"Dear esteemed customer, after visiting your dream last night, my rudimentary diagnosis is that you've been haunted by those in my business call, a Nightmare. Of course, I will need to talk to you for a little more before I can come up with a firmer conclusion. Therefore, I wish that you retire to bed early tonight and I shall meet you in your dream. Do not fret because after we ascertain the source of your Nightmare, I will do my best to help you exterminate it.

P.s We will discuss the issue of payment during the dream meeting as well. I will see you tonight.

XoXo, Eevie's Dream-catcher Practice"

    Adam studied the message with skepticism. Then, he lied down on his bed to figure things out. First thing's first, he did kind off spot a little girl that usually wasn't there in his dream yesterday night. However, he was too caught up in his own trauma to be able to tell whether that really happened or it was his brain playing tricks on him. Secondly, the dream did have a premature ending compared to the other ones he had earlier, at least, this time, 'she' didn't make an appearance, and that thing did qualify to be called, a Nightmare, as long as it defined things that could scar one for life. However, the question was: Were these enough for him to base his trust in a mysterious message from a person whom he had never met before? Furthermore, what was this payment the message spoke of, Adam had a feeling it was not referring to conventional monetary payment. Maybe Adam's nerves had been pulled taut for so long that lying on the bed unraveled them or there was some magic in the email, because even without the aid of medication, Adam was slowly succumbing to drowsiness...

    When Adam came to next, he was standing in front of a door, yes, a nondescript door that was attached to nothing and seemingly led to nowhere. The space he was in was a wide grey expanse that was somehow lit. There was nothing as far as his eyes could see other than this door before him. He circled around it slowly. The door had a silver doorknob and was somehow standing even though it wasn't installed into anything, not unlike the prop doors used by actors on stage. While he was debating how to proceed, a female voice drifted out from within, "Don't be shy, come on in."

      Adam pushed the door open cautiously. While he didn't know what to expect but what he saw disappointed him because everything was so... commonplace. The room was cramped and barely furnished. It was windowless and had a single hanging lamp lighting up the place. The only thing of note was the four walls were painted a dull blue, the kind that would make him fall asleep from staring at it for too long if he wasn't already. In the middle of the room was a steel table and a set of chairs. An old woman about seventy of age sat in one of them. She had on a floor-length floral printed dress with flowing sleeves, or more commonly known as the hippie dress. Her sandy-colored hair was frazzled and unkempt like hay that needed a good brushing. She had no accessories or make-up except the wrinkles and lines that decorated her weathered face. The first thing that came into Adam's mind was... charlatan!

      "Mrs. Eevie?" Adam ventured cautiously.
      "A gentleman always leads with his own name," came the reply in a surprisingly young voice. "I'm Adam..."
      "Nice to meet you, Adam. I am indeed Miss Eevie. Please have a seat," The woman said as she gestured at the empty chair opposite her with an gnarled hand. As Adam sat down, she proffered him a warm and friendly smile. Adam felt instantly at ease, Miss Eevie reminded him of his kind grandmother.
      "Well, we have lots of things to discuss so let's not waste time," suggested Eevie. "First thing I would like to know is when did you start having these troublesome dreams?"
      Adam scratched his chin in contemplation before coming out with an answer, "I believe they started when I moved in with my current roommate, Jason so that would be about two months ago."
      "Jason, is it? Tell me about him if you don't mind," Eevie urged.
      "Of course, I don't. I didn't know Jason before we moved in together, I met him over the internet when he posted a tenant ad. He was looking for someone to share his rent and I was looking for a place closer to my workplace to live. Initially, there were some rough patches but we got over those quickly. It was probably because he had the best personality of all the people I know. Not only that he's also athletic, kind-hearted, hardworking and many more. He always cheers me up when I'm down and share my happiness when I'm happy. In fact, he is the one most worried about my constant nightmares. He is a wonderful man..." Adam suddenly stopped himself, realizing perhaps he had been rattling on for too long. He turned to look at Miss Eevie, and she gave him a mysterious smile that he had a hard time deciphering.

