February 2, 2010

There once was a time when Jessica Conners’ dreams were bright and beautiful. Colorful flowers would dance in the breeze as Jessica would sit at the base of a mountain and look out at a perfect blue ocean.
Now Jessica’s dreams had a more dark nature. Shattered glass and bare feet in a pool of blood as a car flipped several times n a stormy night would wake Jessica with a cry on her lips.
Limping slightly, Jessica made her way to the bathroom and looked at the unfamiliar reflection staring back at her. The bright red hair that had once been the defining feature of Jessica’s beauty was dulled to a medium auburn. A year without a visit to the salon would do that. Her pale skin, that had somehow gotten even lighter, stood in stark contrast to her unnaturally green eyes. But as Jessica continued to stare into her sunken pupils, the color that stared back shifted from a hopeless green to a lifeless blue. Blue that had once held the luster of love and now the pain of death. Jessica turned away from the mirror and the memory of her best friend’s eyes, and tried to block out the sounds that threatened to bring yet another waterfall of tears. Stroking the shell charm around her neck, Jessica headed to the kitchen for tea and maybe a splash of scotch.

Jake downed half a glass of scotch and looked at the plane ticket in his hand for the third time in two minutes. “What am I doing?” He asked himself softly.