Tears in the Veil

Having spent longer painting than she'd meant to, Rowan decided to use the defrosted chicken for making wraps akin to fajitas because they'd take less time than what she'd originally had planned. Cooking for two was something to adapt to. When her mother was alive but ill and Rowan was in her early teens Rowan had been new to cooking. Her mother hadnt required her help in the kitchen until the girl was already fourteen years old. She'd only been preparing meals for both of them for a couple of years before her mother was eating specialized meals, then infused so hardly ever eating...Rowan was not sure how many fajitas to prepare so she made a lot.

As she began moving serving dishes from the kitchen to the dining room she was surprised to see the table set for two, candles hardly ever used had been brought out and lit, and in the center of the table was the most beautiful bouquet of wild flowers, arranged quite delicately in one of the old glass vases Aunt Iris had left them.

Matthew rose from the table, enjoying her pleased surprise, and she let him help her set the tray down and little Sarah giggled and left the room as if she had someplace to be, or to purposefully leave the two of them alone.

Rowan leaned over to smell the flowers as she untied her apron. "Wow, Matthew, they're lovely! This is...nice." Suddenly self conscious, she blushed and softly explained what she'd prepared for their meal. "Oh, I forgot something to drink. What would you like?" she asked, unsure if she should sit yet. The room looked so different, more alive and vibrant than usual, and it beckoned to her to first, relax, maybe pretend she was like one of those television women who would take such moments in stride...She couldn't help but smile a little bit. She realized, albeit with the delay of the unaccustomed, that Matthew had done this for her.

Matthew was pleased that Rowan enjoyed his surprise. He had thought he might have gone over the top with the candles, but when he had suggested it to Sarah she had clapped her hands in glee and had shown him where they were as well as the plates, silverware and the vase. He would really have to thank her somehow later. Just spending time with her didn't seem enough somehow.

"Oh I don't really drink all that much so if there is another pitcher of that excellent lemonade that Nanny makes that would be great," he told her. "As for the table I have to admit I had a little help but I did want to do it for you. Let's just say I had help making sure the details were perfect," he smiled.

Matthew smelled the food and instantly his mouth began to water. "Wow Rowan, these Fajitas smell delicious. If they taste half as good as they smell I am going to be one happy Man. You are going to have a hard time getting rid of me if you cook this well all the time. Of course you are going to have to let me cook you a meal while I am here as soon as I get approval to be in the Kitchen of course," he grinned.

He took a few Fajitas and placed them on his plate and then waited until Rowan had done the same. Then looking at her he took a large bite. Instantly the flavor hit his taste-buds and he was in heaven. The spices blended perfectly with the chicken, not overpowering it as some cooks did but complementing it. "This has to be one of the best Fajitas I have ever eaten," he complimented her after he had finished his first mouthful. He immediately took another mouthful and grinned his delight.

Rowan felt glad, truly pleased, that Matthew was so enthusiastic about her cooking. She wasn't trying to be modest at all when she admitted, "This was hardly a difficult dish. I make these often enough I think I could do it with my eyes closed. The proportions, though, that's harder to figure out. I don't know if you eat a lot or a little so...there might be left overs later if I made too much...Oh, and there's ice cream in the freezer if you want dessert later. I have Neapolitan open and a yet unopened gallon of one called walnut toffee crunch which sounded interesting at the store."

She started eating to shut herself up. Her cheeks were flushed and she felt herself babbling. "I hope Sarah was helpful. She's a good one to have around. She takes a lot of the creepiness out of being haunted."

Then, she thought of a good question, "How did you get into this business of ghost hunting? You mentioned your father was a military man...What's your family like?"
(...and do you have a wife or girlfriend?) Rowan silently wondered.

Matthew smiled at Rowan as he heard the awkwardness in her voice as she chatted away with him. She was obviously not used to having guests over or even talking with someone on a regular basis. He wondered what sort of job she did that enabled her to still have no social skills.

"I generally don't have a huge appetite but your cooking just might change all that," he grinned at her, "So I think if you just doubled what you normally would cook for yourself that would probably work out fine. Ice cream though sounds great but if we are going to have some I think we will leave some of these even though they are so delicious. Perhaps you can take some for lunch tomorrow. Or do you prefer something else? I was wondering what your favorite style of food was. Personally I am a Japanese style myself, but I also like Italian a lot as well."

