"So, shall we go dream surfing again tonight?" Aalo asked, settling herself cosily into the soft mattress of her bed. Dinner had been magical, and she was totally full. Her eyelids were drooping already.

"You want to go again? After last night?" Pompom hopped in beside her and stretched himself flat, putting one leg on the other in a relaxed manner.

"But we have so many dreams left to explore!" Aalo whined.

"So, did I say I won't take you?" Pompom copied the same tone in his nasal voice.

"I won't talk to you," Aalo puffed up her cheeks, folded her hands and shifted to the other side.

Pompom laughed, "You're so easily annoyed. You're fun to be with."

Aalo turned back slowly, looking at him with narrowed eyes. "Why do you sound like an elder brother suddenly?"

"Because I'm older than you," Pompom grinned.

Aalo glared.

"Fine, go to sleep and I'll meet you in your dreams." Pompom sat up and slithered off the bed, disappearing under it. Aalo quickly closed her eyes, counting her imaginary sheep. Soon enough her consciousness faded into sparkling darkness and she was in the same starlit walkway where the dreams floated like glow flies. Today's dreams were looking exquisitely beautiful and shimmering, and Aalo was trying to decide which to choose when Pompom tapped her shoulder.

"These are so beautiful," Aalo bobbed up and down in excitement. "I can't choose," she complained.

"Then let the dream choose you?" Pompom bared his white teeth ear to ear.

"Means?" Aalo asked confused.

The Gyppie just waved his hands in response and the floating dreams stopped moving. Then they started floating towards Aalo. She took a step back in fear.

"Don't worry," Pompom reassured, "just hold out your hands and close your eyes."

The dreams in a million unique colours suddenly started revolving around her, bouncing and jumping in sprightly dance. There was something magical in that whirling and twirling motion that looked like a bunch of nursery kids in puffy dresses on stage. They were not perfectly choreographed in their motion, but yet they looked cute.

Aalo closed her eyes reluctantly and extended her hands. She could feel something smooth brush against her arms repeatedly. Some were hot, some cold, some medium. Some felt dense, others felt light like fog. Aalo could hear winds and the crashing of waves on the beach, the twitter of birds and the steady hum of bees, mixed with the honking of cars and the painfully loud screech of chalk on board. The sounds were a cacophony of mixed beats, of various dreams brushing past her until she felt something spongy stop at her hand. It felt like cotton candy or soft wool. She heard the familiar sound of a giggle and a voice that was oddly known to her heart. She opened her eyes and found a light greyish-green dream settled on her outstretched palm, which started growing like a cloud gathering moisture.

Aalo was standing on a street, and there was an iron fence in front of her. Pompom appeared beside her promptly.

On the other side of the gate were children, all younger than her- toddlers and preschoolers like little butterflies, jumping and running around, girls with frilly frocks and boys in their small shorts - little chubby faces and beautiful big eyes. And they were not alone. Each had their parents with them.

One father was lifting his son on the slide. The little boy clapped his hands and cried 'wheee' as he slid down and landed face down on the dust. Then he started wailing, and the father picked him up, rubbed his dirty face and lifted him on his shoulders, pretending to be a plane as he zoomed around the slide, holding the boy up on his shoulders.

A mother sat on the bench, trying to feed a rolled up roti (flatbread) to her daughter who was making a crying face with each bite. The mother would give her the red-eye and she would whimper again before taking a small bite of her evening snacks.

Aalo was so busy seeing the parents, missing her dad and her childhood years that she hadn't noticed when Pompom had reached the other side.

"Boo!" Pompom jumped at her from the other side of the painted iron fence. Aalo shrieked and landed on her bum. She laughed, getting up and brushing off the gravels sticking to her dress. Quickly she moved to the open gate. She slid in cautiously and found Pompom jumping in excitement.

"This is a good dream. It is so much fun. Come, let's play on the swings," Pompom offered.

Aalo agreed and hand in hand they rushed to take their turns on the swings. Finally, after some wait, the twins playing there left and Aalo and Pompom grabbed the seats.

"I miss sitting on swings," Aalo said, using her legs to kick off the ground.

Pompom however needed nothing as he could control little things in the dream by magic. He swung slowly and lazily.

"Why?" he turned to her.

