Strange Occurrences

     The next morning I get out of bed feeling refreshed and happy.  Man that was a good night for once!  I hear the shower running in the bathroom.  I never really thought about it, but the bathroom is to the right of the dresser, which features a toilet (duh,) a sink with drawers and a tub to take showers or baths in.  I go through the left door into the kitchen and pour myself a bowl of Raisin Bran.  In about a half an hour Dianne comes out of the bedroom wearing a blue dress with little roses for Sunday service today.  She smiles and pokes my shoulder.  "It's your turn, munchkin."  With a quick kiss on the cheek and an "I'll be right on it" I enter the bathroom to take a shower.  I take my shirt off and I can smell the BO on my body.  Ugh, it smells like I haven't taken a shower for a week!  I quickly take a shower after shaving and put deodorant on until I'm satisfied, then I head into the kitchen where my wife is also enjoying a bowl of cereal. I breathe in deeply as I prepare my question.
     "Hey honey, I was just wondering something."  She looked up with a bored expression and stated plainly, "Hit me."  I put the words together in my mind and carefully express them in order not to offend her.  "I noticed your parents are acting a bit… strange around us."  Her eyes widened a bit at that statement before regaining her previous composure with a little bit more interest.  "What do you mean by that, hun?"  "I mean they're talking about us.  I overheard your mother asking if I was ready for something."  My wife sighed.  "I'm sorry, Gabey (it's one of her pet names,) I should have told you sooner."  I sit down across from her and settle in.  "You see, I have a… medical condition.  I have to go away every leap year to get treatment for it.  It usually lasts until about the same time next year, when I get back."  I shift in my seat.  "Why didn't you tell me earlier, honey?  Well it doesn't matter, I'll come with you!"  The room fell silent.  "…what's wrong?"  She looks up and looks me in the eyes.  "I…  I don't think you can come with me.  They don't allow visitors, only patients."  Tears fill her eyes.  "I'm sorry, but I can't take you with me!"  She breaks down crying and I get right behind her, rubbing her back with sympathy.  In a low and gentle undertone I ask her, "Can you at least tell me what it is?"  She manages to answer me between her sobs.  "I… I can't tell you."  I stand up and stroke my hair.  "Well, this is a doozy," I mumble.  "Come on, hun, let's go to church."
     After church I notice I can smell things that I have never smelled before, like flowers, the food in that restaurant we just passed, and… that dog?  Wait a second… I can also smell the other people, Dianne, my BO – oh crud, the deodorant isn't working!  I try to go on like everything is completely normal.  The smells are driving me crazy though, like someone put my nose on overdrive.  Did someone put Vicks on that flower last night or something?  Or maybe the flower did something?  I dismiss the notion as ridiculous and try to go about my day.  Later in the week some of the people who are coming into the donut shop smell ridiculous, and sometimes someone walks in with so much perfume it feels like someone is punching me in the nose.  I often feel like reeling back but I pretend nothing is happening.
   These events continued through the entire week until a week later during the new moon, when the flower bloomed again.  I really don't know why it's blooming again, because it wilted last week!  Nonetheless I stay away from that flower this time so I don't get shocked again like last time.  The flower is glowing bright yellow; I don't know why and I don't care, either.  I slip into the bedroom and go to bed, continuing to keep my thoughts to myself.
     I don't feel anything different the following day, and for most of the week I don't feel anything at all, besides the heightened sense of smell.  Then I start getting these strange feelings.  Right before someone bumps into me I get this little feeling in my stomach.  It feels really weird and alien to me and it worries me a lot.  Thursday evening I'm returning home from getting groceries when suddenly I get this horrible gut-wrenching feeling, causing me to feel the need to slow down.  In front of me someone speeds through the intersection with no regard to anyone there, missing my car by inches.  It takes everything I have not to go into shock.  "Yikes! I should've gotten hit back there."  It couldn't have been more than a coincidence, but I can't shake it off in my mind that there is more to it than I realize.  I drive all the way back to my apartment in silence.
