Sweet Dreams Part 1 – Prologue

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This story is based on the world of “Genie Chronicles” by Joe Brolly. There is another offshoot series call “Beautiful Wish” that also explores that world. I know someone has recently reposted those stories here, but I read them originally on another site. There are also some concepts from other stores, such as an element from “Bait & Switch” that I thought would fit well. This is the first major story of this type I have done (I did do a relatively short but intense one for a friend a year ago, but it got deleted. I may attempt to ressurect it if that person gives me permission though)

Now, HUGE WARNING – this is very long, and the sex isn’t until WAY at the end, and it is rather short. I promise that when I write further parts that there will be far more sex, and it will be significantly more in depth. The first tag is romance for a reason. To make my premise work, the story was forced to work this way, and the characters needed to have significant development before any sex could happen. It explores a lot of themes along the way, but it is longer.

So, if you are looking for a quickie, this is not likely to be the story for you. If you like reading for the characters and can accept a deeper story, then this is likely more up your alley. And further installments will reward you for sticking with it.

I am a rather busy person, so I am not going to give you a timeline when parts will be done. I will certainly do my best, and I am open to themes and suggestions. However, I will NOT be getting the main characters pregnant any time soon, nor will I be including anyone underage. A pregnancy theme is possible, but please don’t ask for it with the main characters. It just wouldn’t work.

Without further ado, I give you the first part of “Sweet Dreams”
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Chapter #1 – Awkwardness and Fear

Brandon trudged into the classroom and slid into his seat. He pulled out his pen and notebook, and just sat there waiting for class to begin. Brandon had the not so great distinction of being slightly above average, and that was about it. He was just one of the people that make up “everybody else”, one of the crowd. He had a few acquaintances, but didn’t really feel the need for any close friends. He was somewhat athletic, but not quite good enough to make the varsity teams. And while he was intelligent, and knew the answers to the questions the teachers often asked, he wasn’t the type to raise their hands to prove it. In fact, the above description of him is likely the most work anyone had ever done to explain who he was. He was just one of the many.

Class continued as usual, notes being taken, the teacher droning on. As with most students, he decided to let his mind wander. And as his gaze lazily surveyed the room, it chanced upon Jeanette, seated just to his left. Jeanette was beautiful, but not many looked at her much beyond that observation. She was the “untouchable” one. She seemed to live her life in a bubble. When she did talk or laugh with people, it was warmly accepted, but she always seems to be the one who was “mature”, and didn’t get caught up in the usual high school games or popularity contests. She acted more like a graduate student than a high school student. When she did talk, it was intelligent, incisive, and even witty. And with her looks, she could have been homecoming queen and valedictorian at the same time.

Those looks are what riveted Brandon at the moment. Her flowing auburn hair seemed to glow, giving the area around her a warm homey feel that seemed to make the fluorescent lights seem that much more weak and ugly. And her beautiful eyes, full of intelligence and wisdom, and with the power to make you think she knew your entire mind with one glance. She was taller than most girls, and built with grace, every part of her body proportionate and elegant. Her slightly upturned nose gave her face a cute quality, but the rest of her figure was pure woman, from her c cup breasts to her hips and classic hourglass figure, although in her case, the slightly narrower athletic version you would see in a swimmer. But it was her eyes that always caught Brandon’s attention.

He was quick to make the look at her a short one. She was out of his league, like comparing a tee ball player to an all star pro. He was good at not being noticed, it was a skill he had perfected over the years, and that was certainly an embarrassment he was not going to chance. So he went back to trying to force himself to listen to the teacher.

The distinct clinking noise of a mechanical pencil hitting the ground made him look down. Her pencil had evidently rolled off her desk, and rolled right under his. Being a gentleman, he quickly picked it up, and half smiled as he handed it to her. And then the unthinkable happened. His eyes caught hers, and he couldn’t look away. He was stuck, transfixed by her. He saw her gaze change from the embarrassed smile, to a look of confusion, then shock, then a smirk. The smirk is what broke the spell. His face flushed deep crimson, and he tried to sink as low in his seat as he could. He covered the side of his face with his hand, wishing he could hide, wishing he could escape. He lived his life enjoying his anonymity, but now the one person he wished would notice him did, but for all the wrong reasons.