"Sarah was a big help. She is going to show me around tomorrow and introduce me to a few of the other ghosts as well. She is also very protective of you Rowan and I think she misses you a bit. I gather you two used to play a bit as kids. I think she misses those times and wants you to be happy again. I also saw a few of the other ghosts out in the grounds. One Sarah called the Protector, who looked like a early 19th century gangster and a few other children playing tag in the woods."

"As for how I got into this business well Dad was a business Fix it guy as I said, so we toured the country never in the same place for long. I think the shortest was two months and the longest was just under two years. The average though was about six months. Everywhere we went I would see ghosts and of course I would be called crazy. Well my Mum sort of supported me but she warned me to keep quiet about it. By the age of ten I had shut up about it but I still watched and talked to them when no one was around. When I graduated high school I didn't have the best of grades, well when you are dragged around like that it is hard to. I moved out of home, settled in one place and took a job as an electrician to make money while studying nights to get into college. Of course I could still see ghosts and while working on a hotel refurbishment I befriended a old guy who used to be the super who taught me a lot of stuff about electronics and about the wiring of the place. Of course the guy put in charge of me was starting to look like an idiot as a rookie showed him up and got video of me talking to thin air as I fixed up a room in record time. He showed it to the boss who although I was saving him money fired me. I heard later that guy ran away from the site screaming the place was haunted." Matthew chuckled, "I learned early ghosts can be good loyal friends but you don't want to piss them off either."

"That was basically how my life went for awhile. Get a decent job so I could study. Find a friendly ghost who taught me a lot, boss got jealous and saw me talking to thin air, Fired."
Matthew shook his head. "Finally I realized I was not getting into college and I began to actually look for work I could do. I was now 23 and had a lot of skills but no real long job prospects or qualifications. It was while visiting my parents that I actually got my next lead. They were out in Florida and I drove out for thanksgiving. I still got on and get on well with my Parents and Dad was streamlining a company that worked with several film companies. The good thing about dad was he was no hatchet man. Most guys came in and saw dollar signs and cut half the work force and left. 6 months later the plant went belly up. Dad could see the big picture and sometimes even hired more workers to increase production and streamlined other areas. The company loved him. All of his fix it jobs came back strong and kept producing strong as long as his rules were followed, even in lean years.Dad told me this new company had contacts with these film companies that were always looking for people that could do odd jobs behind the scenes, like build sets, wire up stuff, put in some plumbing etc. General hands. I wasn't to proud to call in a favor and soon I was working on several movie lots."

"Rowan you should see the ghosts on these lots. Some big names don't want to leave Hollywood I tell you, and then there are the stunt people who have died there over the years as well as people you have never heard of. It is packed. Most of them of course are just caught in loops and haunting's, but there are a lot of autonomous ones like Sarah as well. Boy did I hear some stories you would not believe. Of course when these reality Ghost hunting shows became popular I started to have a giggle as did a lot of the ghost's on the lot's. Here were about 2 to 300 ghosts sitting in their backyard and they were going to search for them. I approached a few of the shows offering my services as a scout but was knocked back saying they already had their own teams. However when the studio decided to put their own show together they needed someone and so they hired me. Of course living alone with no ties and no girlfriend makes it easy for me to travel around. You are actually my last stop on this tour. After this I get a little break before the send me somewhere else. I think it is out west next, but I am not sure." Matthew had a drink and then glanced at the clock.

"Oh gee I am sorry Rowan. I didn't mean to talk your ears off like that. Here I have been prattling away for so long and I haven't allowed you to get a word in at all," he blushed slightly. "You have heard my life story now, so what about you? Care to share with the rest of the class?" he grinned to show he was kidding her about the class bit, but sitting forward eagerly hoping to hear her story.

Rowan enjoyed listening to Matthew's story. She found him easier to converse with than most other people, Maybe because he wasn't afraid to do a lot of the talking himself. He seemed to listen well enough when it was his turn to so Rowan didn't mind his talkative nature one bit.

When he seemed apologetic she grinned, "No, it's fine. You were answering my questions. That's perfectly alright, Matthew." She found that she enjoyed saying his name and found excuses to say it out loud. It felt good to be conversing with someone she could talk about her life with.

