∿Natasia∿ (Continued from Part 1) For dinner, my mom and I made salsa with: *Red Homegrown Tomatoes *Tomatios *Fresh cilantro *Salt *Pepper And last but not least, *Jalapenos Dad made steak, and Rose made the salad, while Bella and Chris made the dressing. The dream was driven from my mind by the sheer deliciousness of the food. We ate, and talked, and had lots of fun. --- That night as I crawled into bed, my mom came in to say goodnight. “Night honey” “Goodnight mom.” She turned off the light, and I fell asleep. I had a dream that night. I was walking through a forest, it was all green, I saw my locket on the ground, it was glowing. I opened it and it shone so bright it blinded me. Then I woke up with a gasp. “Just a dream,” I said, then shrieked. A blue flame erupted out of thin air right in the center of my room. I reached toward it, but then, it just disappeared! A note fell softly to the ground. I gingerly stepped out of bed, wondering if the note could bite or attack me. I picked it up carefully, then dropped it in shock. The note read: Natasia. Yes, I know your name. I know everyone’s name. I have your friend. Marcus. If you don’t get him by the summer solstice, he will die. Gather your friends. You’ll need them. Better hurry . . . :) I fumbled for my walkie-talkie, which was on my bedside table. I knocked it to the floor and heard it slide under my bed. Shoot! I got out of bed and found the lightswitch. I flicked it up. Blinding light! AHHH! I dived for my bed and hid under the covers. Then I opened them a little, letting in a tiny bit of light, waiting until I adjusted to that, then letting in more. Finally, I adjusted to all the light, and I bent down and looked under the bed. I grasped my walkie-talkie and turned it on. My best friends Liza, Beth, and Vally had walkie-talkies too, and we all kept ours on channel 5. I pushed down the speak button. “Wake up! Fast! I need you!” I said, and waited for an answer. “Gosh Nati, what do you need?!” Called Vally sleepily. “Yeesh, what’s the deal?” asked Liza. “Nati, this better be good,” asked Beth, a bit angrily. “Cuz I’m--” Yawn. “-tryna sleep here, like any normal person, would, at, like, I dunno--” I heard Beth fumbling for her watch. “It’s 2:34 AM Nati! What the heck?!” I sigh. Beth is not a morning person. Neither are Liza and Vally. “Well come over! I need you!” Liza replies sleepily, “At 2:34 in the morning?” Goodness, they’re stubborn. “Yes! Now, come!” “Fine. Fine. Getting changed. Meet ya in ten.” They all reply and click off. I’m so glad we’re close enough friends that they will come over without question--well, maybe a few questions--at any given time, because they know it’s important to me. And I’m so glad we live near each other. It’s about a ten minutes walk to Liza’s, a 15-minute walk to Beth’s, and about a nine-minute walk the other way to Vally’s. Our parents are ok with us seeing each other, but they prefer we do zoom, just to be safe. I make my way through the house as quietly as possible, which is no easy feat, given how many people are sleeping here. I wait on the front step. Breathing hard, and clutching the note. I read it over and over until it’s engraved in my mind. I wish I had the gear for fingerprint checking. But maybe Beth will. She’s read so much, that she’s got a lot of ideas. Liza will probably look at the facts and come up with a plausible explanation. And Valentina will come up with a crazy, imaginative explanation, and then together we’ll figure it out. Simple. But I have a feeling this is more than the mystery we solved in third grade. (It involved a hamburger, a spatula, and a daring jump. Don’t ask). I have a feeling this is more than just a prank. Something serious . . . My friends pull up. Both Beth and Liza are on bikes, Valentina is on foot, all of them out of breath, and a bit bedraggled and bleary-eyed. I have a feeling I don’t look much better. I led them into my room and closed the door softly, then I turned on the light. Beth dived into my bed, Liza blocked her eyes. “ACK-” cried Valentina, “SHHH!” Beth and Liza called. “Sorry!” Valentina said. “It’s ok, my room is soundproof. I should know.” (The scary stories, screaming of door creaks we have had at sleepovers have never awoken anyone in this house. Sound. Proof.) I showed them the note.
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