I gasped for air jolting up in my bed as if someone pressed a defibrillator to my chest. My heartbeat was erratic as I breathed heavily. I pulled my sweat-filled shirt over my head and tossed it to the side.

I touched my throat where a woman was throttling me in my dream. The other man that's always in my dream was dead across the room and I cried for him.

This is not the end...

Something told me when I let out my last dying breaths in the dream.

Why was this happening to me? I wasn't a bad person. Why was the universe testing me? I felt like I'd lost my mind. I was cleared from all psychiatric disorder tests. There was nothing wrong with me mentally but yet I felt like there was. If this continued I'd have to book myself in a mental institution maybe the doctors made a mistake.

I looked around my room it felt bigger in the dark. It also felt colder. I got out of bed and walked to the tap to pour myself a glass of water. Taking the glass back to bed I opened my bedside drawer and pulled out my notebook to write down the dream so that I could find another pattern.

So far I had the man and then death by a murderer. Was the man death? Was he the Grimm? or was he something that came to warn me about death?

He didn't look or feel like it. He wasn't a family member, but he was someone that I felt I knew forever. All I was certain of was this man brought death along with him like a companion.

Frustrated I shut the journal and tossed it to the side putting my head into my hands. I can't do this anymore. I can't live with this forever.

I checked my alarm clock and it was only three am in the morning. I put on some sleeping tapes suggested to me by another therapist. It was the sounds of the ocean.

I lay back in my bed and focused on the sounds and my breathing. I was afraid to fall asleep. I didn't want to die again.

***

"Yes, I'm charmed to meet you too. Ah yes, I too have a love for writing. Here's my dream journal, detailed descriptions on how I get murdered on a nightly basis."

No, I couldn't say that during an interview.

I adjusted the navy blue blazer I wore with a white flower on the top pocket. I turned sideways and twirled my straight brown hair with one finger.

"Valerie," Ben called as he walked into my apartment with two coffee cups in his hand. "Wow, you look professional. Like you were born at the world bank." He kicked the door closed with the back of his foot.

"Thank you, thank you," I did a bow and he came over placing a chaste kiss on my cheek.

Ben was my first kiss. We looked at each other and started laughing afterward. We were so good at being friends that we couldn't be in a romantic relationship. I guess the kiss had to happen for us to understand that we weren't meant to be anything more than what we were.

"Come on you going to be late," he placed the coffee in my hand.

We walked out of the building together and he lead me to his car that he parked on the side of the road. "Hello there." Zane stuck his head out the car window. "Looking smoking Val. The sexiest writer yet," he winked at me and I turned to glare at Ben.

Did he have to bring his hormonal pet. Zane and Ben met in college. Zane hit on me every chance he got. He was mostly funny than creepy but I wasn't in the mood to put up with him before what could possibly be the biggest day of my life.

"Ah come on you know we work together," Ben said as if he knew what I was thinking when I sent him a soul shriveling glare.

I got into the back seat of the car. Zane looked at me through the car's review mirror. "So sweetness you know you're my weakness. When's our first date?"

"In your dreams." I took a sip of my coffee.

The god's gift to mankind.

"In my dreams sweetness, we already married with six children."

"Six children," I choked on my coffee, sputtering a little.

"Yeah of course you staying at home teaching our adorable bundles of joy because you so smart and beautiful."

"Oh give it a rest. She's not interested," Ben said getting into the car.

"I'm wearing her down. All I need is one date Val. One date and you'll see," he said dramatically while staring at me through the car's review mirror and I rolled my eyes.

Half an hour later due to the insane traffic in New York, Ben stopped by the building and I jumped out praying that I still had time to make my interview.

I ran up to the luxurious silver-grey building. The doorman ushered me in. "Goodmorning mam," he greeted.

"Good morning," I greeted back and walked over to the receptionist desk at the corner of the room.

At the front desk sat a caramel-skinned dark-haired woman who was rushing around frantically answering calls and typing on a computer. "Yes I'll buzz you," she spoke into her headset, and then the telephone rang. She sighed picking it up. "Mr. Emerson is not in. I'll forward his call to his PA." She blocked the speaker on the phone and turned to me.

"Interview?" She questioned and I nodded.

"Third floor. Miss Crawford is waiting for you." She went back to her call and I walked over to the elevator.

I went into the elevator and pressed the button for the third floor. The doors started to close and I fidgeted with my fingers.

Valerie Hudson your ass better not screw this up. Get a hold of yourself!

"Hold the door," A man shouted and I put my hands in the center causing the doors to part again. He jogged up to the elevator and my jaw almost hit the ground. He was the most handsome man I'd ever laid eyes on. His dark brown hair was pushed back and he was dressed in a navy blue suit.

His cologne wafted off him in waves clogging my senses.

We were matching.

"Thank-" he paused and looked me over and I stared at him marveling at him like I've never seen a man before. He had a strong jawline and light stubble on his chin and his eyes were blue. The bluest I've ever seen. They could have held the truth of what lay in the depths of the ocean.

