Tick tock, tick tock.
Is all I hear in the stillness of the detention room.
I stare blankly at the clock hoping for the time to leap with every tick. My friend Maya and I got after school detention because we got caught skipping all of our classes together. And we have to spend three hours, for an entire school week, in detention.
"Uh, why is time so slow when I want it to go fast?!"I say, aggravatingly.
"Liz it's not that bad, let's just get our work done," Maya says, reassuringly.
"Well it's hard for me to get my work done when I don't know half of the questions on my paper," I respond, irritatingly."And plus, I don't even pay attention in class."
Maya grabs my papers and skims them.
"Good luck with your work," she says, sarcastically."Your best option is to ask that quiet kid back there."
We both peer to the back of the detention room. A boy with pale skin, black hair, and all black clothes is sitting at the very back of the room. He's so silent it only seemed like Maya and I are in the room.
"He seems weird,"I whisper to her.
"He looks kinda freakish," she says, quietly.
We chuckle quietly. I get up, with my papers in my hand, and walk swiftly over to him. The room seems darker where he is even though sunlight is pouring through the room. He's looking down at his desk as if there's an invisible worksheet.
"Hey, could you help me with my work?" I ask.
The boy glances up leisurely at me. His eyes were like black portals sucking you in, but you never come back out.
"Sure," he says dryly.
I place my papers on his desk and sit in the seat in front of him. He helps me with my math work.
"What's your name?" I question.
"Nomed,"he responds, plainly.
"Cool name, I'm Liz,"I say."I know mostly everyone in this school, but I never see you around?"
"I know who you are,"Nomed states."I always see you around, but you never notice me."
We both went soundless.
"Liz," Maya calls me.
"What?"
"Come here."
"I'll be back,"I tell Nomed.
"Or will you,"he says as I walk to Maya.
She looks exhilarated.
"Guess what?"She asks, excitedly.
"You finished your work,"I answer, unsure.
She places her phone near my face so I could read it. She took her phone back from the teacher's drawer when the teacher left a while ago.
"No, Jenny asked if we wanted to go to the mall with her and some other friends?"
"Don't be too loud, the teacher might hear us."I say."Why are you so excited about that?"
"Ok, I'm excited because Jack's gonna be there too,"she voices, making kissy faces."You can finally talk to him and tell him you like him."
"I don't know I'm kinda nervous,"I say, unconfidently."When are we going to the mall, anyways?"
"They're getting ready to go now."
"What, we have to be here for two more hours," I say, aghast."Just tell her we can't go."
"I already told her we want to go, and I told her to pick us up from where the detention room is,"Maya states.
"No, we're gonna get in even more trouble. The teacher will obviously know we're gone," I argue."First you stole your phone back and now you wanna sneak out of detention."
"Let's take the risk because it'll be fun, and don't forget Jack's gonna be there," she bribes me.
"It's not worth getting in more trouble, but I guess I'll go," I say, unsure.
Buzz.
"Jenny says she's outside," Maya tells me.
We quickly pack up our belongings. I walk over to Nomed's desk and grab my papers and pencil.
He grabs my wrist and says,"don't escape or there'll be a messy mistake."
He smirks and loosens his grip. I walk away glancing back at him acting like nothing happened
Maya opens the window slightly and says,"Liz come on."
"Are you sure you want to do this?" I question, again.
"Yeah, I have nothing else to live for," she responds."Now help me open this window."
I use all my strength to slide the window up. I manage to open it halfway.
"I don't think I can open it any further," I say, tiredly.
Maya tries to squeeze her petite body through the opening. I try to push her through.
"Try to open the window more," she tells me.
Her body's hanging half out the window because she's stuck.
I attempt again but it's no use.
"Why are we even doing this in the first place," I say, agitated."Maya you always pull me into your stupid situations."
"Liz this isn't the right time to argue."She replies."I'm kinda stuck here, and this is kinda embarrassing."
"I should leave you there to hang because we're not friends anymore." I speak, angrily.
"Liz, please help me, this isn't funny," Maya says, seriously.
I proceed back to the window and struggle trying to hoist it up. My fingers gripping the handle tightly. I try to release my weak hands but it feels like It's impossible. I tussle longer and I realize I'm forgetting that Nomed's in the back corner of the room. I cock my head towards him and ask,"Nomed can you please help me?"
