My Purpose | An unORDINARY fanfiction

Chapter One: Past or Present?

     I woke up to the cacophonous sound of my alarm on a regular school day. Groaning dramatically, I rolled over, turning off the white noise that was blasting out of my phone.

     You see; lately, I've had trouble sleeping, as I am... quite a mentally preoccupied person. The solution to this was a white noise playlist. For those of you who don't know, white noise is a type of sound that combines a variety of different frequencies to create a static-like aperiodic noise. Basically, the sheer consistency of it is able to clear the mind of unpleasantries and shut out any external disruptions. I simply think it's great, because you can imagine the sound as anything you want; a rainstorm, waterfall, air conditioner or even a cheering crowd if you so wish to. It's just so incredibly... versatile!

     I'm not quite sure that's the right word...

     Anyways, I got dressed in uniform, plugged my phone into a charger—it had been running nonstop for over six hours, now—and exited my room to grab some breakfast before heading off for school. I had recently moved from an apartment into the Wellston school dormitories, so it was a relatively short walk from my room to the school building. Although I missed my old apartment, this was one of the great things about living on campus; you could take your sweet time in the morning.

     Having finished my simple breakfast of fried eggs and a hot drink, I set off for school. The walk to my classroom was short, but I liked to use it as a sort of brooding session. 

      It's been a few months since the incident in New Bostin. Yet, I still find myself ruminating on feelings of guilt.

     Why is self-forgiveness so difficult?

     Why is it so hard to escape the past?

     "Heyo John, over here!"

     A shrill but mellow voice precluded my unpleasant stupor, and I jerked my head up to pinpoint the source. Standing near the front gate was Remi, a friend whom I had become well-acquainted with since transferring here several weeks ago. She gestured to me with a wave, which I reciprocated, and made my way over to her. 

     "Good morning John! How are you doing?"

     "Uh, I'm fine. And yourself?"

     She frowned, clearly picking up on my dispirited tone. I swear, this girl had an innate ability to analyse the emotions of those around her. 

     "Are you thinking about stupid stuff again? Look, how about you worry about the present rather than the past, and focus on passing the trig assessment that we have first period?"

     Shit. I completely forgot to study. Guess I'm screwed now. 

. . .

     Let's see. The question here is utilising a cosine curve, so the formula for general solutions should be X = 2nπ ± α. Or was that for a sine curve? Wait, was it plus and minus or just plus? Ah, fuck this.

     Calculus was never really my strong suit. The minutes ticked away, and I desperately tried to recall any lost knowledge—formulae, rules, anything—but my mind felt completely blank. The white noise that allayed my emotions the night before now seemed to mock me, drowning out any coherent thought. 

     "You have five minutes remaining," the teacher announced. "Please double-check your working, and make sure your paper is named on the front."

     I've failed. There's no way. 

. . . 

     "Listen, I'm telling you that could NOT have gone any worse! The question just didn't make any sense!"