Short stories

Child Prodigy

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His face was lightly illuminated by the computer screen he was reading off of. He twirled one of his hoodie strings in his hand as he spoke, his face void of emotion as his other hand scrolled through the news article.

Lincoln's Child Prodigy Goes Missing,

He scrolled some more, ignoring someone sitting down beside him and instead clicking on to the newest updated page.

Child Prodigy found dead, Service coming soon.

Truth was, He wasn't as incredible as these people made him sound. Okay sure, he got a few good grades and a couple scholarships but he wasn't anything special, someone people thought had it all figured out. He was the kid that stayed quiet and teachers ignore because the numbers on the paper were high, and they didn't really care about anything other than that.

The boy beside him set his jacket down right beside the keyboard he was working on. He grumbled to himself and pushed it off.

"The computers always take forever," annoying-jacket guy said, nodding to himself as he sat and powered it on.

"Take forever to shut down too." He agreed, dropping a newly-frayed hoodie string to do the same to the other one.

Annoying-Jacket guy nodded, lightly tapping the wood of the table as the article popped up immediately. He stayed on it for a second before shaking his head, exiting it and quickly getting into another program to get his work done.

No one wanted to believe a murder could happen in Lincoln.

So it was easier to just ignore it until it went away, blame the child prodigy of suicide and move on. Exit out of it in real life.

"Did you hear they found my body in the woods? " He read out loud before glancing to annoying-jacket boy, ignoring the no talking rule in the library and watching the other look over at him.

The annoying- jacket boy half-smiled, "Don't you mean a body.. but yeah, it's scary."

The boy said nothing, looking back at his computer screen and frowning.

"Jeremy!" Annoying-jacket guy would've asked what was wrong, he was always a social person and didn't want to do his work so he would enjoy his new friend as a distraction but instead he looked away from him looked to his name being called, and turned to a pretty blonde who gave him a lop-sided smile as she spoke. He smiled at her and she walked over, "Who are you talking to?"

Jeremy looked back, to ask the boy his name, but he had disappeared. The jacket the boy had moved was placed in the exact position Jeremy had originally put it in and the computer was completely turned off. There was nothing there save the school-bought computers.

He must've had to get to class.

Jeremy knew it wasn't a logical thought. The computer wouldn't have been able to shut down that quickly and no one can move that silently. But he shut up his thoughts, telling himself he'd see the boy again.

But he wouldn't.

And I should know, I mean I am him after all. He didn't ever see me again, until the day he finally pushed the confidence to open the article again and see my yearbook photo, paired next to the location they found my body.