It was the same feeling every night for almost 20 years. The smell of smoke, the trouble to catch a breath, the heat. Park Chung-Ho opened his eyes like always and saw the fire everywhere around him. The sound of the flames eating the room was deafening.
He knew perfectly that the fire colors on the wall would start to be challenged by a glowing blue coming from the firefighters. In fact, this nightmare would soon be over.
Park Chung-Ho never saw the firefighters himself; he just learned later that he was rescued in the fire that burnt his house down and killed his parents. He was a baby at that time. It was strange how well he remembered that night.
It wasn't possible that the trauma made this nightmare so vivid and his memory this strong and detailed, but still, he was having this nightmare over and over again.
Every night, and even though dreaming of fire should carry his problems away, it happened that this was the very dream that was the cause of his anxiety.
Park Chung-Ho assumed it was a nightmare based on the memory of this event. Or maybe it was based on what he learned later, when the story was detailed to him. It didn't matter much what this nightmare was based upon; it was there, it was scary, and it was testing. And every time he would have this nightmare, he would wake up still breathing hard and his sheets sweaty, as if he endured the nightmare FOR REAL.
Over the years, he noticed that this nightmare was always the same, and lately, he tried to stay the longest possible in it, to see what would happen and catch every detail possible. He had difficulties breathing the further he dived into the smoke. He already saw all the details of the room, but he hadn't explored the corridor on his right. It seemed there was something behind the flames, or someone. But this seemed dangerous. He had to cross the fire, and he didn't know if the smoke would be more suffocating there. He placed himself in front of the door frame. The blue glow on the walls wasn't reflecting in the corridor. Maybe it was all darkness there. He jumped across the flames and ended up in a dark passage. He couldn't see an ending through the heavy smoke. He felt like something was watching him. Or someone. But one thing was sure: there was something uncanny going on. It wasn't something menacing; it was pretty much the opposite. It was bright, warm, and reassuring. But this was such a strange feeling that he couldn't stand it.
"WAKE UP"
That was his thought, the order he issued every time he wanted to get out of his nightmare.
He opened his eyes. He was back in his faculty, in the middle of the dreamers' classroom. As he sat on his bed, he was breathing heavily, his eyes wide open. Knowing this nightmare perfectly couldn't help the reactions it provoked in him. It was way too vivid, way too real. His breath was cooling slowly as he watched around him to see his comrades still asleep. He saw his professor coming his way. The old man made a sign with his hand to invite him to get out of the room.
"Park Chung-Ho, this is the third time that you're trying the dreamer's examination, and you failed once more to rejoin the dream you were assigned. But this time, I felt that you're trying to enter the dream realm... I'll be giving you a last chance tomorrow, but if you can't."
"I know, Professor Svenson, I'm sorry that I failed the exam, but it's not like I didn't dream, all you know..."
"There are multiple subjects of study here; maybe the dream exploration isn't really what fits you."
The young man walked his way back to his dormitory. This failure was way more dramatic than his professor seemed to think. He had been working so hard to enter this faculty just for their dream exploration program. He wanted to be able to move in his nightmare, to leave it once and for all. He couldn't stand it anymore. As his thoughts recalled his goal, he ended up in front of his dormitory door, and he entered his room. He removed his t-shirt, and he looked at his reflection in the mirror. He never liked the messy and sweaty hair he had when he would break out of this nightmare. Black hair, brown eyes, and very pale skin. This wasn't his natural skin color; the nightmare really impacted him deeply. More than he would have thought. Was it because of this sensation of being observed right after he jumped through the flames and in the corridor? He checked his watch. He only slept 3 hours, and he wasn't confident in trying to sleep again by himself. He would need a sleeping pill to lower the chances of going back into this nightmare.
"Regular ones or my own craft ?" he thought. "I still get 4 hours if I sleep now."
He opened his apothecary desk and drew out 3 green leaves and a root of some plant. He cut it all and placed it in a mix to grind everything; he poured some water and drank it all. He lay down in his bed again and closed his eyes.
Strangely, he started to think about Aislinn Nòttdottir, a girl of his year. Why was she surfacing in his mind at this very moment?
He had seen her sleeping on the bed next to his that night. They were classmates for some years now, and had been friends for some time already. She was skilled in every matter, especially in dream exploration. She was kind, smart, and she cared about others. And yes, she was beautiful. With her long blond hair and deep green eyes...
