"This time don't let it get the best of you. Remember to take control."

I slowly closed my eyes shut once more and could feel the nerves in my stomach getting worse. I wanted to throw up and take a shit at the same time.

No doubt I was scared.

"Just relax, Royce. I'll be right here if anything goes wrong."

I took a shaky deep breath then let sleep take over my nervous body. It was completely pitch black and I couldn't see anything.

It was just a blank dream that had no purpose until my eyes spotted Chris standing across the room smiling at me.

He was holding something in a white blanket and kept rocking it.

Was it a baby?

"Chris.." I called out for him and heard my words echo in the air.

The brat stayed still and stared at the baby in his arms.

"Chris!" I yelled louder this time, hoping he would notice me again.

His head lifted a little then out of nowhere he completely vanished in front of my eyes. I ran towards where he was just standing and looked around for him.

A sense of loneliness overwhelmed me as I frantically kept trying to find him.

"Royce."

"Help me, please!"

I turned around once I heard the brat's screeching cries and saw him being held by an unknown man. The man's whole face was covered except his wide creepy smile.

"Let him go!" I angrily demanded and ran towards them only to watch the brat get brutally stabbed through the back with a knife.

I stopped and stared into his watery eyes as he fell to the floor. His whole back was covered in blood causing me to lose my breath.

I felt like something heavy was on my chest and I couldn't breath no matter how hard I tried.

Watching someone you love get hurt in front of you was the worst pain ever.

"Royce, control it." somebody's lightly whispered in my ear.

Tears fell from my eyes as all I could do was stare at Chris's lifeless body on the floor. I tugged hard at my hair just wanting all this pain inside of me to go away.

Chris needed my help and I couldn't save him I began to sob uncontrollably.

"Royce, make it your dream."

I wiped my eyes and could hear someone talking to me, but I couldn't see anybody near me.

The words kept repeating over and over again until I finally started to picture Chris and I on my bed. Just the simple thought started to quickly relax me.

"Look Royce! Nasiha can walk now!" Chris's happy voice warmed my heart as I saw my little peanut trying her hardest to move her feet.

It was like a picture show in front of me that I never wanted to end.

I smiled at the scene and wanted to reach out for them but soon I was waking up..

"Good job, Royce! You finally did it!" Brian's encouraging words completely woke me up.

He helped me sit up on the bed and handed me a glass of water I really needed for my dry mouth.

"You were struggling a little at the beginning, but luckily you were able to control it just on time. A couple more of those and maybe you can finally go home earlier than expected." Brian said with a smile then adjusted the thick glasses on his nose.

I smiled at the last part and got off the bed. "Thanks, Brian." I replied and left to my room to take a shower.

Annette's house was very big and she had a few more people living here. It was crazy to know they were suffering the same things I was.

I met most of them and heard their stories, which related a lot to mine. I actually felt comfortable living here because I knew they weren't going to think I was a freak.

"Hey Royce, how did your session go?" Jadie's soft voice interrupted my thoughts.

She was the closest friend I had here who would always worry about me. She was a very sweet girl.

But her nightmares were definitely worse than mine. The scars on her fragile face proved it.

"It actually went well this time. Hopefully I'll be able to go home sooner than expected." I replied as we walked together side by side.

"That's awesome! You've only been here for half a year and already improving. What's your secret? Do you think of anything in perticular?" Jadie questioned.

I thought about it for awhile and the only thing that popped into my head was Chris.

"I uh actually have someone on my mind when the nightmare gets really bad." I confessed.

Jadie smiled and waited for me to finish.

"His name is Chris.." I continued.

"Brother?" she asked.

"No, he's my boyfriend soon to be husband." I corrected and realizing how weird it felt to say that.

Not once have I ever told anybody I had a boyfriend and it sounded strange in my ears.

"Oh nice! You must really love him if he's the one who gets rid of your nightmares." Jadie winked at me.

I smiled back at her and stared down at the floor, "I do." I replied.

We talked the whole way to my room and promised to meet her later for lunch. I grabbed a designer t-shirt from my drawer along with some gym shorts then some clean boxer briefs.

I headed to the small bathroom attached to my room and decided a hot bath would be better. As I soaked up the warm water I started to think about home.

I wanted to go back and take a shower with my brat then make love to him like we always did. I missed those simple things.

I grabbed some bath soap and started to scrub my body clean to make the depressing feeling go away.

No doubt I missed Chris and the rest of the family but overall I was doing this for them.

I wanted to have a family with Chris and I wanted to see Nasiha grow up and get married. Plus, Danny was almost like my own son now so I also wanted to guide him through life.

I washed my hair then got out of the tub to dry myself off. I put on my clothes and headed back to my room where I brushed my hair to my liking.

My eyes had deep bags under them and they felt heavy as I saw my reflection in the mirror. Sleeping without Chris by my side was taking a toll on me.

Never did I imagine that the brat I tried to kick out of my house the first day I saw him was now one of my biggest weaknesses.

Life sure did work in a funny way.

"Royce? are you awake." Annette's voice made me stare at the door as I heard a knock.

I opened the door and saw her standing there with her usual black outfit. I let her in and closed the door soon after.