        Lonelytree "No homo", he added, before things could get even more awkward than it already had.

        Hey look! An update from my most favourite author on this site! Huzzah!

            "Thank you for the glimpse into your life," Eevie offered before continuing, "Now, do you mind telling me about your religious background?"
            For some unknown reasons, Adam could feel his guard go up. "Why would you want to know that?"
            "Honey, you were swallowed by a church in your dream, do you need a clearer symbolism? Plus, I'm not saying this is the source of your nightmare, it's just that this will go better if I know more about you as a person," Eevie comforted with a smile.
            After a pause to weigh her words in his mind, Adam explained, "I was an only child born into a religious family. My parents were simple folks but they instilled the faith of Christ in me since I was a wee child. They were good people who walked the straight path of servitude to God. Every day, I strive to be more like them."
            Eevie nodded along. She added when Adam seemed to have finished, "What about the priest in your dream? Who is he?"

            Lonelytree Lol. The sarcasm is unreal.

            B-b-baka! My confession was taken as a joke! Runs away crying

            Dense harem protagonists smh

                Adam's eyes glazed over from fond memories. "That would be Father John, the priest from my childhood. He presided over the church from my home town. He was an old-fashioned, stern but fair priest. Perhaps it was my parent's influence but I was always fond of Father John and he looked after me like I am one of his own. He taught me everything I knew about the forms and rules of my faith. He taught me how to be a good and lawful Christian. Other than my parents, he was the biggest influence that shaped me into who I am today..." Adam was silent for a moment as he was pulled back into the present. "However, in my dreams, he seemed to be very disappointed in me. Do you know why that is, Miss Eevie?"

                "Oh, honey, I think you know the answer," Eevie said with a meaningful smile before changing the subject completely, "Regardless, we can always come back to it later, because now I would like to speak to you about the matters of payment."
                Adam subconsciously reached into his pocket but was to quick to realize he was in a dream. Plus, she hadn't really solved his problem, hadn't she? "But Miss Eevie, should you take care of the problem that has been troubling me first before asking for any payment?" He asked haltingly.
                "That little problem? No worries, I'll handle it in a jiffy, trust me," Eevie replied with a winning smile before adding, "Consider this a prepaid. I will compensate you if the treatment fails but I assure you it won't."
                While Adam was debating what she said, Eevie continued as she pulled out a handy credit card terminal, "You look like a strapping young man, so I think five life essences should be payment enough."

                "Life essence? What exactly is that?" Adam asked slightly worried.
                "You know how they say the blood is the human essence like how it keeps one's body alive?" Eevie explained slowly, "Don't give me that look, I'm not saying that I'm going to draw your blood but that the concept's almost similar. I might be as ancient as some vampires but I'm not one. Think of it as blood in a spiritual sense. And just like blood, your life essence will regenerate itself over time, so really, you're not losing anything. It's a real bargain for you." Here, Eevie winked.
                Adam pulled his hands back instinctively and questioned, "Are there going to be side effects, like... shortening of longevity? Things like that."
                "No, no, no. Of course nothing like that." Eevie shook her head and tutted like she was lecturing a petulant child, "In fact, I dare say this is safer than even drawing or donating blood. What harm can an old granny like myself really do? Trust me..." Eevie persuaded with a gentle smile.
                With obvious hesitation, Adam slowly pushed his right hand forward.

                Eevie smiled encouragingly as she pulled out a pen-like object that was attached to the terminal's side. She placed it between them and said, "Now, honey, just hold on to this. Do not worry, it will not hurt even a bit."
                Adam touched the pen gingerly and felt the cold sting of steel. He eventually wrapped his whole palm around it and held it firmly in his hand.
                Eevie pressed some buttons on the terminal and announced, "Okay, here we go."
                Adam felt something like a sense of numbness spreading from his right arm, but nothing beyond that. He looked at the terminal because something was coming out of the slit opening where people usually slot in the credit card. It was a rectangular card that was the size of a normal poker card. The back of it was pure black while the front was white with the words, "Essence of Life" written in cursive and bold near the bottom. After the first card finished printing, Adam started to feel light-headed as if he was really donating blood.

