Kristine sat curled up on her bed with an English book as she tried to stay focused on the task at hand. Her assignment was to read an excerpt from "Brave New World", but she was having a hard time staying focused.

"All right Kris." She tore her eyes from the book to give her room mate attention. "Now don't stay up all night in that book, take a break here and there." She advised.

Kristine watched as her room mate picked up the last of her luggage and headed out the door. It was Friday and she was going home for the weekend. Normally Kristine would catch a ride back seeing as how they were from the same home town had known each other since 5th grade, but not this weekend. She had way to much work to do and couldn't afford to visit a home with no internet.            

"Have a great weekend James." She hollered behind her. Jamie waved just as the door closed and Kristine listened to her turn the key in the lock.

Well that was it. Here she was alone in her dorm room. This was going to be such a boring weekend. She sighed and fluffed the pillow behind her back before continuing her reading. Thirty minutes later she let out a yawn and rubbed her sore eyes. Maybe a little television would refresh her. She went for the remote and flicked through the channels til she landed on a new episode of E! News.

"Mm..mm..mm" She shook her head as Giuliana DiPandi discussed Britney Spears' latest pantyless appearance. Kristine took a gulp of her soda as they went on to talk about J-Lo's new fragrance and a Rosey and Donald feud.           

 "And when we come back we'll sit down with Justin Timberlake and discuss how he feels about his debut performance in Alpha Dog.” Kristine perked up as she watched a small clip of the blue eyed blonde nodding his head and smiling as he answered a question. "Stay tuned coming up next!"           

With a full blatter Kristine took this chance to hit the bathroom and grab some chips. She hopped back on her bed and popped a Cheeto in her mouth just in time.

"Hey this is Giuliana and you are watching E! News. Now we've seen a lot of performers try and switch over from singing to acting and many have flopped so it's no surprise that Justin Timberlake should be a little nervous about his role in the new movie Alpha Dog."

 "So what made you interested in the part of Frankie in Alpha Dog?"

"Well I read the script and I thought it was pretty interesting so I figured why not? I've been waiting for the right role and this just seemed perfect..."

Kristine sat contently as she watched the rest of the interview. Once it was over she yawned and glanced back down at her book. "All right." She grumbled. With the click of the remote the TV shut off and she went back to work.           

  It was twelve am when she tossed the book down with frustration. "This is so stupid! I hate this story!" She growled. For a moment she fiddled with her spongebob socks and rubbed her temple. "I am so stupid." she grumbled.

 She glanced about the empty dorm with fatigue. "And I'm exhausted." She yawned standing up and stretching. She shoved her books back into her bag and shuffled into the bathroom. She held a pin in her mouth as she pulled all her hair up into a ball and poked the pin through to hold it in place. She glanced down at the twirling water in the sink as she tossed it over her face massaging her cheeks.         

    Slowly she opened her eyes and gazed into the mirror. She gasped as she looked at the being glaring back at her. It was a man. She looked over the blonde curls and blue eyes. Suddenly his lips curved up into a smile and she shrieked as she raced back into her bedroom. She slammed the door behind her and stood with her hands at her cheeks as she tried to get her head straight. "I need to go to bed. I need to go to bed right now!" She instructed herself. She swirled around to do just that when she bumped into something.       

      "Oh my god!" She yelled. Somehow the man had come out of her mirror and was now standing directly before her. "What....is going on?" she said in a tight voice holding her breath. He peered around and moved about her room examining things.

Kristine jolted with fear as he hopped up on her bed and swung his legs. "What's up?" He chirped. She shook her head with wide eyes as she glared at him speechless. "I'm Justin, and if I'm correct you are Kristine right?" She nodded her head slowly. "Nice room."         

   "Why is Justin Timberlake sitting on my bed at... " She glanced at the clock on the wall. "12:08 in the morning!"

"Cause you're a lucky soul!" He chuckled readjusting his cap. "No, on the serious tip I'm here to help you."

"Help me what?"

"I know what you've been thinking."

"What are you talking about?"

"You've been thinking about quiting school haven't you?" She shook her head.

"Not at all."

"Ah cut the crap. If we're ever going to get anywhere you need to quit denying and start opening up."      

 "You are not real!"

"I am yet I amn't." He chimed switching his head from side to side.

 "You created me."

"How?"

 "Through stress."

"What?"

"Well, you sat here studying a book for three hours that should have only taken you one to one and a half hours tops to read and write a report on. Why, because you couldn't focus. And why couldn't you focus, because you were thinking about other things." She shaped her lips to reply, but he cut her off.

"You were criticizing yourself after every sentence because you know you have a reading problem. You tell yourself you can't do it and then prove yourself right by giving up."

"I don't have a reading problem."

"Oh really?" With a wave of his finger the room seemed to turn into a whirl pool as everything became distorted and jumbled. "Does this look familiar?" Kristine glanced about at all her belongings. Everything was backwards and confusing.            

