The dry, boney clutches of insomnia held Emily firmly in its grip. Despite her extreme exhaustion, she found herself lying awake well into the night, tossing and turning in a bed that remained unfamiliar. Though she’d been dealing with long hours spent staring into darkness for months, the frustration managed to remain fresh every night.

When the small alarm clock on her bedside table silently changed to two in the morning, she decided to give up on sleep all together. Her mind was racing, jumping from idea to idea without any logical connections. She knew it would be pointless to attempt to read - her focus was completely shot – and she didn’t want to risk waking Mary up by watching television. Instead, she changed out of her pajamas and into a pair of jeans and hoodie she’d discarded haphazardly on the floor. What she needed was to get out of the house for just a little while, to escape the reminders of her sleeplessness.

Without turning on any lights, she crept quietly down the stairs and out the front door. A flicker of déjà vu

(he might come back)

danced on the surface of her mind before she got caught up in the sound of her shoes on the pavement.

It was a gorgeous night. High above her, thousands of stars glittered down through the crystal clear sky, while all around her, surfaces were becoming covered in a thin layer of dew. The air was alive with the sound of chirping crickets and tiny frogs. Emily noticed none of it, her head down and her eyes focused on the small area of sidewalk directly in front of her. She was busily turning the last few days’ events over in her mind, trying to make some sort of sense out of the chaos of it all.

She had a new home, a new and very real career, and she seemed to already be making new friends. Her grandfather’s funeral had been in another life, the three years before that had been nothing more than a nightmare she’d had after falling asleep one night. She felt as though she’d spent her whole life waiting to begin living, and now that she was finally doing just that, she was paralyzed by the fear of that it was all an elaborate practical joke.

Before she realized it, the trees that had lined the street had been replaced by looming buildings, their dark and empty facades staring menacingly at her as she walked past on cracked pavement. Her steps slowed as she became aware of the fact that she was going to have to walk the same distance back to the house, and she wasn’t feeling quite as awake as she had when she set off. She was happy to look up and see the familiar beckoning lights of a 7-11, and decided she could spare a few minutes to pick up a dose of caffeine before heading back.

She hurried across the deserted street toward the oasis of orange and green light, the fluorescents buzzing loudly from inside their plastic casings. As she stepped through the automatic doors, she was surprised to find she wasn’t the only one out and about at such a late hour. She hesitated for a moment, wondering which of her fellow night owls were possibly psychotic, and which were merely slaves to insomnia such as herself, before spotting the drinks at the back of the store.

When she turned down the far aisle, she first froze before holding back a nervous giggle.

Emily: “’To be, or not to be. That is the question.’ Or so I’ve heard.”

Tristan jumped, turning to her with a happy but surprised smile on his face and a bag of chips in his hands, which he quickly replaced on the shelf.

Tristan: “Emily! What on earth are you doing here?”
Emily: “I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I’d go for a walk. What about you?”
Tristan: “Snack run. James wanted me to pick up some crisps before I stop by this place tonight.”
Emily: “At this time of night?”

Tristan: “He has a thing for watching horror movies at the most ungodly hours. I’m actually trying to waste as much time as possible before heading over there; ‘Friday the Thirteenth, Part Eleventybillion – The Wrath of Khan’ was never one of my favorites.”
Emily: “Yeah, they started getting pretty repetitious after the first two dozen or so. Personally, I’ve always preferred the really old horror movies. There’s something more fundamentally terrifying about jerky, silent, black and white vampires compared to obvious, chainsaw-wielding maniacs in hockey masks.”
Tristan: “Exactly. Unfortunately, James has a weakness for all things kitsch, coupled with the added bonus of a very sharing personality.”

Emily stifled a yawn, her eyelids suddenly weighing more than they had earlier in the night.

Emily: “I don’t want to give you the impression I’m ditching you or anything, but I should probably start heading back home. The last couple of days are starting to catch up with me all at once.”
Tristan: “Did you need a ride? I’d be happy to drop you off.”
Emily: “That’d be really wonderful, actually. I think at this point I’m running the risk of falling asleep right on the sidewalk.”
Tristan: “I don’t think that’s something you’d want to make a habit of in this town. Any town, really, I guess. What street do you live on?”
Emily: “Ravenscroft; it’s a series of brick townhouses.”
Tristan: “I’m pretty sure I know the ones you’re talking about. They can’t be but a few minutes’ drive from here.”

Emily: “Did you want to buy your bag of chips?”
Tristan: “You know, I bet James has enough junk food in his house for us. If he doesn’t, I’ll be honour-bound to spend several hours finding the perfect ones.”
Emily: “That’s very noble of you.”
Tristan: “It’s grueling to make such sacrifices for ones friends, but I’ll survive.”

Emily: “This is your car?”
Tristan: “Yeah… a bit ostentatious, isn’t it? Guess who talked me into it.”
Emily: “Somehow I don’t think it was Markus. It’s nice, though; I like it. Not too ‘show off-y,’ really. It’s not like it’s bright yellow or anything.”
Tristan: “Very true. At least with the black, I can blend in with the night streets better.”
Emily: “And during the day it’s just sleek and cool.”

Tristan gave a short, almost uncomfortable laugh, fumbling for his keys before unlocking the doors. Emily slid into the passenger seat with a tired sigh, grateful to be spared the several block walk back to the house.

Emily: “I’m sorry if I seemed aloof or whatever after the show tonight. Things have been so unreal the last couple of days I hardly know which way is up anymore.”
Tristan: “No apology necessary, really. I’ve been out of it, too, and all I’ve done is come back from vacation. I can’t imagine how overwhelming this must all be for you.”
Emily: “It’s intense, but it’s a good sort of intense. I do plan on sleeping through all of tomorrow morning, and a sizeable chunk of the afternoon. Then I think I’ll make it an early night and turn in before nine.”
Tristan: “Sleep can do wonders.”

Emily murmured her agreement, trying to remember the last time she’d had a really good night’s sleep. In less than three minutes, they were coming up to her street.

Emily: “This is it; the end unit. Thank you so much for the ride; it saved me from having to avoid being eaten by any creepy vampires or crazy people with chainsaws.”
Tristan: “You’re very welcome. Listen, be careful if you go out walking at night around here. It’s a nice enough town, but it has more than its fair share of crazies.”
Emily: “I’ll keep that in mind, thanks. See you Monday night.”
Tristan: “Sleep tight.”