~gloom's POV~
'Honk-honk!' the sound of car horns escalated from being peaceful to being violent. Water splashed in every direction as reckless or even crazed motorcycle drivers zoomed left, right, across and along the road.
The traffic regulator was only gone for a minute and the one he left behind obviously wasn't cut out for this. He just darted his hands in every direction confused and confusing everyone else. The situation got worse as the rain poured down twice as heavy, and this rain, through the power of hell alone, set off car alarms causing noise pollution as much as brain pollution.
As they say, noise and confusion where toxic friends.
A motorcycle skidded almost knocking the driver off balance. You would think he would pull the brakes but the brakes were the last thing he needed to pull right now. If he did the force of the abrupt stop would have had him flying in the air. He needed some place to crash, but not actually CRASH.
At this point in time there was a truck rush. Different trucks carrying different goods like logs, gas, furnishings and more were driving up and down the cross highway. This was it, the worst accident in the history of Bethany hills. The accident that claimed both the lives of my dear parents. I was just eight when they left on their date; it was the day before valentines.
They told me they would be back but something deeper told me they wouldn't. I kept having nightmares that they would die in a horrific accident but I never felt like telling them. Heck! I didn't want to accept those nightmares myself. They had been looking forward to this day and I couldn't just ruin it because their little baby had a bad dream.
Eventually, in the blink of an eye, he crashed into a truck of logs, losing the hinge on the back gate which held the logs in place. They all started rolling out crushing everything and everyone in its way. This weren't just ordinary logs, they were huge. 'CRASH!!' the sound of a windshield echoed in the streets as shards of glass flew in the air and unto the road making it more difficult to drive. These shards deflated tires making cars skid, somersault and engulf in flames. It was bloody chaos!
Even the truck with almost a hundred tanks of gas, caught fire and exploded; killing so many on that very busy day.
'Hahh-huh, hahh-huh' I woke up from my most dreadful of dreams, or should I say nightmare, panting and sweating down my face and even my back. I hated just thinking about that day, now I found myself reliving the pain in my dreams too.
Lately, my alarm was useless, instead of waking me up peacefully, my nightmares did dreadfully. I looked at the alarm clock to my right and it was just 7:22am when I was supposed to get to school at 9:00am. I definitely didn't feel like going back to sleep so I just got out of bed. I was sweating a lot and needed to reduce my heart rate. It was beating within my ribcage like a drum. If only it had just a little flow or rhythm.
I got into the hot bathtub water and it felt like heaven, taking all the pain away. I sank deeper, and then closed my eyes. I felt so much guilt, I felt responsible for my own parent's deaths. If only I had told them about my dreams, they wouldn't be dead by now. I felt like a murderer. Suddenly, heaven turned to hell as the water heated up for no reason, or was it me that was heating up. I decided to get out of the water. She was back....she was here. Fright. Fright was here, she was my sub consciousness. She only came when I felt tensed and I really did right now. Waves of immense sadness, guilt, pain, regret and self-hate surfaced and began to boil within me.
Not now, not again.
'Aren't you happy to see me?' she asked as she sat on my bed.
Happy?
That word had no meaning to me anymore. I had drained myself of all happiness a long time ago. I could probably never feel that emotion again.
'What do you want this time?' I asked keeping a straight face.
'You to be happy again. Aren't you tired of being gloomy' she teased
'No, and in fact, I will never be tired!' I almost yelled 'this is...me, gloom' I said calming down.
'I actually love your name. Gloom. It's…..gloomy' she continued, laughing.
I had had enough of her teasing.
'Ok, that's it. Fright, I need you to leave….' I started but got cut off
'But-'
'Now!'
She seemed shocked and hurt at the same time. She just stared at me with those unique grey eyes of hers, and then just faded away. I could never really understand her. Sometimes I liked her company and sometimes I didn't, and for someone named fright she was the opposite of fear. She never showed any sign of it. She radiated confidence and was always smiling and joking around.