"What did you do to Goldy?" She shrieked as she raced over to what used to be her pet goldfish. He was puffed out in a round shape way larger than usual. "Oh well, he used to live in a bowl and now the bowl lives in him!" Justin grinned. "Change him back!" She hollered. "Fine." He smirked.

"Hey, Are you guys okay in there?!" Kristine glanced at the door and raced over to swing it open. A tall gangly girl peered down at her with concern. It was their suitemate. "Are you guys okay in here? Where's Jamie?"

"She went home for the weekend." Kristine replied with a shaky voice.

"Then who are you talking to?" Kristine turned to peer back into her dorm. Everything was as it used to be. Even Goldy was swimming about quite happily in his glass bowl.

"Oh I had the television up a little too loud that's all I'm sorry." She apologized.

"No problem." Her suitemate said hesitantly. "So long as you're okay."

"I'm fine thanks." Kristine grinned and shut the door slowly.            

With a sigh she turned around and looked about her room. "A shower a shower." She chanted as she gathered her towel and rag. She trekked into the bathroom with her shower shoes and undressed.

The warm water sprinkling over her skin was soothing and she let out a long relaxed breath. She lathered slowly enjoying every moment of her hot shower when suddenly she felt a hand on her back. She quickly made a one eighty to see a naked Justin Timberlake glaring at her.

She screamed loudly and backed herself into the corner. She tried to stretch the wash rag over her privates and cover the rest with her hand.

"You can't be in here!" She yelled. She eyed him quickly and her eyes bulged as she caught a glimpse of what was below his waist line. "Oh!" She hollered as she covered her eyes, peeking occasionally through her fingers.            

Justin smiled softly as he moved towards her. "Kristine, relax." He chuckled. "I'm just a figment of your imagination."

"No! I do not imagine being in the shower with pop stars okay! Now go away!"

"Kristine I can't hurt you."

"You're invading my privacy!"

"Then make me go away."

"I just said go away!" She stood hunched in the corner with her hand over her eyes and finally when she heard nothing she slowly pulled her hand away. She looked around the empty bathroom and there was no sign of him.

"God I must be losing it." She huffed.

"No I think you might be gaining a little something." She shrieked once more as she twisted to see Justin standing behind her eying her nude bottom.

"You said I could make you go away!" She cried.

"You did for a split second."

 "So then why are you back?!"

 "Ask yourself that. There must be a reason. The only way I can be standing here is through you and your will. Maybe you want me here-"

 "I DO NOT want to be stalked in the shower! What's wrong with you?!"

"I think a part of you wants help, but you're too afraid to ask for it so you are creating me as an illusion."

"Help with what?"

"Kristine, it's okay. You have dyslexia it's nothing to be ashamed of."

 "I do not have dyslexia!"

"KRISTINE! ARE YOU SURE YOU'RE OKAY?" Her suite mate pounded on the bathroom door.

"I'M FINE. I'M JUST....REHEARSING."

"REHEARSING?"

"YEAH! YOU KNOW HOW SOME PEOPLE LIKE TO SING IN THE SHOWER?"

"U-HUH."

"WELL I HAVE DRAMA THIS SEMESTER AND I LOVE REHEARSING IN THE SHOWER. YEAH SEE MY PROFESSOR SUGGESTED I FIND A CALM RELAXING SETTING TO GO OVER MY LINES AND WHAT BETTER RELAXING PLACE THAN THE SHOWER?" Kristine stuck her tongue out and cringed from all her lying, but her suite mate would definitely think she was crazy if she told her that Justin-Timberlake was in the shower with her!

"Well........ okay. Goodnight Kris."

"GOODNIGHT TASHA!"            

Kristine waited for the click of her suitemates door shutting before she turned back to Justin who was sniffing her body wash. "Ooo this smells like skittles!" He beamed scrubbing beneath his pits.

"Cut it out!" She barked snatching the soap from his hand.

"Girl, I gotta get clean!"

"Illusions don't get dirty. They don't exist!"

"No, no, no." He said wagging a finger in her face. "I may have said I couldn't hurt you, but that doesn't mean I don't exist."

"But you are not the real Justin Timberlake! He's in California or whatever! You, like you said, are just a big ball of my stress!"

"Well whatever I am." He said rubbing his hand slowly over his abs and pursing his lips out at her. "I smell sexy." Kristine trembled with fury as he licked his lips pretending to be LL Cool J.

"You are a freak! I did not create you now get out of here!"

"Okay okay relax, and quit shouting. If you want me out of here we probably need to get to work."

"On what?"

"You cutie pie." He grinned, lightly pinching her chin. "I think I'm all fresh now." He wrapped her pink towel around his waist and flip flopped out of the shower. Kristine stood speechless once more as she watched him disappear around the corner and out of the bathroom. 

"I'm dreaming. I fell asleep and can't wake up." she slapped herself hard and then again.

"Will you stop that what's the matter with you? Crazy!" Her illusion was peeking at her from around the corner. "Quit hurtin' yourself and hurry up! We've got an essay to write and it’s late enough as it is." He disappeared back around the corner and she quickly shut the door. "I have definitely lost it!"            

