You finally meet the girl/guy of your dreams and fall in love [ LITERALLY ]

His hands were melting. *Great*, Arthur thought. 
 
 He knew now what had been niggling at him as he'd stared across the room at the two-headed man; it had all felt so casual and real that such a seemingly obvious clue had not shaken him into lucidity. But his hands would do it every time. He stared at them a second time, and again, after a couple of heartbeats, they began to melt until he looked away. 
 
 Arthur paused to compose himself. *This transition is so delicate*; he felt the familiar rush at the excitement of almost limitless possibilities and reflexively responded with feigned boredom, internally directed and designed to fool no one but himself. This had been one of the hardest steps to master but until he'd perfected it he'd so often been shot right out of his dreamscape only to find himself laying under his wrinkled sheets with a quickened pulse. 
 
 Some time later Arthur awakened and began his day. He thought back to the night's activities but already they were like an illusion; diaphanous visions transmuting into tendrils of smoke that slipped through the fingers of his memory as soon as it tried to close its grasp around them. He needed to work on his recall and he knew it. As frustrating as these failures were, those memories of lucid dreams that Arthur did possess, that he ’ d managed to greedily claim for his conscious mind, were so exhilaratingly beyond quotidian waking experience, that he *craved* them, and he *knew* with his being that he ’ d had so many more that had sank beneath the surface of the waters of his mind like rafts of logs that had refused to to be re-fashioned into something else at an awaiting sawmill. 
 
 He had big plans today; he ’ d been corresponding with the most interesting woman and today he was going to meet her. The particulars of this situation were quite contrary to the way that Arthur usually operated. He was currently single, and though he ’ d always dismissed the very few matchmaking attempts perpetrated by his well-meaning parents, on this occasion, he ’ d taken notice when his father mentioned a girl that seemed to share his interests. Arthur spent a fair amount of time contemplating the nature of reality, from quantum physics to Buddhist views that this was all an illusion, and this commonality had been the basis for a few email exchanges before they decided to meet. 
 He drove the several hours home to the touristy but posh seaside town of his childhood and met her, as arranged, at her parents ’ house where she was house-sitting while they were out of town. 
 
 As Valerie opened the door she immediately swept Arthur up into a casual conversation and apologized that she ’ d lost track of time while gardening and that she ’ d need a few minutes to get ready. Arthur didn ’ t care; his first thoughts were that she looked even better than the picture his father had shown him, and a conscious decision to just roll with things as they unfolded. 
 
 She ’ d shown him in through the side door into the kitchen. Arthur could see the ocean. It was a spectacular view with scattered sailboats and the restaurant-dotted wharves of the downtown to which they ’ d soon be heading. It was almost enough to distract him from his host, who asked him if he ’ d prefer beer or wine as she just as casually began to tell him that as a child she would get up from her body as she fell asleep and walk around her room while her body remained in bed. She was testing Arthur. Arthur was quite interested, although truly his attention had been split as she ’ d leaned over into the fridge to retrieve two Heinekens. *Nice ass. * Her tight black jeans hugged her hips during the maneuver. Also, it was clear to him that she wasn ’ t bullshitting about the astral projection. This was going to be an interesting evening. 
 
 ** ( Part 2 coming soon? ) **
