Every night I go to sleep ready to meet more of them. On the night of my eighth birthday after settling into bed, I closed my eyes and found myself at a table with a chestnut haired man in a tweed suit. There was nothing other than the wooden chairs we were seated in and a table of the same wood between us, in a large room painted completely white, or off white.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“Hello. My name is Arman and I will one day be your husband.”
“My husband!”
After the initial shock we discussed our relationship. How we would meet and the difficulties we would face later in our marriage. Similar issues I was assured to any other couple who are together for an extended length of time.
I went through the next day thinking, what a strange dream! and how interesting it would be if it all became real. The next night it happened again. As soon as I shut my eyes I was in the same room again, but this time on a worn down green couch with a multi-colored dog. A Bernese Mountain Dog or a Saint Bernard, I’m not sure which. It looked at me and said hello.
“Hi there, are you from what’s to come as well?” I asked.
“Yes. Shortly after college you find me at a shelter. You intend to get a small dog, but we fall in love immediately and you decide to take me home.”
“That’s nice.”
He agreed and proceeded to tell me about the adventures we would have and the neglect he would feel as new humans came in and out of my life. I felt some guilt but assured him that with this information I would do my best to prevent this from happening when the opportunities eventually arose.
The strange thing is that when I graduated college, I did get a small dog; a Jack Russell named Hank. I remembered that dreamlike conversation with the multi-colored dog, particularly because it was only the second that I ever had – I ended up having those visits every single night of my life and continue to do so even now – and I looked around for the giant Saint Bernard type dog. There were none to be found. I really didn’t feel like getting a large dog anyway. Also, by that time in my life I’d realized that I wasn’t really attracted to men, so I didn’t see how Arman was going to make his way into my life.
I lived to be 87 and had a nice time overall. I looked back near the end and realized that not a single episode from my night visits had become a reality. It wasn’t until after death and starting my next life that the visitors began to appear. After realizing this, a new set began to greet me as I slept. I can only imagine how and in what life these new characters will manifest, but I’m less curious than I used to be. It’s nice to meet these people, whoever they may be. And it’s really quite fun to talk to animals.
Jack Uppling is a music teacher currently living in Phoenix, AZ. He graduated from The Motion Picture Institute of Michigan, and shortly after started an Indie Psych Rock band that toured the east coast before moving to Seattle, WA. Recently Jack decided to dedicate his time to writing and teaching.
Modern Flash Fiction 