Underneath the clouds

III

The next few mornings were the exact same: with crisp air flowing through the open window, and her fan cooling it down to an acceptable temp, Jolin would curl up underneath her warm sheets. When it was time for her to roll away from the cradle of security, she groaned out loud. The noise echoed in her room; it caused her to wake up.

Like the few times in the past few weeks, she rolled over the edge and fell to the floor. The collision shook only her room. It radiated pain throughout her elbows and hip. Then, as if she was dead, she laid there unmoving, breathing in through clenched teeth in hopes the fire beneath her skin would calm. No one came to check on her.

When she rose from the floor, the dust from the floor made a rat's nest in her hair. She shook her head like a dog to try and get the gunk out, but decided that she'd start her day with a shower. When she got underneath the water, it soothed her body to the point of no return; she fell asleep standing up in the shower.

The second the water started to turn cold, her eyes snapped open, and the sun was peeking through the small window in the bathroom. She nearly tripped as she raced out of the bathroom to get herself ready for the day.

In a flurry, she flew down the stairs. Then, she stopped midstep. Her eyes found the darkness of the makeshift laboratory in their house. The door was left ajar. Curiosity had her in a tight grip; it pulled her, as if she were on a leash, towards the door. With a careful step, and an equally careful hand, she made her way into the void.

Her eyes were used to the light in the foyer, she could barely make out the outlines of objects. Inside, on the counter, were blinking lights; hunched over one of the counters was a body. Jolin froze in her tracks, her eyes trying to adjust. Still, she could only see the faintest outline. Something in her body told her that some kind of danger was imminent, and in order to avoid it, she should turn back; so she did.

This morning seemed to have gotten a head start on her. Jolin stared mindlessly ahead of her. Her stare was numb, and her fingers were loose on the steering wheel. She was running late; or at least it seemed like she was. Pulling into the parking lot and rushing through the doors, she expected the usual day.

The nights before usually held silent sessions of in depth studying; the weekends were the only time she really got sleep. Now, only after a couple weeks of the routine of getting up and going to school, she had developed eyebags and the usual sluggishness.

Every day had a routine; steps inside her steps. Every class was the same, and she fully backed her bag every day just in case she forgot which day it was. After her first four classes, she and Kimmy would go down to lunch, where Kimmy supplied her with mindless gossip and juicy coincidences that she came upon. The only thing that seemed to change was everybody's outfits; everything remained the exact same otherwise.

Occasionally, Kimmy would poke and jab at Jolin in search for an adequate response; yet she was always somewhat disappointed; Kimmy would watch Jolin's gaze escape far away, past the very wall of reality.

In her mind, a movie was playing. It wasn't one she had ever seen, and it wasn't one she ever wished of making it come true: it was horrific, with much of the scenery being terrifyingly accurate.

Sounds of agony echoed through her head whilst she mindlessly stared at the wall in the back. Kimmy would eat in silence; sometimes she'd nod to the beat of a song she was listening to. It left Jolin to watch this fantasy play out completely. Visions of fire and planes invading the sky appeared to be blurry at first, but the longer she stared off into space, she could see it clearly; it was as if she was slowly peeling back a curtain from the wall of reality in front of her.

Kimmy waved her hand in front of her face, watching her cousin snap back to reality. She huffed once Jolin fixed her gaze on her.

"You were out." She commented. Jolin sighed.