Chapter 17

Once I left the presentation room, I went right over to the receptionist.

I hope she will tell me...

"Will you please give me some contact information for Rachelle Turnwise?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to give out any information about anyone to anyone.  Maybe you could check out the phone book?"

My heart sunk.  I was counting on her telling me something.  Usually I'm not one to chase anyone, but this is an exception.  An epic exception that never occurs.  You either know someone in real life in your dreams if you know them, or your brain conconcts some random person in your head.  No, your brain doesn't concoct up a replica of an actual living person if you've never met them before.  Impossible.  Which is why I need to find her, one way or another!

I wasn't going to let this one little road bum stop me!  I shall look her up in the phone book! 

 I can do this, she won't think you're a freak. Why would she think that?

There were many reasons, but I tried not to think of them.  Unfortuanatly telling yourself not to think of them makes you think of them.

She saw me today at the dream presentation-that much is aparent.  If I randomly call her up and talk to her out of the blue in a non-profesional, casual manner, she could think I'm some guy that wants to hook up with her!  Or she could think I'm stalking her.  But really, it's much more than that!  But she's been stalking me in my dreams, so it's not like that.  Oh, but then if I tell her that surely she'd think of me not only as a stalker, but a freaky insane person!

Whether she thinks I'm crazy or not, I'm finding her.  I always let things like this slip away from me, but not this time!  Otherwise, I will spend the rest of my life thinking about it, regretting it.  I cannot let that happen!

Well, I did look her up in the phonebook.  And oh my gosh, just my luck, her name wasn't in there.  I asked some lady about it, and she said that she might have just moved to Bridgeport!  I wasn't going to go with that, though I considered it a possibility.  Maybe she was just visiting Bridgeport for the presentation!  I did find her number, and some random people answered.  She doesn't live there anymore!  I asked them if they knew where she lived now, and they said somewhere in Bridgeport but they knew no more.  Lucky for me that didn't seem to think that I am a stalker.

But I wasn't going to let that stop me.  All day I've been going around asking people if they knew her.  It was slightly embarrasing, but I just pretended like I was the sales guy and they were my customers (and I'm used to rude customers), so that did pretty well for me.  At least in my head and the way that I acted to them!  Most people just gave me this funny look and walked away.  Others just ignored me altogether and walked away from me from the beginning.  One person looked at me and did this funny up and down motion thing with her eyes.  Either no one knew who she was, or they just weren't going to tell me.

I did pass one guy in particular that seemed especially friendly at the park.

"Excuse me, sir, do you know of a lady named Rachelle Turnwise?"

"I'm sorry, but I have to be leaving soon."

And you just have to answer one little question, is that so hard?

"Please sir, it will only take a minute."

"Ok, if it's only one minute."

His eyebrows were caved over his eyes in a strange way, and he put his finger up.  This guy was being sarcastic with me.  Joy.

"Oh-um.  She may be a teacher or something in town."

"Do you know what school?"

"I think it may be Bridgeport Elementary.  Why do you ask?"

"Personal matters."

"Oh, personal matters.  Like what exactly?"

Note to self: city people are nosy and sarcastic.

"None of your business, now shouldn't you be on your way?  Didn't you say you had somewhere to be?"

He looked disapointed, but he gave me a look one more time, and walked off.  Briskly.

After that little ordeal (well, numerous little annoying ordeals), I checked my watch and it was already seven o' clock!  I was really hungry.  Lucky for me, I noticed that a food truck had stopped at the park.  That's one nice thing about cities: convenience.  Though it may have snobs and traffic galore, at least the stores were within close proximity, and the food was right there waiting for you.

I ordered a taco.

When I took my first bite, well, it was food love at first bite.  My cooking just can't beat the greasy city cooking of Bridgeport!  I was even able to top it with what I wanted!  I added meat (and a lot of it, I am a total meat eater.  How do vegetarians do it?  Well, I know I will never know), lettuce for health kicks, though I'm not too into it (and why did I add it exactly?  It was all brown and gross.  I ended up taking it off, then it tasted much better), sour cream (mm, cream in sour form full of delicious fat), and extra cheese (oh my llama, cheese is from the heavens).  I'm not a tomato person, and especially not if the tomatos looked as gross as those did...and refried beans are not my forte.  I'll just save those for the poor vegetarians around the world.  Though they themselves don't think they're poor.  They're like, 'I don't like the taste of meat', or 'I think that the poor animals are raised in poor conditions', or 'it's against my religion, or 'I'm on a health kick and meat is just so full of fat and calories- ew, how could someone pack in thirty grams of fat and a thousand calories in just one little burger?  I'd rather have my salad anyway.'  Yes, you THINK you want your salad, but not really.  That is unless you load it in dressing and, newsflash-dressing can make it more fattening than a burger sometimes.  But anyway (there goes me blabbin in my own strange way that no one gets), though those things may be true (except the first things-meat is amazing), it's not worth it.  Humans were meant to be meat eaters!  You vegetarians are going against what God wanted!

