I awoke to the smell of cinnamon and butter. I drowsily sat up in bed, looking around the room. Skylar was no longer on the floor, but I heard talking coming from downstairs. I glanced at the alarm clock on Skylar’s nightstand, but it was turned so that I couldn’t see the time unless I manually moved the clock so that it was facing me. I turned it over and saw that the time was 9:12. I drowsily sat up and walked down the stairs.
Skylar and her mom were standing in front of the stove making pancakes. Skylar glanced towards the entrance to the kitchen and saw me walking in. “Hey, sleepyhead.” She teases. I groggily walk farther into the kitchen.
“Hi,” I reply.
“Here, sit down girls, pancakes are ready.” She brings us plates piled high with pancakes. By the time she warms up the syrup and puts it on the table, I had finished mine.
“Wow, Robin.” Skylar says, “You really didn’t eat much before did you?”
“No.” I said, ‘I guess not.” Robin’s mom brings me more pancakes, and I wolf those down too. Halfway through a mouthful, I stop abruptly, realizing something.
“What is it?” Skylar asks. I finish chewing and then explain.
“It’s only Tuesday, shouldn’t we have school today?”
“Technically yes, but mom thought it would be good for you to sleep in and have a day here to relax.”
“I really appreciate it, but I think I should go to school. It keeps me distracted.”
Skylar's mom sets another plate of freshly cooked pancakes on the table and then sits next to me. “Well then maybe it’s time to stop distracting yourself.” I look up at her. The thought had occurred to me as well, but it was all so overwhelming. I wouldn’t know where to start. What would we even try to do? Find my parents? Prove my innocence? I was so lost. Where does reality begin and my imagination ends? Luckily I had time to figure it out though.
Skylar, her mom, and I spent the day curled up on the couch watching movies and eating popcorn and gummy bears. It was exactly what I needed. I needed a day of rest to sort out my thoughts and problems. Skylar's mom had done the right thing letting us stay home from school today. I hadn’t realized how desperately I needed a break from everything going on in my life.
The day passes too quickly though, and soon it was nightfall. Skylar and I didn’t want to miss much more school though, so we had decided to only take one more day off, and then we would go back on Thursday. We all got ready for bed. Skylar let me sleep in her bed again, and just like last night she brushed through my hair, then we both fell asleep.

The room was dark and cold. Somehow I knew that I was dreaming, but this dream was like no other that I had ever had though. I could smell the rusty scent of the room, feel the frigid air blowing in through the cracked windows, and feel the concrete ground beneath my feet. The room seemed to be a big garage, empty of all cars. It must be abandoned. There were three masked men, clothed entirely in black clustered around two chairs. I took a few steps closer until I could see that there were two people sitting on those chairs. I took another step closer and then realized that those people were my parents. They seemed to be tied to the chairs.
I gasped in shock, taking a step back and then tripping over a can of paint on the floor. I fell backward, and tools clattered noisily around me. The three men looked up in my direction. I held my breath, but I guess dream me was invisible to them. I got up and brushed myself off, then I approached the group of people around my parents again, so I could hear what they were saying.
“Please stay away from her!” I heard my mother sob. In the darkness of the light, I couldn’t see the tears of her face, but I knew they were there. I squinted, trying to see if my parents were hurt. I could see a streak of dirt on my dad’s cheek, but other than that they seemed to both be unharmed.
“Robin is not special. She’s just like any other girl.” Dad protested. The three men just laughed.
“We know the myth, we know all about your family legacy. And we are going to find Robin.” I could feel my heart accelerate, and my breathing grew louder.
“Robin, Robin.” I heard Skylar’s voice break through my dream.
The three men looked over to my direction. They came over suspiciously, seeming to start seeing me now.
“Robin!” Skylar said, and I woke up.

Skylar was sitting on her bed next to me. I sat up and yanked the blankets off me. I was breathing hard like I had just gone on a long run. Skylar was looking at me, concern etched on her face. “What happened?” She asked worriedly.
I could feel beads of sweat along my hairline, and I quickly wiped them away with the back of my hand. “Just a bad dream. Nothing to worry about.” I told her.
“Some bad dream,” she murmured. “Tell me what happened.” She wrapped an arm around my shoulder, comforting me, and my heartbeat began to slow down.
“I was in a cold dark room,” I began, “There were these three men clustered around my parents. My parents were sitting on chairs, and they were tied up. My parents told the men that I was not special, and then the men said they knew about our family legacy, and that they would find me. Then I tripped over something and the men were going to find me.”
Skylar nodded then she said, “It’s okay now. It was just a dream.”
“That’s the thing. It didn’t feel like a dream. It was too real.” I explained.
“Hmm…” she mused. Then she said, “Look, Robin, we’re going back to school tomorrow, and you still have some sleep to catch up on. We’ll talk about this tomorrow morning with Mom.”
“Okay.” I agreed. Although I knew it would be hard for me to get back to sleep. Skylar and I stayed awake together for a bit longer. I knew she could probably fall asleep whenever she wanted to, but she stayed awake with me so I wouldn’t be alone. Eventually, I fell asleep though, and in the morning Skylar woke me up.
“Time to get ready for school. I’ll give you some clothes to borrow. You can’t keep wearing the same three outfits forever,” she had told me. I got up drowsily. And later that morning after Skylar had explained my dream to her mom, fed me breakfast, and helped me find new clothes, her mom drove us to school.
“Have a good day girls!” She said as we left the car. Skylar and I waited for the bell to ring together, and then she went with me to my locker and walked me to my first class.
“Okay,” she said, “I’ll see you at lunch, and then Mom will pick us up after school.” I nodded. “You good?” She asked.
“Yeah,” I told her, “I’m going to be fine.” I smiled at her, and then she left, heading for the science hall. I entered my classroom and took my seat beside Heather.