Free Alien Deception by Tony Ruggiero Page B

am awake?
    She swiveled on her stool toward Greg so quickly that he instinctively ducked.
    "Excuse me," she said in an angry and sarcastic tone. "Am I awake? What's going on here?"
    "Hey, let's take it easy and slow down," Greg said. He raised his hands, palms up, to indicate his own confusion. "I know exactly where you're coming from. I was in the hospital, too. You remember all this, don't you? From a dream?"
    "Yes," she said, perplexed, nodding in agreement.
    He stared into her dark eyes in that moment of her confusion. He'd never really had a chance to see her close up before, so he took a few moments to study her features. Even though she was stressed, she looked gorgeous.
    "What's going on here?" she asked in a trembling voice.
    Before Greg could answer, she poured out her story. "One minute I am almost run over by a truck, and then, in my office, I'm shocked by my wrinkle remover. Next, I'm in a hospital, or at least that was where I thought I was, and there's this airborne thing, which is a robot with needles for fingers, coming towards me. To top it all off, there are these dreams I don't understand. I'm in a bar in a slinky black dress. I'm going crazy!" She finished by putting her hands over her face in utter confusion and frustration.
    "Hey, you're not any crazier than I am," Greg offered, seeing her look of skepticism. He cleared his throat and continued. "And don't worry. What's your name, by the way?" he asked, surprised at his boldness.
    "Sarah," she whispered in a low voice as she moved her hands away from her face.
    Greg could see that her eyes were still darting wildly about as she tried to make sense of her surroundings. He held out his hand to her, and she hesitantly took it. The warmth of her hand felt wonderful, and he saw a moment of calm come over her. It was as if the touching had relieved some of the tension. He was also savoring every moment of it; her fingers were so smooth and warm. It had been a long time since he had felt that kind of warmth.
    "I'm scared, too, you know," he said in a low voice, looking into her eyes. He thought for a moment, then decided maybe a little humor might help. "I know this is going to sound strange, but I guess we're having a dream together. I've never heard of it happening before, but I guess it is possible, because here we are. One dream for the price of two. Get it, one dream…"
    Greg stopped, and immediately felt awkward about what he'd just said. Although it was not uncharacteristic for him to say something like that, it felt out of place for him now. His eyes moved to where their hands were still joined. It was then that he realized that, even after all this, he still had not introduced myself.
    "Well…how do you do, Sarah," he said, smiling nervously. "I'm Greg." He performed the quick act of shaking hands again, and then they mutually parted their grasp, much to his chagrin.
    "Hey, I know this is all real strange, but…ah…it looks like we're somehow tied together in this thing, so I guess we'll have to figure it out together," he said, trying his best to sound as calm as possible.
    She looked up and gently smiled at him, and this made Greg melt into his sneakers. He thought to himself, as he savored her smile, You sure are beautiful, Sarah.
    "Well, that appears to be the best part of this…whatever is happening to us so far," she said, as she turned around on the rotating bar stool to gaze at the people in the room. Obviously possessing more confidence now, she appeared to become curious about their surroundings. She turned back to him. "Greg, who are all these people, anyway? Do you know them? Maybe they can help us." The new thought lit up her face.
    Greg looked around, shrugging. He hadn't been paying attention to any of the other people because his full attention had been centered on her.
    "I don't recognize anyone. Let's see if they recognize us." Greg walked up to the nearest person, a man wearing a plain black tuxedo, holding a cigarette loosely