Overall, I was just eating my taco to the last bite, looking at it with strange eyes.  I'm sure my eyes were gleaming.  It's not everyday that I go out to eat.  I guess I'm kinda frugal despite my up-ish lifestyle (yes, I'm a family of money, but I lived in a modest house with modest things, since my parents like it that way).

After I finished eating, and it took me a while, I was savoring every delicious, greasy bite, I decided it was time I called Mr. Simmons.  I should've called earlier, but really my job and Mr. Simmons was at the back of my mind.  The strangest thing like, ever, just happened, so who would remember about their job?

"Hey Mr. Simmons.  How are you?"

"I'm good, Alex.  You?"

"Oh-that's actually why I called..."

I wasn't exactly going to mention that I was trying to find the girl of my dreams (quite literally), so I just skipped to my main part.  It's not like I could be all 'oh yeah, Mr. Simmons.  I'm actually feeling pretty crappy because I am looking for the girl of my dreams that often showed up in my dreams and I haven't been able to find her.  I called her lucid girl.  Yeah...at the dream conference I went to, she was a presenter and she bolted out of there so I pretty much need to find her...'

"Look-something came up and I have to stay in Bridgeport longer.  I'm not sure if I need to take tomorrow off, or the next day as well.  Would you please let me stay here longer?"

Mr. Simmons is decent at crossing boundaries-so that's why he let's me get away with things often, but he is one thing that city people aren't: not nosy-he didn't ask what that was I was talking about.

"Yeah, sure Alex.  Thanks for calling.  Whatever you need.  Just call me sometime tomorrow if you need the next day off too.  Have a nice night, Alex!  See you on Friday or Monday."

"Thank you so much Mr. Simmons!  Alright, see you then.  Bye."

"Bye."

Ah, well that's a relief.

Good ol' Mr. Simmons-the boss that everyone wants.

Well, I am very tired after this long day.  I guess I should check into a hotel.

Pretty quickly I found a hotel.  Cities are just awesome like that-hotels at every corner.

I found a pretty good hotel quickly (ok, only an okay hotel, but I didn't exactly pocket a thousand simoleons, not even thinking that I'd need pretty much any!).  The receptionist was like Mexican or of some exotic ancestory, in a good way.  She had really nice long brown hair, but you and I know that I wasn't really looking at her like that, because I already had my eyes on the impossible.

My heart fluttered at the thought of Lucid Girl-er, Rachelle (now that's going to take some getting used to!), now that she's actually real I don't feel so guilty to feeling that way.  At least I'm not in love with what's in my head-or wait, I technically don't know if my brain just sprouted a random her in my head that's not actually her.  Ah, how confusing this is!  This is why I need to find her.  I need to figure this all out-I can't let myself feel this way forever.

"Hello sir.  Welcome to Fargo Largo's Sleeping Hideaway!"

The hotel has a very cheesy name, I know.  Who knows what that could mean the place is like (at least the lobby looks decent), but I decided to go here only because it was advertised to cost a mere fifty simoleons a room (for its basic lodging).  It's just me and I'm here for one night to sleep, no biggy!  I can live.

"Hello miss, I would like a room please."

"Alright, sir."

She looked on her computer for about thirty seconds to find an open room.

"That'll be fifty simoleons."

I handed her the ching.

"Your room number is 27.  Go up the elevator to the second floor, and it should be one of the rooms near the end.  I hope you enjoy your night."

"Thank you."

In the lobby, I walked past a very strange couple.  The lady was plump and blonde, and the man had on a sweatshirt and a hat, and was no where near plump.  It's funny.  Usually the "strange couple" consists of a pretty obese woman and a super skinny muscle-less wimp with glasses.  The guy was no wimp.  I laughed in spite of myself for even thinking of this.

