The Fence, Ch. 2

Here's chapter two of The Fence.  My chapters are very short, I know. I'm considering squishing them all together. Though, as I remember the books I read when I was younger, I think to myself that perhaps they would be fine as they are.

Chapter two touches on the dreams that those simply known as "dreamers" seem to have.  Maybe everybody has dreams in this town? Maybe not.  I'm planning on beefing this chapter up later, so this is just a first draft.
Chapter after cut.

Chapter 2

Dreamers Dream

 Jackie did not sleep much that night; thoughts of climbing the fence and being free of the greys and browns and other dull colours once and for all kept her awake.  The moments when she did sleep were filled with bright colours, some of which she’d never seen around town before.  

She dreamt of life on the other side of the fence, and what it would mean for her family.

Ma wouldn’t creak and crack anymore. Instead, she would sing and dance.  Her brown hair would wave in the wind, her skin would tan and become pink in her cheeks, and she would be happy.  Most of all, there would be no more meatloaf.

Oh, the thought of no more meatloaf... Jackie loved the idea. She dreamt of new foods, ones made of strange fruits and others constructed with oddly shaped vegetables.  There were more meats, different than meatloaf, and the drinks weren’t fizzy, or black for that matter.

Life would be amazing across the fence, her sleeping brain told her, and all it would take was some convincing for Ma.  Ma needed to see the difference, how happy she could be.

Just as her sleeping mind began to concoct witty tactics to bring Ma to her side of reasoning, the alarm on her clock began to ring.  Her grey eyes snapped open, and not a second later, Ma came into her bedroom.

“Up, time for school,” Ma said routinely.  Ma quickly pulled up the bed sheets, nearly knocking Jackie onto the floor. Shaken, the girl rose and began to dress for school.

While she buttoned her dark grey shirt, the only thing she could think of was how the buttons would look if they were red instead of white, or perhaps green.  She let a small smile escape her at the thought of it.

On her way to school, Jackie walked along the chain link fence.  Her fingers lightly grazed it while she walked, causing it to rattle and shake like the back end of a snake.  The gentle ‘ch-ch-ch’ of her fingertips hitting the chain links echoed in her ears as a reminder of what she could not cross.

“Jackie!” A voice called from behind her.  She spun on her heels and saw another girl her age running towards her.

The girl’s blonde hair sat at shoulder-length and her steel blue eyes were partially covered by thick bangs.  She wore the same grey uniform that Jackie wore, but stood a few inches taller.

“You’re late, Linda!” Jackie said. 

“Yeah, I am.” Linda replied, shaking her bangs from her eyes gently. 

“I slept in... My mom had to wake me again.”

“You’ve been sleeping in a lot,” Jackie stated simply, “are you okay?”

The blonde haired girl nodded and smiled. “Of course I am. I’ve just been having some weird dreams lately.”

Jackie cocked her head curiously.

 “I’ve been dreaming about birds. Like pigeons, but more colourful. They looked like... Like... What do you call them? When lots of those bright colours are in the sky...”

“Are you talking about rainbows?” Jackie suggested.  Linda nodded enthusiastically.

“Yes! Rainbows. The birds were every colour... Red... Blue... Green... Even some I don’t even know the names of!”

The idea that someone else could dream of colours filled Jackie with relief.  She wasn’t alone, nowhere near.