Subconscious - Awake

1

The slam of a car door adjacent to his jolted Zac Dixon out of his daze. He had spent the last ten minutes staring at a huddle of storm clouds in the distance, a waste of time. Ever since he had awoken that morning, he had this strange feeling following him around. A feeling that set his nerves on edge. A sense that something dreadful was going to happen today. Which was silly and immature. Zac glanced at the time; He was going to be late. With his first-class being about a six-minute walk and having only four minutes before the bell, he was going to have to run. Snatching his bag, he rushed out of his car and headed for the front archway. The school was a drabby place with ivy-covered bricks and discolored cement steps, so Zac didn't feel as bad after finally clearing the muddy grass courtyard and smudging dirt all over the walkway. Once inside the overcrowded building, he took two seconds to wipe off his shoes on the mats. No sense in slipping and falling on his face, even when the simple task ate up some of his time. It was pouring outside now, fat water droplets slapping the windows, a steady thrum of noise. He made his way through the crowd of bustling teenagers but stopped when he saw something peculiar, sensed something out of place. No. Someone out of place.

Zac had been going to school with the same people since kindergarten, and even if there were over six hundred kids in each grade, it wasn't every day that there was a new face in the school. She was casually leaning against one of the school columns holding nothing but a book and a pen. Her dark hair stopped right above her shoulders and her eyes were the color of coal. The girl's face donned a stern, focused expression as if she were analyzing a war instead of a school hallway. Something about her wary eyes gave Zac the impression of a person that had seen a lot, been through a lot, knew the true meaning of loss. The stranger looked too sophisticated to be in high school, more mature, and grown-up.

Zac glanced away stepping through the glass doors which led into the largest room on the campus. So there was a new girl. Big deal. He had bigger problems to deal with, like getting to class on time. He shouldered his heavy bag and didn't spare the girl another glance as he ran to class.

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Zac's safe haven, the library, was his favorite place in the entire world, the place he visited every day during his free second period. The silence wrapped around him in a tight embrace as the peaceful aura settled inside him. He took a deep breath, soaking up the smell of fresh pages and ink.

Striding up to the desk at the front, Zac returned the well overdue books that he had found the night before in his room. He had always enjoyed reading but was incredibly slow at it, making most of his book returns much later than anticipated. He paid the clerk, apologized, and set off toward the other side of the room. Zac then slid off his backpack and sat down at his usual table in the back, next to the windows.

Grey clouds covered the usually blue sky as lightning struck, sending flashes of light out in all directions. The thunder shook Zac to the core as the window in front of him shuddered from the vibrations. Zac loved storms, he always found it fascinating to watch the sky come to life. Even if he wasn't outside, he could somehow feel when a storm is brewing. He would get all jittery and excited as extra adrenaline coursed through his veins. Today was definitely one of those days.

He couldn't help but tap his leg under the table, unsure of what to do with his newfound energy. His eyes were still fixated on the clouds, which were suddenly getting very dark.

Everything seemed far away. His grasp on reality slowly drifting away like a loose balloon.

Zac didn't notice the footsteps echoing behind him until it was too late. His head started to feel fuzzy and his vision blurred. The clouds were the last thing he saw before unconsciousness swallowed him whole.