The rest of class was torture, and the bell rang. Unfortunately, this bell would not save him. The next class had another teacher who liked to have assigned seats to help her learn the student’s names in the beginning of the year, and liked keeping the troublemakers apart. And so he was going to sit beside her again, like he did for about a third of his classes. His own personal hell would continue in perpetuity, and he would never escape.

He waited as long as he could, and slid into his seat next to her just as the bell rang, and he leaned on his left hand to again hide as much as he could. He continued through the day, avoiding her as much as he could. He was watching the clock the last period, just wanting to go home and end today, and only a minute remained. As he lowered his hand to grab his books, a hand caught his forearm. Fear and terror coursed through him, but she had him in a firm grip, and he knew he was not getting away. He slowly turned to look at her, and again was caught by her eyes. They were hard and firm, just like her grip, and the adrenaline flowed through every fiber of his being, stopping time and making the horror stretch into eternity.

Her eyes softened then, apparently realizing the extent of his fear, and sympathy radiated from her.

She sighed, “I am so very sorry. And I think I owe you an explanation. Can we go somewhere to talk, please? I feel terrible about what happened today. Please, can we talk?”

He was stocked, stunned. What on earth did she have to be sorry for? He was the one staring at her, daring to look up at her on the pedestal. Why she would deign to explain anything to him was beyond him, but he knew he had no choice. He nodded his assent, and she almost reluctantly released his arm.

“Grab your things and meet me in the parking lot. I’ll give you a ride home. I’m in space 211.”

As if he didn’t know what space her car was in, but that was besides the point. He nodded, but his entire demeanor spoke of his defeated attitude. His shoulders hunched, his head down, he still felt like the dead man walking. Just as he thought he was going to escape, he was now going to have to explain himself to her in person, and have her explain why she was not interested in a lowly guy like him.

He grabbed his things and headed out to the lot. He didn’t want to appear rushed, but he also just wanted to get this over with. She was waiting, leaning on the top of her car, and smiled at him as he walked up. It was a warm smile. He thought of it as motherly in that moment, the smile of a queen who has found a peasant that she likes for some reason, but he still felt very much the peasant.

He put his bag in the back seat and sat down, staring at the airbag etching. She got in, started the car, turned off the blasting radio, and they drove in silence for a few minutes. He hated to be the one to speak first, but he felt he had no choice. “I’m off Palmer, on one of the side streets, if you are going to drop me off.”

“Not quite yet, but don’t worry, I know exactly where you live.” Oh great, she knows. Not that she wouldn’t have found out, but he didn’t relish the idea that she knew where to find him already.

“We are going to my house first. I think that it will help far better than I can explain for you to see some things firsthand. However, before we get there, I would like you to understand a few things, ok?”

Of course, he nodded his head. As if he had a choice.

“First of all…”, she said as she pulled up to a red light, “please look at me.”

He turned and their eyes met.

“I really am sorry about today. I never meant to cause you such grief, but I got self involved, and I didn’t really notice as soon as I should have what I was doing to you. I had a lot to think about, and unfortunately, it meant I ended up making today almost as hard on you as it was on me.”

She had no idea just how hard today was obviously. Then again, the perfect never seem to understand how hard the little people have it. She continued, eyes back on the road, but he still felt he was supposed to keep his eyes on her.

“I want you to understand that I am honored that you look at me like that. And frankly, there are very few people who I really feel like I have anything in common with in the world. However, I have always respected you, and felt you were honorable.”

As far as compliments from girls go, “respected” is one of the worst you can get. And “honorable” was a close second, almost a synonym for “chaste”. Welcome to being sort of friends, the one that she tell about her awful boyfriends as you act as her support, while you suffer silently. What a blessing…

“In fact, I’ve been wanting to get to know you better for years, but for some reason I could never get the courage or find a way to start a conversation.”

He had glanced away as soon as she had said respected, but his head whipped around at that. His eyes were wide in shock, and his jaw almost literally fell open. They sat next to each other every day, how could she not find a way to talk to him?

“I’m different from most people, I know that. It is both a blessing and curse. And you will hopefully understand more clearly very soon. You are going to be the first guy I bring home, so I need to tell you a few things to warn you.”

Oh goody, a daddy with a rifle collection and a mom who skins animals, he could just imagine the possibilities.

