The fear in Jack’s eyes sent a chill down my spine. Our eyes were locked on each other for what seemed like an eternity. At some point, his glazed over eyes began flicking around my face; searching for something—what, I wasn’t sure. I glanced up at his hair. It was tinted pink. The morning sun had peeked over the horizon, spying on us from behind houses and trees, casting a bright pink glow on everyone and everything. My hair fell in front of my eyes. It looked purple.
He stared at me so long, I started shaking with fear. “Jack?” The sound that escaped my lips was more like a squeak than an actual word from an actual voice. His eyes continuously flicked nervously around my face, faster and faster, until they stopped on my eyes. He was breathing heavily. I coughed, regaining my confidence. “Jack…Are you okay?”
He coughed as well, looking down, then back up. “Yeah, yeah, I just…” his voice seemed to escape from him. He seemed like he was somewhere else. “I have to go.” He shut his eyes, turning away. A strong gust of wind appeared, taking Jack off the ground and up into the clouds. I looked up after him, left to myself and my thoughts.
I suddenly felt very, very alone. My heart beat fast; quicker by the second. My head started throbbing, and in an instant, I was on the ground, confused as to how I got there. I breathed heavily, trying to slow my heartbeat. I looked at my fingertips. With a flick of my wrist, a tiny orb of water appeared above my index finger. As I twirled my finger, it spun, around and around, getting larger; from golf-ball size to tennis-ball. I tilted my head, smiling. The way the water moved made me suddenly very, very happy.
Then the orb darkened. As if covered by a large shadow, getting closer, it turned deep blue, then navy blue, then black. Surprised, I yelped and flung my hand away. The water dropped into my lap, returning to normal clear. I looked up. The clouds were the same spread-out, sad gray as before. Nothing had changed. I decided to shake it off. Standing up, I looked around for anything to do, while I twirled my staff in my hand.
A few meters away were two girls about my age. One looked scene-like. She had dark brown hair, nearly black, with many colourful highlights, and wore a graphic jacket with flare jeans. The other was Asian. She had long, pitch-black hair with white dyed tips. Her skin was pale, and she wore a black down coat with close-fitting flares, along with a pair of converse shoes. They walked slowly, and slowed down even more when they got closer to me. The scene girl eventually stopped completely, while the Asian girl ran ahead, sprinting right at me. I started to wince for the impact, but she just ran straight through me. A flash of light blinded me, and I was pushed backwards. Stumbling and blinking, I turned around. She couldn’t see me.
“Hello?” I asked. She ignored me. I couldn’t be heard, either. Walking around her, I saw she was leaning over the hole in the ice that Jack had been sleeping next to when we first met. She was also crying. Silently. She didn’t utter a single sound. She only let her tears spill over, landing in the freezing water with tiny splashes. Confused, I stood up and walked towards the other girl, stopping to sit on the ice several feet away from her. I watched as one tear fell from her bowed head, landing on the ice in a small squashed-bubble-like shape. Lifting my arm, I thought of a beautiful water lily. When I opened my eyes, there it was. A water lily—made of water. Again, I smiled.
Again, it darkened.
The flower turned ugly; its stem gaining spiky thorns, and the petals turning long and spindly. Evil. One petal fell to the ground, in the sort of floating way a real petal would. As it touched the water, it splashed and fell all the way, returning to normal water in an instant. I glanced up; the girl with the highlights didn’t notice the flower. She had turned around, and was already walking back the way they came, leaving her friend behind. I turned around, facing the Asian girl. She began to stand up, slowly, inch by inch. Once she was standing upright, she touched her fingers to her mouth, and then extended her hand; she was blowing a kiss to the hole in the ice.
