Redesign Me, State of the Art (Jalex)

Melt Your Headaches, Call It Home

Jack's POV

When I passed out, it was quick. I don't think I realized what was happening until it was happening. Then, I think I started dreaming.

It was dark again. But not like the pitch black it had been a couple of seconds earlier. Wherever I was, it was obviously nighttime. I heard the dripping of water and thought it might be a good idea to assess where I currently was. The structure around me appeared to be some sort of underground tunnel. The only illumination I could distinguish was a light at one end.

The first thing that came to mind was, oh hell no. This better not be what I think it is. I am way to young to die. And of course, being me, the second thing was, is the tunnel to heaven really a dirty, old underground pathway?

Just as I was about to scream for help, there was a quick flash of light, and a boy suddenly appeared at the other end. He seemed to be just about the same age as me. His light brown hair swooped across his forehead and he looked fairly pale. His dirty brown eyes were wild with fear and confusion, darting every which way in order to take in his surroundings. He looked just as scared as I was, probably thinking the same thoughts about the whole death-tunnel-to-heaven thing.

My mouth had suddenly gone dry and I waited for him to say something, anything. But he just stood there as I did. I made a step to move towards him and he instinctively took a step back, which, in this situation, was probably understandable. We were at a stand still. Both of us too terrified to do something. For lack of something better to do, I walked over to the side of the tunnel and ran my fingers against it. The rough walls felt cool under my palm. My instincts told me to push on it, even though my brain told me that that was a dumb and useless idea. I once again glanced over at the boy, who by the looks of it, had taken a couple steps towards me. Shrugging my shoulders, I pushed fiercely on the wall and after an uneventful minute, fell back exasperated. Nothing. It wouldn't budge. I turned and walked away, really convinced for some reason that that was going to work. The boy opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by a loud rumbling that was accompanied by the shaking of the ground.

I must have seemed pretty clueless and out of it, because the boy cleared his throat to catch my attention, before pointing towards the wall. I whipped my head around to see it shaking as well. There was a newly formed large crack down the center. I watched as the wall continued to shake and more cracks were quickly added. I felt dust and small pebbles rain down onto my shoulder and for God knows why, I started to panic. My breathing became short and I could feel a mixture of adrenaline and fear start to kick in. I instantly felt lightheaded and weak. Then out of nowhere came this shrill, high pitched noise that was so horrid, it brought me to the ground instantly. I sat on the floor with my knees pulled into my chest and my hands over my ears.

After a few second, the boy was by my side and could obviously tell that I was scared out of my wits. He knelt down beside me and snuggled his body in next to mine on the tunnel floor. He grabbed my hand and interlaced our fingers as the world shook around us. The sound was still unbearable. I felt the hand that wasn't being used to hold mine, make circles on my back, in a attempt to soothe me. I couldn't tell whether he could hear the noise or not, but if he could, I greatly appreciated his calm demeanor about it all. The sound continued to grow more intense, and it got to the point where I felt like my head was going to explode. Everything was still shaking as debris continued to fall over head. I heard the ground underneath me make a loud cracking sound and I felt my heart stop in my chest. This was it. Right before the world was about to open up and swallow us whole, the boy leaned over and whispered in my ear, "You can't save yourself. Let me."

~

The last thing I remember before everything went black was my teacher asking me who the Mongols were and how they affected ancient China. A question I of course knew not the answer of and was prepared to bullshit my way through.