"Because I'm too heavy to sit on the school swings anymore. They're for children under eight years, but I'm heavy for my age. They make fun of me saying that the strings will break," Aalo moved back and forth, the memories coming back to her in a flood of emotions.

"You are not," Pompom asserted.

"I know, but that doesn't lessen the jeers I get." Aalo sighed, halting the swing, jumping off.

"What happened?" Pompom asked concerned as he jumped off too, scattering the dust.

"I guess I'm not in a mood anymore. We could go play something..."

Aalo's words stopped in her mouth because her eyes got glued to something in front of her. Pompom's eyes followed her gaze and realised whom she had seen.

"Quick, hide," Pompom dragged a dazed Aalo behind the bushes. Aalo's jaws had fallen open because walking towards the swing was her mother, her mother a few years back. She had longer hair than now and looked quite thin. She held a little chubby toddler on her hips. The toddler had curly black hair and big brown eyes.

"Is that you?" Pompom whispered. Aalo just nodded. Her eyes were glued to the person walking beside her mother. He was tall and clean shaved. His eyes looked to be much lighter in colour than hers. Before she could stop to think of her eyes, the man had already placed the baby version of her on the swing. The little toddler Aalo giggled as he wrapped both his palms on her tiny hands, holding them together with the chains of the swing, his legs giving her gentle nudges to keep the swing moving.

Her mother stood at a distance, contently watching father and daughter play.

"I think I'm in my mother's dream," Aalo whispered to Pompom, "And that guy is my Baba."

"What really?" Pompom rounded his eyes and looked closely at the guy. He looked quite happy, relaxed and satisfied.

"But I don't understand how this is possible? I mean how is it possible that he saw me as a toddler and I don't remember my Baba?" Aalo's face contorted in grief.

"When did he leave you and your mother?" Pompom asked softly.

"Before I was born," Aalo whispered, suddenly unsure.

"It's possible, because after all it's your mother's dream and dreams can make a collage of various unrelated bits sometimes. Your mother's subconscious desires of having you grow up with a Baba are reflected in her dreams," Pompom explained.

"But, the thing is, if this guy is my Baba, I want to meet him," Aalo took a step out of the bush, unconsciously.

"What are you doing?" Pompom hissed, holding her wrist and dragging her back. "You can't show yourself to you. If this happens, you'll get trapped in a dream loop."

"What's a dream loop?" Aalo asked surprised.

"Well, the science is complicated." Pompom scratched his chin. "But it means you'll not be able to get out of this dream."

Aalo nodded, staring longingly at her Baba. Having dreamt of meeting him and now having him so close and yet unable to meet him. It was pure torture. Tears rolled down her eyes involuntarily. Pompom suddenly threw his fluffy arms around her, trying to hold as much of her as possible. Aalo turned and hugged him back tightly, realizing how badly she needed a friendly hug. Finally, they broke apart and Aalo sniffed.

"You made my fur wet with your tears," Pompom complained, pouting his lips and brushing the fur on his shoulders, which were now smooth and sticking to each other.

"Sorry," Aalo mumbled. "But why don't you wear clothes?"

"Never needed that in dreamland." Pompom shrugged.

Aalo laughed, and Pompom couldn't help laughing too. Finally, Aalo turned back to find her Baba loitering away from the swings, just near the bushes. Aalo could almost smell him. He smelt like wet towels and sweaty palms, but it was comforting and homely. But the thoughts evaporated as soon as it had come. This person abandoned her and her Maa. If eyes could burn holes in somebody's shirt, Aalo's gaze could do it right then.

While she stared hard, however, a curious thought struck her. Her father's face was way too familiar. At first, Aalo had shrugged it off as the resemblance she saw in her reflection in the mirror, but that was not it. Aalo had seen this guy's face somewhere...but where?

Aalo racked her brains for a recognizable face. Her memory scanned the neighbourhood and her swimming lessons and finally all the faces at her school. It irritated her when something escaped her memory and just couldn't come. But that itch in her brain was way too annoying.

"It's time to go, Aalo," Pompom urged her finally, after waiting for a long while. Aalo simply nodded, letting herself be led away silently.

And the rest of the journey didn't seem to register as her eyes flew open in her bed. She felt the soft hands of Pompom leave hers as she settled into a dreamless sleep.

❤️❤️❤️

A/N Where do you think Aalo saw her Baba before ?