Sleep Disorders

Chapter 2

Grace 🌸

I still remember the first day I met him.

He was working behind the counter at the popular sandwich shop in the center of town. I ordered a sandwich and a smoothie and we talked briefly. It was nothing special. The second time we met had much more meaning. It was one those days when my parents were nagging about the fact that I "stay at home and sulk" all time. So to avoid further arguing I decided to go for a walk.

I was looking for some place quiet so that I could have some peaceful time alone. I came across this place in our town's small woods. It was off the main path, a little pond completely surrounded by trees, perfectly hidden away. The leaves on the trees, blowing in the wind, had begun to change into various shades of golden brown, red, amber and yellow. It was beautiful. I sat down at the edge of the water and closed my eyes, enjoying the peaceful tranquility of the surrounding nature. Everything was so pleasant and serene that the sound of crunching leaves startled me. I was surprised to see someone emerge from the direction I came. I recognized him as the guy who served me at the sandwich shop. He's dark hair was wind swept and he had thick shadows beneath his eyes.

"Oh, I didn't think anyone was here," he said just as surprised to see me as I was to see him. He looked at me.

"I remember you," he said with a friendly grin. He came to sit beside me much to my annoyance. "You came to my sandwich shop about two or three weeks ago."

"Your sandwich shop?" I asked, raising my eyebrow sarcastically. He laughed.

"Okay so I don't own the shop," he said good-naturedly. "I didn't expect anyone else to be here. This place is usually empty."

"I was looking for some place quiet when I came across this place," I explained.

"It's perfect isn't it? Hidden from the world. And it's beautiful too. That's why I come here a lot. It's like my own secret hideout," he said admiring the nature around us.

"Sorry for trespassing," I said.

"It's okay. I don't mind sharing my special place with you," he said grinning at me. I found myself blushing.

He stretched out his long legs and laid on his back. "Man I'm tired," he said.

"Why don't you go home and sleep?" I asked hoping that he would listen and leave me alone. His eyes were closed and I could see the dark shadows beneath his eyes more clearly.

"I wish it were that simple," he said softly. I tore my eyes away from him and looked towards the pond. A cool breeze blew sending ripples threw the water. I shivered.

"I have insomnia you see?" he continued, "I can't fall asleep."

I laughed a short laugh without much humor. He opened his eyes and raised his one eyebrow at me. Clearly wanting to know what I found so amusing. "Well we're quite the opposites then," I said, "because I have hypersomnia. I can't stay awake for long periods of time."

"Interesting," he said sitting up, "I've never met anyone with hypersomnia before."

"It's quite rare," I said picking up a fallen leaf. It was a dark brown colour and the corners had started crinkling.

"I better get going," he said standing up and dusting himself off, "The name's Nathan by the way." He was smiling and I noticed how perfectly straight his teeth were. He must have had braces at some point of his life. He was looking at me expectantly like he was waiting for me to say something.

"Oh! I'm Grace," I said, realizing that he waiting for me to say my name.

"Lovely name," he said with a smirk. He turned towards the direction he came from and waded through the trees and bushes that hid the pond. "See you around, Grace," he said before he disappeared from view.

I stayed for a while longer thinking about that eccentric boy. Eventually I had to leave or I most probably would have keeled over and fallen asleep right beside the pond. That's the thing about hypersomnia. It's very unpredictable.

---

Hey guys! How are you doing?
I hope that you're liking my story so far! This is my first book so I apologize for any mistakes or errors that I make.
Please feel free to give me any tips or advice because I really need it!
Don't forget to vote, comment, follow me and share my story with all your friends and fam 😄
Lots of love xx
~ Aqeelah (@cosmic-thoughts)