Dust ✔️

Chapter One: Emergence

Chapter One: Emergence

The surface of the water is in my view, but no matter how hard I swim towards it, I can never get to the top. Drowning. Some people say its a peaceful way to die. You can just let go, and drift away... Slipping into complete nothingness. I struggle to continue on, and I feel myself start to suffocate, so I just let go.

I sat down on the marble ledge where there was a pool of clear water surrounding a big fountain in the middle, and glanced at the pennies resting at the bottom. It didn't matter how many pennies you threw into water and how many wishes you wished for, it wouldn't come true. It was however, a nice distraction from the real world; a dream. A dream for those foolish souls who were blinded by the realities of the sick place we lived in.

I focused on my hands gripping the handles of my beat up suitcase so hard that my knuckles were going white. My leg was bouncing up and down, shaking from nerves as well as exhaustion from not sleeping in the last nineteen hours. I wanted to look up to see if they arrived yet, but I didn't want to risk it. Making unnecessary eye contact with any strangers in this not unusual packed airport wasn't appealing.

I hadn't seen anyone in almost a year. I wondered how they looked now, if anything's changed besides me leaving. I wondered if everyone sounded the same, or acted the same way. Did everyone live in the same place they did before I left? I felt my anxiety creep up on me as I knew the waiting period was coming to a close, and I'd have to accept reality and face everyone I've ran away from. If I believed in a god, I'd pray no one has had high expectations of me that I've become a completely different person because I'm not. I wondered if they'd even come. If I were them, I most definitely would not have. Fuck this guy, I'd say, we're finally free from him.

That thought completely went away as I heard familiar voices in the distance. They actually came. It was almost a shock. I felt my heart actually skip a beat as I knew it was time to show everyone how much I've "bettered" myself in the last while. Normally I wasn't the nervous type and usually I gave zero fucks about what anyone thought of me but these people walking toward me were practically my family and I was the black sheep of the group. I stopped shaking my leg and glanced upward, scanning the room for familiar faces, focused on their voices to lead my eyes in the right direction.

Man with suit on, a phony. Woman with three children, hating her life as she should with her rugrats tugging at their leashes. More emotionless people collided past each other, not a single thought in mind. I almost smirked when I made eye contact with a younger female who seemed to have did a double take at my mean expression before speeding her pace.

When my eyes met his face, my first reaction was to turn and get back onto the plane I came off of an hour ago, but I couldn't. I stood up and wiped my sweaty palms on the front of my jeans and straightened my posture. There was no turning back now. Fuck.

I made eye contact with my most true friend and couldn't help but smile sloppily towards him with small excitement. He smiled and gave a small wave, then moved his eyes to the person walking beside him. When I glanced at his father, I couldn't help but look away and avoid him. I could see from the corner of my eyes, his straight face, that showed little to no emotion and I instantly started to feel my hands clam up again. I could tell that he saw right through me; he saw pure disappointment. Not that I should've been surprised, I put this on myself.

As they got closer, almost right in front of me, I gave a chuckle and ran my hands through my hair, and scratched the back of my head.

Without a word, Tyler embraced me in a bear hug. Startled, I wrapped my arms around him, feeling a sense of relief to be close to someone I could trust - someone familiar.