The Time of My Life [Completed]

Chapter 29: The Time I Overslept

Tuesday, March 6, 2018

10:30 am

I spent hours last night lying awake in bed, thinking about the text I got from Brock. If it's the last thing he does? He's crazy. I got barely any sleep whatsoever, so I decided to sleep in and miss first period. I didn't care since it's choir and I have a 100 in that class. Plus it's only the second absence I'd have this semester. I ended up skipping my second class too, I was really tired. But I'm always tired.

I slumped down the stairs with my backpack slung over my shoulder, and see Dallas and Max on the couch. "Oh, cool. I didn't know you'd be here."

"Yeah, great thing about owning your own franchise. I didn't know you'd be here either." He narrowed his eyes, asking why the hell I'm not in school.

"I slept in." I answered his unspoken question. "Can you give me a ride to school? I was going to ask Orange to pick me up during lunch, but since you're home..."

"Yeah, sure." He stands with the little boy balanced on his hip.

I feel my phone vibrating in my back pocket and I pray it isn't another sketchy text from Brock. But it was Mom calling. "Sweetie, are you okay?" She sounded worried.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?" I was just plain confused.

"I just got the call from your school." I waited for her to give me a lecture about skipping class, but the next thing she told me was not at all what I was expecting. "The school is under a code red lock down."

I knew what that meant, but I wanted to make sure. "What's code red mean again?"

"Lives are in danger."

Crap. "That's what I thought. I'm safe, Mom." After successfully convincing my mom I wasn't going to die, she let me hang up. I told Dallas that the school was on lock down, but I didn't tell him how serious it could be. I knew he would never let me go within a mile of the place if he knew. Luckily, Dallas had already set up some play date for Max with one of the neighbors, so we dropped him off early. I could never bring Max into this. He's not even 5 yet.

10 minutes later, we're less than a block away from the school. I told Dallas to park the car there. I could see half a dozen cop cars in front of the school. Relieved the authorities were there already, I started to climb out of the car, telling Dallas to stay where he was. My heart dropped when I spotted the two ambulances to the side of the building.

I jog up the street, until I'm standing diagonally across from the school. Building up my strength, I approach the nearest police car. "Excuse me, officer-"

"I'm sorry, Miss. You're going to need to leave. It isn't safe." He had an extremely heavy southern accent. I glance around, part of me hoping to see something or someone familiar, another part of me praying to God that I wouldn't. Then I do. The car sitting directly in front of the school. One officer was in the middle of handcuffing Brock, while another was saying something to him.

I point across the street. "Him. I know him." This seemed to get his attention. "Can you please tell me what happened?" I begged. I knew this had something to do with the text Brock sent me, I could only hope I was imagining the worst.

"Ma'am, how well do you know the boy?"

"He's my ex-boyfriend."

"Would you mind answering some questions down at the station?"

"Of course. Let me just text my brother. He's waiting for me." I texted Dallas to let him know he could leave. Of course, he made me explain the the whole thing, or at least what I knew, before agreeing to leave me there. I climbed into a police car for the first time; I was just glad to be sitting in the front seat.

Once we arrived, Sheriff Coleman began to explain the situation. "That boy, Brock Henderson, brought two guns on campus. Luckily, my men detained him before there were too many casualties."

"Too many? How many were there?" I asked, afraid to hear the answer.

"Two." I sighed in relief. "The victims were identified as teacher, Melissa Hale," Mrs. Hale. My Animal Science teacher. "and student, Ezekiel Talbot."

My whole world froze at those words. Zeke.