He just sits still like a statue and ignores my struggle. My hands begin to push the window down instead of up. I try to use all my force from stopping it, but It's too late. The window slams down at high speed onto Maya's back.
"Ah!" She screeches.
The window again repeats ramming into her back at high speeds. I still can't take my hands off the window.
"Liz, what are you doing!" She exclaims.
She cries in pain as the force of the window continues to claw at her back. Her back begins to bleed red tears of agony. Clawing into her back and cutting through her thin skin. She continues to scream. And I can't speak a word.
I look at Nomed and his eyes were empty holes. My gaze sticks on him until the detention door bursts open. A few teachers enter the room and run to me, pulling me from the window. The window goes up with ease. Maya comes out from the window crying.
I could see Jenny's car speed off. One of the teachers rush her out of the room. While the other teacher takes me to the principal's office. I sit in silence for some time waiting for the principal to arrive at her office. Worry is written all over my face, and I was preparing for the worst to happen.
Creeak!
The door opens.
The principal comes in with two policemen.
"These policemen would like to ask you some questions,"the principal states, then exits the room.
"Elizabeth, we're just going to ask a few questions," says the officer."How close are you with Maya?"
"We're close. I would never hurt her." I reply.
"So you're saying you didn't try to harm her in any way," the officer quizzes.
"No, I didn't, it may sound crazy but I couldn't lose my grip on the window handle," I speak.
The officer at the back begins taking notes.
"You could even ask Nomed because he was in the room with us," I say, with a serious tone.
"Reviewing the camera footage you two were the only ones in the room," he affirms.
"There was someone else, ask Maya."
"It shows you slamming the window on her back quickly and vigorously," he states."I'm not gonna ask you anymore questions, so please come with me."
The officer exits the room first and the other one follows behind me. I can see my parents standing in the office, talking with the principal, looking anxious.
The principal comes over to us and tells me,"You're suspended, from school, for ten days."
I nod. The policemen and principal dismiss me. I mope over to my parents. They look at me angrily. We walk to the car in silence.
I gape out the window, hoping for this day to be over with, as we drive home.
"When we get home, you're grounded," my mom scolds me.
I say,"Okay," silently.
Red and blue lights shine in the distance. My dad slows down the car, not sure of what's going on. I gaze spying out of the window. There seems to have been a car accident.
"I hope they're okay," dad says, caringly."It looks like we're gonna have to take a detour."
I perk up in the seat and shock comes over me.
Is that Jenny's car? No it can't be.
I try to reason with myself.
I focus more intently on the scene, and it was definitely her car. For a few seconds I could see at least three people on a stretcher and one that appears to be a body bag. I breathe heavily and all that's trailing through my mind is what if Maya and I were in the car? Our fate would have been like there's, but we escaped it, we ran from it. I try to ease my mind but the thought wouldn't stop attacking me.
We turn onto a long road with no cars on to avoid the traffic.
"How about some music?" My dad insist."It'll ease the tension."
He turns the radio up. A song that I've never heard before is playing.
You're going to die.
No one will miss you even if you cry.
You can run but you cannot hide.
You're going to die, so you better say goodbye...
I attempt to calm down, but my emotions get the best of me. As I face forward, I can see red out of the corner of my eye. I look over and see what looked like blood on the window, and it spelled out "Nomed" and under it spelled "Demon". I realize that's his name spelled backwards. A thunderous thud hits the top of the car hood.
I scream in reaction, and my parents look back at me startlingly as if they didn't hear anything.
"What's wrong," my parents ask, concerningly.
"Dad watch out!" I yell, he puts his gaze back on the road.
A boy with pale skin, black hair, and all black clothing stands in the road facing us. My dad is inches away from crashing into him, so he instantly yanks the wheel to the opposite direction. He didn't think to slow down as the car runs off the side of the road. The car brushes by twigs.
"The wheel and brakes won't work!" Dad yells, in panic.
A cliff appears and the car's going straight towards it.
We all screech.
Click!
My dad unlocks the doors and tells us to jump out. I fidget with the door but it won't open. My parents jump out, I can see them rolling, like a ball, to safety while I'm stuck in the car inching moments away to my death.