Salem heads into the kitchen, his body going to grab a cup of water, after being in what should be pronounced as a nightmare.
Passing he turns on the sink and fills up the glass with water. The glass is warm to the touch and the water doesn't raise or lower the temp at all.
He brings the glass to his face, then he takes a gulp of water.
Salem: "Why did you show me that?"
Salem's voice is lower so he doesn't wake his brother but he can feel it want to rise then yell. His throat hurts from him not being able to.
Wonder: 'It was to help with your confidence and bravery.'
Wonders voice tries to sound sympathetic, but Salem doesn't care.
Salem: "Confidence and bravery? My ass. You showed me a memory that I locked away. I didn't remember that shit until now. You are a piece of SH..."
Mickey: "STOP!"
Before Salem can finish his sentence, Mickey yells out with so much force and fear from his lungs that it frightens Salem, making him break into a sprint.
Dropping his glass cup into the sink, breaking it and making the water splash up.
Salem hits the turns into the hallway sharp, then he turns toward the door. jiggles the knob, it's locked. He turns hard then forces the door open. It doesn't feel any differently from opening the door regularly to Salem.
Once he makes his way into the room he looks around the darkness to see Mickey laying asleep on the bed with his eyes having tears fall out.
Salem rushes to the bedside and subtly shakes him awake.
Salem: "Mickey... Mickey are you okay?"
It takes a while for Mickey to wake.
He forces himself up and looks at Salem. Once he fully wakes up he jumps into Salem arms.
Mickey: "SALEM!!!! Your okay!"
Mickey begins to ugly cry into Salem's shoulder.
Salem: "What happened? Are you okay?"
Mickey doesn't stop crying instead pulling himself even deeper into Salem's shoulder and making his shoulder very damp.
Mickey: "You... You died!"
He says in between his puffs for air and falling tears.
Salem scoffs.
Salem: "No I didn't."
Salem pulls Mickey slightly off of him to get a good look at his face.
Salem: "Mouse, I'm not dead... look."
Salem smiles. Trying to soothe Mickey with it.
Mickey: "Dream Salem died!"
Mickey now begins to hyperventilate.
Salem freaks out as well now, not because of the fact that Mickey said dream him died, but because his brother is breathing irregularly.
Salem: "Mickey... Follow me okay."
Salem takes a deep breathe through his nose.
Salem: "In..."
Mickey tries to follow, he snorts up some mucus, the he tries for a deep breath.
Salem: "... then, Out."
He releases all the air out his mouth.
Mickey follows after him. Releasing all the air in his chest from his nose breathing.
Salem: "Okay... One more time."
Salem repeats the process. Mickey following right behind him, as he takes deep breathes through his nose, then releases them out his mouth.
Salem: "You okay now?"
Mickey snorts up mucus once more, then follow what Salem told his to do again.
Mickey: "I'm okay... but what about dream Salem?"
Salem: "Dream Salem is okay. Because if something happens in a dream it's not real... It's just fake."
Mickey: "But mom always said my dreams will come true..?"
Salem looks dumbfounded.
Salem: 'Mom your advice to Mickey is not helping me.'
Salem: "Good thing what you had was a nightmare."
Mickey: "Wha... What's a nightmare?"
Salem: "You don't know what a nightmare is?"
Mickey shakes his head.
Salem: "So a nightmare is a super bad. Super fake life that is boring and not cool at all."
Mickey: "So.."
Mickey scrubs his nose with the back of his hand.
Mickey: "Everything that happened in the nightmare is fake?"
Salem: "Yeah. Super duper fake."
Mickey: "So you're okay?"
Salem tilts his head and smiles.
Salem: "Yes Mouse, I'm okay."
Mickey jumps back into his arms. His tears now gone and his smile on his face.
Salem: "Can I ask... what was happening in the nightmare?"
Mickey's face goes pale, he looks down in fear of Salem asked him.
Salem: "WOW...."
The pause is LOUD.
Salem lets out a sigh.
Salem: "Was it that bad?"
Mickey nods.
Mickey: "Do you want to hear all of it?"
Salem shakes his head.
Salem: "No, just the part that made you yell STOP."
Mickey looks embarrassed.
Mickey: "I was talking in my sleep?"
Salem: "Yeah... You sounded like a little baby. Just kidding."
Mickey pouts, then it fades away.
Mickey: "Do you really want to hear it?"
Salem: "Do you want to talk about it?"
Mickey nods his head.
Salem: "Then let's talk about it."
Mickey takes up a push of air, then lets it out.
Mickey: "I was at school. After mom dropped us off and I went to my class and the teacher was just sitting there and the kids all were staring at me and then i turned and there was more people staring, but there was also you."
Mickey tears begin to well up in his eyes again.
Mickey: "Then when I tried to walk to you I couldn't get there because I was walking super duper slow..."
Salem: 'Oh my god slow running and pillow punches. two horrible things in dreams.'
Salem's thought sounds exasperated.
Mickey: "Before I could get to you. A big guy came up from behind you and he had a very big rock."
Mickey lifts his hands above his head as if holding something with two hands.
Salem: 'I can guess where this is going.'
Mickey: "And then the man just hit your head. Again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And..."
Salem: "I get it."
Salem holds his hand out in front of himself. As if to be a human stop sign.
