The Key

Chapter One

Emma looked in the mirror fastening the small silver key around her neck. She stood in her room for a moment admiring it. It seemed like just yesterday she was sitting cross-legged on the hard uncomfortable chair at the hospital next to her mom as she lay there motionless and as pale as paper, if not a bit yellow. The necklace had been her mom's most prized possession and she had given it to Emma leaving her with the words "this is the key to everything". Emma still to this day did not understand what her mom had meant. She just figured her mother had gone crazy on her death bed.

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Emma walked into her last period class exhausted. She didn't mind school but it was two weeks until school ended and she was busy cramming for her exams, not to mention freaking out about her upcoming graduation. Emma had been waiting for this day since she was a little freshman. Now that it was so close she couldn't help but freak out. She hadn't even thought about what she was going to do once she got out of high school. At least she hadn't blown her grades these past couple semesters otherwise she'd have been screwed. Emma took her seat in the back of the class. She preferred the back and sat there in every class. The teacher never called on her for answers and no one seemed to notice her. Half of the student body hadn't even heard of her, which was fine by her.

"Excuse me," said a quiet, unfamiliar voice somewhere behind Emma.

"Yeah?" Emma said turning around in the direction of the voice. Looking at her was a peculiar boy with the palest blue eyes she'd ever seen. He was skinny with chestnut hair that flopped into his eyes.

"Um, I need to talk to you." The strange boy spoke, but his eyes roamed the room seemingly searching for anyone who might be listening in on their conversation.

"About what exactly? I don't even know you." Emma spun back around in her seat. Although she was curious she couldn't just talk to the boy she'd never even seen him, let alone talked to him. Not only that but he was strange and made Emma feel uneasy. The boy wouldn't take the fact that she had turned her back on him as a hint, he continued to talk.

"I'm Keith Miller" he said his voice barely a whisper.

"Okay, and?" A flash of recognition passed over her soft features. This was the boy notorious among the teachers for his disorganization, tardiness and tendency to turn in homework late or simply not at all. Emma spent most of her time with the teachers. She had never really had friends through high school. They all seemed immature to her and didn't take school seriously so she took up being friends with the teachers. She was a teacher's pet a far as grades went. She hated being called on in class, therefore, the teachers never did, but she maintained a pretty high average. She occasionally ate in the teachers' lounge and Keith Miller was often the hot topic. She knew all there was to know about this boy. That was exactly why she didn't want to talk to him.

"Oh, I know who you are." the boy looked away still avoiding eye contact, twirling his pen nervously in his hand. "You're pretty famous among the teachers around here."

He seemed antsy for some unknown reason Emma frankly didn't have any interest in finding out.

He answered simply, still not making eye contact. "Yeah"

"No offense but I don't usually talk to people like you." Emma stated very matter of fact.

"Well it seems to me you don't talk too much of anyone." Keith countered. He chose now to maintain eye contact his gaze unwavering. He raised an eyebrow as if challenging her.

Emma raised her eyebrow mimicking his. Emma opened her mouth to say something but before the words were out of her mouth an image appeared before Emma almost like a movie. She saw her mom standing on a sidewalk somewhere familiar to Emma but she couldn't quite place it. A man with an odd resemblance to Keith approached her mom. Her mom reached deep into the pocket of her shorts and pulled out something small contained in the fist of her frail hand. She glanced around looking for any bystanders. She then extended her hand towards him palm up. In her hand was a small key identical to the one Emma was wearing around her neck. Instinctively, Emma reached up to her neck to hold the key at her fingertips. She seemed to have no control over the image as it unfolded right before her eyes. When the image was gone she gasped. Her hand moved from her key up to rest on her mouth as it opened and closed while she stood there at a loss for words.

"Like I said, we need to talk." Keith said before gathering his things and walking out the door without another word. 

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