by R. J. Lloyd
The Pull
The Emanation Saga
Book 1
Digital Quill Services
The Pull
The Emanation Saga book 1
Written by R.J. Lloyd formally under Colleen Nye
Cover by Colleen Nye
Editing by Genevieve Scholl
Formatting by Colleen Nye
Published by Digital Quill Services
Copyright © 2018, 2020 Digital Quill Services & R.J. Lloyd
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher.
The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of a copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by fines and federal imprisonment.
This is a work of fiction. All characters and situations appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, or personal situations is purely coincidental.
For everything and everyone that haunts me.
One
The Diner
“Hello? Hello?” Eva’s eyes cleared as she noticed she was alone in a diner she didn’t recognize. The clean lines of the sleek tables. The curve to the iron backs of the chairs. The same art on the walls over the matte finish of the grey walls. And, of course, the large windows that lines the front of the building, overlooking the quiet road.
Getting up from her seat, she walked around, slightly dazed. “Hello? Is anyone here? Anyone? Hello? Where am I?”
A man spoke from behind her. “I don’t know. I was hoping you’d be able to tell me.”
She whipped around to face him, recognizing him from earlier that evening. Excited and a bit relieved, she let out a breath. “Ian? Is that you?” She looked him over. Her smile widening as she took in his angular features, piercing blue eyes and wavy hair that curled just over his ears. “It is! You’re the guy I met at the diner after Michelle left with her ex.”
“Eva?” He blinked, obviously confused.
“Yeah.” She took a couple of steps back nervously. “Did you do this to me? Did you… kidnap me? Why am I here?”
“Eva?” He blinked. “No!” He looked around the room. “I don’t have a clue where we are, let alone why we’re here. Last I remember, I was back at my hotel room asleep. Do you remember anything at all? Any clue as to how we both got here?”
Eva’s brows pulled in as she tried to concentrate. “I don't know. I drank quite a lot. I was certain I had gone home. But I'm really confused. I don’t remember anyone else being at my house, and I don't remember leaving, either. Also, I don’t recognize this place at all, and I know my neighborhood really well.”
“It seems to be closed, too,” he added. “I don’t see any signs that a single employee has been here all day. Everything is clean and put away.”
“Okay, this is spooky. Not that this whole thing isn't creepy enough already.” She started to rub her arms as a chill ran through her, making her physically cold.
He crossed the room and held out his hand. “Come. We can go outside and see what’s on this block. Someone should be able to tell us where we are and maybe even how we got here. And I don’t see anyone here to stop us.” The place was silent. Eerily so.
She took his hand. “Good idea.”
Once outside, the two looked around at the surrounding businesses and apartments. “Everything looks so normal, like you’d expect to see people at any second.” Eva looked around them in wonder.
Ian placed a hand on her lower back. “It feels familiar, but I can’t place it. It’s like someone tried to recreate the city, you know?”
“Mhmm…” She trailed off for a moment.
“This has got to be a dream.” Ian shook his head.
“What do you mean?” She turned to look up at him.
“Well?” He looked around again, seemingly taking in the scenery. “Nothing is covered in dust, and none of the doors are locked. It’s like every other human has been plucked from the places they stood simultaneously, but there isn't anything left out that lends to that theory either. Everything is put away, cleaned and neat. Nothing is out of place.”
“Okay… creepy.” She shuddered lightly.
“But also,” he continued. “there are tiny discrepancies in the very fabric of the streets and buildings. The streets are a little too smooth. The sky is an off color of blue. And there aren’t any flaws in the sides of any of the buildings or any of the signs. And the glass in the windows? They don’t reflect quite right.”
Eva pulled away from him and started wandering around, taking in his words. “A dream or a simulation.” She nervously chuckled.
Ian, still standing where she left him, turned in a circle slowly. “I say dream.”
“Ian!” Eva called out from the baker’s down the road
He ran over to her. “Eva? Are you okay? Where are you?”
“Over here.” She waved to him.
Ian crossed the lobby and wondered at the stack of freshly baked goods on the counter. “Hello?” He shouted toward the back before turning to Eva for an explanation. “Is anyone back there? Can they tell us where we are? Are they still here?”
She shook her head, eyes wide. “I haven't seen anyone. I came in, looked around and found the place empty. But when I turned to leave, I smelled all of this. Granted, at first, I thought it was just my imagination. I had just wished for some fresh, baked bread. But there it is… fresh baked bread. Right there. Just like I wished for. I swear it wasn’t there when I walked in.”
“You wished for this, and it appeared?” His eyes narrowed.
She flushed, embarrassed. “Silly, right? I know there’s no way it’s connected. It just adds to the strangeness of this whole thing.”
“Not silly.” He took her hand. “You’re right. This is all bizarre… and a bit surreal. I just want to…” His words trailed off as he pulled her back across the road and to the restaurant they’d left. Once there, he closed his eyes, still holding her hand.
