Nocturnal Omissions
10.14.10
Eddie was ten when he stopped dreaming. It happened the day after he and his mother had chanced upon a mugger and been threatened at knifepoint. They were both unharmed, but that night Eddie had a terrible nightmare in which the mugger had hacked his mother to pieces. He woke up screaming and covered in sweat and didn’t have another dream after that.
At first he didn’t even notice – after all, he didn’t always remember his dreams, or indeed whether he had dreamed at all. He had been more concerned with practicing his aim with his Swiss army knife – a secret hobby he had taken up after the incident with the mugger; if anyone were to threaten his mother again, he would be prepared. After a few weeks had passed though, it was clear to him that something about him had changed. In his group of friends he had always been the sensible one – the one who insisted on pointing out when laws of physics were about to be broken during their space wars games, and got shouted down and ignored. When one day they all looked at him in admiration as he laid out plans for defeating the intergalactic enemy with time-travelling poisonous radio waves, bounced off military satellites that the Allies hadn’t yet invented, he put two and two together.
He pondered his predicament as he threw his knife at a target he’d hung onto a tree trunk. His dreams, when he used to have them, were usually quite exciting. Spaceships and laser guns made frequent appearances, as did hobbits and wizards and the sort of dog that never neglects to chase a cat when given the opportunity. Eddie supposed that whatever part of his brain made up all these things during the night now had to find a new outlet in the waking world. One day, as he was cycling home from a friend’s house and his bike transformed into an X-wing fighter, he realised that his dream world had fused with his waking world.
At first he was terrified. Robot armies would appear out of nowhere, clashing with each other on the pavement as he walked home from football practice; velociraptors would wander around the beer garden of the Pig and Whistle during Sunday lunch; his school would usually burst into flames on a Monday morning as he was walking towards it. As time passed and he realised that these were nothing more than visions, he started to enjoy them. There was something to be said about dragons breathing fire over Mrs Wilson as she told him off for a late history paper, or a dog peeing on his father’s leg for no apparent reason.
Not all the waking dreams were fun. To dream that one had come to class naked was rather disconcerting when one was awake in the classroom while the dream was going on. Then there were the times he would sit down to dinner and the big chocolate cake in the centre of the table would turn out to be brussel sprouts. The worst ones were the visions of Lizzie Adams turning to smile at him from the front row of the classroom – his heart would skip a few beats before he realised that this was only the dream Lizzie, and the real one was either ignoring him or looking down her nose at him as usual.
A few days after his twelfth birthday, Eddie was in class trying to muddle his way through a trigonometry test. He was so used to the waking dreams that the pack of wolves surrounding the teacher’s desk didn’t distract him at all. When the madman carrying the gun walked into the classroom, he thought nothing of it until all the others started screaming. The man pointed the gun at one of the boys in the front row and shot him in the leg. He then grabbed hold of Lizzie Adams by her ponytail and pulled her out from her desk. Eddie reacted without even thinking about it. He took the swiss army knife out of his back pocket and flung it straight at the madman’s eye. In his haste, he hadn’t unsheathed the blade, but the action still had the desired effect. The man let go of Lizzie and dropped the weapon. Mr Derrick grabbed it and other teachers who had heard the noise rushed in to incapacitate the man.
Eddie thought it was another waking dream when Lizzie threw her arms around him and kissed him on the lips. It took his friends’ jeers and wolf whistles for him to realise it had actually happened. That night he started dreaming again. It was a dream unlike any he’d had before and he was unable to look Lizzie in the eye for a few days afterwards.
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Tags: Dreams, Flash Fiction, fridayflash, School
very nice Mazzz and he gets the girl in the end. I was wondering which side this tale would fall, the dark he’s a schizophrenic way, or the ahhh, cute way and you plumped for the latter. Must have had a good week since no one dies?
I really loved this “he had always been the sensible one – the one who insisted on pointing out when laws of physics were about to be broken during their space wars games’ – yup, that was me!
Marc Nash
This was wonderful, although this kid still needs to get to a psychiatrist right away.
Well done.
Terrific story! I love the dragon hovering over the teacher. 🙂
Really like the way he had been practicing with his Swiss army knife since the mugging, very believable human response. The waking dreams are very cool.
Great story! Awesome details, and wonderful storytelling. It worked on every level. Loved how he couldn’t differentiate between real or vision without the reaction of others. Well done.
A great melding of the dream world and the waking world; seeing dragons would be so cool. Some of those dreams reminded me of my childhood and the things I wished for. Even in the darkness, a light can shine.
Adam B @revhappiness
Reminds me of when I was young… except for throwing knives. I’m into swords. I mean the part about dreams following me into the world. They still do.
That is great Mazzz, great descriptions of the dreams moving into the real world. Loved the way it ended up.
