Strands of red filled the air and a cacophony of silent screams fill the room with panic.
A searing pain in my head awoke me from my sleep and I was covered in a hot sweat. It was just a dream. The same dream I had been having for the last week, although I couldn't quite understand what was happening in the dream.
Wanting to relieve myself of the uncomfortable heat that I had been sleeping in, I sat up on the edge of my bed and threw the blankets off of me. Removing the blankets allowed a rush of "cold" air surrounded my body and I felt almost instant relief. Although the air was really only room temperature, it felt cold in comparison.
*sigh* "What time is it?"
I reached towards my nightstand on the right side of my bed in search of my phone. It was still pitch black so I had to feel around until I stumbled upon it. Almost blinded by the light from the phone, I squinted my eyes trying to adjust to the light. It's 4:35. Not as early as I normally wake up when I have this dream, but definitely early enough for me not to go back to sleep. After all, I normally start my day at 5.
Still confused from the dream I had, I put my hands over my eyes, rubbing them while trying to make sense of the reoccurring nightmare I just had. As usual, I can't remember anything specific. There werent any overwhelming details I could recall. All of it, just a blur or a fading memory. Its frustrating, but theres nothing that I can really do about it. Either way, it would probably be better not to think about it too much, it only made my headache worse. Feeling defeated, I let out a quiet "damn it" under my breath.
My body was yelling at me for water, but everyone else was still asleep. I had to be quiet if I went downstairs.
I grabbed my phone and used the flashlight so I could see. I passed my parents room and quietly creeped down the stairs. The house was old so a lot of the steps let out soft creaks as I stepped on them.
I made my way toward the kitchen once I got to the bottom of the stairs. I found the light switch with my phone that I was still using as a source of light. I flicked on the lights then went over to the cupboard and grabbed a glass. I filled the glass with tap water and only glanced at it for a moment before I guzzled the whole thing down in about 10 seconds. Water had never looked more appealing than it did right then. It was the most refreshing water I've had in my entire life.
"What the hell are you doing Victor? Turn off the lights I'm trying to sleep!"
It was my father. I didn't see him laying on the couch as it was facing away from the kitchen.
"Sorry, I didn't realize you were sleeping down here. Why are you down here anyways?"
"Its cooler down here."
He was lying. The lie was almost believable just because I myself was boiling just a minute ago, but I know when he's lying... I always do. Him and mom have been fighting recently, my guess is that he got kicked off the bed for a bit.
"I was just thirsty, sorry I woke you."
"Whatever, just turn off the lights. "
I filled the glass with more water before I flipped the light switch back down and crept back upstairs. The creaks are the same going up as they were coming down, soft yet loud.
It was close to the time I normally wake up so I thought that I might as well start my day. I decided to go for a run in hopes that it would clear my head. Maybe I might even remember what I had dreamt about.
As I entered my room, I turned on my light so I could see. I set my glass down on my nightstand and changed into some clothes that I could run in and grabbed my earbuds from my dresser. Headed for the door, I qued up my running playlist that had been made for me.
Normally, I would only run 2-3 miles in the mornings;however, I had decided to run 5 today. I had the time and it's not like I had anything to lose.
I ran through my neighborhood, guided by the street lights that were lined up against the street. There was no one driving at this point so I figured running in the middle of the road would be fine. I kept thinking back to the dream hoping I might be able to make sense of it. I had ran a mile, then two, then three. Still nothing, no outstanding details that I could think of. All of it still just a blur. It was giving me a headache.
I decided that it wasnt worth the migraine. It took me around 37 minutes to finish the run, I had gone in one giant loop. By then I was starving, but I still had things to do before I could eat.
I quietly made my way back inside my house and into my garage where my at-home gym was. For the past few years, I've been learning how to kickbox. I may not be Israel Adesanya, but I'm not all that bad. At the very least, I can defend myself from an average person. I warm up and after that I do my training routine. I was already tired from the run so I didn't do anything too straining.
Once I finished up, I went upstairs to shower and get dressed for the day. I headed downstairs to make myself breakfast, at this point my stomach sounded like a generator.
I made some eggs and toast and scarfed it all down. Afterwards, I went upstairs to brush my teeth. After I did so, I took a good look at myself in the mirror. I felt compelled to take note of my features. Of my dark brown hair that hangs over my forehead. Of my hazel eyes that almost glow in the sunlight. Of my father's sharp nose and my mother's clean facial structure. With that, I started my day, grabbed my bag, and headed to school.
I got into my car and drove 20 minutes to get to school. Because I start my day earlier, I usually get good parking closer to the school. In the distance, at the entrance to the school, my two best friends, Gavin and Daniel, are walking into school. I've known them since our first year of middle school. We had the same homeroom but we weren't really friends until about halfway through that year.
I grabbed my keys and parked the car. It was a little chilly this morning, so I decided to take the jacket that was already sitting in the car as I made my way towards the main doors. The doors themselves were entirely see-through except, of course, for the locking mechanism. I walked through them and made my way to my first period on the second floor.
Almost as soon as I walk into the room, Gavin greeted me, more excited than he usually is. He's probably excited because of the pep rally being held this period. Normally I would be excited as well, but Savannah is touring a college in Colorado. She's the love of my life and she has been since we started dating in Freshman year. Call it cliché but I love her. With her beautiful blonde hair and her gorgeous blue-grey eyes. As boring as it may be without her, at the very least, Gavin and Daniel will be there.
Hours go by as I space out throughout most of the day. I finally get to my homeroom where my two friends are already conversing with each other. I join them and we talk while we wait for the announcements to tell us to go to the pep rally.
Gavin was a tall slender white man with scruffy hair almost combed backwards. "Do you think the pep rally will be any good this time?"
Daniel was a short Asian guy with his hair parted to the sides and thick glasses. "Probably not, they're all bad, I'm just glad to get out of class."
The only reason they were excited for the rally wasn't because it would be good, but because we got to get out of class for a bit. Honestly, I can't blame them, I was excited for the very same reason.
"ATTENTION, WILL THE SENIOR HOMEROOMS PLEASE MAKE THEIR WAY TOWARDS THE MAIN GYM!!!"
With that announcement, the three of us walked down to the gym, cramped between the stampede of people. Upon arrival, we're almost immediately corraled to the bleachers like cattle. Eventually, the crowd settles down and the principal steps up to a podium that was put at one end of the room and begins a boring speech. There's chatter among many of the students while the speech is happening, including us three.
Gavin points out to one of the students sitting a few rows away from us. "Hey do you see her over there? She looks terrible."
I look over to where he's pointing, as does Daniel. A girl in a grey hoodie was sitting down, hunched over her knees. She had dark circles around the bags of her eyes and the eyes themselves were bloodshot red. She had a flower tattoo on her forearm that reminded me of spring. It looked like she was struggling just to stay awake.
Daniel backs up what Gavin had to say, as do I. "Yeah man, she looks like she's struggling".
A sudden scream turns the attention of everyone in the gym towards the doors that we walked in from. The scream filled with fear and panic was on the other side of the doors, outside the auditorium.
RRRRRAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!
A scream unlike any I had ever heard before filled the room.
"What's this?! I... I can't hear!! What's happening!?!?"
Drops of blood hit my face. As I looked towards the direction it came from, my gut sank. Strands of red filled the air and a cacophony of silent screams filled the room with panic. Everyone was panicking, including me. Something about this..... what is this....
"This is.....!"