Holding on by a thread | Peter Parkerl

~twelve~

At least some sort of normality was back again in school, people calmed down with talking about the smoke which relieved me because I really couldn't handle thinking about it 24/7.

I sat in art with my classmates, all of us painting on our own easels. It was a freestyle hour which meant we were allowed to paint anything and get graded on it. My reference stood in front of me, a landscape photo of New York from the Avengers tower, but no one could tell where it was taken so it was like my own special secret.
I painted every light and blurry car whilst a radio played low in the background, art really allowed me to zone out of any issues in my life and all my focuses were just on the colours and placements.

My eyes started to feel warm so I kept rubbing them and placing the cool palm of my hands over them to soothe them. The teacher who was pacing around every corner of the room stopped behind me and startled me, 'Tired Zoe?' But it wasn't in a considerate way, she said it purely to be passive aggressive.

'Em no sorry, just sore eyes.'

'Hm.'

I couldn't stop rubbing my eyes, they literally felt like they were burning. I put down my paint and rubbed them more.

When I removed my hands, my vision was black and slowly fading back. It looked like I had just fainted but I know I didn't.

Suddenly, when everything was finally clear, I couldn't see the colour.

All I could see was purple.

Every fucking shade of purple.

I choked in surprise and began to keep rubbing again and again but it was still purple, my heart racing behind my sweatshirt and fingers trembling.

'Miss?'

She ignored me.

'MISS!'

Her sour face turned around at me, but she just looked like some alien through my eyes.

' I need to go to the bathroom.'

'Take the hall pass on your way, and when you come back, never raise your voice at me like that again.'

I pushed past everyone and grabbed for the wooden sign and flung it over my neck.

'Sorry miss.'

Bitch.

I felt like I was going to have a panic attack, my lungs were hyperventilating as my fingers went numb, only a small pins and needle feeling came through the tip of them.

I sped walked down the hallway to find the closest bathroom which was further down the corridor.

Before I even made it halfway, the Spanish classroom door opened and out came some boy.

I couldn't see him due to the lighting and how everything was now different shades of violet and bumped into him, sending my back flat against the ground.

'Jesus christ watch where you're going!' I yelled.

'Zoe? Oh my god.'

I still couldn't tell who it was but I knew the voice immediately.

'Ned?'