'Beep beep-beep beep'. My alarm set off indicating that it was 8:00am. I guess it was time for school. I walked over to my bedside drawer and turned the shrieking off, and then I went into the shower and got ready for another crappy day at school.
~rage's POV~
I looked out the window as I drove to school in the tiny drizzles. It was dead boring in the car so I decided to watch as the water droplets blurred the thick glass pane. For how long though? Something, something that looked like a school bus appeared on the left lane. I couldn't see as the whole window was a blur.
'Noah can you please wind my window down?' I asked so I could see clearly out the window.
'Sure' he said as the window retracted.
Yes! It was a school bus. I looked on as I saw teens my age chatting and laughing in the school bus. Some even stuck their face out the window and others were glued to the screen of their phones. Just then, a memory of me in the school bus floated to my brain shore.
/flashback/
'Can you just use your inhaler already!?!' I suggested to a girl that had been coughing since I sat next to her.
'Oh I'm not having an asthma attack, I'm making a tiktok' she answered so calmly yet I could see she wanted to laugh. No wonder she hadn't shoved it in her mouth yet, it was only a small video camera, not an inhaler. I felt suddenly embarrassed and looked away quickly.
Why would you just assume that? That's offensive and arrogant.
My friend scolded.
I knew you wouldn't be able to handle this. You're short tempered in a bus full of annoying teens.
She continued.
/end of flashback/
She wasn't lying. I was short tempered. I wasn't nice at all. I had already been expelled twice for fighting and I didn't have the luxury to get expelled again.....well, I once did. I could've gone a streak if I wanted to. Not like my parents cared anyway. They were too busy in their own wealth and didn't have time for children, funny because they seemed to never get enough of each other. I knew they were terrible parents but I couldn't help but miss them. They spoiled me rotten...…not that I'm complaining. I just wish they could have been there for me, then and now. I was at the verge of crying when someone put their hand on my shoulder lightly.
'Don't cry, you're gonna be fine' vy (short for Envy) said in a comforting tone. I wasn't surprised that she was here, she apart from Noah and Gladys (my adoptive parents), was always there for me. She had slowly become my friend when no one wanted to. She wasn't even the least scared when I would burst out in rage; she would either laugh or give me a choking hug. I wouldn't call her my subconscious anymore...…..she was my friend. I turned to her and gave her a hug in return.
'Thanks for always being there' I said as my heart and eyes hurt. I needed to let the tears out.
'Alright, do' she replied my silent thought. She was my subconscious; of course she could read my mind. Heck! She was my mind.
I looked at the mirror slightly above the front seats, just to see if my crying was visible to them. Phew! It wasn't. I didn't want them worrying about me. I cried my heart out and surprisingly it worked, it didn't ache anymore.
'Feeling better?' vy asked concerned
'Yep' I sprung up as if I wasn't just crying a few seconds ago.
'Typical rage....acting all tough for everyone' she chuckled.
'It's not an act, it's...…me'
'Alright then, if you're really feeling better, I best get going' she stated
'Do you really have to go?' I whined acting like a baby all over again.
'Yes but trust I'll be back...I always come back' she said fading away until she was gone.
'Bye' I whispered more to myself than to her.
Bye.
She whispered back.
'What did you say dear?' Gladys asked.
'Nothing' I said giving her a rather clumsy smile.
'We're almost there don't worry' she added
'Ok' I replied simply. I didn't really give a damn whether we were almost there or not. Nowadays, school wasn't something I looked up to.
~smile's POV~
'Ring-ring' the bell for first period went, so did the one for second..... And third. The periods seemed to be running after each other as every usually excruciatingly long 40 minutes lesson began to shrink. I barely paid attention to any of the lessons really. My mind always drifted to him, lucky, my subconscious crush.
I know it sounds crazy but this guy made me flush pink anytime he was close to me. He was simply beautiful, like magically beautiful, like…..too good to be true. His shiny light brown hair either fell back to his neck or was packed in a loose ponytail. It was always clean and never a strand out of place no matter what he did, I never really thought a guy could cherish his hair like that. Don't get me started on his eyes, I was utterly speechless anytime I looked into those magnificent eyes of his, although they were a replica of mine, mine could never look as captivating as his. I had never seen a prettier shade of blue my whole life. If I didn't know better I would think his eyes were black. They were just like the starry night sky, they even had that twinkle.