Kristine peeked outside the bathroom door. She was finished bathing and still wasn't quite sure if she was dreaming or not. Her towel was still missing and so she grabbed her toiletries and made a mad dash for her room before her suitemate decided to get up for a bathroom visit.

She quickly scuttled into her room placing her shower bucket at the top of her closet. She glanced about. It was quiet and she was alone. She rubbed lotion on her arms and legs and then found a pair of panties, with a pink and green frog cheesing on the front.

With a short blue t-shirt hanging just below her belly button she stood in the center of the floor and counted out twenty jumping jacks. "11..19, 20" She huffed before pulling the covers back to climb into bed. She laid in the darkness and shut her eyes as she began to drift off.

She was so tired she didn't even feel something crawling up on the bed with her. It wasn't until the thing was hovering directly above her face that her eyes shot open and she flung her hand out for the lamp.            

"Morning!" she glared up with her mouth dangling open. Justin was on his hands and knees looking down at her.

"Get-off." She ordered. He hopped back on his butt causing the bed to bounce like waves.

"What are you doing I told you we had an essay to write."

"It is 1:30 in the morning! I'm not writing anything!"

"Oh come on!" He whined. "I've been reading the excerpt! This is a pretty good story." He smiled flipping through her English book and stopping on the correct page.

"What do you mean you've been reading it?" Kristine muffled with her face in the pillow. Her voice took on an annoyed tone.

"I mean I've been reading it."

"Where? Where were you hiding?" She growled irritably, thinking of the second eye full he must have gotten of her when she came prancing into her room naked.

 "I wasn't hiding anywhere." she sat up and peered at him.

"Then how could you be reading my English book if you weren't here?!"

"Ooh! This is the good part!" Kristine rolled her eyes and let her head fall back into the pillow. He smacked her thigh. "Get up! We gotta read this! Here." She propped herself up with her pillow and took the book as he handed it to her. "Read it to me." Her face drooped and her eyes filled with fear as he grabbed one of her pillows for comfort.

"Here you read it." She insisted shoving the book back in his direction. "I don’t think so." He directed the book back to her and she gulped before lifting it to block her face. With a sigh she began to stare at the words on the page.

"ght mniutes of hard X-rays deing adout as mch as an gg can stadn. A few bieb; of the rst, the lesat suscpetibl dvibed into tw; most pt t four dubs; some ght; all were retunred to the incbtrs, where the bubs degan to bevelop; then, ftr two dyas, were subbenly chileld, chileld and chceked."

"E-eight minutes of hard X-rays..being about as...much as an.....egg? Can stand. A few......died; of the..rest, the least...." She tapped her finger against the page as she studied the word. "Susceptible.."

Kristine flopped the book into her lap and peered at Justin. He was hugging her pillow and watching her intently. He reminded her of a small child listening to one of his parents read him a bedtime story.

"I'm kinda tired. Can we not do this tonight?"

"But you were doing so well.”

“Well! You call that reading well? I was doing terribly!”

“No, the only way you can be doing terribly is if you give up. You were doing fine. Now keep going.”

She sighed and stared at the book in her lap. Propping it up with her knees so she could see it better she began again.

“d-divided into two; most put out four buds; some...eight; all were returned to the in-in.......incc..............” Kristine paused to bite her lip. She gazed up at Justin who was staring at the book with curiosity and then to her.

“Do you need help?” He asked. She simply gazed at him unsure of what to say.

“Here let me see.” He said warmly as he slid over beside her to see the word. “Incubators.” He sounded out running his finger over the letters. “I know it may have looked pretty tough but sometimes when you have dyslexia vowels can seem to disappear-"

“I know how to read thank you!” She snapped snatching the book from his hand. He gazed at her with a light lopsided grin.

“I know you know how to read Kristine and I’m glad you know that too.”

 “Then stop…talking to me like I’m in frickin Kindergarten!”

“I’m not I’m just-“

“Treating me like I’m retarded or something.” She nodded vigorously.

“No! I’m just trying to help you. Calm down.” He slid back to his previous spot and sat quietly. “Please..” he said with his fingers intertwined over his mouth. “Continue.”

Her eyes were now fireballs as she switched her attention from him to the book. “Where the buds..began to develop; then...then...f-f-t..... ”

She peered back up at Justin who was watching her this time making sure to stay silent and give her the opportunity to work it out on her own.

“I’m tired.” She stated. She felt weak beneath his eyes and shuffled uncomfortably as he continued to watch her.

“You’re not tired Kristine.”

“Yes I am! It is now 2:00 am and I have had a long day!” She slapped the book shut and tossed it onto her night stand.

“Do you mind?” She scoffed tugging at her comforter. He got up from the bed and she pulled the covers up to her shoulder. She shut her eyes and prepared for sleep.

“You can be gone now!” She said sharply. She laid there for a moment or two in silence before slowly cracking her eyes. He was gone. “Some 'illusion.'” She smirked and cut out the light to go to sleep.

Excerpt from "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley