Oh, The People WE will meet.

Chapter one -- Tacita

I hate the word love. I hate that people use it for everything. What even is love? Well, Dalai Lama stated that "Love is the absence of judgment." However, I never knew what that meant until I met him.

6 Months Ago

Lucius and I were getting ready to get into a tense game of thumb war before his mom called us down for dinner.

" 1..2..3 I DECLARE A THUMB WAR!" We both shouted.

But before we could even start moving our thumbs.

we heard a loud voice from downstairs. "DINNERS READY!"

We look at each other before racing down the steps. As we get to the final step, the smell of freshly grilled steak and fresh veggies fills our noses. Lucius runs toward the table like a soldier running into battle; Lucius's number one weakness is food. Sometimes I get jealous because as much as he eats, he never gains any weight he's lucky he gets to keep his petite figure. Finally, I walk over to the table and sit next to him.

"Are you guys excited about tomorrow?" His mom asked.

"Of course, we are. It's not every day you get to rent an apartment and go to college with your best friend." He responded so quickly that she almost didn't even get to finish her question.

He's right, though; it's not every day you get to do something like that. His parents asked us a couple of weeks ago to rent an apartment instead of staying on campus. We both accepted. Who wouldn't?

After we finished dinner, I helped his mom with the dishes.

"Tacita, I thought we could stop by and see your mom on the way there tomorrow." She said quietly.

It's been a year since I've seen my mom. I've just been swamped with school work. But now that I've graduated, I guess I've just been putting it off.

"I don't want to," I say before exiting the kitchen. 

"Goodnight."

                                                                                  * * *

It's 6:30 in the morning, and I didn't get any sleep last night. It wasn't the nerves keeping me awake but that I made it all the way here. Past graduation and on to college past all the hardships I've been through. Knowing that I would be lying in a new bed with new walls and seeing new faces every day in just a few hours. Knowing that no one would know who I am.

Finally, the alarm goes off. I go to make sure that Lucius is awake; not only is he a big eater but a sleeper. He could most definitely sleep through an earthquake.

"Lucius," I say as I'm trying to shake him awake. Finally, I just shout in his ear, "LUCIUS!!"

"What the hell do you want, Tacita!?" You could tell by how he said it; I shocked him and made him angry, which is very rare.

"Sorry, it's just that we are leaving in a few minutes, and well," I pause to look him up and down, "you are nowhere near ready to go."

"GOD, I forgot," he shot up so fast I'm surprised he didn't get whiplash. "Did the alarm go off like at all"

"Yes," I tried to say more, but it was no use. He was moving so fast that the flash would have difficulty keeping up with him.

*

*

*

After about an hour of loading the boxes in the van, we finally get started on the road. I decided to close my eyes for a few minutes since I didn't sleep last night.

* *

Hello. The voice was deep, so deep it sent shivers down my spine

Hello? I responded

I turned around to see the man who had just greeted me; he was tall, thin, and with pale skin, but I couldn't

make out his face. It was getting more evident and the

* *

"TACITA!!!"

"WHAT," I shot up so fast that it made me sick.

I can hear the sound of Lucius's evil laugh.

"That's what you get for doing that to me this morning," he chuckles.

I balled up my fist, getting ready to punch him in the shoulder, then his dad pressed firmly on the breaks. Sending Lucius and me flying forward.

"We're here." His dad stated