'Ring-ring' the bell for lunch went interrupting my train of thoughts.
'Alright kids, don't forget to turn in your assignments after school' Miss Erica reminded.
I suddenly got nervous. My palms were sweaty, yet I got cold feet. I tried recalling why I was meeting him again but my thoughts were scrambled. I just prayed that I remembered on my way there. I packed the books on my desk and stuffed them into my bag. Just then I became confused as I didn't even remember where he wanted us to meet.
'Crap!' I cursed underneath my breath. I needed to snap out of it.
'He probably has something really important to tell me' I thought to myself and then went to the girl's bathroom to rinse my face hoping that would snap me out of it.
'Hello' he waved with that mischievous smile of his. At first I was startled to see a guy in the girl's bathroom but then I realized it was him, lucky.
'What are you doing here?' I asked hiding the fact that I was nervous.
'You said we needed to talk' he replied simply.
'Did I really?' I thought to myself.
'Yes'.
'Can you remember why?' I asked.
'You never told me' he answered shrugging his shoulders. 'You just told me it was important and I should meet you here' he continued. It did really sound like me telling him to meet me here, where we would probably be together....alone.
'I thought you wanted to tell me something' I said tilting my head slightly.
'If I really did, I would just say it in your head. I am always on your mind' he said, the last statement with more emphasis. I felt butterflies in my stomach at his words. This guy was playing notes with my brain, heart and body.
'Well, since I don't remember. You may leave now' I said with my chin held high. He took a few steps closer to me and said with a seductive tone.
'You told me to meet you here so you could tell me to leave'. He was right. It felt like a set up. Although, at this moment I didn't know who was setting up who; he just kept staring into my eyes, as if he was searching for something. He probably felt I was uncomfortable cause just then he smiled and faded away.
Once he was gone I let out the breath I seemed to have been holding for ever. I then sighed at my reflection in the mirror.
'At least I looked good' I thought to myself.
Correction, you looked great.
'Uggggh! Get out of my head!' I said frustration clear in my voice.
If you get out of mine.
'Was he teasing or flirting with me?' I wondered. Even if, it was annoying. If I felt nervous before, I wasn't sure what I felt now; whether aroused or deeply annoyed. Either way, I wasn't gonna let that bother me. I looked at myself in the mirror once again and walked out.
I had almost forgotten it was lunch time before my stomach growled. I was hungry, famished, starved. I hurried on to the cafeteria and just then my appetite went out the window. It was like a scene in a movie; it was tensed and I felt like my presence cut through the suffocating aura as everyone focused on me and then back to what seemed to be the centre of attention: two girls standing way too close for comfort. One flushed red with anger while the other one beamed with confidence. I squinted my eyes so I could see more clearly. Then I recognized the confident one to be Skye Anderson, a stuck up teen who always got what she wanted. She wasn't too rich but I have to admit she was pretty. Her blondish brown hair fell in waves down to her back, perfect for blinding people when she tossed it over her shoulders. She had a perfectly sculpted face, tinted blue eyes and as a bonus blessing from God, she was given a shape guys could only dream of. She would have been a masterpiece if it wasn't for her attitude.
However, I couldn't still recognize the other girl until she flipped her luscious raven black hair (although covered in some liquid) over her right shoulder. It was the new girl, rage.
'Had she already gotten into a fight?' I asked myself. 'A fight that she would probably loose….....or win' I thought confused. It seemed like Skye had already met her match as rage too radiated confidence and was extremely beautiful. Her straight shiny black hair fell after her shoulders and met her thighs, the most beautiful of all her curves. Although she had angelic looks, she had that dangerous aura. That don't mess with me aura. The only place she was really lacking was her eyes. There was nothing special about them, they were void eyes. I wasn't even sure they had any colour, if they did, I would guess they were black.