"I never knew my dad. My mom said they were high school sweethearts but he wasn't ready to be a father and actually left town to avoid us shortly after I was born. My mom raised me in a few places...She worked hard. Waitress, cashier, carnival worker, maid, whatever there was a job in and she'd learn to do it."

Rowan wondered if her audience was getting bored but he was actually quite attentive so she continued, " Well, we spent a few years living in a hotel room where she worked as a maid. I didn't see ghosts then, or didn't realize if they were, yet. I played with the owner's kids a lot then. They lived there too. Then, mom met Carl...Carl swept her off her feet. He was nice to me too...at first. We moved into his apartment. I remember very little about that time except that he was away a lot and mom and me were happy, then he'd come "home" and they'd be sickeningly in love for a day or two...then, they'd fight. Not just yell. He had even hit her sometimes. He only hit me one time and that's the only time my mom got brave enough to hit him back...I spent a few weeks at some farm with lots of creepy kids while my mom was dealing with a domestic violence charge. I think they were extended family...can't remember, really. Anyway, after two years of Carl's drama my mom found out he had been married all along. He wasn't away all the time for work. He was away to be with his real family! The d.v. stuff with my mom and police got on his wife's radar and she called us, berating my mom over the phone...

...So, then we lived at a different hotel and we were poor for a while...Then, my mom finally talked with her estranged parents who had no interest in me and never even asked about my well being for eight whole years...She found out her favorite aunt had died during our time with Carl. That was Iris. She left us this house and really, she got us out of a trajectory which would have literally had us living on the streets within weeks. We moved in here and mom was careful with the inheritance money. She got a few jobs in town, and she was content. She felt lucky. I hated the noises and things I could see that she couldn't but she was so happy, I did not want to ruin her happiness by telling her I was seeing and hearing things which scared me. I kept it to myself.

Then, she got cancer. My life became all about taking care of her, ghosts I played with or avoided depending on who they were, and school where I felt like a nobody. There was not one aspect of my real life I wanted to open up and share with those adolescent vultures, so I kept to myself. I got mostly good grades, nothing exceptional because I never tried too hard, in all honesty. I learned I liked painting and music and could write well when I chose to but I tried to fit in more than stand out and it actually left me without many opportunities at the end, there. I was seventeen when mom passed away. I barely passed senior year because of emotional stress. I was not a typical teen. Not knowing what I wanted to do next, I took the first job I could find and I'm still there. I know more than the manager but prefer staying in the background. I don't make much more than minimum wage but I budget carefully and I need very little so I squeak by so far."

She felt odd, "Waay ore talking than I've ever done, especially about myself." She said. Feeling awkward for a minute, Rowan busied herself in clearing the table.

Matthew moved to help her and grabbed the plate that was still half full of fajitas. Her story had touched something within him. He at least had had two loving parents that even though they had not known exactly what he had been going through had at least loved him and cared for him and put a good roof over his head. Rowan on the other hand had only a mother who had done all that she could for her daughter but until she found this house had not seemed to catch a break, and even this was not the good break for Rowan it was meant to be.

As they packed up the left overs together Matthew glanced at her. Maybe he could do something more for her than just the money. He had helped out a lot of ghost's in his time and if he could get some of the noisier ones in the house to quieten down at least, maybe Rowan wouldn't have such a hard time living here.

"Ah Rowan," he began tentatively. "I was thinking. You seem to have a few problems with a couple of the ghosts in your house. Now I am no expert you understand but I have helped a few ghosts move on if you know what I mean and I have sorted out a few ghosts problems so that they no longer have to make so much noise. I guess I could try to see what the problems are with these ghosts and maybe see if I could help them. Maybe Sarah can tell me what is wrong too. I mean I am not promising a miracle or anything but it is worth a try."

He looked at her and gave her a little smile. Then he shrugged his shoulders a little. "It wouldn't feel right to just leave you here having to put up with noisy ghosts if I can do something about it. Maybe after this you will at least be able to sleep a little better and maybe so will the ghost. Then perhaps you might study a little more and get yourself a good job and stop just squeaking by. Treat yourself every now and again, you will be surprised how nice it makes you feel."

