"What are you doing? Simple instruction, don't think. It was just a rule. One rule. What have you done?!" Rylee kept on ranting and yelling at me but what did I do? I should be the one getting mad here.

"What did I do?!" I said through gritted teeth. With her are Sean and Landon and another dark in complexion girl. She's got dark brown hair, chestnut brown eyes and she's dressed like some spy with her women black suit. She carried a bag pack.

All our hairs were floating up and Landon's hair looks like snakes sticking out of his head with sharp teeth.

"Why did you go back! You have no idea what you just did." Rylee continued.

"Okay, calm down Rylee, deep breath." The other girl interfered. She tried calming Rylee down and she obeyed and breathed deeply.

"I don't understand, I won the contest to get a better dream."

"And we gave you one." She said like she was forcing the words not to come out but a higher authority said otherwise.

"It was too short. For months now, nightmares like him." I pointed to Landon but specifically, to his snake-like hair. "Are my only companion, you finally give me a beautiful dream but you made short?"

"We would have given you another one later!"

"Well I wanted to be with my father, I wanted to apologize and confess even though it's just in my dreams and you didn't give me the chance."

"You are impossible." She admitted. I seriously don't understand what's the deal here.

"Ok Rylee, calm down. We won't get anywhere like this." The girl tried calming her again. "She knows nothing and I think it's better we explain."

"No, we can't."
It was like the whole world will end if she told me anything with the way she refused.
"Explain what?" things like this, gets me curious.

"Listen, we need her full cooperation with us so we have to and besides, there's nothing to fear because when she wakes up, it will be like it was all a dream." She ignored me.

"Yeah, if she wakes up," Rylee mumbled but it was loud and clear enough for all of us to hear. But what does she mean by that? They got explaining to do.

"She will wake up Rylee." Sean finally spoke. Both him and Landon watched us, arms crossed. Actually, only Landon. His voice was sexy but I wanted him to speak again but I need to focus. They're keeping something from me.

"Okay Karen, listen carefully. This could cost you your life and us, dream agency." The girl finally turned to me.

"What?"

"Karen, I will keep this short. Am Lauren, am a nightmare. Both me and Landon." She began. "You see, the nightmees are the ones that make nightmares, while Rylee and Sean, they're in the sweet dreams department and they're called dreamees. We have been for years making the dreams of everyone, it's our job."

"She knows that." Rylee interfered.

"Just let me speak with her without your interference!" Lauren spat distastefully. Then she continued.

"So you must have been informed that we hold this contest once in every five years, right?" I nodded. Am surprisingly very obedient to her. She seems like she has lots of authority and is very wise. And also, old.

My instincts tell me to obey her but my instincts also told me to involve the cops and that just ended great!

"You know why the contest has that rule?"

"No."

"It's because we don't want what happened to Patricia Hicks to repeat itself." Rylee interrupted again. Is this payback?

"Why, what happened to my grandaunt?" I ignored her and asked Lauren instead. She seems more calm and mature and I think I'll be getting a reasonable reply from her instead. "I heard she died in her sleep when she was 17." I don't know what but realization dawn on me. "My age."

"Yes, she didn't just die like that, she was stuck in her sleep."

"She did not follow the rule," Rylee added. "Actually, she was a headache." She mumbled.

They all sighed.

"Patricia Hicks, almost burn to death. Her whole body was disfigured and she had a terrible life and had bad memories in school, neighborhood, everywhere. She became our regular consumer for a week and then it was time to invite people to come over to the dream agency. We gave them all beautiful dreams, she was beautiful again but she didn't want to leave. She refused our help and said throughout the night, she'll have that dream, and then she pushed us away but what she didn't know..., what we all didn't know was that that dream will take her, her whole life." Lauren concluded. I was speechless. So that's what happened to her. Terrible.

"So ever since then, we made that rule, and the contest and gave only one person that chance so we can monitor them, to make sure it will never happen again." Rylee was calmer now, it wasn't like she wanted to kill me before. "We hid all the evidence behind that inner room you wanted to get in. It can't happen again."

"Or else...." Landon finally said something. Why are both of them quiet?

"Or else what?" My curiosity is always high.

"The agency gets sued or We get fired and you don't want to know what happens to whoever gets fired."

"I want to know, what happens?" Bullshit. But being curious about that is normal right?

"Actually, no one knows because they are never heard of again," Landon answered me.

"And am not curious to know why so please, do cooperate." Rylee was back in her paranoid state again.

Okay, let me do some review here. When I refused to let go of my dream, it means I'll end up like a grandaunt, Patricia?

My eyes shifted to Landon's floating hair who's also looking at me, keenly.

Um... What's this place anyways?

"Okay. But first, tell me why we're here. What's this place?"

"We're in your head. There's a network in everyone's head and the dream agency gets its signals and connects them to our system. When we get your signal, we know everything about you, it's then we decided to either connect you with the sweet dreams department, which is that huge white cloud that the building stands on, or the nightmare department, which is that dark cloud that sits on the agency." Landon explained. Couldn't someone else do it? Am still upset with him. He needs coaching with speaking. Maybe he hasn't spoken to anyone in five years like Rylee.