                Adam felt his focus wavering as the second card started to get printed. For the first time, the sound of alarm cropped up in his mind. His first reaction was to drop the pen but for some reasons, he couldn't. It was as if the hand was no longer his. It had become as unresponsive as stone even though he could still the touch of the pen in his grasp. His panic was soon overwhelmed by fatigue as the second card finished printing. His eyelids started to droop and he could feel the room spinning. By the time of the fourth card, he tried to say something to Eevie or even yell at her but he was too drained to be able to do that. By the start of the fifth card, Adam collapsed onto the table. He appeared to have gone unconscious. Eevie was unfazed throughout all these. She sat there waiting patiently for the process to finish. As the fifth card hit the table, Eevie picked them up before they disappeared down her billowing sleeves. Suddenly, the chair underneath Adam disappeared and so did the room. Adam fell through the darkness into the abyss below. The only things that remained were Eevie who still sat in her chair and the table that now floated in the middle of nothing. Seconds later, a blue card with the picture of the earlier room appeared on the table. Written on the bottom were the words, Sloth Level One: Small Shelter. Eventually, the card, the table, the chair and the person all blinked out of existence.

                Before Adam opened his eyes, he could hear the sound of children playing and his heart seized with consternation. His fear wasn't unfounded because when he finally opened his eyes, the all-too-familiar church fell into view. Then, the machine of his nightmare started to move. The children went silent suddenly and they whipped their heads around at him. Adam felt so naked like they were staring into his soul, playing with his deepest and darkest secret. The "where is the bride?" chanting started anew, and Adam turned to Father John beside him in anticipation. A pair of stern eyes greeted him. "Sinner!" Father John commanded in a booming voice that shook the building to its foundation. Adam could feel his legs giving way as he stumbled involuntarily back.
                However, at that moment, something different happened. Kindness returned to Father John's feature and the familiar face from Adam's religious childhood reappeared. Adam was confused and comforted. "It has been a long time, my dear child," Father John said in his gravelly voice.
                "But... but, I see you every night in my dream, Father..." A still-shocked Adam mumbled.
                Father John frowned.
                "You consider that caricature my replica? I must have left quite a scar on young Adam then." Father John commented in good humor.
                Adam shook his head quickly. "No, no, of course not Father, you've always been a figure of inspiration to me. I can see now that the other figure was nothing more than a figment of my imagination."
                "Ah, yes, Adam," Father John twirled his finger in mid-air as if stressing his point. "The key here is a figment of your imagination. In other words, this is all an experience of self-reflection for you, my child. Now, I want you to take this opportunity to really look at yourself because self-reflection is often a good tool to help us grow, and I would love to see you grow into your best self. Now, let's go through this together. What did the other me told you?"
                "That I'm a sinner..?" Adam answered timidly like he was doing a confessional.
                "Do you agree or disagree?"
                Adam frowned in deep thought. This was a question he really hadn't considered before. "I..." he hesitated.
                Father John smiled encouragingly. "No matter, I will help you answer that, child."
                "You are," He concluded firmly.

                Adam's heart skipped a beat, worried that the nightmare would come back in full swing but Father John continued gently, "Because child, we all are. As the good book says, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
                Adam turned his face up and Father John offered him an encouraging and understanding smile. He could feel tears pricking his eyes.
                "But more than that, child, I wish to apologize to you, because in my occupation to impart upon you all the knowledge regarding our rituals, I have forgotten to teach you the one important message of our faith. It is a universal message that has survived the test of time, it is the message of forgiveness. Ours is a faith built upon the message of forgiveness. Forgive your neighbors but most importantly, forgive yourself as God in Christ forgave you."
                Father John patted Adam lightly on his shoulder. "My time has arrived. May your road be straight and righteous, my child."
                Father John's hand started to smudge like he was made of watercolor and the painter was washing him out.
                Adam nodded and whispered through his tears, "Thank you, Father..." Like before, Adam started to flicker as well, a signal that this dream was ending for him.

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