He focused on her eyes as he closed his. All became dark while her eyes stood for a few seconds, vanishing slowly. It was as if those eyes were watching him, until only the dark stayed.
He couldn't say how long he slept, but the smell of burning came back, the heat, and this feeling of exhaustion and incapacity to breathe. He was back in this nightmare.
"Another fail," he thought.
"Wake up, you're late."
This wasn't him thinking, but a light voice speaking to him. He turned to the right, where the voice came from. He just had the luck to see 2 eyes looking at him through the flames before he fell from his bed.
His head hit the bedside table, and he woke up. Suffocating from the smoke and sweating from the heat, he even had some burnt marks on his legs and arms. It was slight, but it was still there. It took him a bit longer than usual to totally shake off this bad night, just to realize that he got up later than he wanted.
He kept his head down as he apologized to the professor and looked for a chair in the room. She was there, and like the others, she was looking at him. Their eyes met, but he looked away instantly and took a chair on the other side of the room. Why was she making him feel so uncomfortable this morning? He couldn't explain it. He focused his attention on the course until it was time for lunch.
He found a bench under a tree, the perfect place to eat. He pulled his lunchbox out of his bag and was ready to eat when he heard a voice near him.
"Hey! Isn't this our heavy sleeper who's unable to dream?"
There was laughter around the guy who spoke. Five guys were coming his way, smiling and mocking him. A blonde girl stepped in front of the group.
"Leave him alone, Jake."
"We're just joking, Aislinn, nothing more. And you should come and join us, we're the same. We're dreamers, while he..."
The group stepped away, and the girl came and sat by his side.
"Seems like someone didn't have enough sleep last night, right?"
"What?"
"You were late today. It's not the first time of the year, but you missed some important info."
"What kind of information?"
"We have to team up for the next exam."
"Don't worry, I won't be late anymore; I won't put your exams in danger."
"Unlike your head," she smiled.
"Oh, this... Well... I guess it happens, right?"
"How did you manage to hurt yourself like this? Did you fight or what?"
"I could tell you an amazing story where I saved puppies, but I just hit my head on my bedside table."
Aislinn burst into laughter.
"You're kidding me, right?"
They both laughed and briefly discussed the upcoming examinations. But talking about examinations was tough for him. He had to tell her about his failure last night.
"I have one last chance tonight, but I feel like this is gonna be a failure once more."
"Why do you think that way?"
Park Chung-Ho stood silent while he watched his feet.
"Since when do we know each other, Aislinn?" He asked.
"It's been a few years, I lost count. Why?"
"You're the best dreamer in the faculty, there is no doubt about it. But it's not the reason why I will tell you something no one knows about me. If I tell you this, it's because you're trustworthy. Every night. I mean, every single night. I have the same nightmare haunting me. I never dreamed of anything else. Until yesterday…"
He had seen her eyes widen as he was telling her this story.
"The same nightmare? Are you one hundred percent sure there was no différence at all?"
He nodded and added.
"Yes, until very recently at least."
"What do you mean?"
"Something has changed since I joined the faculty. I wanted to be a dream explorer in order to be able to handle this nightmare better. I tried to explore it, and I ended up feeling watched…" he took a pause. "Something or someone was with me in this dream."
"Someone? Who?"
"As I said, someone or something. I couldn't see anything in the darkness, but I had that sensation of being observed."
"You can't go to tonight's exam."
"I don't have much choice. If I don't go, this will be counted as a failure too."
"No, don't worry. I will handle this. That's one of the good points of being the headmistress's daughter." She was typing on her cellphone.
"You can't…"
"I'll take care of it, and we'll help you get through this issue, ok? Till then, take this out of your mind. I got to go to my next class."
Park Chung-Ho didn't have a chance to say anything. He looked at her silhouette that was vanishing with a smile. He was going back to his dormitory when he saw the five guys who were coming back for him.
"Hey, sleepyhead! Don't even dream about it." Jake said," moving his chin in the direction Aislinn took. "Well… you CAN'T dream, right! Hahahahaha!"
They were all laughing. Park Chung-Ho turned to them.
"Ok. I got the joke. I'm late for courses, I'm a sleepyhead. That's so funny." He said with a forced smile. "Now go away…"
"Ho… you think it's about you being late?" Jake cut him. "Not at all. It's because you're always sleeping."
They made a very racist gesture, and the young man let his backpack slip off his shoulder and arm. His forced smile had vanished to be replaced by a dark look.
