The chosen [Niall Horan]

Chapter 10 (Sybil)

" did you pick up any training clothes?" Jackson asks me. He came to my room a few minutes ago to tell me to meet him in the training room in a hour.

"Of course I did. Now go. I need to get ready." I answer, pushing him out of the room. The door shuts and I turn back to the wardrobe. I'm sorting all of my new garments into the wardrobe. I put my boots and shoes on the bottom and hang the sweaters that I took.

I fold all of my shirts, pants and pyjamas and stick them in their designated drawers. Next is exercise wear. I sift through the leggings and shirts until I find a pair of solid black leggings and a fitted white tank top. I reach into the bottom of the dresser to pull out the black and white runners and set everything aside for when I go train.

Everything has now been put away. Except the dress. I'm not normally one to buy dresses or even really be interested, but this one caught my eye. It's black, coming down to jus above my knees. It has long black sleeves and while the top is fitted, it flares out at the waist. It's simple, nothing extravagant. Other then the back, or lack of that is. The back plunges to the small of my back, showing off the majority of it.

I'm not too sure where il wear it. Or if I'll even have a chance too. But if we do I'm not missing my chance.

I pick it up, smiling as I admire the soft fabric. I turn around and hang it next to the dress I wore yesterday.

I shut the dark wood door and go into the washroom to get dressed, pulling on the leggings and shirt quickly, knowing that il need to jog to the track to be able to get there on time. I throw on the runners and skip out the door, shutting it behind me. I jog down the hallway, right past another chosen I recognize him as the boy that sat beside Niall at breakfast and that went to get cloths at the same time as me.

"Watch out there little miss gazelle" he says as I run past him. Smart ass. I just roll my eyes and keep going. I come to the stairs and take them three at a time. I count the flights, making sure that I get to the right room.

As I'm climbing the stairs the strange thought that I had yesterday comes back. Where do I know Jackson from? He seems so familiar but yet so different. Like something from another lifetime. I shake thought out of my head as I reach the landing.

I open the door and step in, instantly being greeted by the smell of chlorine. I walk down to the track and look around. He's not here yet. Oh well, il just wait a few minutes I guess.

I decide to walk around the track and see what relate there is in this room. I roam around, feeling the soft track under my feet.

What harm would it do to start running now? It's his fault he's late. I need to train. I need to do well at this. My parents trained me for thirteen years, for what I'm not sure, but I'm going to make sure that I make them proud.

I look around one more time, anger coursing through my veins slightly as I see row apron row of empty seats. I groan lowly and start to run. I don't know how long I run for, all I know is that with every step my anger subsides a little bit more. I know that I've never run to the point where I feel tired of feel like stopping, even the day that I ran for 4 hours. I was still full of energy. I know that this feels right.

I look up at the clock and see that I've been running for an hour. It's 4pm now. Dinner is at 6. I only have 45 minutes left to train if I want to look ok for dinner.

Since I only have a small amount of time left, I decide to quicken my pace, my feet hitting the ground is the only sound I hear.

Step. Step. Step. Step. Step.

"YOU GO SYBI!! RUN SYBI RUN!!"

The words echo throughout the large room. Causing me to stop abruptly. My heart suddenly beating quickly, because only one person ever called me Sybi.

*FLASHBACK*
"Go on Sybil, you'll do well. Keep your head up, shoulders back, and be quick." My dad said. It was my first ever running competition. A 5km race. Only three people came to watch. My mom, dad, and my parents friend Mathew.

Mathew was the kind of family friend that was no longer a friend but family. The kind that goes to your sporting events and brings you out for fun outings

I step up to the starting line. "Take your mark, get set, boom." The gun goes off, and I run. I take the head of the group and am determined to stay there.

I have no clue how much time is passing. Just that I'm in the lead. And I'm determined to stay there. Before I know it I come to the clearing and I can hear shouting. A sea of names being called out, but as I near the finish line I see a familiar face. Mathew, his long black hair braided back and his tanned arms pumping in the air as my small body crosses the finish line " YES!! SYBI YOU DID IT!" He laughs as he picks me, up and my parents shower me in kisses. Congratulating me.
*END OF FLASHBACK*

My hands shake slightly as I turn around. And standing there, with a big smile on his face is Jackson. But the man standing I front of me is not Jackson. That may be the name he goes by now. The name the military gave him when he left. When he was promised a new safe life, away from Enemy fire and war. But the more I look at him the more I see it. The long black hair is now buzzed. And the lanky body turned to muscle. But this is Mathew. This is Mathew.

I can tell by the way his smile widens and his eyes light up, that he knows I know. He slowly walks over, seeing if il leave. But I can't. I stay exactly were I am.

Suddenly he's In front of me, speaking fast. " listen, please don't go. I know you may not want to see me, it's been years, and I know I wasn't there for you when you needed it. When I left for war, when you were 8, I honestly thought I'd be coming back. I thought I'd be seeing you all again and we'd all get together and have Christmases and birthdays just like we always did. But things happened. I can't give details but some pretty crazy stuff happened over there. And the only way that I could be promised safety is if I changed who I was. I needed to become Jackson Wood, not Mathew French. So that's what I did. Your parents knew about it. But we weren't aloud contact. As far as They were concerned I was gone. I thought about you guys all the time. I missed all of you. You were my family"   

He stops quickly, taking a breath before continuing " when your parents were killed, I was sent a letter. The only reason I didn't come and see you was because I knew your grandparents would take good care of you."

" I had a feeling you might be chosen for this, seeing as how famous your parents were. So I signed up to be a trainer and they took me up. I wanted to see you again."

Tears are slowly collecting in his eyes, something I've never been able to understand. I guess it's hard to understand why someone would cry when you never have.

With shaking arms I wrap them around him. Hugging one of last members of my family I have left. I pull away from the hug and look at the time. 5:25. "I need to go get ready." I tell him "of course. I should go too" he says.

We walk down to my floor and as I walk into my room I look back at him. Hating to say goodbye, so i don't. "See you later...Jackson" I say. The name feeling strange. But I'll just need to get used to it. He smiles widely "see you later little Sybi" he says.

The next 30 minutes consist of getting dressed, and the whole time I keep thinking that maybe, just maybe. The works using all that bad.

What do you guys think of Jackson/ Mathew? Are you liking Jacobs character so far? I really hope you guys are liking the story. Don't worry, Sybil and Niall will be crossing paths a lot more soon. I just think that it's important that they're their own person and not just eachother. Please comment if you're liking it!! Hugs XXX