Chapter 39 - Nightmare
The morning of the last day she had to eat lunch with Aaron, Keeley dreamed of their wedding day. It was more of a nightmare, really, though it started out like the actual memory.
Her ideas of a small, intimate wedding were dashed early in the engagement. Aaron's mother, Roslyn Hale, was in charge of everything.
High society folk lived to show off—her wedding at the grandiose Plaza Hotel had nearly five hundred guests and she knew less than three dozen of them personally.
Keeley's custom designed wedding dress was an off-shoulder ball gown with a long train, covered in pearls and Swarovski crystals chosen by Roslyn. She had almost no input on anything.
The wedding planner asked her to pick between a few appropriate floral arrangements and cake flavors but that was about it. Everything else ran smoothly without her.
Even her bridesmaids consisted of socialites she wasn't even friends with, including Lacy Knighton. The irony was too much.
Her father was allowed to walk her down the aisle but he was rather uncomfortable in the pricey tuxedo Aaron bought him for the occasion.
It was clear that the opulence of the venue overwhelmed him.
He had gotten married in a cathedral in Brooklyn and held the reception at a park underneath rented white tents to block out the sun. Seeing his only remaining child's wedding take place in such splendor was unfathomable.
"Is this really what you want, honeybun?" he whispered at the top of the aisle as the wedding march began to play.
Robert didn't mind Aaron as a person but he had been concerned all throughout the engagement when he saw how little control Keeley had over her own wedding. He was afraid that his daughter wouldn't be treated fairly by her in-laws or their friends.
She smiled to assuage his worry. "Of course it is! I love Aaron more than anything. I want to be with him forever."
She looped her arm through his and they began their procession down the aisle.
As they approached, Aaron's natural handsomeness seemed to be enhanced. She couldn't tell if it was the tuxedo or the fact that he was actually smiling.
Her heart was ready to sprout wings and fly out of her chest.
The dream shifted. Lacy, in her floor-length wine colored bridesmaid dress, was standing over Keeley with a knife as she lay helplessly on the floor. Her wrists were pinned to the floor with gold diamond-studded shackles.
She desperately called out for helped but everyone simply watched.
The crowd disappeared so only Aaron was left standing a few feet away. She begged him to save her as Lacy continued to stab but his cold eyes ignored her pleas.
"She's worth more than fifty of you," he said coolly. "You should be honored she's even bothering to kill you."
Hundred dollar bills rained down around her as Lacy cackled maniacally, pulling the knife out and leaving her to drown in a pool of her own blood.
In the distance, she could hear a baby crying.
The crying grew so loud it made blood pour out of her ears too. Soaked red money was plastered to every part of her body as the cries continued.
Keeley woke up screaming. She was so sweaty that she needed to shower even though she took one before going to bed.
What a horrible nightmare. She hadn't had any that bad since being reborn. The stress must finally be making her crack.
Why now though? She should be happy today since she wouldn't have to deal with Aaron as much after this!
Try as she might, she couldn't shake the horrible feeling the dream left behind all day.
Seeing him at lunch was even more painful than usual. He wore his usual cold expression; the same one that mocked her as Lacy stabbed her in the nightmare.
Did he know that Lacy was the one who had her killed in the end? He hadn't cared when she killed her father, even going so far as to help her cover it up…
Throughout the past month of eating lunch with Aaron every day, Keeley's rage had subsided a little. She thought of him as little more than a nuisance.
The dream brought her original feelings back so hostility rolled off of her in waves.
He frowned at her slightly as he joined her at the table. "What's wrong with you today?"
What's wrong is that she forgot how much she truly hated him.
She had reluctantly accepted his presence due to fear of provoking Lacy but the deal was up. He seriously needed to leave her alone now or she might go wild and attack him.
"You better follow through on our deal," she said sourly. "Don't talk to me after this."
A flash of hurt that was so quick she probably imagined it was replaced by annoyance.
"Not this again."
The way he said it really pushed her buttons. "You promised me. One month then you'd leave me alone."
"When did I ever say I would leave you alone?"
Keeley thought about it. He hadn't. The deal was that she would eat lunch with him for a month. They never discussed what would happen afterwards. She should have known better.
Tears of frustration filled her eyes. Why couldn't graduation come sooner? Why did this sicko want to play with her? Why wouldn't he listen to a word she said?
She banged her head on the table repeatedly. Why. Why. Why was this happening to her?
"Stop that!"
"No," she said flatly, continuing even though it was giving her a bit of a headache.
Aaron seized her by the shoulders and yanked her upwards so her head was against his chest.
"Let me go!"
"Why are you hurting yourself?" he growled. "Are you stupid?"
Yes. She was stupid for ever loving him at all.
"I'm doing it because I'm sick of you following me all the time. I'll stop if you promise to leave me alone until graduation."
"Not happening."
He heaved her to her feet and grabbed her backpack before practically hauling her out of the student lounge.
"What are you doing?" she yelled angrily.
"You need to get your head checked."
"I'm not crazy!"
"That's debatable but you did just hit your head multiple times. At the very least you need an ice pack or some Tylenol."
The feeling of his hands on her waist made Keeley want to throw up. She tore herself free and faced him without meeting his dark, soulless eyes.
"I'll go to the nurse's office myself."
"Keeley…"
She could practically smell the blood from her nightmare and hear the crying ringing in her ears. Maybe she really was losing it—Aaron had officially driven her insane.
She was done. She didn't care anymore. Waiting it out until graduation wouldn't work so she may as well be honest.
"Don't say my name! You don't have the right! I am completely serious here; I want nothing to do with you. I've told you so many times and you still keep bothering me.
"Maybe the police won't believe me but I can still report you for stalking. At the very least it will inconvenience you a fraction as much as you've inconvenienced me. Get it through your thick head! I. Don't Like. You. For the last time, LEAVE ME ALONE."