Flash Fiction

The Dream

I felt a muscle in my lower back strain as I sat up quickly from my sweat drenched pillow. I was breathing hard; my hands clenched painfully. It took a moment for the stress to lower and the unwarranted fear to subside. The room was dark, lit only by the LED glow of my bedside clock. It was 4:32, I still had two hours before the alarm.

"That dream again?" Samantha asked sleepily. I smiled though she couldn't see it. Her mere presence washed away the rest of my discomfort.

"Same one," I whispered my reply, not wanting to wake her fully. Samantha sat up anyway. I really should marry the woman. There was nothing she wouldn't suffer for me and I for her. Her clothes took up most of my closet, and I was down to one drawer in the bathroom. I found her beautiful, a most willing lover. There was no rational reason not to take a knee.

Samantha took my hand and pulled it to her thigh. I knew the expression on her face though darkness hid it from me.

"We'll be exhausted," I joked, her hand moving mine higher. I could almost see that sly sexy smile.

"Tired but happy," Samantha whispered. She was never a morning person. At night, she was a sensuous goddess, but in the morning extended foreplay was a necessity. I never shied from the challenge to make her quiver. She never tired of making me work for it. I traded sleep to hear her delicious moans.

"You ever think about seeing someone about the dream?" Samantha said as I washed her back. We had time for a leisurely shower after our dalliance. Always made my day better.

"A shrink?" I replied, "I figure it will go away on its own." I kissed her shoulder. "Besides, rising early seems to agree with me." I loved making her laugh. She turned and tilted her head upward, demanding a kiss. I pulled her under the warm rain and kissed her perfect lips. I had to break, the sensuality was causing a rise in me.

"My, aren't you the horny one?" Samantha chided, her hand teasing me.

"Stop," I said sweetly, moving my hips away from her grasp, "I'll be late and so will you."

"I love you," Samantha said, her hands moving higher, less lusty more loving.

"And I you," I returned. Our lips merged again. I would have to shop for a ring. Only a fool would screw up the best thing in the world.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Same dream every night?" Tom asked in surprise. The meeting wasn't starting for another ten minutes, so we were alone in the conference room.

"For the past month or so," I said, sipping strong coffee, "I think it's stuck in my brain."

"Coffee's a bit harsh," Tom apologized, "Mary's running late, so it fell to me, and I think I put in too much."

"I can use the caffeine," I said, letting him off the hook.

"You think it means anything?" Tom asked. "Your dream," he added when I raised my eyebrows.

"Hell, I don't know. It makes no sense," I replied, "One moment I'm sitting comfortably watching minutes pass by on an old wall clock. The next, I can't move, and the water is rising all around me. I always wake up just when I begin to drown."

"Drowning," Tom said smiling, "that's a lot like getting married."

"Or maybe losing Samantha," I said, tipping my cup to him.

"That girl will never leave you," Tom laughed, "she's as love struck as you are." I looked around, making sure no one else was entering the room.

"I'm picking up a ring at lunch," I informed him, "a simple solitaire with a platinum band."