Whatever After #4: Dream On Read Online Free PDF

neck!”
    “That’s the way the song goes,” I say. Hmm. She has a point. What if I change the words? “Let me try again. Close your eyes. Ahem. Rock-a-bye Brianna, on the tower top. When the wind blows the … princess will rock. When the bed breaks, the mattress will fall. And down will come princess … ” My voice trails off.
    “That is not much better.”
    “Sorry,” I mumble.
    Bri sighs. “Why don’t you just hum softly?”
    I nod. Then I hum. Robin closes her eyes.
    I keep humming. Hummmmmmmm . Another drop of water lands on my head. Then on Bri’s cheek.
    “This isn’t working,” Bri says.
    “Do you want me to find you some warm milk? That helps me fall asleep sometimes. Or maybe an eye mask? It’s too bright in here because of the skylights, even with the rain. Where are we anyway? We’re in a tower, right?”
    “We’re in the west tower,” Brianna says. “At court.”
    “We’re at a court?” I ask. My heart thumps. “Like criminal court?” I would love to see a court. Judges work in courts!
    Bri shakes her head. “No. The royal court.”
    Oh. Right. Royal court. Oops. “So we’re not in a castle?”
    “No,” she says. “But we’re only a few minutes away.” She closes her eyes again. “Maybe we should try counting turtles.”
    Did she say turtles? “You mean sheep, right?”
    She shakes her head. “No, I mean turtles. Why would you count sheep?”
    “Um … I don’t know. Because they’re kind of fluffy? They look like clouds. Why turtles?”
    “Because they’re slow walkers.”
    Can’t hurt. “One turtle. Two turtles. Three turtles —” I feel ridiculous counting turtles but at least Bri looks more relaxed, so I keep going.
    I try to imagine them. Little turtles. Green turtles. Slow turtles.
    “Four turtles. Five turtles. Six.” Bri looks like she’s relaxing even more. This is working! Her breathing just got heavier, too. I wave my hand over her eyes and she doesn’t move. I think she’s sleeping! I should keep going, though, so her sleep gets really deep.
    “Seven turtles. Eight turtles. Nine turtles.” Yawn. Maybe I should lie down, too? My arms are feeling kind of heavy. “Ten turtles. Eleven turtles.” I curl up at the bottom of the bed. “Eleven turtles.” Did I already say eleven? I think I did. Oh well.
    It can’t hurt if I close my eyes for a few minutes, can it? I’m tired. It’s the middle of my night, after all.
    Eyes. Heavy.
    So very heavy.
    I’m so very ti …

B ANG! BANG! BANG!
    My eyes fly open. What is that? Where am I?
    BANG! BANG! BANG!
    I open my eyes. Jonah is smashing together two copper pots directly above me.
    I realize I’m lying in a very uncomfortable position on the bed, my head at a ninety-degree angle. Bri is sleeping on the other end. Robin is sleeping on the floor beside me. Everything that’s happened rushes back to me.
    “What are you doing?” I whisper to Jonah while waving frantically. “Stop!”
    “I’m trying to wake up Robin,” Jonah says.
    “I just put Bri to sleep,” I whisper back.
    But it’s too late.
    Bri is groaning in bed, her eyes open. She is covering her ears with her hands. “Has it been a hundred years? Are we in the future?”
    “No,” I say. I pry the pots out of my brother’s hands. “My brother ruined our plan.”
    “But I was asleep,” Bri complains. “I really was.”
    I glare at Jonah. “What were you thinking?”
    He scowls. “She’s supposed to sleep for a hundred years. Once we put her to sleep, I didn’t think she was going to wake up. It was a curse.”
    “He has a point,” I admit, staring at my sleeping friend. “I don’t think any amount of noise will wake up Robin.”
    “So what will ?” Jonah asks.
    That’s when it hits me. “A prince! A prince will wake her up! That’s what the twelfth fairy said and that’s what happens in the story. A prince kisses her and that’s when she wakes up. We need to find a prince.”
    “Great idea,” Jonah says. “Do you