Salem: "I get it."
They pause for a second as they look between each other in disbelief of what was said to each other.
Salem: "You hungry?"
Mickey nods, but his head is hung low.
Mickey: "What is it?"
Salem: "We have cereal and milk..."
Mickey gets up, so does Salem and they both head into the kitchen.
Salem gets two bowls from the cupboard and then to spoons from a drawer holding the utensils.
Going into the icebox, he pulls out a very colorful cereal box, with a smiling bird on it and milk that says low fat. Going to the table Salem puts down the bowls, pours the cereal and then the milk. Salem and Mickey then proceed to eat without exchanging many words.
Mickey breaks the silence.
Mickey: "You want to know why I was mad that you chased away Hachishaku?"
Salem tilts his head wondering what Mickey is talking about, then his eyes widen.
Salem: "Oh the tall, scary woman?"
Mickey frowns at Salem.
Mickey: "SHE'S NOT SCARY."
His young voice is trying to sound authoritative but Salem just let's out a laugh, that is somewhat mocking.
Salem: "Okay... Tall, NOT scary."
Mickey smiles, then frowns again. His head drops down again.
Mickey: "She's my first friend at school..."
Mickey eyes find Salem's. Salem eyes look sympathetic.
Salem: "What do you mean your first friend? Haven't you been going to school for about four years already?"
Mickey nods.
Salem: "And no one wants to talk to you?"
Mickey nods.
Salem: "Why?"
Salem tilts his head, then straightened it out.
Mickey: "Because I don't have a daddy like everyone else."
Salem frowns, for two reason. One, is because Salem knows that he's telling the truth, he's different. Different people have different circumstances. Two, because Salem doesn't want Mickey to experience the fear that he felt.
Day in and Day out. Salem was in fear that he would be beaten black, blue, purple, grey. Any color that wasn't his skin color. He was afraid of that so much so that he would cower into the corner of his room and crym then there was days when Salem, would feel scared to even go outside because he knew what could happen to himself if he even got in trouble.
Marissa would always take the beating for him. Time and time and time again. She was beat, just as bad as Salem. Viktor knew not to hit her face, but if she could cover her body with clothing it would be covered.
Salem: "Are you telling the truth? Is it really because you don't have a father?"
Mickey nods.
Mickey: "I never got to meet dad. I also never experienced playing with him, or laughing with him."
Salem: 'That wouldn't have happened Mickey?'
Salem: "Do you think that's what would have happened Mouse?"
Salem feels his anger bottle up.
Salem: "You think he would have played catch and called you awesome whenever you caught it?"
Mickey smiles slightly.
Mickey: "Yeah... I always wanted that."
Mickey's smile irritates Salem, not because Mickey is annoying, but because Mickey was never told anything about his father, Mickey was always given a sideline whenever he asked, because both Salem and Marissa were too afraid to tell young Mickey the truth.
Their father was a piece of shit. He didn't deserve love or happiness. He deserved to be beaten the same way, he beat Salem. Same way he beat Marissa. That's what he deserved.
Salem, doesn't want to continue with the conversation, scared he'd get even angrier.
Salem looks behind Mickey out the curtain of the window.
Salem: "How about we go to sleep."
The sun was lowering and the moon was rising.
Mickey shivers from the thought of falling asleep.
Mickey: "Do we have to?"
Salem: "Yeah, we have school tomorrow so we have to go to sleep to get energy."
Mickey frowns.
Mickey: "Okay... but can we sleep in mom's room tonight?"
Salem furrowed his eyebrows.
Salem: "Sure, but why?"
Mickey: "Because what if the big guy comes back in the nightmare?"
Salem feels the bottled up rage dissipate when Mickey says that, he lets out the most heartfelt laugh that he can.
Salem: "YOu... You.."
Salem stops inbetween words, his laughing is to much and he can't speak well.
Salem: "The big guy...."
Salem has to take a deep breathe in order to not continue laughing.
Salem: "I'll be okay Mickey, but if you really want I'll sleep in mom's room tonight."
Mickey smiles, then goes to put his bowl in the sink, Salem follows son after. He washes the dishes, then heads to his other's room. Mickey already inside.
Once Salem gets into the room, he sees Mickey fallen asleep, with body just splayed out on the comfortable bed.
Mickey's also wearing Pyjamas that have a blue background, with dinos, cars, and robots on it. The peak things, a ten year old is likes.
Salem walks up beside Mickey, he leans down, scoots Mickey over and gets on the bed.
Mickey turns and gives Salem a hug as, Salem falls into slumber as well, then Salem wakes again.
He's in the burning field. His body feeling the flames wrap around his ankles, then he sees the giant bird above him.
Wonder: "Salem there is something you will have to hear. So indulge me."
Salem shakes his head violently.
Salem: "No! I'm tired of listen to you."
Wonder shakes it's beak.
Wonder: "I apologise then Salem."
Salem starts to feel the solid ground beneath him crumble. His footing begins to sink. He looks around the endless flames begins to die out. He feels his feet sink into marshy waters, then he feels it go to his ankles.
The warm flames now changes to cold waters.
Salem now stands in the water with his legs shin deep into the ground with no vision under the grassy terrain above to water.
Salem looks around for Wonder but he can't find him. Looking around longer, Salem sees a woman from behind.