And knowing that no one could venture so deep down into the ocean and survive. I still stared longingly into his eyes as if I was in a trance. Mindfully and purposely venturing into the unknown.

I felt a shiver run down my spine. "Do you remember me?" He asked. His voice was soft and gentle. He took a cautious step forward and I took a step back. My back hitting the elevator wall as I kept eye contact with him.

"Ur- sorry no I don't think we've met before," I smiled sheepishly and he ran a hand through his luscious hair, breaking eye contact and looking away.

He smiled but it didn't quite meet his eyes. "Sorry must of confused you with someone else." The elevator dinged, the doors parted and he walked off not offering me a second look.

I watched as he walked away until the doors closed. I've never been so attracted to someone in my life. So drawn to them that I've lost my senses.

But, where did he think he knew me from.

I'd definitely remember meeting someone like him.

I gathered myself and turned around to look at the elevator's mirror. Patting my cheeks down. The lift dinged and I walked out.

A woman was leaning against a counter. She was wearing a red body fit dress that sat on her knees. Her tanned shoulders were revealed and her shiny blonde locks fell down her back.

She was talking light-heartedly to someone that was polishing the counter. She looked up as I approached her.

"Hi you must be Valerie I'm Camilla," she smiled sticking out her hand to shake mine. I shook her hand and she gestured for me to follow her. "We'll conduct the interview in my office."

She lead me down a plaid brown carpeted hallway that had magazine covers in frames on the walls.

She opened the office door that had the plaque, 'Camilla Crawford' on it. She gestured for me to walk into the office first and she followed in after me shutting the door.

The office was painted white. The desk and chair were black and a white laptop sat atop the desk next to a pile of neatly stacked magazines and papers.

Camilla took a seat at the desk and I took a seat in front of her. She clicked onto her computer then turned to face me. "So it says here that you have a bachelor's in writing."

"Yes, that is correct."

"Tell me, Valerie. What is it that you want in life?" she asked leaning over the desk to look me in the eyes.

"Peace."

"Peace like world peace?" She questioned with an arched eyebrow.

No not peace like in world peace. I'm not Miss Congeniality.

"Well more like inner peace," I said hoping I didn't sound like a hippie.

She stroked her chin in thought. "Inner peace." She repeated. "Well, Valerie I like your thought process. That's what we all want, isn't it? But without thinking about the question we just ask for the more relevant things like money or love first," she laughed.

"Money can't buy happiness no matter how much you have. It will just cause greed to have and own everything and you can't own everything hence you will never be happy no matter how much money you have."

She looked me over thoughtfully and stretched out her hand. "When can you start?"

"Is that it?" I questioned. "I'm hired just like that?"

"Just like that." I took her outstretched hand and gave it a firm shake.

"Well then I can start right now," I beamed standing. "But could I use the lady's room first?"

"Yeah sure just down the hall." I left the office and went down the hall to the bathroom so that I could call up Ben.

I found the bathroom and rushed into it while looking for Ben's contact on my phone. "Hello," Ben answered and I could hear background noises of what sounded like zombies and gunshots.

"Ben I got the job," I shrieked.

"Babe I'm so proud of you," Zane's voice came.

"Cool it would you," Ben told him.

"Val I'm so proud of you. We'll celebrate tonight. Have a good first day. I got to go. Love ya," he said hurriedly. "Kill the fucking zombie!" He yelled.

"Bye," the call got cut and I did a little dance in the bathroom.

It was a robot that meets EDM but it looked like I was having cardiac arrest.

Yes, I did the running man and t step in the bathroom and I didn't care.

Anyone would be dancing when they learned that they didn't have to eat ramen noodles for the rest of the week. So that they could budget for other necessities.

As I turned during my dance I met a pair of blue eyes. He was standing at the entrance to the bathroom with a smile on his face. He had a dimple on his cheek. My face paled and my throat felt dry. I began to sweat from embarrassment.

"You got moves," he laughed.

"What are you doing in the girl's bathroom?" I shrieked.

"This isn't the girl's restroom," he chuckled. The cutest little wrinkles forming under his eyes. "It's the men's."

He opened the door to show me the sign and he was right. I walked into the mens. "Oh I'm so sorry," I smiled sheepishly and he shook his head.

"Just don't let it happen again. I'll have to inform human resources that we have a pervert on our hands."

"How do you even know I work here? I just started not even ten minutes."

His eyes twinkled in amusement. "Educated guess. This is the floor for the love category of the magazine. Camilla was looking for an assistant. You came up here and now I find you dancing in the mens. So I figured you got the job," he explained.

"Fine whatever you smart, but I'm not a pervert," I defended.

"Then why are you still standing here," he laughed. I snarled at him and walked to the door. He closed it behind me and I could hear him chuckling.

*******************************************

Authors note

So what do you guys think about the book so far? Please feel free to comment your thoughts and I'll reply as fast as I can.

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💜P. A