No Turning Back

Goodbye

"Danny, Danny," my baby brother yelled as he jumped up and down my bed. "Wake up, wake up! You've got school!"

"Zac," I groaned. "Please stop. I really don't feel good."

"Mommy said you gotta go to school. She let you stay home yesterday so she says you gotta go to school today." I groaned again. My stomach had been bothering me ever since our basketball team had our victory dinner after winning the championships on Friday night. My parents figured that I had food poisoning and took me to the doctor the next day. It turned out that I was actually just having an internal allergic reaction something so my doctor gave me some medicine and told me to rest for a day or two. As soon as I got home, I called Jayden and he came over to take care of me. I mostly slept but he didn't seem to mind. He took the time to study, draw and read one of the new books I'd recommended to him. I think he liked the fact that he was still helping somewhat even though all he had to do was lay near me. His presence really did help. When he was around, I felt a bit better but when he left my stomach only got worse.

"Alright, tell her I'll be downstairs in a minute," I told him. He chirped something before hopping off my bed and running out my room. Sometimes I wondered how he had so much energy so early in the morning, even for a little kid. If I was a child and didn't have to go anywhere until eight in the morning, best believe I would be sleeping. But then again, that might be because I know the horrors of not getting enough sleep. That probably makes all the difference.

Reluctantly, I hauled myself out of my bed and dragged my body into the shower. The hot water calmed some of my muscles and I found that my stomach wasn't feeling as bad as it was before. I was relieved at the fact it was starting to feel better. I didn't want to be walking around all school feeling as if I was going to throw my guts up every five seconds. I carefully got changed into my uniform before heading down the stairs to the kitchen. Ashley was sitting at the table, her eyes wide as she stared down at her phone. I didn't bother asking what she was looking at. I just sat down at the table and dropped my head down.

"Did you take your medicine," my mom asked as I felt her run a hand through my messy hair.

"Yea. I feel a little better though," I mumbled.

"That's good. You think you're gonna be alright enough to eat something?"

"I think I can fathom a granola bar," I said as I slowly picked my head up. I noticed Ashley staring at me, her eyes still wide. "No, I'm not PMSing," I told her. Whenever I would get stomach aches, she would always say that I was PMSing or that my feminine sides were trying to expose themselves. Once she even tried to say I was pregnant. Each and every time, I just stared at her and reminded her that I was pretty sure I was a guy. Sometimes she stared right back and said that guys PMS more than girls do. That's when I would just drop the conversation because it was obvious that she had a smart remark to anything I was going to say.

"Are you sure you want to go to school today," she asked cautiously. I nodded.

"Yea. I am the president, ya know, which means that I can't miss too many days of school."

"I know but you're sick. Plus, you look as if you're turning a bit green." I waved my hand at her.

"I'll be fine." Ashley nodded, her face still holding concern. After I forced a granola bar down my throat, we headed out to school. Ashley stayed close to me as we walked down the hallway. I kept my eyes straight, trying not to look around and unintentionally make myself dizzy. I did notice a lot of kids on their phones though. Most of them were staring at their screens with wide eyes while others were whispering as they passed a phone amongst their group of friends. I wanted to question what was going on but I couldn't exactly bring myself to care. I just needed to get through the day without throwing up or passing out.