“My mom and dad are madly in love with each other, and they will absolutely be thrilled to meet you. They will be beaming, I am sure. They will be as nice as you can expect, but I imagine it can be jarring to people who don’t know them. And..”, she turned to glance at him, “I would like you to eat dinner with us tonight. I know this is all very sudden, but I have my reasons. And I want you to feel comfortable with us, so, please, take this to heart: I really do like you.”

This was just a little weird, but then again, maybe he did want a friend. He was so used to gliding through life, that maybe he did want a change of pace. He appreciated that she was trying to be so nice, and he had to give her due credit for that. He decided to take the plunge.

“Let me call my mom, and let her know I won’t be home until later”, he replied, pulling out his cell.

Chapter #2 – Attempts at Understanding

They pulled into a very nice house shortly after, and Brandon braced himself for “the meeting of the parents”. It would have been hard enough if she was his girlfriend, but she wasn’t even that, which meant he wasn’t sure if any of them were on his side.

He walked around the car, and turned to walk up to the door. Jeannette grabbed his hand and squeezed it, “Thank you so much for doing this. Everything will be fine, I promise.” Then she led him up and through the front door, her soft hand never releasing her hold on him.

Jeannette announced her arrival, and her parents entered through a side door, holding hands as well. When they realized he was with her, they indeed smiled so large he was worried they might hurt themselves. Jeannette’s mother hugged the arm of her father and squeezed it tightly. She looked up at him and said a simple word filled with tons of emotion, “Finally.”

Her dad walked forward, proffered his hand and introduced himself. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, I’m Jack, and this is my wife Jen. Welcome to our home.”
Brandon took the hand, and felt the man’s tight but friendly grip. He didn’t seem to be much past his thirties, and his wife was gorgeous, and also appeared young. He saw where Jeannette’s looks came from – her parents where the perfect specimen’s of all that is attractive. But besides their model looks, they had a down-home, cozy feel about them. He oddly didn’t feel judged by them, just accepted. It was the weirdest feeling. Even the piercing gaze of Jen’s eyes as she seemed to know every fiber of who he was didn’t seem to really bother him. Jen looked up at her husband, and it seemed like they had an entire discussion in that glance, and Jack’s smile somehow got bigger.

Brandon then realized he had forgotten to speak, and croaked out, “Pleasure to meet you sir, Brandon Taylor.”, and he blushed red at his perceived rudeness and inability to exude any confidence whatsoever.

“Brandon, again, welcome to our home. We would love to talk with you a little more, but we have a few more items of work to finish up first. Is there any way you would be willing to join us for dinner?”

“Daddy, I already asked, and he will stay. Will you excuse us, I think we should do some studying as well.”

She led him, still holding his hand, up to her beautifully designed room. It was elegant and tasteful, and only served to enhance his feeling of how amazing she was, and how out of his depth he was to be with her.

“Now, can I explain a little of what happened today?” she asked, sitting him next to her on her bed. She folded her legs indian style and turned towards him, and seemed to settle in for a in-depth conversation.

“So, now you’ve met my parents. And like I said, they are madly in love with one another. And that is both my blessing and my curse. In my house, I have a view everyday of how perfect two people can be for one another, how lovely life can be, and basically, a vision of what I want my relationships to be like.”

“However, that is also a curse. I’ve known for years that I may never find someone to compare to that. Someone who is intelligent, caring, and mature enough to know what love truly is. I don’t think of love just as a feeling, that is just affection. Love is a choice, and a hard one to make. It takes commitment, and hard work, although it just seems to come naturally to my parents. No one I have ever met has even come close to getting to the base standards I have trained myself to thrust upon them. It’s not even close to fair to any guy I would end up being with, but it’s a reality I can’t deny. I would need a partner, a match, someone who is able to push me and also be able to complement me. And no one has seemed to come close. This was all subliminal though, I didn’t even I was even subconsciously doing it until today.”

“And then you looked at me. And when I looked into your eyes, I saw something I never expected to see. For a brilliant moment, I saw pure adoration, but also a hint of strength. I have sat next to you on and off for years – I know how smart you are, and I know you don’t feel the need to prove it to anyone. You are self reliant, focused, and have a will to excel. I’ve always appreciated that, but always from afar.”

“Your look struck a chord in me though. At first, it confused me. I never expected to see that look from you, or any person at this point really. Everyone seems to leave me alone.