Photograph [on hold]

Light blue, the color of laughter

I ran as fast as my legs could carry me down the thin dark corridors, trying to escape whatever was chasing me. It was seeking revenge on me even though I didn't do anything to it. "Help!" I cried but it was met with silence. I continued to run, legs aching terribly as it continued to chase me, smirking. "No one can hear you. No one cares about you." It called, as I sobbed and tried to hurl myself faster. All of a sudden, it stepped in front of me. "You won't get away this time." She spat and I screamed.
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Someone shook my shoulders, calling to me. Salty tears slipped down my cheeks, my skin felt like it was on fire.

"Sang!"

I shot upright in bed, panicking for a moment at my unfamiliar surroundings before last night's events came flooding back. I clutched at my face in my hands, gasping for air. Nathan and Kota surrounded me, pulling me into their arms.

"Sang, are you okay?" Kota asked, voice full of worry. My hands shook.

"It...was just a nightmare." I explain, trying to convince myself at the same time. Nathan locked eyes with me.

"You don't cry and scream in your sleep if it's just a nightmare."

My shoulders sagged. He was right.

"Do you want to talk about it? We made breakfast." Kota asked.

My stomach growled and they both laughed, easing the tension a little. I smiled and followed them to the kitchen, waiting patiently as they made a plate for me. It was eggs and bacon.

"Thank you." I say as they join me at the table, they nod and we eagerly eat our food. I eat all of my food and stretch my arms. I pick up my plate and carry it to the sink.

"Why don't you go get changed?" Nathan asks and I nod, returning to the bedroom and digging through my bag that I packed last night for some clothes.

I pick out a black skirt and a pink short sleeve blouse. I change and quickly brush out my hair, twisting it into a bun and clipping it. I sigh and go find the boys. They are in the living room. Kota is on the phone, and Nathan is playing a racing game. Kota sees me and pats the couch next to him. I take that as an invitation to sit next to him.

"Yeah." Kota pauses. "Okay. Both of you?" Kota scrunched his eyebrows together and glanced at me. "We have a guest." Kota says, and I hear silence on the other end of the line. I take this opportunity to speak up.

"I don't mean to have interrupted your plans, I can leave if you want me to." I say, and Kota shakes his head. The person on the other end of the line starts to talk again and after another minute, Kota hangs up, and turns to me.

"Some of my friends are coming over." He says.

I nod, and he studies me for a minute before sharing a glance with Nathan and pushing his glasses further back on his nose. We watch Nathan play for a couple moments before the doorbell rings. Kota gets up to answer it and I stay put. I take a deep breath in and blow it out. You can do this. You can meet more people. Kota walks in and two guys trail in behind him. Nathan greets them with a nod as I shift in my seat. Kota turns to me.

"Guys," he says, "this is Sang."

I mutter a hi, smile, and wave.

"Sang, this is Luke, and North."

Luke smiles at me and North studies me, making no move at all to show he's friendly. Which would have been helpful, considering he looked pretty scary. In a dark alley, at night, he probably would have looked absolutely terrifying. His eyes were dark and his jaw was broad.

Luke looked the absolute opposite, with long blonde hair pulled into a ponytail and chocolate brown eyes. His smile was bright. I shifted under everyone's gaze, blushing lightly. Luke laughed and I stared confused at him, but he shrugged.

I sat back down on the couch, Luke sitting down next to me.

"So Sang, what's your favorite color?" He asked, striking up a conversation.

"Pink." I say, playing with my hands in my lap.

"Mine is light blue. So out of nine, how many of us have you met?"

I stared once again at him confused.

"There's nine of us in our group. Me, North, Silas, Kota, Victor, Nathan, Gabriel, Dr. Green, and Mr. Blackbourne." My mouth formed an 'o' and I counted on my fingers. Nine of them? Isn't there like, some kind of limit on the number of friends you can have?

"Let's see...Kota, you, North, Nathan, Dr. Green, Mr. Blackbourne, and Victor."

"So seven."

I nod.

"What's some of your hobbies?" I smiled.

"I like to hum, cook, read, and I can do a little gymnastics."

Luke smiled. "I cook, and pretty much play pranks. You know, North is actually my brother. Well, step-brother. He cooks, too."

North grunts from his position leaning against the wall. He is really starting to scare the bejeezus out of me. Maybe he just doesn't like me.

"North?" I ask. He lifts his eyebrow and I take that as my cue to continue. "Do you hate me?"

My hand flies to my mouth as my cheeks redden. That came out wrong. Laughter fills the room as Luke pats my arm.

"No, sweetie, I think he's actually taken a liking to you. He's just an overall grumpy person."

Thank goodness. I really hate it when people hate me. I guess he just has a grumpy personality. That's fine by me, but don't get me wrong, I'm probably not going to want to be on his bad side. Kota moves to sit on the other side of me, pushes up his glasses, and turns to me.

"So what happened this morning?"

Sorry for taking so long to update. Anyway, who likes the title? Also what are some of your thoughts on this story so far. Question of the chapter is....what is your favorite color? Mine is Hunter green. :)