Matthew blushed as he realized he was giving living advice to someone he hardly knew. "Sorry I shouldn't really be telling you how to live your life. I mean look at me. For half the year I live out the back of a car," he laughed. "So did you want to wash or dry,"He asked trying to change the subject.

This whole conversation felt far too serious and intimate and just ad Rowan was starting to really get uncomfortable Matthew changed the subject. She gladly discussed less serious topics, and let Matthew gab about travels and funny ghost stories while he washed and she dried dishes. The evening was saved by his charm.

Sarah had put a Harry Potter movie on and she and her grandad were each sitting in an armchair watching it. That left the couch if Matthew and Rowan wanted to join them.

Rowan shrugged. "As long as it's over before eleven. Then, I'll run a load of laundry and head off to bed. I've got to be up around seven in the morning so I can be at work by eight." She warned, sitting. She looked up at Matthew, "No one will be offended if you don't want to join us but you're welcome to."

Sarah added, "More than welcome." And, the old man with the pipe nodded and winked.

Matthew knew when he was being set up, but he had never been set up by ghost's before. He smiled back at the two of them to show that he knew what they were doing, nodded at the old man as a silent way of introducing himself, then sat down on the couch with Rowan.

It was an old two seater lounge and it didn't have a lot of room. but he did try to leave her some space. He was not going to just jump in and cuddle up to her on his first night of being here after all. He glanced at the movie and nearly had a coughing fit when he saw what movie in the series it was. It was 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'. Why the two of them wanted to watch a movie with Dementors flying around was beyond him but he supposed it was a decent movie in that series.

He settled down to watch it and soon lost himself in the movie. He did notice however that Rowan seemed to be edging towards him during the scarier parts of the movie. Could it be that even after living in a haunted house for years she was still scared of things she saw in movies.

"Rowan if you want you can cuddle up to me. After all it is getting a little cold you know. I wouldn't want you to catch a chill and be unable to work tomorrow on account of me,"he offered.

Rowan shrugged. She was about to say honestly that she wasn't cold but then Grandad coughed and when she glanced over at him he subtly shook his head and a sweep of his hand indicated she should cozy up closer to Matthew. Some chaperones these two were! They seemed less determined to preserve her honor than trying to get her and Matthew as close as possible as quickly as possible. Rowan chuckled deeply and smiled. "Alright." she finally acquiesced with a disbelieving shake of her head, still smiling while ducking beneath Matthew's arm and letting him wrap it around her shoulder, pulling her in to lean against him. It felt nice being held as they watched the movie...strange, but nice. The movie had finished at twenty minutes to eleven and she noticed only now that Sarah and Grandad were no longer there with them, though she couldn't recall when they'd left the pair alone.

Matthew had enjoyed the movie but he had also enjoyed cuddling Rowan as well. Having a beautiful woman snuggled in his arms while watching it had actually improved it somehow. he looked around and noticed that Sarah and the old man where gone. He wondered when they had snuck off and exactly why.

He was reluctant to let Rowan go but he knew she had work in the morning and making her miss her sleep just so he could enjoy the sensation of being with her like this. Of course another five minutes wouldn't harm anyone would it?

He remained still and hoped she wouldn't mind as he continued to cuddle her but he knew it had to end soon. She did say she needed to head to bed by eleven. The clock read ten to eleven when he finally decided he better let her go or he would never do it. "Rowan although I am really enjoying this and wish we could stay like this, You did say you needed to be in bed by eleven and I wouldn't be a very good guest if I let you be sleepy for work. If you want I can help you with the washing before you go to bed."

Rowan stifled a yawn and stretched before standing. "Yeah, please, you're right." She said, looking at the clock. Had she really just sat in her living room snuggling for ten minutes without any excuse or reason why, with a man she'd just met that day? Shocked at her own behavior, she shook her head, hoping her blush wasn't visible.

She dared not go to the garage via kitchen in case Granny was busy so she led Matthew out the front door, hugging herself against the cool night air, walking with him around the side of the house to the garage.

"Today's been really nice, Matthew. It's fun having you here." Rowan said conversationally as they entered the garage and she turned on the light, which flickered slowly to dim life, then headed to the machines and plastic baskets in the back. She unloaded the warm dryer load into the basket without looking at what was in there from the afternoon and then she cleaned the filter and drained the water resevoir in the nearby plants beside the door. Rowan shuffled the wet stuff into the dryer and put it on.

