"NO!!!!"
Adrienne bolted upright, breathing heavy, the frightened wails of the child still echoing in her ears. She quickly became aware of her surroundings, and sunk back down under the covers. "Just another dream." she reassured herself, swallowing. "Just another dream." Throwing the covers from over her head, she slung her legs over the side of the couch and slowly rose to her feet. The plush carpet felt warm under her toes as she quietly padded into the kitchen which sat dimly lit in the wee hours of early morning.
Filling the coffee pot at the sink, she placed it on the machine and flopped down in an unceremonious heap at the kitchen table. From her seat at the table, she could easily peer out the window on to the lawn. The storms from the night before had given way to bursts of golden sunrise which glinted in a spectrum of color through the fine spray of dew that was laced in tiny droplets along the window's screen. The wind blew in light puffs, contradictory to the turmoil it had caused the night before. Adrienne sighed and let her eyelids droop shut. "I thought I had gotten rid of them." She pursed her lips. "Why am I having them again? Why did the dreams come back?" Adrienne shuddered as a chill ran down her spine. "They went away a long time ago. Why would I be having them again?" Opening her eyes, she returned her gaze to the window. "Maybe I'm having...... I'm having flashbacks because of...."
The phone ringing jolted Adrienne from her thoughts, and she quickly scampered into the living room to answer it.
"Adrienne?"
"Mrs. Carter?"
"Yes, hon. How did things fare there last night?"
Adrienne yawned. "Things seemed to do alright here. How about there? Did BJ come through okay? Is everyone there all right?"
Adrienne smiled when she heard Mrs. Carter's laugh tinkle on the opposite end of the line. "BJ came through with flying colors. We were all here when she came out of recovery. Of course, by the time she came out from under anesthesia, all but I and her father were asleep. But yes, everything is okay here." Adrienne listened intently as she heard muffled conversation in the background. "Adrienne, would Nick happen to be up yet?"
Adrienne cast a glance at the empty corridor. "I don't think he is, Jane. Would you like me to go get him for you?"
Another tinker of laughter. "No, that's alright. Nick isn't much of a morning person. I wouldn't want to subject you to any harm." Adrienne laughed along with Mrs. Carter, and a few minutes later replaced the phone on it's perch. For a while, Adrienne stood, her hand resting on the phone. The smell of brewing coffee soon enveloped her, and she strolled back into the kitchen to pour herself a cup.
Adrienne heard the dull thud of Nick waking before seeing him emerge from his bedroom, bedraggled and semi-conscience, and stumble past her over to the kitchen pantry. She watched in amusement from her chair at the kitchen table as the boy wordlessly fumbled around with the numerous boxes of cereal on the shelves, and growl in frustration when he couldn't find what he was looking for.
"Who ate all the Count Chocula?"
Adrienne chuckled, bobbing her spoon up and down in her own bowl of Count Chocula. A smile on her face, she chimed, "We're out."
Nick just growled again and reached to grab a box of Apple Jacks instead. Box in hand, he wobbled over to the cabinet for a bowl and flopped down opposite of Adrienne at the kitchen table.
"Aren't you just a ray of sunshine in the morning?" Adrienne said cheerfully, taking a sip from her coffee cup. He just glared up at her wordlessly and continued to drain an open carton of milk Adrienne had left on the table into his bowl. She just rolled her eyes and crammed a spoonful of cereal into her mouth. Jane wasn't joking about him not being a morning person, was she?
The two continued to munch on their cereal in silence until Adrienne rose to rinse her empty bowl in the sink.
"Did my mom call this morning?"
Adrienne shut off the tap and turned to face Nick. Little droplets of milk dribbled from his chin as he sloshed his cereal around in his mouth and shoveled another spoonful in. Can't say that I'm not morally impressed with his table manners. She grimaced when Nick slurped another spoonful of soggy cereal into his mouth. "She called about a half hour ago." she replied, drying her hands on a kitchen towel.
"Oh." was his only response, followed by another loud slurp.
"Do you think you could eat that cereal of yours any quieter?"
Nick just slurped again to spite her.
"Aughh!" Adrienne threw her arms up in defeat and stormed out of the kitchen, cursing under her breath.
Nick watched her leave, and turned his gaze back down at his bowl of soggy Apple Jacks. "Heh heh, she's kind of cute when she's mad."
