As Joan climbed into bed, she thought about Father Ben and Lil. She felt like a fool for being so naive. Of course a man as handsome as Father Ben would probably not remain celibate. And who could blame him? With a gal pal as attractive as Lil constantly touching him and fawning all over him. It was only natural that sooner or later he would break his vows.
But then why had he chosen to become a Catholic priest? He could have converted to another Christian denomination and become a reverend or a pastor. Most protestant ministers were able to have girlfriends and get married. Not that Joan cared about Father Ben maintaining his chastity - she was an atheist after all. But Father Ben was a hypocrite. He had no business wearing the clerical collar and telling people to address him as 'Father.'
Joan cringed when she thought about how she had apologized to Father Ben for kissing him and coming onto him. She had no doubt that he and Lil were probably fucking each other's brains our at that very moment. But not before having a good laugh at Joan behind her back first.
And to make matters worse, she was scheduled to work at the rectory the very next evening. She would be required to cook dinner for the the young priest and his female guest. Joan shuddered with disgust at the idea of the two of them touching and petting and cuddling with each other. And she would be forced to watch their affectionate displays of "friendship" as she served the two of them their dinner and cleaned up after them. As Joan switched off her bedside lamp and pulled up the covers, she seriously considered quitting her part-time job for real this time.
As she lay in the dark unable to sleep, an creepily familiar sound caught her attention. Her body stiffened as she listened to the noise outside of her open window. It was the unmistakable call of an owl hooting. Oh no, Joan thought to herself. The owl from the church did not follow her home, did it? I'd better close my window, she silently decided.
However, when Joan went to throw back the bed covers, her arms would not move. When she attempted to swing her legs out of bed, the muscles in her caves and thighs refused to comply. She tried to sit up, but her torso remained locked in position. She could not turn her head. She could not mover her fingers. She could not wiggle her toes.
Okay, Joan thought. Remain calm. It's no big deal. This is obviously just sleep paralysis. There's no reason to get upset, she said to herself.
The only part of her body that she could move was her eyes. To the best of her ability, Joan scanned the room. She glanced over to the window. Much to her relief, there was no owl from what she could see. Maybe the hooting she heard had been a hallucination. Maybe there was no owl outside of her window, Joan considered optimistically.
She moved her gaze from the window over to her open closet. There was nothing there except for a pile of dirty laundry on the floor. Of course there's nothing there, she thought. What had she been expecting to find?
It was not so bad, she just needed to wait it out. From what Joan had heard, sleep paralysis usually only lasted a few minutes. But then again, a few minutes could feel like an extremely long time when you had no control over your body.
As Joan's eyes drifted over to the left hand corner of the room, it appeared empty at first, just as she had suspected. However, as Joan looked down to the floor, she could see, peeking out from the darkness, a pair of feet. Bare feet with painted toenails.
Joan thought she felt her heart stop. She could feel the blood drain from her face. It isn't real, she told herself. There's nothing there. It's just a mirage. This is just one of the side effects of sleep paralysis. Don't be scared. There's nothing to be afraid of.
The feet began to move. First the left and then the right, they glided across the floor. Step by step, a figure emerged from the unlit corner. It was a woman and she was nude. Her thick hair loosely hung down in long waves over her shoulders. Her pale skin reflected the moonlight coming in through the window. A thatch of downy auburn hair was nestled between the tops of her thighs. Her breasts were round and full. The peaks of her light rose nipples were pointed. They seemed to be pointing at Joan as the woman approached the bed.
Joan's mind was racing. She was trying not to panic. She just kept saying over and over to herself, it's not real. It's not real! It's NOT REAL!
Joan had read articles before about sleep paralysis. Logically she knew that she was experiencing a very common hallucination. Seeing a shadowy figure next to the bed was not a unique occurrence for sufferers of the condition. Rationally, she knew it was nothing to be afraid of. No one could be physically harmed by an unconsciously created phantasm. But actually seeing it first hand was a completely different and terrifying experience, versus simply reading an article about it.
As the unclothed woman stepped nearer to the window, the silvery moonlight illuminated her face. Her beautiful face. She turned to Joan and smiled. Her green eyes twinkled.
Oh for christ's sake! Even during sleep paralysis, I have to be tormented by fucking Calla Lily! This is just perfect, she thought bitterly. However, she found some small comfort in reminding herself that it was just a figment of her imagination. And that, in a moment or two, the image of Lil would soon vanish. This figure of Lil standing by her bed was not actually there. Joan lay silent and motionless as she anticipated Lil's inevitable disappearance. Patiently she waited. And waited. And waited.
But Lil did not disappear. Instead she moved closer. She stood at the foot of Joan's bed, grinning down at the incapacitated girl, making Joan inwardly shudder. Lil bent forward and placed her hands on the bed, on either side of the Joan's legs. Joan felt the lower half of her mattress sink down. Was that part of the hallucination? She tried to cry out, but she could not open her mouth. She could not activate her vocal cords.
Lil moved forward, bringing her knees up one by one onto the bed. The bed frame creaked and the springs squeaked as Lil crawled up towards the headboard. Her plump breasts swung freely. Joan noticed that she had a small dark brown mole just above her right nipple.
Lil straddled the younger woman between her long lean legs. She brought her face very close to Joan's and looked into the girl's wide terrified eyes. Then, ever so gently, she planted a soft kiss on Joan's lips. It was the same cool dewy sensation that Joan remembered feeling on her cheek earlier that evening.
My subconscious is simply using my past experiences and memories to create the details of this hallucination, Joan told herself. It isn't real. It can't be real.
Lil shifted down slightly and took the top of the sheet and duvet lightly between her fingers. Slowly, she pulled down the covers, revealing Joan's simple blue nightgown. The marian colored garment came down to about mid-thigh. Lil placed her hands on the sides of Joan's knees and slid her fingertips up and down the outside the young girl's legs. Joan's stomach did a somersault.
If this was a trick of the mind, then why did everything seem so real, Joan wondered.
The unclothed older woman leaned forward, tilted her face up and placed a kiss on Joan's neck, in the hollow of her throat. Joan was not imagining things. She could FEEL it. It was tactile and tangible. It felt real.
Lil slowly rose up, sat back on her haunches and looked down at Joan. She studied the girl's youthful face for a moment. Joan had no choice but to wait and see what Lil would do next. She rubbed Joan's shoulders and then brought her hands to the girl's bare neck. She caressed Joan's throat with her fingers. It would have almost felt good, had Joan not been so frightened.
As Lil stared down at the motionless younger woman, her lips curled into something resembling a smile. Her fingers stopped moving for a moment as she simply rested her hands around Joan's neck. Joan's heart was beating wildly in her chest. She was not sure, but she thought she could feel Lil applying pressure with her long fingers, which were wrapped around Joan's throat. The pressure increased. Lil's grip became stronger. She squeezed harder.
Was this real? Did Father Ben put a drug in Joan's glass before pouring her wine? Was that why she could not move? Was Lil going to strangle her?
However, Lil released her neck and slid her hands down to Joan's chest. She reached for the top button on the plain nightdress and unfastened it. Then she did the same to the second button. And the third. And the fourth. Before long, Joan's dowdy blue nightgown was completely undone. Lil raised her left eyebrow and, with a sly smile, cocked her heard to the side. She stared down at Joan with an inquisitive expression.
At long last, Joan was finally able to regain control of a few of her muscles. She found that she was able to move her head. And she was able to open her mouth. Without thinking it through, Joan found herself affirmatively nodding her head. She parted her lips and, before she knew what was happening, Joan whispered the word, "Yes."