"In the morning bring your dirty stuff down here and we'll start a load before I leave . OK?" She said, not knowing what else to say, feeling kind of awkward. They walked back toward the house slowly and for the second time that day, this time, just hearing it in the distance, Matthew was treated to the horrific sounds of a civil war battle just beyond the tree line. Rowan shivered but she wasn't exactly cold. She was thinking this was just the start of the night's horrors in store.
"Matthew, I hope you'll be alright tonight." She said. "The noises...it's pretty awful..."

Matthew looked toward the treeline as he heard the battle start up. He had witnessed a few in his time but this one seemed rather large. He would have to get it on film if he could but it could wait until another night.

"It's okay Rowan, I have been in a few places that have been pretty noisy but if it gets too noisy I normally put my headphones in and listen to music. I have found that it helps," he smiled at her. "Of course if it is especially bad you can always knock on my door and I would be happy to sleep on your floor or sit up beside you. Believe me, I have learned to sleep in some pretty weird places while investigating some places so your floor would be very comfortable."

As they walked he looked at her and realized just how beautiful she looked in the moonlight. No wonder Sarah and her Grandpa were obviously trying to get him together with her. They obviously didn't want her wasting her life out here alone and they had decided he would be suitable for her. Well he didn't necessarily object to that idea but he would like her to make up her own mind. She turned suddenly and caught him gazing and he blushed. "I think I am going to enjoy my time here Rowan, Noises or not."

She couldn't help but chuckle. "Matthew, you're crazy." Rowan teased.

He followed her upstairs after she locked up, leaving only the nightlights in the hallways on. She'd told him her bedtime didn't have to be his but he ended up going to his room anyway. Before each went through their own door she added, "If you need anything just let me know...I keep my mp3 player going all night so I don't have to listen to the screams and horrific noises...So, my room may be noisy but don't take that as a sign I'm awake. I'll likely be sleeping.Only come in if it's an emergency. " she explained. Then, she felt that sounded kind of harsh and added with a soft smile, "Goodnight, Matthew, sweet dreams."

After shutting her door behind her Rowan undressed down to her white camisole and cornflower blue panties, pulling her bra out from beneath the cami, tossing it across the room to land on a rocking chair near the window overlooking an ages long battle happening outside. She padded into her bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face, then brushed her hair, timing her actions carefully so she could hopefully be asleep before the first beatings of "the beast" up in the attic.

Back in her bedroom, she turned up her mp3 player volume and turned it on. It was on shuffle and began with her mother's favorite Beatles song. Once comfortable in her bed beneath aunt Iris's quilt, she was able to fall asleep quickly wondering about her guest and what he thought of her and her haunted house.

Matthew went to his room and moved straight into the bathroom. He washed his face and brushed his teeth before going back into the bedroom. He took off his clothes down to his boxers and then searched in his bag for his I-pod and his headphones. Putting them beside the bed he decided he would stay awake for awhile and actually listen to the noises that were bothering Rowan.

He turned out the light and climbed into the bed and pulled the blankets up to his chin. These older houses often got colder at night so he made sure he was really rugged up. He put his head phones in and turned it down low. His music began and he leaned back.

It took about an hour for the noises to begin but when they did they were very disturbing. It sounded like someone was being beaten with something. He also heard chains and groans and laughter. From downstairs he heard screams and cries and if he was not mistaken it sounded like women being tortured. No wonder Rowan did not like to be awake at night. Matthew had been in places that had similar noises before but to find them in the same house was unusual and a residential one at that. He wondered what had happened here to cause these noises. He would have to ask Sarah tomorrow if she knew but he wondered if she would actually tell him.

He listened for about a half hour but the sounds did not sound like they were going to stop any time soon. Tomorrow he would set up some cameras and equipment in those areas but for now it was time for him to go to sleep. He cranked up the volume until he could just hear the noises and he laid back down. Breathing deeply he was soon fast asleep.

Roman initially dreamt of running through the flower fields with Sarah like they used to, playing tag with the other ghost kids who stayed outside and played lots of games but didn't talk much.

Rowan was in her womanly form yet the kids were all treating her the same as they did back when she was a little girl and she was playing along, laughing and running with them.

