UnKnown(PUBLISHED)

One

Have you ever wondered if the life you are living is a lie? That maybe you're not even the person everyone says you are. That you know you are. That there is more to you than meets the eye? Yeah. Same.
        "Arianna... Arianna. HEY!" A hand appeared, slamming down onto a locker several times, causing me to jump. I turned slightly to see my best friend, Rylan, standing there with raised eyebrows.

    "What? What happened?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

  "I should be asking you that. I've been talking to you for about five minutes now, and you're zoning out. You have not even gotten any of your books out."

    I looked down to see my bookbag hanging from my left hand, the zipper halfway open. I was still gripping my available locker as if ready to close it. I kneeled, pulling out a couple of binders and books before placing my bookbag into my locker.

"Sorry... I don't think I slept well last night. What were you saying, Rylan?''

  "I was asking if you were ready for your tests. Hopefully, you studied last night and not just stayed up." Rylan crossed his arms, looking at me skeptically. I cleared my throat, ruffling my black hair nervously. Rylan placed his hand on his face, throwing his head back just a bit. "You didn't study!? Arianna, this test is significant.''

"I know! I know! But Netflix was calling my name." I stomped my feet a couple of times. Rylan and I have been friends since the beginning of middle school. He had picked up on a couple of habits of mine throughout the year. Rylan let out a sigh, dropping his hand.

  "We have like fifteen to twenty minutes until class starts. You know Mr. Anderson passes the test on time. Let's get to class to study some Spanish, okay?" Rylan said, smiling just a bit. I grinned, nodding as I threw an arm around Rylan's waist, squeezing him as best as possible. I could always count on Rylan to save me from these tests. I've never been the type to study when it came to tests, but I half pass whenever Rylan helps me. If not for him, I would probably have bad grades throughout the year. My parents would kill me for that.

We walked in the same rhythm down the hallway toward class. I explained to Rylan how important it was for me to finish watching Vampire Diaries. There were seasons that I have not watched yet that finally appeared on Netflix. There was no way that I could drop Vampire Diaries to study. My Salvatore boyfriends were calling me! And Elena was, too. Rylan quietly listened, nodding his head and rolling his eyes now and then. Once we entered the classroom, we sat in the middle of the row where Rylan went over everything that might be on the test and I might want to remember. Learning a different language was a rollercoaster of difficulty for me. I could memorize the words, how they look, and the meaning, but to remember to say them out loud in a sentence, hear someone else say it, and know what they are saying is the hard part.

When class finally started, and the test was placed before me, I started working on the ones I remembered. Everything else had left my brain like I had not recently gone over it with Rylan just a few seconds ago. Pressing the pencil's eraser against my cheek, I bounced my leg in concentration. There were only a couple of questions left, yet I could not figure out the answers. The answer was there, crawling at the back of my mind, but it was not readily available. Groaning in frustration, I read the question in my head over and over again before finally just circling a random answer, hoping that it would be correct.

~~~~
   "I did not pass that test..." I mumbled, sulking over the lunch table. Rylan took a second away from his meal to rub my back soothingly.

   "How do you even know? You have not checked your grades since 3rd period, and the day is almost over." Rylan said, dropping his hand from my back. I lifted my head, glaring at him.

  "I forgot most of the topics we discussed as soon as that test was in front of me!" I exclaimed, gripping the table as I pushed myself backward. I tilted my head back, scanning the cafeteria.

  "I'm sure you made at least eighty percent," Rylan reassured. I lifted myself back up, giving him a skeptical look.

  "You ace your tests all the time!"

  "Not all the time. Just most of the time." Rylan shrugged his shoulders before standing up and throwing away the tray. Just as he sat back down, the intercom came on.

  "Arianna Joyce, to the front office, please. Arianna Joyce."

Rylan looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "What'd you do?"

"I have no idea. I'll tell you when I get back, though." I stood up, walking out of the cafeteria and toward the front office. I have not done anything that could bring me to the front office unless I had an unknown doctor's appointment or my parents brought me better food than school lunch.

  "You called me?" I walked into the office, going straight up to the counter. The lady did not say anything but, with a shaky hand, passed over the phone. I hesitantly grabbed the phone, putting it to my ear as I gave the lady a confused look. "Hello?"

   "Arianna! Do not come home." I heard my mother's voice say. Her voice sounded as if she had run a mile and now just took a break. I could hear shuffling and mumbling in the background.

  "Mom? Is something happening?" I asked, pressing my hand against the counter.

  "Arianna, do you understand? Do not come home! Go somewhere safe." Mother thundered, breathing heavily. More shuffling was in the background before my father's voice was heard.

  "Arianna, don't go home. We're trying to keep you safe. There is something that you do not know that we've been keeping you from. I want you to run. Run far away before she can get you. Do you understand?"

  "What's going on? You guys are not telling me what's going on! What about you guys?'' I asked. What were they hiding from me? Who's coming after me, and why?

Before my parents could respond, there was a loud noise. It was a silent line before a gravelly-low voice I never heard before spoke, sending shivers down my spine.

     "I'm coming for you.''