104 Away

Shattered

It felt like there was an explosion. As soon as the glinting plane of glass shattered against the ground, millions of pieces of shining glass spread across the floor. In the back of my mind, I thought of how breathtaking the sight was at first. The sun shining off of it, and when it hit just the right spot it's a ray of blinding sunshine. But it could've also killed someone. It felt like this moment was in slow mo.  The splinters of shards still crashing against the ground, a ringing in my ears and a panic  that was rooted deep in my chest, branching out to every part of my body. It was horrible, and that was the truth.

The seconds that were ticking by felt like hours, and I turned around, locking eyes with Peyton, Ann, Aubrey and Matt. And.. that girl Peyton was talking to from before. Her eyes were wide, her mouth open, as if she were about to let out a scream right before she had ducked under the table.  And just like that, it was quiet again.  Marcie braced for impact, but none came. No glass fell. No student screamed. No sound, except for the ringing in her ears. It was driving her mental. She concentrated on trying to hear everything else that was happening, if it was safe to get out. All she heard was shaky, ragged breathing. Clothing shifting against the floor.

Impulsively, without thinking, Marcie flung herself out of the table and stood up, despite Aubrey's shout. Marcie was sure there was no more glass that could've fallen. It just wasn't possible. She was just lucky she was right.

For some reason, the entire scenario had made her think of her mom. It was like how being around her at first was okay, not distressing or anything, but one wrong move and it's a life or death situation. Thinking about her family made her chest hurt. It was like choking, in a way. You try to breathe, and swallow and push it down, but it's stuck.  And it feels as if it will never come out.

 Marcie snapped back into reality at the sound of students rolling out from under the wooden tables, silent despite the strain of bending over.  She could hardly hear it, the ringing in her ears feeling like it was about to burst her ear drums. Marcie suspected the others had felt that way, too.

"Students. It seems we have reached some difficulty today." Came a loud voice from the front of the hall. Marcie didn't even have to turn around to know who it was. Ms. Stone. "If you would all follow your designated teachers to your room, the faculty will deal with this mess and you will be delivered your lunch immediately."  When Marcie finally shifted her body to look at the headmistress, to her shock there was not a singe clue of what had just happened on Ms. Stone. Her tight skirt was perfectly straight, not a wrinkle visible.  Her blouse fitted and not a single hair out of place on her bun. It was as if she had stayed in the exact same position when the window had catapulted to the floor.

"That doesn't make sense," Marcie said to herself. And then she had the need to slap herself in the face. Ms. Stone was glaring at her, with her lips pursed in a tight, thin line. She had meant to say it quietly, but because of the endless ringing in her ears, it had probably came out louder than she had meant to. 

"Pardon?" Ms. Stone spoke through her bared teeth.

"Nothing, ma'am," Marcie stammered. Marcie held her principal's gaze until Ms. Stone turned away. 

"Now then. Head to your dorms." 

The tall wooden door slammed shut behind Marcie as she, Ann, Aubrey and Peyton filed into their dorm room. Marcie had expected that it would be like this morning, where no girl would have the guts to speak until an hour later. She was wrong.

"What in the world was that?" Peyton exclaimed as soon as Mrs. Abboud's footsteps were out of hearing.

"Whatever it was, it could've killed us." Aubrey chimed in. She shifted her gaze to Marcie. "Speaking of which. Marcie! Your cheek!" 

As if commanded to, the cut on Marcie's cheek stung agonizingly, a sharp spike of pain erupting through it. Her hand shot up to her cheek, feeling the trickle of blood still warm, and dripping down to her jaw. "Ah- that stings,"

"We have to find a teacher-" 

"No we don't!" Marcie shouted, a lot louder than she had meant too. "I mean, we don't have too. I'll deal with it."

Peyton raised an eyebrow, her lips pursed tightly. "What are we going to do about that then? Let it bleed?"

"Maybe?" Said Marcie under her breath, earning a hard glare from Aubrey.  

"Come on Marcie, just let us go grab the school nurse or something," Ann sighed, seeming exasperated. She looked thoughtful for a second, then added, "If there even is one."

Marcie felt a familiar strong feeling overcome her. Impulse. One hand reached up to the shard of glass while the other pressed onto her cheek, the skin hot and probably flushed. 3... 2... 1!  Marcie thought, and by the end of the count-down, her fist had clasped over the shard, feeling a sting almost immediately on her palm, and pulled. Hard. For a few seconds that felt like eternity, there was an immense pain rooted deep inside her skin, feeling like as the glass was being pulled out, it was turning her skin around with it. Which might've been true.

And just like that, it was over.

Marcie gazed upwards, feeling a tight grimace on her lips form. Aubrey, Ann and Peyton's jaw had dropped, their eyebrows creased. "Marcie! You idiot!"

Marcie was dumbfounded.  "Excuse me?"

"What was that! How could you be so stupid? We could've sorted this out- easily, too-" Ann blurted out, surprising everyone. Her eyes were filled to the brim with a pure aggravation, and was now standing up, her shoulders tight and her arms flying everywhere. "I mean, you're impulsive enough already, but you doing this is insane."

Marcie's gaze travelled from girl to girl, surprised that they all were nodding awkwardly along with Ann, Aubrey looking away awkwardly. Her cut was stinging bitterly, but somehow it was easy for marcie to ignore, a weird feeling in her stomach overpowering every other thought or feeling in her stomach. "Okay then," Marcie muttered numbly. "I'm gonna go get a bandaid." And as if on command, she felt blood trickledown from her cheek.