I jolt awake, shrieking, sweat dripping down my forehead, sheets raveled on the floor after being forced off of the bed. This is the third time this week. I don’t know what is happening to me. I try to slow my breathing and gulp down a glass of water. I view outside my window and see that it is still dusk. Wonderful.

It has been eight years since the “incident”, yet i’m still dreaming, no, re-living that nightmare. I was only a child when it occurred. Well, technically I am only fifteen, but I have far evolved from my younger self. Seeing those sorts of things at a younger age isn’t so peculiar, in fact I had much enjoyed them at the time. But seeing them replay in my head day after day, i’ve realized it certainly isn’t ordinary.

Maybe it was all a dream, all in my silly little seven-year-olds imagination. Oh, but it couldn’t be, it felt so real. I could see all of wonderland with my own eyes, all the amazing and terrifying things. I could hear all those sounds, from things like Mad Hatters disturbing cackle, to the repetitive ticking of the White Rabbit’s watch. I could feel the presence of all the creatures, staring at me, the lost little girl. The long shadowy figure of the Queen of Hearts, the one that I mistake for a chair or a coat in the night. The evil laugh, that continues to haunt my dreams to this day. The petrifying, gut-wrenching feeling everyone would get when she screamed “OFF WITH THEIR HEAD”, one too many times. No, I couldn’t have imagined that. No seven-year-old could imagine such a thing.

My sister enters the room, looking worried. “Are you alright? I heard you yelling again.” she said, with a concerned tone. “Oh, I’m fine. Just another one of those silly dreams again.” I said, trying to lighten the mood. My sister worries about me, I know she does. I’ve heard her crying while talking to mum, who never knows what to do. She doesn’t really care for me, definitely not as much as my sister does. “I was just checking in. Try to get some rest alright?” she said. “Okay, I’ll try. Goodnight” I said as she slowly closes the door.

I sigh, I guess loudly because Dinah hops up onto the bed next to me. She curls into a perfect little ball, purring as I stroked her soft head. Oh, how easy your life is Dinah. I wish I were a cat, with not a worry in the world. I should probably get some rest. I lie down, closing my eyes, trying to think of anything other than the laugh I am hearing from underneath my bed.