Heroes ☤ H.S.

ONE

I was walking along the sidewalk, coming from my old school. My father's jacket wrapped around me even though this is probably the hottest day of the summer season. I'm not crazy or anything—though that's what they say—but it's just to hide my right arm.

It's broken, in a cast, and I don't want anyone to see it. If they see it they'll make a fuss around me, looking all worried and pitying me. That would be hell. That would be the worst thing I would ever experience.

Being a kid, that's all anyone does around me; making a huge fuss over anything I do, and I honestly hate it. One little action could cause a tornado of nagging adults telling me their opinions and advices that I never asked for. Not to mention, the Royal Family's guards breathing down my neck with every move I make.

A few steps ahead of me I see birds looking for seeds that may have fallen off the trees. Four steps. I take four more steps and they all fly away, like all birds do when they know that something bigger than them is near.

And that's something we humans have in common with them.

All of a sudden an eery feeling raises the hair on the back of my neck, and a shiver to go down my spine. I stopped to look around. No one. Nothing but parked cars and seemingly empty houses. But I swear I could've felt someone's gaze on me.

"Jade?"

I hear a voice and my eyes snap open. I was just reminiscing again, my thoughts carefully filed up in my mind. And once in a while, I find it necessary to open up the pleasant memories, or at least the ones that don't turn me into a sobbing mess.

I sit up and the bed creaks under my weight. "Yeah?" I respond and turn to look around my room only to see an empty bed across the room from me. My heart immediately sinks as I try to push away the memory of who used to sleep on that bed.

"Payne wants to see you." The voice says again and this time I noticed that it came from the door. I shift on the bed and comb my hands through my hair.

"Tell him that I refuse his invitation." I say after letting out a tired sigh.

There was a pause. Then "I don't want to die."

I allow myself a small laugh. Yes. Yes, if anyone were to refuse something Payne asked for he would explode and kick you out of this place. He was nice enough when he was in a good mood, he's a great mentor too. But he isn't really used to things not going the way he wants it to.

"Please don't let me die." The voice says again. And I laughed and stood up before I reached for the steel door and opened it.

I see a guy with blue eyes and dyed blonde hair, he's taller than me but he's so thin I could break him in half. "We're few as it is, I don't think I'm going to let you die." I say with a smile. I see his blue eyes drift to the empty bed and I know he's thinking of the same thing I am. I push it to the back of my mind once more and smile.

"Where is he?" I asked.

"Security Room Three." He said, directing his attention back to me.

I sigh and walk past the boy in front of me as I noticed his eyes reach the empty bed again. I know how painful it is to remember him. Every day I wake up to the sight of that bed as a reminder of what had happened and what I had lost. I go back and shut the steel door. I can feel his gaze fall on me but I don't meet his eyes. "It's going to be okay, Niall. Stop thinking about him." I leave him after that without another word, and head for the Security Room as fast as I can, so Payne wouldn't explode.

I pass several people, some sparing me a smile, and some ignoring me, but it was just a blur of random faces before the blue, steel doors are in front of me and I have to face whatever rant Payne has in store this time.