"Brian told me you did very well today in your session. You have no idea how happy that makes me. Soon you will be living a normal life without having to depend on any medicine." Annette calmy spoke.

I smiled at her and let out a heavy sigh, "I can never thank you enough for your help, Annette. What you're doing for all of us here is beyond kindness." I sincerly thanked her.

Her blue eyes shined as they became glossy, "Did I ever tell you my life story? When I was a child I always prayed and prayed to God to help me. I bled from my eyes and I couldn't feel any pain..my religious parents thought I had sold my soul to the devil. They washed me in bleach and put me on a variety of medications. I ran away from home at a young age when I couldn't take anymore of their torture. I searched for help and found none so I knew I had to do it on my own." she said then stayed silent.

"I thought I was the only one who was born like this until I found others and I knew I had to help them. I didn't want them to suffer the same way I did." Annette finished saying as she approached me.

She stood tall in front of me and stared right into my eyes.

"Remember what you are fighting for and I promise you will never have a nightmare again." her powerful words spoke clearly to me.

I let them sink in and understood what she meant. She soon left my room and left me thinking about everything.

I layed down on my bed and stared up at the ceiling.

If I wanted to go home then I had to work extra hard to control my nightmares.

So now that was my mission and my purpose to continue.

The next day I was put once more to sleep and this time received no help from Brian.

I opened my eyes and saw a green landscape in front of me. It was absolutely breath taking.

I walked with caution without moving too fast. This place might seem beautiful but I knew my worst fear was going to eventually play out in front of me.

Part of me didn't want to keep going with these sessions. However, it was the only way I was going to be able to go home sooner.

After watching Chris get stabbed in front of me, I wasn't sure what else would break me down.

I continued to walk down a rocky path until I found a hidden waterfall. The blue, clear water splashed down in a peaceful way.

It was almost too nice to be true.

I looked around and noticed it was like a jungle now. The tropical hibiscus flowers moved a little with the cold wind and the green vines twirled alongside them.

The large landscape I had walked through just seconds ago was no longer there.

"Royce." a faded voice spoke out to me.

My defensive side quickly acted up and I knew this wasn't going to end well. I searched for the person behind the voice and moved some of the giant leaves blocking view.

"My precious boy. I miss you so much.."

My heart practically stopped in my chest and I then recognized the kind voice.

It belonged to the woman who I would never forget.

My mother.

This couldn't be happening..

"Come here, Royce. Let mama hug you." my mom's delicate voice filled me with emotion.

I tried running away repeating to myself that she wasn't really here.

Then just like that she appeared in front of me with a long white dress on. She gave me a soft smile and lightly touched my cheek.

Tears threatened to roll down my eyes as I stared at her. I wanted to embrace her in a hug and never let her go.

"Mom.." I finally broke down and tried to touch her but she turned into dust before I could.

I fell to my knees in defeat and felt a warm hand on my shoulder. I stared up and saw my mom once more smiling down at me.

"I love you." was all I could say to her.

She laughed and soon it became a very sinister one. Her eyes rolled back like she was possessed and her face features changed.

It was almost like looking at death with my mom's face..

"Haha, you think I love you? Don't make me laugh. You are nothing but a worthless freak to me!" she spit in my face and pushed me away from her.

Hot tears rushed down my cheeks as she continued to yell at me. I felt so helpless and broken knowing she hated me.

I then felt a sharp pain erupt on the side of my face. Blood fell to the floor and soon I was being attacked.

The worst part was that I felt every single hit..

I closed my eyes and knew this was how I was going to die. I couldn't wake up and my whole body screamed in pain. It was like being hit with a medal bat and scratched by something sharp.

"Mom, please stop!" I begged and begged until my voice gave out.

"Stop being such a brat!"

I opened my eyes and immediately pictured the brat's face in my head. His beautiful eyes staring at me with so much love as I sneaked him into my room when we first started seeing eachother.

And then flashbacks to when he cried for me made me remember why I was enduring this pain.

This was all for him.

He was my motive and my reason to live.

"You're not my mother! She would never do this to me!" I finally yelled back at the creature on top of me.

It covered its ears and screeched at the top of its lungs.

"Get off of me you bitch!" I demanded and punched it with all my strength.

The dark eyed creature landed on the floor then changed into my mother's form. She reached out her hand for me and started to cry.

"Royce, I love you..please stop hurting me." she desperately cried.

"You're not my mother!" I accused with tears still falling down my cheeks.

I closed my eyes and opened them to see myself back with Brian. His face was pale like he's just seen a ghost while I noticed other people surrounded the bed I was in.

"What's going on?" I questioned and tried to get up but was stopped by Brian.

"No! stay still until we get Annette." he pleaded.

I was confused not knowing what was going on. I tried to rub my head but realized I was strapped down.

"What the hell? Why am I tied down?" I questioned.

Jadie was by my side and tried to calm me down. "It's okay! You were just getting very violent in your dream." she assured, but I didn't believe her.

I stared down at my body and quickly realized why they were all here. My body was a complete bloody mess. My clothes were half torn off and deep cuts were scattered all over along with dark bruises.

