Run. Don't stop to think. Just run.
I'm repeating this in my head as I sprint through the darkness terrified for whats going to happen because, well, it will inevitably result in my death.
Confused? Let me catch you up to speed.
~ One month prior ~
My eyes fly open, my alarm screeching in my ear so loud, so aggravating that I want to scream. I get out of bed. Grab clothes off of my floor. Sniff. Well not too bad. Walk to the bathroom, toothpaste on toothbru- damn. Scrape toothpaste off sink. Brush teeth. Wash face. I take in my dark hair and pale skin. My eyes are brown, similar to my hair, and my smile is only half there. I get back to my routine. Brush hair. Apply eyeliner. Apply mascara. Fill in eyebrows. Did I pee yet? Get dressed. Tie shoes. Grab bag. Head downstairs.
"Good morning sweetheart, I made you pancakes!" My mother cheerfully greets me at the table. I mutter a thanks and avoid looking her in the eyes, knowing I'll be crushed with guilt after seeing the sadness they hold. Being around my mother tears me apart, and knowing that this is my only time with her hurts even more.
"How many hours?" she asks weakly. "Mom, Let's not focus on that right now. Let's just enjoy a breakfast together and try and be normal, to be happy." My voice fades at the end of my sentence, but it's the most I've managed to say in a long time. "Last time we checked It was only five weeks, and that was a week ago. Has it changed? Is there any more time?" My mother stares at me with pleading eyes, tears beginning to fill them. "Mom, maybe it's wrong, it's happened before. Maybe I'm-" I am cut off by the shattering of my moms glass. "You're not like them for gods sake Anna! The last one recorded was over thirty years ago! Only Seven out of Everybody that has ever walked this earth has managed to figure out how to get around their clock, and even when they did they were damned anyways! Outliving each and every one of their loved ones, is that any way to live?" My mom is furious, shaking almost violently in her place.
I grab my bag and start to head for the door, I look back at her as I reach for the handle. "There's four hundred and seventy two hours left, and you're going to have to come to terms with what that means." I can hear her sobbing as I shut the door behind me.
