Amazing how a few little clouds could lead to such a special afternoon. The breeze was nice and cool, especially under the shade of the oak tree. They were smiling and laughing – all four of them. Ashlynn laid on the blanket she brought as she listened to Dorian and Rey point out different shapes and animals while Soren laid not too far away from her left ear.

She couldn’t believe that it had been a year since meeting the three brothers and learning who and what they were – Borrowers. It was a whirlwind experience and one she would never forget.

She first encountered the four-and-a-half-inch tall race of people who lived in the walls and floorboards of homes and apartments when she found Soren, the eldest brother, injured and sick on her kitchen floor. It took weeks of convincing, but once she had earned his trust and the trust of his brothers, they became friends; more than friends - family. 

Ashlynn could hear Dorian and Rey laughing, Soren chiming in every once in a while. Their laughs were contagious and, once they began, it was hard to stop. She glanced over at the boys, eyes catching Soren who was so close. His dark brown hair, flecked with faint golden highlights, fell partially into his golden hazel eyes. 

He looked back at her, turning those once fearful golden orbs onto her, a quirky smile pulling onto his lips. It looked like he was going to say something. Ashlynn held her breath, awaiting his words. Why was her heart pounding? 

Ashlynn woke suddenly with a start as her alarm blared on her nightstand. She wrenched her hand free of the sheets and blankets, fingers slamming down on the familiar and worn out “Snooze” bar. The human woman let out an exasperated sigh and slumped back onto the covers, burying her face into her pillow for a solid thirty seconds. 

It was a dream. 

It was only a dream; and it wasn’t the only time this one had come to her.

But it wasn’t just a dream. It was a memory - one of the most precious she possessed. She closed her eyes and absorbed the memory, drinking it in so she wouldn’t forget a single detail of that day. Their voices. Their personality quirks. The way they would smile - the way Soren would smile. Heavens she missed them - him. 

She wrenched her head free from the cloth and feathered grasp of her pillow and stared at the red glowing lights of her alarm clock, remembering that day under the tree with the Borrower boys. Had it really been so long since she had seen them? What was it now? Six? No. Seven years. 

It had been seven years since she had seen them. Ashlynn sighed again, resting her forearm onto her forehead. Where were they now? She wondered.