.
When their shift was over Mr Huncho counted their pay for the week in the back. "There you go," he said, handing them the cash.
"So I'll be seeing you in about a week?"
"Mhm," Zayn replied affirmatively, nodding his head.
"Enjoy your hiking trip, by the way, beware of bears."
"Already bought pepper spray," Zaya replied as a joke before they left the store.
The sun had begun to set and now the clouds were a deep orange color. They took their bicycles from where they parked and started to ride home.
Now Zaya was on the same Street that she was standing on when she had her dream. A loud high pitched ringing from a car behind her made her scream as she suddenly hit her brakes.
"What's wrong?" Zayn asked, sounding genuinely concerned.
She swallowed the spit in her throat. "I don't know, something just startled me…" she looked over her shoulders at the car making the noise.
"Mrs. Smith's car is faulty, it always goes off, don't tell me that scared you?"
She rolled her eyes and then started to ride her bicycle forward. "Whatever," she muttered.
Even she didn't understand why the sound had startled her.
At home Zaya was lying down on her bed scrolling through her phone, she didn't understand why she kept having recurring nightmares that she couldn't even remember.
According to the internet, she was neurodivergent. "This isn't helping," she said to herself and tossed her phone aside.
"Zaya! Zayn! Come out, dinner is ready!" Dianne's voice echoed.
She stepped out of the room at almost the same time with Zayn and they locked eyes. He muttered something about how she was acting weird and then went to the dining table.
They were having bean soup, and Zaya was a bit distant.
"So how was work today?" Rick asked.
"It was fine." Zaya took a spoonful of beans, and just as she was about to eat it her twin spoke.
"Zaya said she saw a man that was standing right there in plain sight but I didn't see anyone."
"Maybe get your eyes checked," she spat.
"Oh honey I'm sure if Zaya said she saw somebody then she did," Dianne defended.
"So this man… what did he want anyway?" Rick asked.
"Nothing, he just stood by the door and started and then after some time I just couldn't see him, it was like he disappeared into thin air," she explained.
"Ouu Zaya is seeing ghosts now," Josh remarked.
"Well whoever it was, I'm sure he just didn't want to buy anything any longer that's why he left."
They continued dinner sharing bits about their day. After eating she took her dishes to the kitchen and then went to her room.
For four consecutive nights, she had been having nightmares, and now she felt apprehensive about the idea of sleep.
She plopped down on her bed, resting her head against her pillow as her hair fanned out like a halo around her head. "If I have another nightmare I hope I remember this time."
She purposely placed her phone right beside her on the nightstand and turned on an app that she downloaded. It was supposed to monitor her sleep and record her activity.
Maybe if she said something while dreaming, it could give her a clue as to what the dreams were about.
The day's fatigue wore down on her and before she realized that she was already in a deep sleep.
***
Zaya was standing in the mall, the light bulb flickering. The entire place was empty and she seemed to be the only person here.
She swirled her head from left to right, scanning the place for anyone else.
A shadow whisked past her in the back, causing her to snap her head in that direction, but there was nothing there. "Hello? Is anybody there?" She challenged.
There was a low growl, but with the way it reverberated against the walls, it was hard to pinpoint what direction it was coming from.
All the glass in the shopping mall started to break simultaneously as a force weaved through the space like a gust of wind.
Zaya looked back and her eyes widened. "No… no!" She screamed, covering her face with her hands and she braced for impact.
She sprung up from the bed, muscles jerking as her pulse was heightened. A sense of relief washed over her when she registered that she was still in her bedroom.
It was just another nightmare. This time she remembered being in the mall and the glass chattering, but she didn't know what happened next.
Regardless, she quickly reached for her phone and opened the app. She tried to replay the sounds from her sleep but there was nothing meaningful there, just some muffled words and then a scream.
She ran her fingers through her hair, it was 4:00 a.m. Pulling out her journal from the drawer she took her pen and scribbled down again, day 5 of having nightmares back to back and not being able to recall the details.
With a lack of anything better to do, she decided to lie down, hoping she could get some sleep at least.
Finally, it was daybreak and a warm stream of sunlight penetrated her window. She was woken up by the knock of her mother.
"Rise and shine honey we're going camping today," Dianne's voice rang.
She sat up with a small frown on her face. "Okay give me a minute let me get my bags in order and freshen up," she said, her voice still a bit slurry.
"Sure, we're leaving by eight."
Sluggishly, she got out of bed and freshened up. The dark circles under her eyes, as she brushed her teeth, pointed to her inadequate amount of sleep.
After cross-checking her bag one last time, changed into her white cropped hoodie and blue jeans. She was trying to force her feet into a pair of sneakers that was slightly smaller than her leg when Josh barged into her room
"Dad's already starting the truck, he said to come and tell you to hurry up."
"Jeez I'm coming I'm already dressed," she muttered, grabbing her suitcase and dragging it out of the room.
She opened the door and dragged her bags to the back of the truck where Zayn helped her load it in.
Rick honked a few times. "Come on, let's go," he urged, starting the engines. Their mother made sure to lock up the house before getting inside the car.
Dianne sat in the passenger seat while the kids sat in the back, thankfully the truck was big enough so there was enough space to be comfortable.
The trip hadn't even started but Josh already put on his headsets and was immersed in the video game it was playing.
Rick skillfully reversed into the street before slamming down on the gas pedal and moving them through the city.
Zaya leaned against the window with a sense of foreboding lingering in the back of her mind.