"Well welcome to my room! It's not much, but it is home!" Paige said, opening her door. I stepped in expecting blue lights and posters galore, but that wasn't what I saw. Her room was an artist's canvas. The bottom half of her room was painted with rolling hills and fields, with houses painted in the distance. The top half was a blue sky with birds and planes painted. Her room light was disguised as a sun, and cotton ball clouds hung from the ceiling.

        "Wow..." I said, my mouth agape, looking around. Her closet was painted as large barn doors, and the dresser was painted as a mountain. The bed was the only normal looking thing in the room.

        "Yeah, a little artistic expression. I got the idea a few years back, and went to work. Took a LOT of paint," she said with a laugh.

        "Where am I going to sleep?" I asked.

        "Well I didn't really think about that, but there is plenty of room in my bed," she said.

        "Uhh... I'm sorry... what? Uhh... yeah... no... Do you have an extra blanket and pillow? I'll just... sleep on the floor..." I said blushing.

        "Oh that's a good idea!' she said with indifference, running to her closet and pulling out a blanket. She then tossed the blanket over me, and I felt her lightly hit me with a pillow. Her laugh was music to my ears, and my heart sang along.

        "Hey, that's not fair!" I said, throwing the blanket off of me, and I tackled her to the bed. I started to tickle her as she hit me with the pillow. We laughed and laughed, until we could no longer laugh anymore.

        "Well its getting late Brock... a big day tomorrow..." she said.

        "Yeah..." I said, sitting up.

        "You sure you don't want to sleep on the bed?" she asked.

        "Hahaha... no... I'm used to sleeping on... uncomfortable places," I said, standing up from her bed.

        "Good night then!" she said, and gave me a kiss on the cheek. I felt my cheek, and the warmth of her kiss was with me until I fell asleep.

        —"What do you remember?"

        "Please, I don't remember anything! I don't know who I am!" I pleaded.

        "A few more minutes ought to do it."

        "Please! I don't know! I don't know!" I said. I felt the tears stream down my face.

        "Put it over his damn mouth! I'm tired of hearing his damn whining!"

        "Please! No! NO! Mphh!" I screamed. I tried to move. I was trapped, I couldn't move. I couldn't move. I couldn't move. Then the lightning. My body is shaking, back and forth. My head tried to jolt forward, jolt away, but I was trapped. I panicked. I could not scream. My cheeks were soaked, my eyes blind.

        "Now. TELL ME. What. Do. You. Remember?"

        — "Hey! Wake up! Stop screaming!" someone said, shaking me awake. Where was I? Who was shaking me?

        "No! I don't remember!" I screamed, jolting forward.

        "It's okay! It's just me! Paige!" she said, holding me close to her.

        "I can't... I can't... I can't sleep..." I blubbered.

        "Hey hey hey! It's okay! I'm right here! I'm not going anywhere! You don't have to remember! You never have to remember again," she said. Her embrace was warm.

        "Okay... okay..." I said, breathing deeply. With each breath my body shuddered, slowly, until I finally calmed down.

        "Come on.." she said, grabbing my arm, pulling me up. She moved up towards the bed, and guided me along.

        "What are you doing?" I asked.

        "Go to sleep," she said, climbing in beside me.

        "No.. I.." I tried to say.

        "Put your arm around me. Don't think of anything else. You will be okay," she said, scooting closer to me. My body was tense. I felt like I was invading her space. It felt wrong. Then she fell asleep. Her breathing was slow and steady, and it was calming. My head grew heavy, and we were warm, together. I fell asleep, holding her close to me.

        I felt her leave sometime in the morning. She kissed me on the cheek once more, and then pulled the covers back over me. I heard her step into another room, and the sound of a bathtub running. I slowly sat up. My eyes were still blurry with sleep, but I forced myself to crawl out of bed. I really needed to pee, but I really didn't want to walk in on her in the bath. Eventually, my bladder got the better of me.

        I tiptoed to the door, and slowly opened it. The room was filled with steam, so it was hard to see. This was a bad idea. Maybe I should go back to bed. I turned to leave.

        "Is someone in here?" Paige called out.

        "Mhm... yeah... I need to go to the restroom..." I said awkwardly.

        "Ah! Good morning Brock! Getting a little brave, aren't we?" she asked with a giggle.

       "Uhh... I... I'm not being... weird... well I am weird... but not THAT weird... I didn't want to seem like a creeper... but I really like... I really need to use the restroom," I said, my face getting warm.

        "Oh of course! I'm almost done! You can wait here!" she said.

       "Yeah..." I said, sitting on the corner of the counter. The air was warm and hot, and it reminded me a lot of myself. I felt foggy, and my brain was clouded. I couldn't see the direction forward. I couldn't see back. All I could see was myself, but I didn't even know who I was. I felt like a traitor in my own skin. I could cleanse myself, the option wasn't too far away, but someone else was there. Someone I didn't know.

        "Can you grab me a towel?" she asked. I shook my head, blinking back to reality.

       "Yeah! Where is it?" I asked.

       "On the wall to the left of the sink," she answered. I grabbed the towel, and felt along till I found the curtain.

        "Here you go..." I said, closing my eyes, and pulling the curtain aside.

       "A little up... oh don't touch there haha... thank you," she said. I pulled myself away from the curtain quickly.

        "Sorry..." I said, blushing again.

        "You can open your eyes silly!" she said. I slowly opened them, and there she stood, wrapped in a towel.

        "Why are you so... comfortable... around me?" I asked cautiously.

        "Why shouldn't I be?" she asked simply, and walked out, shutting the door behind her. The question haunted me. Why have I been acting so weird? Why wasn't I comfortable? I felt as if the evil man, Hudson, was inside me. I felt his perversity. He wanted her in a different way.

        "Could you hurry in there? I do need to brush my teeth among other things!" Paige exclaimed from the other side of the door. I then used the restroom, washed my hands, and stepped out of the bathroom.

       "How do I look?" she asked me, doing a little twirl. She wore light blue jean shorts, and a brown leather belt. For a shirt, she had a burgundy tank top, with flowers stitched on it. It was a cute little outfit, and fit her well.

        "You look nice," I said. She smiled.

        "I'll see you later. Make yourself at home," she said, and left.

        Hours went by, and she returned. She told me about her day, and then we sat on her bed, and watched television. I fell asleep, and once more woke up with her beside me. Then it was the same schedule the next day. She took a shower in the mornings, got dressed, asked me how she looked, and left. Then came back, and we did something else. One night we went outside and looked at the night sky. Another night we went swimming. Then things changed once more.

        "I got you your own room!" she told me.

        "Oh?" I said, disappointed.

        "Don't worry, we can still hang out! My door is always open if you have a nightmare," she told me.

        My room was bare. The walls were gray, simple and dull. The closet was simple, and so was the dresser. All colorless. The lighting was normal. Boring. The bed was cold. Empty. Even with my own body warmth, I was so cold, and alone once more. Someone knocked at the door. I opened it, and there stood Paige with her nightgown on.

        "Can I sleep here tonight? I had a nightmare, and it's scary being alone, ya know?" Paige asked me shyly. I smiled and scooted over, pulling the blanket aside.