Colors

Fourteen

"Scott?"

I pulled my shirt back down so fast that I almost ripped it, moving from my position in front of the mirror to the adjacent room. I quickly wiped the growing tears, smearing them along my face desperately in an attempt to make any signs of distress disappear.

"I'm just in the bathroom!" I ran the icy water from the tap and splashed it up onto my face, managing to only get some of the liquid up my nose. I was thinking fast and decided to flush the toilet so I could pretend I'd just thrown up.

That was a reasonable excuse for why I left, right?

"What happened back there?" The brunette called out and then was silent, though the sound of his footsteps beginning their way up the stairs and eventually approach my door allowed me to know when to expect my best friend's entry.

"I... I don't feel so well..." I started to brush my teeth to get rid of the 'taste', though when I looked at myself in the mirror, the pale blue wash over my cheeks caused by the terror coursing through my veins definitely helped make me look more convincing.

"Oh, I'm sorry Scotty. You should've told us before, I could've gone instead and just and let them know..."

"Yeah, it's kind of just come over me all of a sudden..." I shrugged and looked down, wrapping my shaky arms around myself. "Where's Kirst?" I asked quietly, suddenly remembering that she had been left behind as well.

"Oh, she stayed with Mitch and the others. They really get along like a house on fire. Avi and Kevin also really seemed to enjoy her company." He beamed his usual perfect grin at me and I responded with one, glad that she found people to enjoy time with. Of course I was careful not to grin too much, I wouldn't want him to think that I was nearly as healthy as I felt. Physically of course.

"That's nice. Well, I'd better sleep for a bit, or I'm just going to end up curled around the toilet bowl. You're welcome to hang around..." I trailed off, knowing full well that he wouldn't want to stay.

"Oh no, I wouldn't want to intrude." Thank god.

"Oh, okay. Well, I'll text you later." I said weakly and climbed into my bed, not before Alex kissed my forehead to check my temperature and opened the windows in my room to let some air in. "Thanks, Mama Kirk." I teased, causing him to chuckle and roll his eyes at me before leaving.

I decided that moving was too much work once I was alone and allowed myself to have a nap, hoping that would allow me to avoid the fears rushing through my head.

"Excuse me young man?"

"Hello?"  I turned to see a police officer stalking toward me. I'm not a short person, but this man was at least two feet taller than me and it was terrifying.

"You are aware that you're in the blue district, right?" I looked around myself, the familiar blue houses and familiar blue streets surrounding me. I was in the same blue neighbourhood that I had always been trapped within.

"Of course, why would that be an issue?" This was where I was forced to be. This is where I belonged.

"Look at yourself!"  I first looked up at the officer, his eyes black as coal and his teeth as sharp as glass, he lunged at me but stopped quickly.

I looked down and my hands were deep purple, a beautiful colour but terrifying just the same. "No, this isn't me! This isn't my body!" I screamed and then I felt myself suffocating, my body convulsing and then -

I woke up, gasping heavily. It was a nightmare. Not that it was too far from the truth. If anything, it was more tame than the real world. I hadn't slept long, so I pulled my blanket up over my shoulders and slinked out of bed, moving down the hallway with it dragging behind me. I looked out the window and saw that the weather had changed while I was asleep, the sky now covered with a dark grey cloud. I started to feel the cold of the house before I'd even reached the lounge room, solidifying my decision to take a detour past the kitchen and make a hot chocolate to calm my nerves.

I bit my bottom lip, focusing as I poured the milk into the dark blue chocolate mixture, watching the light milk hit the dark surface.

I watched the colours dance together, swirling and gradually becoming one mix of the shades.

It was strange as I watched, feeling this emotional pull from the hot beverage that I had made myself. The colours of the chocolate and the milk moved around in my head, creating a pattern. A pattern that I was all too familiar.

It was Mitch and I.

We were two separate entities, moving around one another and thinking we weren't affecting one another. But so soon we'll be one, moving together and matching in colour.

This isn't good.

"Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck. Fuck shit fuck." I turned and accidentally knocked the mug off the counter, sending it clattering to the floor where it shattered, hot chocolate spilled all over my feet and glass just narrowly missing my toes.

I cleaned up and moved to sit on the sofa where I couldn't break anything, and stared at the wall, trying to think of a solution. 

I allowed the silence of the house to envelope me as I listened to the movement that wasn't there and the emptiness of the walls around me. The silence was screaming at me from every angle. telling me how to fix this mess that I'd gotten myself into.

I had to stop seeing Mitch.

A/N: A lot shorter than usual I'm afraid! Sorry, I've been really busy. I'll make it up to y'all very #soon!

How is everyone feeling about the book so far? Any future predictions?