Stuck Here (Ziall)

Chapter 9

(Niall’s POV)

 

So I have been sitting here for hours, staring at the chalkboard in the front of the class. There were important dates and assignments written up there, but I wasn’t bothered to really pay them any attention. Why would I? I was dead. I groaned and laid my head against the cold surface of my desk. I found it strange that I could still feel such simple things like the slick surface of a desk or even the moisture build up on a window. That was my favorite, because I was able to leave my mark. It was almost as if I had just gained the ability to become invisible, but that wasn’t how it was. I was dead. I was just a poor, Irish lad that had met his demise at such a young age. I hadn’t even had sex yet. What a tragedy.

I was becoming bored with the endless hours of being stuck in my school. So I decided to go around and make use of my time. It was late at night and I hadn’t dozed off to wake up to a new day. I had all the time in the night to wander around and go places that I hadn’t before. I had found my way into seven classrooms and the girls’ bathroom before I heard this strange noise.

I shook my head, thinking that it was just my mind playing tricks on me, but the noise continued. It was a strange whine. Like a high pitched squeal of a dog. I cringed at the noise as it did something weird to me. I stumbled backwards and then I heard the full-blown bark of a dog. I was shocked to say the least. I fell back on my bum and let out a squeak of surprise. “What is a dog doing here?” I asked myself. I looked around for the furry creature, but it wasn’t there. I felt my lung constrict in my chest and my breathing became hitched.

Another round of barks and whines from a dog echoed down the hallway. I looked around again to find the damn dog, but there was nothing. My head felt dizzy and I leaned against the lockers to compose myself. I closed my eyes for a second and then saw Zayn’s face behind closed eyelids. He looked pained by something and I hated seeing his beautiful face like that. It was like I had fallen into a new area. I felt something trickle down the back of my head and my light-headedness increased. 

“Niall?” I opened my eyes to see Zayn standing in front of me. He looked down at me with a concerned look on his face. “Niall, why are you on the ground?” He asked.

I shook my head, not really understanding what was going on. I tried standing up, but my body felt weak. I was overwhelmed by something and my head was swimming with images of a dog and a shadowed man. Then there was pain. There was an immense pain in my leg and my back. I touched my head to see what was dripping down my neck, but when my fingers touched the tender area, there was nothing.

“Zayn, what’s going on?” I asked, looking up at him with pleading eyes. It was dark in the hallway and it had to be very late at night. “Zayn, it’s the weekend. Why are you here?”

Zayn sighed and he offered his hand to me. He mumbled something under his breath and then helped me up from the ground. “I had to check something.” He said softly. He spun me around and patted his hands on my shoulders and then down my back. I blushed immensely and stuttered out my next words.

“Zayn, c-can you hear the dog?” I asked. Zayn stopped patting my back and stopped searching for whatever he was looking for. “Zayn?”

“That damn dog.” Zayn growled. His voice was so deep and it scared me a little. “Niall, I think I finally figured it out.” He said quickly. He spun me around and held me steady with his strong, tanned hands. “How you died, I mean.”