Maurice was "it" and as he ran around they scattered, full of laughter. He was a lanky seven years old, tall for the age, and fast. He came running in Rowan's direction and she bolted as quick as she could, through the trees, looking behind her at Maurice as she continued to run away from him...BONK, she hit something hard but softer than a tree. She stumbled and fell then looked up to see what had been in her path...it was...Matthew.

"TAG!" she heard as Maurice touched her head. Yes. In dreams they were solid. They could touch Rowan only in dreams just as she could fly and walk through objects only in her dreams.

She grinned as Matthew stooped to help her up, taking his hand and letting him then she stood on tiptoe and kissed his lips. The shock in his expression was priceless!

Rowan's face was mere centimeters from his as she said, "Tag, you're it, Matthew. ", and jumped into the air, rising high as if the earth were a giant trampoline. The kids all giggled and started running all over the place but Rowan was flying up to the clouds, Matthew hot on her heels once he got over his surprise.

Matthew was dreaming of standing in the woods out the back of the house. It was a very vivid dream, like the ones he sometimes had. He could hear children laughing and giggling in the distance and he headed towards the sound. As he got closer he began to pick out the tones between several boys and girls. He was getting very close when Rowan came bursting around a tree and ran straight into him and fell over in front of him.

A young child ran up and tapped her on the head and yelled "Tag," and ran off. He laughed and leaned down to help her up, pulling her to her feet. Suddenly she stood on her tip toes and kissed him on his lips. Surprisingly he actually felt and tasted her. It was one of the sweetest kisses he had ever had, even more so because it was so unexpected. He pulled back in surprise and she grinned.

"Tag, you're it Matthew," she told him as she grinned and leaped into the air and flew away, while all the children giggled and scattered. He saw Sarah amongst them and she was laughing the hardest. He shook himself out of his daze and launched himself after Rowan. Knowing it was a dream made things easier. He had some experience with these types of dreams before and he thought he might surprise her with a few tricks he had picked up.

He sprouted small jets on the sides off his shoes and zoomed after her rapidly closing the distance and then as he got closer he extended his arms and from behind encircled her and then grabbed her tight. "Ha ha, your it now Rowan," He said as he drew her towards him and kissed her right back before releasing her and dropping from the sky and landing in the woods before running towards the sounds of laughter. He found himself laughing as well. This was one of his better dreams.

Rowan was enjoying this dream. She let herself drop back down to the ground, running after Matthew at a speed so fast her legs blurred beneath her. She dove and tackled him, both of them landing softly, wrapped in each other's limbs as she laughed and then leaned down to kiss the man she lie atop more deeply this time. She kissed him the way she'd always imagined kissing a handsome man one day, the way they did in romantic movies and soaps... Sarah stood beside the mound of limbs akimbo that was Matthew and Rowan and reached out her hand to them.

Without even breaking the kiss, they both tapped her warm, open palm and she giggled and waved goodbye to the pair, letting them sink into the slowly softening earth, and as they seemed to descend into a soft, padded, green globe of private lustful exploration, Sarah could be heard in the distance, running away from the snogging couple and toward the other children, yelling, "I'm it!"

The game continued above ground without them.
Rowan didn't care. Matthew's tongue and her own were too busy learning all there was to know about one another within the ever more empassioned kiss. The green grass from before had become deep emerald toned satin beneath them. As Matthew broke the kiss she felt an urge to beg for more...Instead she smiled seductively, and leaned back against the padded softness of a bed beneath them. She knew he could see her nipples hardening to points on her soft mounds tucked, braless and unrestrained beneath a white camisole which left little to the imagination. She reached for one of his hands, placing it on the curve of a breast. She wanted so much to be touched by him...

Matthew did not question the way this dream was going. He had been in many a lucid dream before with friends and when they woke up they didn't remember a thing so he figured if Rowan was willing to go this far he would play along. After all this was just a dream so no harm no foul right.

He began to kiss her deeply again while feeling her up. His hand roamed her breast, gently kneading it and massaging it. He slowly floated a small way above her so he could bring his other hand into play while still kissing her deeply. He was massaging both her breasts when he manifested a smaller hand on the back of his regular hand that attached itself to her nipple and began to squeeze and flick it. The smaller hand massaged her nipple just the same as his larger hand was doing to her breast.