     The next Sunday I'm not sure whether or not to talk about what happened the other day to anyone else.  If I tell everyone, they'll probably think I'm just crazy or joking.  Could it be that I'm going crazy?  Maybe I should just be quiet about this for now.  My wife picks up on my silence however, and when we get home from church she asks about it.  "Gabe, what's wrong?  You seem to be very quiet since you came home on Thursday.  Are you all right?"  I sit down on the couch in our small makeshift living room.  "…Yeah, I'm fine, it's just been… eventful."  Dianne sits beside me and starts to rub my back.  "You can tell me anything…  Just tell me what happened."  I told her about almost getting hit on Thursday, leaving out the strange feelings I had beforehand.  She hugs me saying, "I'm just glad you're alright. How about we stop thinking about it and do something nice?"  I nod in agreement.  "Ok, honey, but this time you can pay the bill!"  She makes a mock face and says innocently, "Now, since when did I ever do that?"  We both laugh the tension away as we put on our coats to go out to eat.
     Later that night we got home after a romantic evening at Olive Garden.  I hang my coat up while talking about uncle Vernon.  "…And he says to me, so that's why apples are red!"  We both laugh at the joke.  "Ok honey, I'm going to the–" I see the flower sitting right there… again.  This time the flower is glowing in a fiery orange color.  I notice it's also the first quarter moon and start wondering what's going on.  First on the last quarter, then on the new moon, now this…  Dianne calls out, "Is everything ok, honey?  You stopped talking all of a sudden–" She stops as she also sees the flower, but doesn't gasp until she sees me looking at it.  "You… you can see that, Gabriel?"  I nod.  It's her turn to sigh this time. "I guess I can't keep it from you, but I can't break it to you, either…  Gabriel, I want you to pack your things over the next week, say goodbye to your friends and relatives and tell them we're going on a vacation for a while."  First she has to go alone, and now I'm coming with?  I just don't get it, and I voice my concerns to her.  She reassures me: "Hun, don't worry.  It's not that bad, it's just like a resort and I'm sure you will enjoy it.  Besides, it's just preventative care."  Knowing I'm not going to win this argument I reluctantly go with her plan.
   Over the next week I make many excuses and even more phone calls to help set things up.  It's funny that Dianne wouldn't let me call the hospital, however, and I wonder what's going on because of how suspicious this sounds.  I decide not to think about it too much and just keep going about my business.  The manager at the coffee shop isn't too happy about my leave though, opting to have me not come back to the shop at all… at least not as an employee, anyway.  When I break it to my wife she doesn't seem to mind.  "It's all right, now that you're coming with me my parents will take care of everything.  All you need to do is cooperate, hun." She hugs me. "…And it'll be nice having someone come with me for once."
     The moment we kiss all of my uncertainty just melts away, and so does the rest of the week.  Before I know it, it's Sunday again, and we had just gotten out of the evening service.  When we get home I start asking a lot of questions, but she avoids all of them and says "Let's go to bed early tonight, Gabe.  We have a long day tomorrow."  Sure enough we end up going to bed early tonight.
     I have been starting to get the strange dream I had gotten a month ago again after the flower bloomed orange.  Whenever I get that dream I'm already that green dragon from the start, and every night he tells me different things.  Yesterday he apparently told me that the others are expecting me.  I'm not sure why he says these things, but it worries me a bit.
     The gruff voice continues to talk to me: "…and they will be happy to have you stay here.  Say…  Daniel, was it?  Yes…  I have something very important to tell you."  I just look at him with a bored expression as always. "Let me guess:  You're exited I'm coming, blah, blah, blah."  The golden dragon, who still towers over me by about 10 feet, scolded me: "Now is that any way to speak to your elders?  Oh well… you'll be here soon enough.  You are leaving soon, anyway."  I perk up in surprise. "What?"  The lizard began to speak using careful words, as if he's hiding something.  "Tonight, when you go, follow the one whom you know as Dianne.  She will guide you here."  I glare at him, dumbfounded.  "How would you know about that?  How do you know who Dianne is?  What makes you think I'm going to leave tonight, and not tomorrow like we planned-"
     The dragon interrupted me.  "Actually, you're going to leave now."  "What do you mean–" suddenly I jolt awake.  I look around the room and realize I'm sweating.  I look down at the foot of my bed… and see something that terrifies me.