Split (Split #1) Read Online Free PDF

at him like he was crazy.
    “We just saw a movie yesterday, you really want to go again?” Then, she caught herself. “Oh, whoa, sorry. I was thinking about Sarah and me. We went to a movie the other night.”
    It wasn’t even a very good cover. Dylan must have assumed that something was up, but if he did, he wasn’t letting Claire know. Their life was as normal as it had always been, and Claire still loved him. The dreams with Luke weren’t changing that, after all, she could distinguish fact from fiction.
    She just kept telling herself that this was her way of getting closure, of healing an old wound. That seemed entirely reasonable to her... mostly because through these dreams she had realized something sort of life-altering. Her whole life’s course had changed because of Luke’s death. So many things had fallen out of place, so many of her hopes and dreams steered off-course. He had changed her whole life, even as he left it.
    That’s not to say that she believed that things would be as picture perfect as they were in the dreams if Luke hadn’t passed away. No relationship is perfect, but held up against her day-to-day, sometimes mundane, life with Dylan; it was hard not to wish for the version in her subconscious. Even if she knew that version didn’t really exist, and even if it made her feel a little bit like cheating.
    She made up for it where she could, fixing more elaborate dinners at home with Dylan than she ever had before. Telling him over and over how much she loved and appreciated him.
    Dylan had accepted her going to sessions as a part of her “fun employment phase.” He still didn’t love the idea, though, and had stayed on her about applying for other jobs. As much as he trusted her, he also knew that she could be very naive. For all he knew, these study doctors had been putting medicine in her water at the clinic. More than anything, he wanted to see her find something steady that she enjoyed.
    She hadn’t applied for another job since her first visit to the little pink pills.
     
    ***
     
    Dr. Johns had become friendlier over their weeks together. Claire almost never recognized the same patient twice when she went in for sessions, so she started to assume that she was one of the few they brought back for long-term studies. (She would never have admitted this, but that fact gave her a certain level of satisfaction. She was finally good at something.)
    “How was your week, Claire?” Dr. Johns’ smile was tight and awkward, but it was there.
    “It was fine. How was yours?”
    “Fine as well. I’m asking because I’m curious about your job search. We’re getting a lot of information out of these sessions with you; it is very helpful to the overall study. I know you mentioned that you were in a career transition in your initial questionnaire. Are you starting a new job anytime soon? I just want to be prepared for potentially losing you as a part of the study.”
    “Oh. I’m probably never going to get another job at this rate!” Claire laughed, but Dr. Johns didn’t crack another smile. “I’d honestly been applying, but got frustrated. I’m just taking a little break from all that right now.”
    There was that tight little smile again.
    “I’m so glad to hear that, Claire. We obviously don’t want to keep you from your career, but the longer we can have your time with us, the better. I’m going to make a note that you’ll be coming in for at least... you think, the next six months?”
    That was a fairly big commitment.
    “I can do that.” As she said the words, she knew this was probably a mistake. She’d already wasted three years in the wrong career. She wasn’t getting any younger. She certainly couldn’t live her whole life with the professional title of “sleep study participant.” Still, she felt like she was really hitting a breakthrough with these dreams. It was like rehab for her heart, and she just couldn’t say no to that.
    Maybe this was right where she