Raven

Chapter 9-Breaking In

"Wha- Raven? Raven!" I scream into the silence of my bedroom, knowing that she won't come back, but I try anyway. Why did she just leave? Just disappear into thin air just like everything else in my life? She seemed melancholy about whatever I said. Did I say something mean and not realize it? I can't seem to remember exactly what I had brought up before she left. Something about passing powers to someone, but I don't see how that's bad.

As I glance back over to the clock, I realize that I am missing school and lunch is probably almost over, considering I left around that time. If I miss class, people are going to start to suspect something, plus I don't want to get in trouble for ditching class. I jump off the bed and feel a sharp prick in the bottom of my foot.

"Frick!"

I reach below my bare foot and find a bobby pin laying in the palm of my hand. Raven. I shake away my thoughts and quickly gallop down the stairs, pull on my shoes, and run out the door. I run as fast as I can and to be honest, this is probably the most exercise I have ever done. My thighs are in immense pain and my lungs feel like they are on fire. My legs are becoming numb as I reach the school building and realize that I'll have no way to get in. I circle around to the back of the school to see if there are any open windows or doors. I feel like I am a criminal trying to break in, which I kind of am. I just have to get in undetected, so I don't get into trouble and quietly get back to class to learn, just like any other student. Maybe there will be a janitor outside and I can ride inside their garbage can to the inside of the building. Sounds like a scene from some sort of comedy movie.

As I am thinking of several possibilities and outcomes of those possibilities, I notice one of the gym teachers on the roof of the building, picking up a few stray dodge balls that had landed on the roof. A plan instantly formulates in my head and I find myself racing to the bike rack by the side of the building. I hoist myself up onto the metal railing and lean my hands onto the bricks to keep myself steady. I notice several bricks conveniently jutting out from the wall on the corner of where two sides of the building meet. To reach the corner, I inch myself towards it by sliding my feet cautiously along the metal rail, careful not to slip. Once I reach the corner, I grasp my hand around one of the rough bricks and put my foot on another. The first time I try to lift myself up, I loose my balance and fall back onto the rail, keeping myself from the ground by holding tightly to the wall. I catch my breath for a few seconds before pulling myself up on the bricks again. Each time I move one of my limbs to grip a new section of the brick, I take a few seconds to take a deep breath and continue. Once I reach the top, I wrap my arm around the edge of the roof and look back down. It seems like I had climbed Mt. Everest, but it was only around 9 feet, which is mildly disappointing, but when I feel the breeze of afternoon sway through my hair and the sun tan the skin on my arms, I know I made it.

I swing myself over the ledge and onto the gravel of the roof, crouching down before surveying the area around me. The gym teacher has clearly departed and all that's left is the rocky rooftop and a door on a small brick structure in the middle of the roof. I casually walk to the metal door and wonder if lunch is over yet. As I twist the knob, it gets stuck and I rattle it for a few seconds before considering the possibility that the door is locked.

"Crap."

I then remember earlier when Raven used a bobby-pin to get into my house, which she said she learned from her brother. Her brother. Is that why she left? She got really uncomfortable when I mentioned it the first time, but I didn't say anything before she abandoned me. Unless... what if one of the people who passed their powers on was her brother. Does that mean he died? Now I understand.

I reach into my pocket and grab the bobby-pin I found on the carpet in my room earlier and slide it into the lock. My fingers twist the pin around, trying to mimic how Raven slipped the pin into the lock and jiggled it precisely to click the lock open. After minutes of trying to move the pin around, I give up. I slide my back down the door in frustration and hopelessness, pressing my face into my palms. Suddenly I hear the click of the lock and I quickly stumble to get up. In disbelief, I twist the cool knob and the door responsively swings open. Trying not to think about it too much, I hastily descend into a dark abyss of stairs. There are about two flights of stairs before I reach yet another door. I couldn't open the first door alone, but another door is going to be impossible. I curl my fingers around the knob uncertainly and twist it, but to my surprise this door swings open, just like the last one. Did the gym teacher do this? Maybe he was lazy or maybe...