When I got to my room, I was nevous in a way as to what room was going to lay before me.  I shouldn't really have anything to worry-if the lobby was nice, shouldn't the room be too?  But, somehow I thought that fifty simoleons had to be reflected in one way or another.  I've never really been in a hotel like this before, but I've heard the stories. 

I watched tv for a while on its small, microscopic screen, but I got bored of it quickly because they didn't have that many channels.  I tried watching a soap opera, but it was just so dramatic and even more cheesy.  The room was really a nightmare in style...the beds had metal frames, and the wallpaper was extremely hideous, but whatever.  There was a fridge and counters, though.  Don't see that in many hotels!  But, the fridge is probably not cold and the counters are probably scummy.  At least with my luck.  But I wasn't about to check.

I got tired pretty quickly (mostly because I was bored of the soap opera), so I took off my clothes and put them on the other bed (it looked like the cleanest thing in the room-not that I'm a neat freak, but I'm not exactly a slob either).  I went into bed, and I was disgusted by its sheets.  They were thin (the room was air conditioned heavily-and there wasn't even a thermostat!) and scratchy.  But, at least I'm one to fall asleep quickly.

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I woke up and I could see the sun peaking through the blinds.  Quickly, I bounded out of bed.

Where's Lucid Girl-erm...I mean Rachelle!  I need to find her.  Gotta get up-I must find her!

I started bounding across my room and out the door.  I didn't even bother to shut it-I was too set on finding Rachelle.  I even forgot to put on underwear-but I didn't care!  I wanted to find her as soon as possible!  Putting on clothes is just going to slow me down.

Where's Rachelle?  Where is she?  She's gotta be around somewhere!  I must find her!  I must!

I made my way to the elevator.  The room in which it was in was a sort of eating room.

I can eat breakfast any time!  That will just slow me down.  I don't care about eating!

It seemed to take forever for the elevator to close, and slowly veer down.

I ran as soon as the elevator door opened.  I was already trying to get out before it even opened-the elevator door threatened not to open because I was there, smacked up against it.  Luckily, it did, and right as the smallest opening was seen in the elevator, I bolted.

I saw the lady and man standing up just as I was passing them.  I was going so lightning fast I was just able to register that they were there while I was passing them.

"Do any of you know where Rachelle is?"

I didn't even think to mention her last name.  But anyway, whose name is Rachelle for there to be more than one Rachelle anyone?

The blonde one answered, "I don't know what you're talking about!  I've never heard of the name Rachelle before.  Why do you even want to know, are you stalking her?"

I slowed down at her last sentence.  It pierced me at my heart- am I stalking her?  Is that what she will think when I find her-if I find her?

But then I shook my head and quickened my speed.

No.  I'm not the type to stalk-this is much bigger than stalking.  I must find her-I must.  She will understand!  I am not crazy.

I started to run in the street, and realized that I probably should get back on the sidewalk, I don't want to get run over.

Right-right, this is a big city, this isn't Longview.  I can find her perfectly well on the sidewalk!

I noticed up ahead of me one of Bridgeport's lovely monuments called the sextuplet mountains.  I don't really know why it's called that (they look nothing like mountains).  I guess it's an abstract thing.  I just really don't get modern art.

Then, right next to it, I saw the back of a girl's head-and on that head was blonde hair!

I ran faster still.

Oh my gosh-that must be Rachelle!

My frown quickly changed to a broad grin.

My search is done at last!

But then she turned around, and there was the fat lady.

"Oh, hello handsome young man!  Look at those abs."

She did this weird eyebrow thing, and as my grin turned right back to a frown, her mouth changed to how mine was, except it was dirtier.

"Come to mama."

Unfortuanatly for me, my feet were firmly planted and I couldn't run away from her and continue my search.  I just looked down at the ground.

I will never find Rachelle.  She doesn't even want to be found.

Then I woke up, relief flowing through my veins.

Ew, I'm glad that she never was able to get ahold of me.  And oh-her touching me with her flabby stomach would've been so unpleasant...

But now, I must have breakfast, I'm starving!  This time, I will get dressed and I am not leaving this room in my underwear!  I want to find her-but not that badly.  Even if she does not want me to find her-well, too bad for her.  I can't let this go away.  Everything else in my life I could've left alone and I would be fine.  But this, this, I cannot walk away from.  Too much is on the line.