While his hands did that his mouth continued to explore hers. His tongue explored her mouth and her tongue as they wrapped together and their lips mashed together. He was getting harder by the second and he wondered just how far Rowan wanted to take this dream.

Ogod, what am I doing?! Rowan wondered, chastising herself silently but it felt so good she didn't really want it to stop. Heck, it's only a dream, anyway. It's not like Matthew would ever know I had such naughty thoughts with him in them... she reasoned. Relaxing into it further, she moaned at the extra sensations to her nipples while they kissed.

Then, their bubble was popped, more than figuratively. A man wearing nothing but a plastic child's Halloween mask of Spiderman stood at the foot of the round bed. They stopped at the sight of the naked stranger. He laughed maniacally and Rowan moved away, to cower behind Matthew. She'd heard that laugh before. It was usually accompanied by varying screams of pain from women and animals in the basement.
"Go away!" She called out. "Leave us alone...leave everybody alone! Go away!"

He laughed again, pointing to her, he addressed Matthew, "I want to see them bitten off. You like them so much? Bite the bitch's whore nips right off!"

Rowan screamed, backing away, off of the bed. Matthew wouldn't do what the maniac said, she knew, but still, the man was so frightening she wanted distance, as much distance, between herself and such evil.

A shrill woman's cry pierced the space. It broke Rowan's heart to hear such suffering, sickened her to see the naked sicko grew erect and seemed amused by it.

She wasn't expecting it when little hands pulled her and Matthew through the "wall" away from the crazy torturer and into a playroom filled with strange home made toys created by random household objects. Sarah and two of the other kids waited patiently for Sarah and Matthew to acclimate.
"That guy...we had to get you away from him. You OK?" Sarah asked.

Rowan nodded. "How did it happen?"

"You accidentally sank too far, roamed close to the basement. We pulled you up. "

Rowan took Matthew's hand. She looked around at all the weird toys. "Did you make these?" She asked. But, all three kids shook their heads.

Sarah replied, "It keeps him busy while he's chained up. " She pointed to a huge mound of junk which she couldn't see beyond. From it was a low moaning sound....The moans and chains!
...

An incessant beeping, far away sounding, insistent, broke the spell of the moment....
"Your alarm is beeping. It's time to return to wakefulness. " announced Sarah.

Rowan sat up with a start.
Two things were wrong.
1) Her alarm sounded far away, like it was in another room...
2) She'd awoken in Matthew's bed!

Matthew woke up slowly. Man that was some dream but he knew that most of it must have been real. Sarah at least was, he knew that much as she had looked and sounded way to serious for him to have dreamed her that way. He assumed therefore that they other people in the dream had been real to, so that meant the guy in the Spiderman's mask must be the torture freak from the basement, and the groaning figure behind the junkpile must be the one in the attic. Of course the kids where they ones from out in the woods but they seemed nice enough.

As he processed this and sat up in bed he realized two things. One things were not what they seemed like in this house, and two he was not alone in his bed. He looked over to his right and saw Rowan staring at him in half horror half fascination. He held up his hands in mock surrender. "Hey I just woke up too. I don't know what's going on either."

Of course he really shouldn't have let go of the blankets as they slipped down, revealing his bare chest with his reasonably well developed chest muscles. She was still well covered up but he could still glimpse the camisole nighty that he had seen her wearing in the dream he had been having last night. Oh god if she had been wearing that did it mean she could remember her dreams too.

Matthew began to blush heavily as he quickly covered up his body again and turned away from her. "Perhaps I should turn around so you can go back to your own room Rowan," he suggested.

Rowan was flabbergasted. "How did I...Maybe I sleep walked?" she reasoned aloud. Rising from the bed, here cheeks burning pink, she said, "I'm, uh, sorry for sleep walking here. That's never happened to me. Hopefully this never happens again. It was such an intense dream I was having. The ghosts were in it, even you were there!" Her blush deepened and she thought the better of mentioning what Matthew had been doing in her dream..."I've got to turn that alarm off. After I shower and dress I'll make breakfast if you want...or sleep on. It's up to you." Then, she beat a retreat to her own room to get started with her day and get out of this awkward situation.

