Getting dressed for work, Bill went into the bathroom to brush his teeth. As he glanced at himself in the mirror he was jolted by a sudden remembrance of a dream. Standing with his toothbrush half way to his mouth with his jaw going slack he felt a chill run through him.
Why did I have to remember that, he wondered? It was horrible. Trying to put it out of his mind he hurried through the rest of his routine and got in the car, but the dream persisted, invading his mind like a stupid song lyric that simply won't go away. It was a bog standard nightmare, really. He was being pursued across an unknown landscape by some dreadful nameless thing for a reason he couldn't fathom. There was something about a scraping and grunting noise he couldn't quite remember. In the dream he kept telling himself not to look back, but of course he finally did. He had only glimpsed it briefly but he remembered it was enough to jolt him out of the dream, but not to wake him fully.
Cranking up the stereo he forced himself to just drive. Arriving at work he felt much better and settled into his cubicle and got down to the business at hand. Just before lunch Reed from across the hall dropped by for a chat.
"Hey Bill, you going to the game with us this Saturday?"
"Oh, I suppose I could. Who's gonna drive?"
"I'll drive. I'll pick you up at eleven." Reed turned to go then stopped. "Oh, by the way, I finally bought that DVD you recommended, haven't gotten around to watching it yet though."
His brow furrowing, Bill tried to remember what that was about, and then it hit him. Two nights ago he had a dream in which he'd recommended Donnie Darko to Reed and his wife. Or had he? He could remember it, but...
"Um, Reed, what DVD was that?"
"You know, Donnie Darko. I picked it up at the video store the other day. Strange, really, I had gone there to rent something and the clerk was putting some DVD's out for sale and he told me I should buy it. Then I remembered you recommending it. Hey, what's up man, you look like you've seen a ghost."
"Uh...nothing. Nothing, Reed. I need to make a couple of calls. Talk to you later."
Leaning back in his chair Bill tried to sort it all out in his mind. He clearly remembered having a dream. Had he recommended it to them and then dreamed about it after? It didn't seem possible. Picking up the phone he tried to figure out how to ask without it seeming weird. He called Reed's extension.
"Hi Reed. Hey, I was just wondering, when did I recommend the movie to you? My mind is like a sieve these days."
"Oh, hi Bill. Well, it was..." There was a long pause. "Damn, I can't remember. Whatever you've got, maybe I've got it too! Well, you were over...when were you over last?"
"See, that's the thing, it's been quite awhile, but I had this dream about recommending the DVD to you, and now you tell me...oh hell, it doesn't matter. Talk to you later."
Hanging up the phone he picked up a report he was trying to write and started editing it. He needed distraction; the whole thing seemed silly anyway. He was deep into the report when the phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Hello, dear. Sorry to call you at work."
"Oh, that's alright mom, what's up?"
"Well, I'm afraid it's your father. He's had a stroke. Now, don't worry, they think it's just minor, but you know we're away for a few days, we took the camper van of course, and we were parked in a rest area when it happened. We didn't get far, we're at the hospital in the valley, you know the one?"
"Yeah, Mom, I know the one. Is he alright?"
"Yes, dear, he's resting. It's just, well, I was wondering if there's anyway you could get our valuables out of the van for us. I rode in the ambulance with him, and I'm just afraid we'll get robbed." She gave him directions.
"No problem, mom. The spare key is still under the bumper?"
"Yes, dear."
"I'll go get your stuff and meet you at the hospital. See you in a couple of hours."
Driving towards the valley Bill's mind kept bouncing back and forth between the dreams and his father. What a day. Could it possibly get any stranger? It was twilight when he reached the van. There was something unnerving about the area, but he set about moving stuff to his car. The highway was deserted, not a car in sight. With the last of their valuables in, he was about to go when he heard a scraping noise in the gravel behind him. Instantly every hair on his neck and arms stood straight up. In one horrible instant last night's dream came flooding back in a grotesque rush.
The scraping quickened, and just as in the dream he heard a sickening grunting noise. He began running for all he was worth, willing himself not to look back.