There was a moment of silence. But then Eva gasped. “What the…”
“Did it work?” He opened his eyes.
“Did you…” Eva stopped speaking halfway through her sentence, but her mouth hung open.
Sitting in front of them was a table with chairs, several fully cooked dishes and place settings for them both, complete with ice waters, a tablecloth and a gorgeous centerpiece and candles.
Eva laughed. “This is what you wished for? You asked for a swanky meal to test out if you could get a wish fulfilled? If I had known this place granted wishes, I sure wouldn't have wished for baked goods. What if it’s your only wish?”
He turned his head slowly to look at her. “This is obviously a dream. I am dreaming about you after we met. So, I at least get to have one romantic meal with you before I wake up. That’s why.”
“What’s to say this is you dreaming? It could be my dream,” she countered. “I was extremely into you when we met, drunk or not.”
He smirked. “So, you’re dreaming of me, huh?”
“You were so quick to be okay with dreaming of me.”
“Touché.” He slid a chair out and motioned for her to sit. “Care to have dinner with me? Dream or no dream?”
She smiled and took a seat. “I’d love to.”
Two
Eva
When Eva woke, she was breathless. Her heart swooned with the kind of longing and disappointment that temporarily shuts out your thoughts a
nd tries to steal your breath. That was what always happened on days like that, when she awoke from a dream with him in it, something which had become a nightly event.
She lay in her bed, trying to hold onto the feeling of her dream and the sensation of his lips on hers. The sound of him whispering he loved her, spoken so close to her ear she could feel the warmth of his breath on her skin.
It was the way every dream had ended by that point – with their declaration of love.
She fought back reality as it crept in, nudging her groggy mind to acknowledge she needed to leave for work soon. Trade Technologies waited for no one when it came to a starting time for the day. And if she showed up late for work, the managers never held back, explaining how she must not value her job, no matter how high up the ladder she climbed. Not even a project manager like her.
Reluctantly, she rolled out of bed in an attempt to shake off the dream, sighing as she let go of the lingering memory of the pressure of his hands on her hips, the weight of him on her. Trying to ignore the sound of his voice as he spoke low and soft, telling her how he felt.
Eva pulled on her slippers and huffed. All she wanted to do was to crawl back under the covers and fall back into his arms. But the responsible side of her was saying her boss’s name on repeat. So, she settled for reminding herself she would always have later that night. That is, if the dreams continued.
Walking into the kitchen, she nearly stumbled into her roommate and coworker, Michelle.
“Sorry,” she muttered.
Michelle laughed. "Again?"
Eva didn't look up from pouring milk over her cereal. "Huh?"
"Eva. Seriously? Don't you think this is a bit odd?" The roommate leaned on the counter next to her. “I mean, this is getting a lot more intense, and you're getting a lot more distracted because of it. It's as if you're starting to fall in love with this guy. This dream guy who’s actually just in your dreams!”
"I don't know what to think of it, Michelle. I’m dreaming about the same guy every night. I'm dreaming we're a couple, living an actual progressive life together, all while knowing we're in some dream state. There's got to be some sort of psychological disorder to this."
Michelle tousled her long, blonde curls. "Or you're just really lonely and need to get out more. You know, into the real world? Get yourself laid!” Michelle threw a piece of her toast at Eva.
Eva rolled her eyes, brushing the crumbs off her shirt. “I go out in the real world. I go to work almost every day.”
“That's not what I meant. I meant more like going with me to Dave's party tonight. I bet you Brad will be there." She winked. “Get yourself some real action.”
“Brad? Really, Michelle?” Eva scoffed. “It was one night ... one drunken night. And all I did was kiss him at the company picnic like some stupid cliché.”
“And he hasn't stopped talking about it since,” Michelle teased. “Besides, he's really cute.”
“And he's really taken.” Eva rolled her eyes again.
Michelle's expression turned from playful to irritated. “I seriously don't get you. You're too uptight to have some fun in the waking world anymore, and you're hung up on some dream guy. And not a fun dream guy. An actual fictional guy from your dreams. I think you’re right about this being some disorder. You're bordering on needing some help here.”
Eva sighed, tossing her half empty bowl into the sink. “Aren't we all hung up on some dream guy?”
“Not like this. Not in some obsessive way. You look like hell, Eva. Seriously. Pull yourself together.” Michelle stalked out of the kitchen. “Hurry up. We'll be late.”
Three
Ian
Standing at the bathroom sink, brushing his teeth, Ian muttered to himself. He'd been doing that quite often at that point. If he were honest, it wasn't making him feel any more sane than the dreams themselves had been. Plus, on top of it all, he was frustrated with how the dreams left him feeling... a mix of happiness and longing. It was if something was missing.