Matthew watched her leave and couldn't help himself thinking that she had a cute little bottom as it quickly disappeared into her room. He leaned back onto his pillow for a second and thought for a minute. Okay Rowan could remember her dreams, but having no experience with lucid dreaming before she thought they were just that, dreams. He could tell her differently and probably get smacked in the face for what they had done, or he could keep it a secret and see where it led. Of course with that freaky Ghost also able to enter their dreams he might have to tell her. He was more than capable of handling himself against him. Well he thought he was. He had gone up against a few other ghosts in his dreams and he was still here. However Rowan might need a crash course in dream defense 101.

Sighing he got up and closed his door before getting some new clothes out of his bag and heading into the bathroom. Perhaps a good hot shower would clear his mind. Today he would ask Sarah to show him what was tied up in the attic. He had a feeling it was not a bad thing. He had not gotten that vibe off it in his dream. In fact he would have said it was more lonely than anything else. Perhaps this was the first one he could actually help. Stripping off he stepped into the shower and forgot everything for a little while.

Rowan was just filling her coffee cup and flipping pancakes over as she heard the sound of Matthew entering the kitchen behind her. Her ponytail swayed as she turned her head, smiling over her shoulder. "I hope you like pancakes. How do you take your coffee?"

Her ugly Burger King uniform was already on beneath her kitchen apron and she was mindful of the time. She had about a half hour before she had to go.
She liked to be there before her twenty-one year old manager, Brian, just as a silent reminder to him, symbolically, that she was there before him in every sense of the word and the only reason he was manager was because she never wanted the position not because he was any better than her, he definitely wasn't.

Putting him in his place in subtle ways was her way of maintaining balance at that crap job. He had a tendency to get kind of nasty to the employees otherwise. And, as a pre law student, he thought very highly of himself. Rowan had little ways of unsettling that ego of his just enough that he'd be a bit less of an ass and she couldn't really get into trouble...So, yeah, on weeks when Brian was the opener she was always making an effort to be early. She loved messing with that kid's head.

Matthew smiled as he saw her swaying around the kitchen. Boy she really did look good, and with her hair up like that she looked even prettier to him. Matthew hated to admit it, but he had a thing for women's necks. He just loved to nibble and kiss them, so a woman with a ponytail or her hair up was like a magnet to his eyes.

"Wow pancakes and coffee. Be careful Rowan or you may never get rid of me," he laughed. "As for the coffee I have it with one sugar and just a small amount of milk thank you."
He watched as she easily filled him a mug, poured in a spot of milk, a dash of sugar, stirred it, flipped another pancake and added it to the already large stack and turned the stove off and joined him at the table handing his coffee over and putting the heaped platter of pancakes in the middle. He gave her a little clap and she bowed with a smile on her face.

"Most impressive Rowan. I see by the way you are staring at the clock though this will not be a leisurely breakfast," he began spearing three pancakes and putting them on the plate in front of him. He added some butter and maple syrup and began to eat. "Oh god these are delicious. So light and fluffy. I am going to have to cook for you one day although I am nowhere near this good," he said as he began to take another bite. He finished that one and looked at her. "So I guess I will just do my thing until you get home today. Oh by the way, what time will that be again?"

Rowan nodded and swallowed a bite of pancake before answering, "I get off work at 4 and should be home by 4:30-ish. Small town, not a huge amount of traffic even during rush hour. I could make pasta tonight if you like." She suggested, finishing her coffee and already beginning the process of getting stuff ready so she could leave on time.

Sarah ran through the pantry door, and swept through the room asking, "Want to play Tag later?" Before sweeping out through the dining room door...The pair both stopped in their tracks, reliving the same memory...Rowan's light blue eyes widened as it occurred to her that perhaps somehow Matthew had also had that dream...as if He'd been there with her for real...The look on his face was confirmation enough!

"Ohmygod, I KISSED you! I...we...Ohmygod..." she exclaimed, her cheeks changing colors with embarrassment. "...You...you and I somehow dreamt together, and the ghosts joined our dream too....How?! How is that even possible!" The clock told her she should be going and, really,given how she'd acted in the dream, so brazen...she couldn't face the recipient of that boldness right now. All she felt was self consciousness. Rowan mumbled, "It's time for me to go." grabbed her purse and speed walked to her near junker. She didn't relax until two streetlights into town.