"So this is how you wanna behave…"
He watched them five, one by one, his head slightly tilted to his right, breathing calmly. Taekwondo taught him to stay calm and concentrated and not use his skill for childish reasons. He smirked and turned his back, grabbing his backpack again. He was starting to head to his dormitory when he saw his Dream Exploration professor rush in his direction. He seemed on the verge of bursting.
"YOU FIVE !" he yelled, watching behind Park Chung-Ho. "FOLLOW ME IMMEDIATELY!"
He turned to the young man and added to him.
"You're expected in the Headmistress's office as soon as possible. There will be consequences for them. And your examination from tonight is postponed."
As the 5 men were following Ivar Svenson, the Dream Exploration professor, Park Chung-Ho closed his eyes. Aislinn had made it possible. She had postponed his examination. He texted her "Thank you" and went to her mother's office.
Diane Nottdottir was usually seen as someone really impressive, and being summoned to her office wasn't seen as a good sign. But the young man knew her from before he was a student at the faculty; she was a friend of his host family, and the mother of his friend. He knocked at the door.
"Come in, Chung-Ho."
"Hello, Madam Headmistress."
"My daughter explained to me that you had an issue with a nightmare. I can help you with this, but I will need someone's help. This person can be Aislinn, as she is already aware of the situation, or someone I'll call from outside of the school. What do you prefer?"
"I don't want to annoy your daughter, she already has a lot of work to do…"
"It's ok, I have done all my work for the week."
Aislinn had stepped in shortly after him.
"Is it ok if I'm the one assisting my mother?"
"I'd rather not talk about this nightmare to no more people, so… yes, it's ok."
"We can begin, then, Mom."
"Shouldn't you call me headmistress in this place, as your friend does?"
"I'm sorry, Mom."
They both laughed, and Park Chung-Ho couldn't help but smile.
"Ok. Let's close the door. No one enters this place now. We will begin." Diane Nottdottir said, and her daughter locked the room.
"Begin what?" He asked.
"Hypnosis."
"Hypnosis?" he repeated.
"Your nightmare comes from a memory. You need to know why it's blocking you. It won't be easy, and it can be painful. But Aislinn is one of the best in every aspect of the dreams, and especially when it comes to easing the pains of others. That's her empathetic talent."
"Let's begin then. I'm tired of being locked in this burning room."
He sat on one of the chairs in front of the headmistress's desk, and Aislinn sat at his side. Her mother was facing them.
"We're gonna bring you to your past. Not in the nightmare you endure, but in the real memory behind it."
She turned the light low and closed the window blinds. When she sat in front of him and started to speak, she snapped her fingers, and Park Chung-Ho started to feel sleepy. He closed his eyes and felt it again. The heat, the smoke, the fire. He was still hearing Diane Nottdottir's voice behind the roar of the flames.
"You are back in this room, with the fire around you. Can you tell me what you're seeing?"
He watched carefully around him. Everything was like in his dream. No… Not everything. There were no flames in the entrance of the corridor…
"Something is different." his voice was coming from his mouth without him thinking about talking. "There is someone in the corridor. I can't see a face, but there is someone."
"What is this person doing?"
"He's coming my way. He's dressed in black with a hood." His breath was going faster, his heart rate was going crazy, and his voice was shaking with fear.
Aislinn watched her mother.
"I'm going in," she said while placing her hand on Park Chung-Ho's. She closed her eyes and entered his dream. She was in the corridor, seeing the dark figure he had talked about as it entered the room. She spoke with that light voice he had already heard before. "This is just a memory, I'm at your side, this isn't happening for real this time."
The dark figure disappeared instantly, and the flames appeared in front of the corridor.
"Aislinn? Is that you?"
"I'm here. Let you drift again in your memory, we need to know what happened to help you, ok?"
The voice of the headmistress echoed again, calming, another snap, and the dark man was back above him. For the first time, he noticed something above his cradle. Feathers and glass beads were forming a circle, hanging above him. This circle seemed to be pulling the dark man to it.
"There is a dreamcatcher above me." He saw the man dressed in black drawing a knife and stabbing. A scream echoed from his mouth as the blade entered his flesh in his left shoulder..
"HE'S TRYING TO KILL ME!"
The knife went up and back again, cutting the dreamcatcher on its way. For the second time, he felt the cold of the blade, his vision blurred, and he only heard a cracking sound before all went dark.