Never the same

Chapter 3

I slowly open my eyes, mind groggy from the sleeping. My stomach growls in complaint about not having had food. The first thing that enters my vision is the armchair I'm sitting in.

What on earth?

I glance at the time and I'm given a large jolt of shock.

It's 11 a.m.! How on earth did I sleep this long in my armchair? Why does my stomach ache?

Then it all starts coming back to me. Again, I look at the dragon painting, and I nearly faint from shock. The dragon is halfway out of the painting. I watch as it ever so slowly comes out as if my worlds atmosphere is like honey or another thick substance that would slow movements. I continue to stare at the dragon in shock as I begin to come to terms with my fate.

I'm dead. Really, truly dead. My parents aren't home, and I'm stuck with the dragon that wants to kill me!

Suddenly, a ping noise. However I'm too afraid to go get the phone, less the dragon's actions are a trap to make me think it is slow.

I don't like this. Everything about this dragon painting has changed in 3 days. That's waaaaay out of my comfort zone.

Eventually, I grow tired of my stomachs complaints about not having had food. Sighing in defeat I stand up and walk to my door. The dragon's eyes continue to follow me, I put my hand on the door handle and the dragon lets out of terrifying hiss.

I slowly remove my hand from the door handle, and the dragon stops hissing. I look at it and noticed that the usual, bright green has been replaced by a venomous green. The green eyes of the dragon seem to be able to change in tones. I walk back and sit in the armchair. The dragon's eyes revert back to their normal, light green state.

What the hell? I can't leave my room now? That sucks.

I glare at the dragon and it looks at me. Our staring contest is interrupted by a ping from the blasted phone, I choose to ignore it, until another ping comes, followed by several others, all in rapid succession.

It's my parents! Great! What am I supposed to do?

I look at the dragon and see the hidden laughter in its eyes. Its mocking me. This causes me to get angry and I marched to the table, grab my phone, then return to the armchair. I unlock the phone and see the messages.

Are you kidding me? I go through all that stress for it to be one of the fools in school asking for what the homework is??!?!

The idiot not only messaged me but also decided to try to get my attention by sending a flurry of question marks. I quickly type a response:

"Suffer."

After hitting send, I begin to calm down enough to get a few brain cells working with logic again. I quickly check the other text to see who it is and what it reads.

I am not surprised to see it from that blasted unknown guy. What does indeed surprise me is the exposition I am given.

"Do not fear it. It is here to help you. It will not harm you."

Liar! The thing got angry at me when I tried to leave!

I look at the dragon and gasp. Only the tail remains in the painting. I watch as the small dog size dragon beats its wings to not fall down, the tail ever so slowly comes out. Then, as the clock beeps at 1 o'clock, a year after the dragon painting was made.

The dragon is set free.

I watch as the jet black dragon finally pulls free from the painting. It immediately lands on the floor in the middle of my room. My heart beats at 200 kilometres per hour as I'm faced with an actual, living, breathing dragon. My palms collecting sweat, and my phone slips out of my hand, crashing onto the floor. The noise brings the dragon's attention to the phone, then to me. I gulp.

I am going to die!

The dragon looks at me with its green eyes. I can't help but look back. Then the dragon closes its eyes, lowers its head and begins to grow. I stare in astonishment as the small dragon grows from a height of around 25 centimetres to a height of 1 metre. The neck and tail elongate, the wings get larger and the head gets bigger. Finally, the relatively large dragon looks at me, its growth complete. I admire how awesome the dragon looks.

You fool! You should have escaped when you have the chance!

Too late for that now. I stare into the dragon's light green eyes once more, the dragon begins to slowly step towards me.

Here it comes!

The dragon inches closer and closer, slowly. At such a slow pace even I just want it to hurry up.

It knows I'm trapped. It knows I'm not going anywhere.

The dragon is on the half a metre away from me now. It slowly comes towards me. My heart rate increases rapidly, any more and I'll end up fainting, or having a heart attack. Or both.

I just want to get this over with! The stress will kill me before the dragon does!

I back up as much as I can, the dragon places a paw on the armchair, making the head slightly higher.

Why me?

That question burns in my mind. I feel something wet on my face and realise I'm crying. The dragons face is now inches away from mine. I close my eyes.

Just end me!

The dragon, very contrary to what I am still thinking, does not kill me. Instead, it rests its head on my hair and the rest of its body on mine.

What?

All to my confusion, the dragon starts glowing. I suddenly feel paralyzed and start panicking at the thought.

I can't move! What the hell? WHAT'S HAPPENING!??

My body starts to absorb the dragon's, sending my mind into a state of confusion, panic and stress. Added to all the stress from the entire weekend, it sums up to something greater than my mind can handle. I faint.

I slowly regain consciousness, my head spinning from what just happened. I do however notice I'm in bed.

What? I thought I was in my armchair?

I glance at the dragon painting out of a newly formed habit. However, the painting is just as it was before, a jet black dragon spreading its wings wide as it flies upward. Its front and hind legs are dangling down, and its tail this also pointing down.

Wait. What? How is that even possible? Did I... Dream that this happened?

I sigh in relief and get up from the bed. I go to the bathroom with one clear goal in my mind, to clear my bladder.

Washing my hands I study myself in the mirror. My hair is pretty messy, and langs over my eyes. I turn off the tap and dry my hands, before attempting to comb my hair with my hands. I look back at the mirror.

And something I see makes me freeze.

What... happened... to... my... eyes?