“You ready, man?” Kyle asked.
Kyle was Ian's best friend, roommate and co-owner of a coffee shop and book store they'd opened right out of college. Ian had graduated with a degree in business management, and Kyle a degree in advertising.
Having met freshman year when both of them were being dragged through fraternity hazing, they bonded and had been close ever since. Ian was, more or less, an orphan after his parents’ deaths and his own accident, and the only friend he had when he arrived at college was the professor who helped him get in. Kyle had been a late bloomer; the nerd of his school. So, when he started getting attention from girls and even invites to parties, the transformed geek didn’t know how to handle it other than to shove his nose further in his books.
When graduation day came, they’d been so focused on getting good grades and a degree, neither of them had figured out what they really wanted to do. Going into business just seemed logical, as well as convenient. And since they always seemed to either be at a bookstore or a café, that made sense to them as well.
Kyle banged on the bathroom door. “Come on, Ian. We need to hit the road.”
That morning, they had a joint meeting with the lawyers and the owner of the building they rented about the possibility of buying it. Kyle had plans to make their shop bigger, then make their business a chain. Ian had been highly involved in the project until the few weeks before, when his dreams began getting intense, and seizing his waking moments.
“Yeah. One minute,” he called through the door. Get it together. It’s just a dream. She’s just a dream. “I’ll be right out.”
Ian met his roommate in the car, eating a cinnamon roll. His outfit was a little less planned than it usually was, as it had been for a while. And his posture was slack.
Kyle started the car. “Still? How long have you been having these dreams now?”
“Forever,” he replied. “No. Seriously, it’s been weeks.”
“Have you thought about getting help?” Kyle asked.
“Help?”
Ian was still in a daze.
“Yeah. A therapist? An exorcist? A dance instructor? You really are a poor dancer. She’s bound to find out sooner or later.” Kyle laughed.
Ian replied, “You’re right. Lessons might help.”
“See? I knew you weren’t paying attention.” His laugh grew louder.
“You don’t understand.” Ian slumped back in his seat as they drove down the road.
Kyle sighed. “I don’t understand what? That you’re losing yourself to some fake-ass dream girl?”
“That it’s not … It’s…” Ian struggled for the right words to express what he felt about the dreams. “There’s just something undeniable about her. I can’t explain it.”
“Listen, I’m not into any hocus pocus or anything, but maybe you should try asking this dream girl to meet you somewhere. Take a vacation and see if she shows up.” He flashed Ian a smirk.
“Don’t be an ass.” Ian punched him in the arm.
Ian knew Kyle was joking, but something about it made sense. At the least, it could possibly make for an interesting story to tell.
Kyle pulled on to the expressway and turned up the radio.
Four
Eva
Work seemed to drag on. By the time she got home, Eva was ready for a nap. But she’d given up on naps weeks before when she figured out she only dreamed of him at night. And she didn’t want to risk not being tired and missing him later.
Eva made a mental checklist of what all she needed to accomplish before the end of the day and started getting the tasks done. Vacuuming, sweeping off the back porch, mowing the lawn… many days were beginning to be filled in this non-stop manner… anything to bide her time until she could return to him. But at least the house was spotless. After hours of chores, she caved and put away her cleaning supply bucket.
Climbing out of the shower, she grabbed a book and curled up under the covers in her bed. The previous night’s dreamla
nd had really thrown her to the point that she had been having trouble focusing all day. And staring at those pages wasn’t any easier. The words seems to jumble together unintelligently.
She kept trying to finish the chapter, but she failed. Her eyelids were dropping, and her need to see him grew. Finally, the words began to blur, and she drifted off.
“There you are.” He snaked an arm around her waist, surprising her from behind. “I was beginning to wonder if you were going to show up.”
She turned to face him. “Ian!”
That first kiss at the beginning of every dream was always electrifying. Neither of them knew where they’d been or any details of their lives outside of the dreams. Neither even believed the other was real. That concept was so far fetched. They only knew that they were, in fact, in a dream.
Every night, they would appear in the same dining area of the same restaurant in each dream. Nobody else was there. Not even employees. Just the two of them.
At first, of course, both of them had been completely unnerved. But over time, they’d succumbed to the nearly blissful seclusion they enjoyed together, away from their busy lives and prying eyes.
“So, what shall we do today?” Ian grabbed her hand and started pulling her towards the door.
She stopped him. “How about we just stay here, and I will cook you something to eat.”
He acted like he had to contemplate her offer. “This is quite the step; you cooking for me. Is it safe?”
She slapped his shoulder. “No, I am a terrible cook. This is my way of getting rid of you. I figure if I don’t kill you, then you’re not real at all.”
“Oh!” He took a seat at the bar. “Then in that case, let us feast on your terrible concoctions! It shall be a true adventure!”