"Here is your network container, where all your happy and sad memories are, we've lost the signal with you because of your persistence, when you refused to let us end the dream, you took control but we need to get it back, that's why we're here," Rylee explained. She seemed mature and more formed and formal now.

"Why is it a bad thing I take control?"

"Because you'll end up like your grandaunt, Patricia and you wouldn't be able to wake up again."

I sighed. They are professionals and this is their work. There are just trying to help me to wake so I won't die and here I am, giving them I hard time.

Even though I get nightmares, at least I wake up every day and dad did say that when there's life, there's hope.

"So how do we get the signal? There's nothing here." I looked over at our surroundings, we're just five teenagers, at least, I am, floating in an open white space.

But she smiled at me.

"So you think, but we came prepared this time. We don't want what happened to repeat itself but we always prepare for it." Lauren brought out a mini decode from the bag pack she was carrying and dropped it. It floated as well but a bright light shined from it and it scanned everywhere then it blinked twice before images were released from it and it turned the once empty space, into a large operating system.

There were different doors and screens, showing myself and my friends and family. My memories.

She took out another screen from the bag and scanned the place again.

"There's a door...." The screen was facing Sean when it flashed green lights, several times. "There." She announced.

"I don't see it." Behind him was nothing. There's lots of doors around but behind Sean was nothing.

"Because it's far," Sean replied.

"So we have to trek there?"

"Yes but quickly before it's six in the morning." Landon glanced at his dark-colored watch. I believe the nightmees must have an obsession with black while the dreamees, white. It's like they're classifying there selves as good and bad, Angel and devil.

"Why?"

"Because dream agency doesn't exist in the morning," Lauren answered instead.

"But Landon and Sean were in my school."

"We only have that opportunity once every five years and it has been used."

"Because of Payton's insecurities," Rylee grumbled.

"Hey!" Landon shouted. He was offended and it was clearly written all over his face.

"It's true and you know it."

"She just wanted to give them a break. Something the goody-two-shoes should want but actually what the nightmares want it instead."

"Just stay in your line in the department, am not the one who breaks all the rules and behaves like a teenage bad boy." She placed her hands on her hips and swayed them as she tried to mimic his deep voice.

"They argue all the time," Lauren whispered to me. "They look cute together if only Rylee doesn't like someone else."

"Who?" Interest, high. So curious. Ruby is rubbing off on me. Thinking of Ruby, I wonder what she's doing now? Or what she's dreaming.

"Isn't it obvious? Sean."

"Oh." My heart sank. "Does he love.. um.. like her as well?"

"I don't know but I think so." She turned to them. "Guys, I know you love each other but time is life and we don't have time." She glances at her dark watch as well. "It's 12 in the morning already. We've got only six hours."

"We still have time." I chirped. Maybe they could return me to my dream again.

"Yeah, but I'll advise you not to think that way." She advised. Rylee and Landon had stopped arguing.

"Yeah, it's shown in the movies a lot of times, time flies," Sean added. "And that was precisely what Patricia thought."

"So shall we?" Rylee gestured for us to lead the way.

And we did. We floated to the never-ending space. Glad we didn't trek there or I'll be too tired to even dream again.

*****

Doors and screens were everywhere.

Some screen played memories of me and my dad, mom, Ruby, Stephanie, and my school. Some even showed me, officer Gavin.

I turned away.

"Be careful not to enter any of the doors or screens." Landon approached me. "You'll make the job more difficult." He smiled. He needs coaching.

"Thanks." I smiled sarcastically and he understood.

"Please excuse Landon there, he's good with the ladies." Sean intervened and shook his head to Rylee.

"Okay, stop Sean." He turned to me, "Am sorry for what I said back in your school. It was ungentlemanly of me." He apologized.

"Do you even need to be one?" Rylee laughed.

"Shut up Rylee!" Landon shouted and they all laughed. The atmosphere was suddenly lighter.

"Why did you say I looked worst in person?"

"Because, every regular consumer in both departments gets their paintings hanged, and seeing the most beautiful girl in the paintings there, an actual condition in real life made me want to curse our department." He winked at me and I smiled.

"I think you're getting better."

"Coached by the best," Sean shouted and we all laughed.

"So all these screens are my memories?"

"Yes."

He focused back to where we were floating to, he looked very serious and manly all of sudden.

My heart raised when I noticed this on him.

I need to focus, I like Sean, he's my dream boyfriend but he must like Rylee because who wouldn't when she's really beautiful and am just a skeleton floating in her nightgown. I look so pale and malnourished while she's like a model and besides, they won't exist in the daytime and I won't be able to get to dream agency again so it would be impossible. Ahhhhh, I should be thinking of getting out of here instead of Sean. It might be infatuation like the ones I have with all the gorgeous guys in the sweet dreams department a while ago. It will wear off in time. Ahhhhh! Focus Karen, you should help...

"Karen, stop!" I heard Landon's voice shout and I turned to see everyone's shocked faces on me.

Landon grabbed my hand but it was like I was sucked in. By the door, I was close too!