This is great. I love that his subconscious is blown into his waking life by a traumatic event, wonderful concept well played.
This one falls into storyteller tone very quickly. I found myself reading it out loud for the fun of it. Those waking dreams do sound uncomfortable. If only he could time them for when he’s alone…
I wonder if that explains a lot of people; they live in their dreams and we don’t understand. Nicely written!
One of the best stories I’ve read in a while. I really like the concept and the way you realise it. Waking dreams are cool, I wish more people had them (and the rest of us could see the results).
Really enjoyed! Boy, there were times when I might have wished my school would burst into flames on a Monday morning.
Do wish I had waking dreams – though probably not the naked ones in a public place. 🙂
WOW Mazzz… so freakin’ perfect here. I’ll say it now… my personal favorite of yours.
Jim
http://tinyurl.com/thenewkiddonny <– my #fridayflash this week
Okay, first of all, I love this: “the sort of dog that never neglects to chase a cat when given the opportunity.” I do.
And the idea in here, the spill-over to life, is so perfect for a *ahem* young man.
Most of all I love that it’s a happy ending. And so human. 🙂
What. a. ride. One minute I was laughing and the next gasping. Fantastic story Maria.
Nice story! I especially liked the many elements and the fact that he threw the knife without opening it 🙂
Very nice.
@shortzmag
Ah, just brilliant. Satisfying and great descriptions of dreams creeping into his life. Thanks!
Great first line! Loved the concept here, you’ve actually made it believable, too. Hard to pull off. I had a chuckle at the school bursting into flames. 🙂
Excellent from start to finish. I imagine it would be quite disconcerting to find your dreams taking place in the real world. I’m glad that last dream stayed in its proper place.
Whoa…head rush. I tried imagining what my life would be like if my dreams clashed with my reality. Weird. Enjoyed the story!
I wish my childhood was as exciting! Loved the story and the writing.
I think it would make a great children’s TV show or movie :).
So very original a concept! Beautifully executed too. Totally believable, oddly enough. Well done.
I LOVE the ending of this piece, when he gets his dreams back. That was just the perfect emotional resolution to this piece, imho. Well done! Great story!
Nice one Maria, this young man and his imagination would make a fine fiction writer. 🙂
Hey, noone died! Well, maybe the bad guy. I really love the idea of waking dreams and I enjoyed the twist that he had to realise what was real, and that sorted everything. Great stuff.
This was a joy of a read. How clever! You captured the spirit of a boy’s inner workings so well. When it came full circle, I sighed happily.
Take care,
Jess
The opening line made me expect this to be really dark. I love the way you pulled in different directions and brought it to a light conclusion.
Excellent story! It was a fun read all the way through (I wish I had waking dreams like that), and the last line had me laughing out loud.
It’s amazing how frightening waking dreams can be. You created a dreamworld that was both horrific and funny. Love the ending, but I think this kid is definitely going to need therapy when he gets older.
Fantastic! I loved the dream descriptions- everybody’s had a few of those dreams, haven’t they?
I liked the dog peeing on his dad’s leg for no reason. Ha. Just something about that was charming.
Part way through –I thought, oh he’s going to find out he’s a writer..laughing.
This was such fun. Nicely done Maria.
Great way to start the morning for me. Thanks.
Karen :0)
Awesomeness, Mazzz. You steer this story like a finely tuned car, making each turn more believable than the last until you find nothing at all unusual about dragons in the classroom. The last paragraph is tender adolescence at its most charming.
Oh my, what a wonderful story. You had me riveted the entire time. And a happy ending too! You’re too kind. 😀
Perfect story. Really enjoyed it all.
Fantastic story. I rally enjoyed it. And what a way to get your dreams back! Go Eddie!
With Amalia, I like that he got his dreams back. What I like more is the way you show the connection between dreams and reality just as strong in the end (more strong, in a way) than in the middle part. This piece has a lot of charm, too.
Ten years old – a very important age, the beginning of adulthood. This reminds me that when I was a kid I believed whatever I dreamed would come true. I no longer remember why I believed that, I’ve been an adult too long.
This was a fantastic example of your talent Mazzz.
Wonderful story with a fantastic ending! 🙂
Cute story. I remember having such vivid dreams as a child that I confused them with reality. Loved how you approached this concept. You did it justice.
That was awesome, really enjoyed it 🙂 Well done.
I’m with Tony … rush the kid to a shrink ASAP
Oh I love this! That detail about him forgetting to pull out the blade really pulls it all together. I was scared there was going to be a sad ending but it left me smiling. 🙂
So imaginative! Love it.
Really like this. Very well structured and it does well to avoid going with a darker twist. Fun to read, too. =)
Added as recommended reading on my latest flash:
http://xeroverse.blogspot.com/2011/03/unlicensed.html