Chapter 15: Nausea
Abigail woke with a start, her breath hitching in her throat. Her dream clung to her, making it hard to shake off the strange nagging emotions.
She frowned, rubbing her face as she tried to make sense of it.
Why did she keep dreaming of Lucy, her stuffed panda? For the past six weeks she had been having all sort of strange dreams with the panda being a constant in them all.
This time, the dream had been different. She had been sitting at a large dining table in a place she didn't recognize, with a plate of food in front of her, but the food had tasted like nothing. Across from her, Lucy sat propped up like a proper dinner guest, her button eyes staring blankly at Abigail while silent tears had rolled down Abigail's face. She had eaten through the tears, each bite feeling heavier than the last like she was forcing herself to swallow something too painful to digest.
The loneliness she had felt in the dream had been so real— too real— that even now, thinking about it made her chest ache.
Abigail let out a slow sigh and turned her head to the side. Lucy lay beside her on the pillow, right where she had left her last night.
She reached for the panda and lifted it close to her face, her fingers running absently over the soft fur.
Why had Jamal left her this? Had he always carried it with him? She doubted he had the chance to hurry out to get it for her that morning before leaving. That had to mean he had it with him, and it was important to him. He had left her something important.
The thought made her heart clench in a way she didn't understand. She brought the panda to her nose and inhaled.
There was still a faint trace of Jamal's scent on it— warm and familiar. It made her smile, her fingers tightening around the plush toy as she wondered if he thought about her the way she thought about him.
Did he miss her? Did he wish they had more time together like she did?