Page 43 of See You in Your Dreams

Well then—let’s get this over with.

I cross my arms and fix him with my fiercest scowl as I struggle to slow my pounding heart. “What the fuck is there to talk about?”

He raises an eyebrow. “Oh, I don’t know. How about that wild dreamwejust shared?”

“What dream?” I shrug, keeping my expression carefully neutral.

Dylan rolls his eyes. He moves as if to step closer, halting when I tense. “Come on, Ash,” he sighs, making a pacifying gesture. “Drop the act. I heard what you said in the dream and saw how you reacted when we woke up. You can’t pretend nothing happened.”

“But nothingdidhappen,” I say even as I internally kick myself. If only I’d been quicker to mask my real emotions.

From the way Dylan’s eyeing me, it’s clear I’m getting nowhere. Time for a different approach.

“The only thing that happened here,” I say, raising my voice in mock anger, “was you invading my privacy! I thought I told you to stay away from me.”

Dylan’s eyes widen. “I’m only here becauseyouasked me to—”

“I think you should go,” I say, stabbing my finger toward the door.

The ache behind my temple grows while I await Dylan’s response. He doesn’t budge, studying me uncertainly. My stomach falls when his lips firm, the determination plain on his face. He steps forward, but instead of moving toward me or the door, he plops down onto the edge of the bed.

“I’m not going anywhere until you tell me what’s really happening.”

I clench my jaw, struggling to think past my pounding head. If Dylan refuses to budge, I can only think of two other possibilities to get rid of him: kicking him out via force, which I’m not willing to do…or surrender.

My shoulders sag as I slump against the wall, bowing my head. “Please, Dylan.” Desperation fills my tone. “I’m begging you, just drop it.”

There’s a long pause. I keep my eyes fixed on the floor, allowing myself a brief flicker of hope.

“I can’t,” he says softly.

So much for that.

“Fine,” I whisper, my voice heavy with defeat. I take a deep breath, then meet his soft hazel eyes, dread seeping through my veins. “I can visit people in their dreams.”

I’m not sure what I expected. Perhaps for Dylan to gasp and deny it, or for him to run screaming from the room like Harvey essentially had. Instead, my confession elicits nothing except a slow nod.

“I figured.” He gives me a lopsided grin. “The wholeshared dreamthing kinda gave it away.”

Despite my life unraveling before my eyes, the sight of Dylan’s smile flutters my pulse. A hazy memory from last night comes back to me, leaning against Dylan’s firm side, his warm hand clasped in mine. I shove the memory down.Dammit, I need to focus!

“And that doesn’t…bother you?” I venture hesitantly.

He shrugs. “Why would it?”

I stare at him, shock rippling over my skin. “Because it’s unnatural! Because it’s invasive! Because it’s an impossible, insane power that shouldn’t exist in a rational world!”

Incredulity grips me as Dylan’s grin widens. “Maybe so. And I’m probably going to freak out later once I’m home and have time to think about it more. But right now, it seems pretty badass. You’re like a real-life superhero.”

“There’s nothingsuperabout it,” I say, still floored by his nonchalance. This is goingnothinglike what I’d imagined, and my burgeoning hangover isn’t helping me process.

“What do you mean?” he asks from his spot on my bed. His excited eyes suck me in like a warm embrace. “Sure, it’s not as flashy as invisibility or super-strength. But you can imagine entireworldsinto existence and make whatever you want happen. It’s sort of like being a god.”

“No, it’s not!” I shove off from the wall, too wound up to sit still. “You don’t get it. I can barely control what happens when I dream. I have to take sleeping pills every night just to ensure I don’t accidentally hurt anyone.”

Dylan scrunches his brow as he considers my words. “So, everything that happened last night…”

“Completely unintentional.” I huff a humorless laugh. “Obviously. It took a while for my drunken ass to realize what was happening, and even then, I didn’t know I’d dragged you along for the ride until I saw you by our…bythepicnic table.”