The Unwanted

Chapter 5- Run

Chapter 5- Run

The track blurred below me. The steady thump of my footsteps echoed in my ears, as I felt a ball of sweat roll down my forehead.

Why has the dizziness returned?

Snow soon came down from the heavens. It was not long before blankets of white snow coated the sidewalks and frosty corners froze in shady yards. Silvery flakes drifted down, glimmering in the bright, track light as the thick blanket of snow was now visible. The trees swayed in the cold winter wind. The weather was frosty, and the snow was glittering.

I soon neared the glorious white finish line, never had a few moments seemed like an eternity. I felt my consciousness fade away, and my thoughts, as clear and concise as they were mere moments ago, were coming to an end. My eyes grew heavy with every step. At once, I was struck with relief as I stumbled down, I had finished the 15km School Marines Fitness Run, but I had come dead last.

I was breathing but the air just won't go in, as though my lungs were surrounded by metal bands. Next came the rising panic, the dizzy feeling and the need to fall onto the ground, my desperate arms flailing for something to clutch to, to save me from the fall, so I looked to my own knees for support, before the rest of me could hit the cold concrete track. I leaned a shoulder against the wall as I had already decided to give myself away to my pursuer, to exhaustion, to be dead to the world.

A pale, frightened face walked past me, after talking to a tall, intimidating figure. It was the runner who had been ahead of me during the race. His eyes appeared to be that of a soldier coming back from a war. What did Admiral Todd say to him? What could he say to him to scare him like that?

Admiral Todd was a very large and muscular man, with a wide, pulpy face, and a stern expression. He was well known for having a very sharp temper. Being Head of the Marines School Corps was not his only job. He was also the Principal of Atlantic Ridge Academy. Due to a shortage of staff and his knowledge of the marines due to his prior experiences in the army, the Principal of Atlantic Ridge Academy became the head of the Marines School Corps.

As I looked down, at the suddenly comfortable looking concrete, I saw a pair of white trainers. As I powered through the pain in my neck, I looked up. I couldn't believe my eyes, I didn't want to. I'd never seen anything like it, not even in my worst nightmares, probably because my brain woke me up before I could see such horrific images and now, I was looking right at it.

Absolute horror paralysed me, the more I thought about running away, the more terrified I got knowing my body was too fatigued to run from this horror.

His bold, piercing, frightening eyes watched my every move. I could almost feel his cold, icy breath as I tried to crawl away. He followed me. In his intense silence, his body yelled out at me. His eyes wide open with a horrific look, his mouth rigid and open ready to yell, his chalky face, gaunt and immobile, and his fists clenched with his nails digging into the palms of his hand.

"You finished 10 minutes after everyone!" He yelled, " Why'd you even join the School Marine Corps!"

His yelling tore through me like shards of glass. I felt my eyes widen and my pulse quicken, my heart thundering like a rock rattling in a box. I felt as though the blood drained from my face.

"Because I'm fast," I said with a smile, "But turns out I've got weak stamina, embarrassing, isn't it?"

"We don't train the weak in the Marines," He said in a calmer but stern tone, "We make the strong, stronger. You fail."

Multiple thoughts raced through my mind as we walked back towards school from the track. As the water from my bottle glided down my frozen tongue, I felt my brain yell out in anger, my heart race, my nostril flaring, and my fist clench. Admiral Todd was a ruthless man, now my scholarship relied on me passing my volleyball trial in a week. I needed to train for it.