It looked like I was attacked by a bear and given no mercy.

"What is the problem?" Annette's serious voice got everybodies attention.

She walked into the room and came to a complete stop when she saw me. Her eyes widened at the injuries and soon she was kicking everyone out except Brian.

"It was going fine until he started to frantically kick and try to run away while still asleep. Then he was calm and in less than five seconds scratch after scratch started to rip through his body. I couldn't wake him up no matter what I did. Others tried to help as the bruises and scratched continued." Brian carefully explained to Annette.

She nodded in understanding and then smiled.

"Congratulations Royce. You were finally able to control your nightmare. This obviously proves that you have won a bloody fight on your own.." she continued to calmly speak.

I was unstrapped from the bed and given medical attention soon after. I rubbed my temples to ease my headache then was helped back into my room.

"Your ticket back home is ready. You will be leaving tomorrow morning." Annette informed me once I was laying in my bed.

A huge smile appeared on my face at the news and I almost got up to hug her but had too many bandages so it would cause discomfort.

"You will no longer need to rely on any medication. However, we do have something that will make you cry actual tears. No more suffering to let your emotions out." Annette assured me and placed her hand above mine.

I was left without words and couldn't possibly believe what I was hearing.

"Thank you so much Annette." I breathed out and embraced her in a tight hug, not caring about my injuries.

She was surprised at the sudden affection, but then relaxed and hugged me back.

"It was nice to meet you, Royce..you are definetely one of the lucky ones." was all she said and pulled away to leave.

She avoided making any eye contact with me and that's when I spotted a tear roll down her cheek as she left my room.

After I said my goodbyes to everybody in the house, I made sure to have Jadie's and Brian's phone number. They helped me a lot through my time here and it meant so much to me.

I was excited to finally go home but I was a bit sad to leave knowing half of them have been here for more than four years.

In reality Annette was right.

I was one of the lucky ones.

As the taxi started to drive away from Annette's house, I waved farewell to everybody. I could see some of them were happy while others were a bit upset, like they were wishing they were in my place.

I stared one last time and could see Annette's figure from the very top floor. She waved goodbye and gave me a small smile before the taxi drove away.

I let out a heavy sigh and placed my head back on the seat.

Finally after almost a year, I was going home..

^*^**^*^*^*^**^*^

I grabbed my suitcase out of the back of the taxi car and handed him the money I owed him before he drove away.

I was a bit tired from the long flight but it was all worth it seeing the front of my house.

I stayed still in my spot and wondered if anybody was home. It was five in the afternoon so I wasn't sure. I finally grabbed my suitcase and made my way to the front door.

I entered the quiet house that luckily wasn't locked and made my way towards my room. The family didn't know I was back home so I couldn't wait to see their faces when they saw me.

I opened the door to my room and walked in to place my suitcase by my closet. The heavy clouds outside soon started to pour down causing rain to hit against the window.

Perfect weather.

I turned around to sleep in my bed until I noticed a crib?

Was it Nasihas? Why was it in my room?

Angela was probably painting the baby's room so she needed to place her crib here.

That was fine by me. I loved my little peanut.

I took off my shoes along with my shirt and changed into some pajama bottoms. I crawled into bed but stopped when I saw something strange sticking out of the crib.

It was a newbron blanket that was light blue and felt really soft. I inspected the blanket and saw it had some stitching in a corner.

In cursive, white letters was a name I didn't recognize.

"Anthony?" I read the words to myself.

I bit on my bottom lip in thought as a thousand questions rushed through my mind.

Maybe Angela was taking care of another baby.

I shrugged and put the blanket back in the crib where it belonged. I layed down in bed and snuggled my blankets close to me.

It felt so good to be back home in my bed.

Especially now that I no longer feared having a nightmare.

I closed my eyes and fell into a long peaceful sleep. Three hours later I woke up to a baby crying. I sat up and rubbed my now rested eyes.

I got out of bed and left my room to follow the sounds of the crying child. Somehow they didn't sound like Nasiha's crying.

I walked downstairs and saw Chris pacing back and forth. He held something close to his chest and kept using a cooing voice.

It reminded me a lot of my dream I had of him..

I slowly approached him then stopped when I heard his whispers.

"I promise daddy will be home soon and he won't ever let you go. Your beautiful blue eyes will captivate him.."

"He won't reject you because I won't let him..I know we're alone now but things will change."

"Please stop crying Anthony.."

Chris let out a stressed groan and turned around to head to the kitchen. I leaned against the door frame and watched his eyes widened in shock.

He came to an immediate halt as his mouth opened a little not believing what his eyes were seeing.

"Can I hold him?" I questioned with a smile.

He was in a frozen state so I reached over and carefully took the crying baby from his arms.

I lightly rocked the little boy and wiped the dried tears from his cute little face.

"So your Anthony, nice to meet you my blue eyed boy." I whispered at the now quiet baby who stared at me with the nicest blue eyes I've ever seen on a baby.

He never took his eyes off of me as I caressed his cheek. He seemed to like it so I continued to do it until he let out an adorable yawn and closed his eyes.

"I can't believe you're back.."