A New Order

Prologue

It was a cold night in the suburbs. There was hardly any wind, yet the cold  could still reach to the very bone. The animals were all asleep, huddled in their own packs to fend off the cool air. At least they didn't have to worry about the snow as it never snowed in this part of America.

Even though it was dark, lights lit up the sky in a cascade of color. People were also up for different reasons. Some were heading out of town for the weekend while others were heading home to their families. Made sense when you considered that Christmas was right around the corner.

But none of this mattered to a simple boy who stared at the screen in front of him. The boy seemed to be around the ages of 16 or 17. With black hair and light brown skin, you could mistake the boy to either be of hispanic or filipino heritage.

He had normal features, one that could neither be described as ugly or handsome. But, his dark brown eyes were beautiful and almost captivating to anyone who stared deeply into them.

Staring at the phone, the boy sighed as he placed it to the side of his bed.

"I'm out of stories again... why are the updates so slow"

The boy muttered as he stared at his phone again. Everyday, he completed the same daily routine. Eat, sleep, school... he did everything in a monotonous fashion. To him the world was dull and reality was something he can never be accustomed to.

That's why, when he first read his first ever novel, his eyes were instantly opened to a new world. A world filled with fantasy, sci-fi, romance, comedy... a world filled with life. He immediately lost himself to this new world and soon, he's read over hundreds and hundreds of novels.

But now, it was slowing to a grinding halt. Novel after novel started but never finished. Novels that were being translated, silent for the past few months. The boy could only stare at the novels he wanted to read.

This was his life. Normal and boring. Fulfilling but unfullfilling. In the past, the boy wondered if he lived a good life. But he stopped thinking about it when realized that he will never know. He only knows of one life, therefore how could he compare his life to an unexisting one?

The boy finished scrolling through his phone and stared at the ceiling.

"What am I doing?"

He couldn't help but ask at the world around him. Only the crickets replied with their chirping cadence.

"Must I always stay like this? Staying in my bed doing nothing but reading stories?"

Why is everything so hard?

He couldn't help but think to himself as he thought of his past. The boy did not have a good life. He was unaware of this since he did not have much contact with others. And even when he does meet with others, he always shows a happy personality that hides away the sadness he always feels.

His family could not be considered as a  'good' family. With a dad who was always drunk and a mom that harmed him for slight reasons, the boy had been in constant misery since the day he was born. But he didn't understand it and tbought it was just a normal part of life. That's why, he always had a smile on his face and still truly loved his family.

But, as he grew older, he slowly realized that the cover he put on his life was a lie. Soon, life began to tear apart the veil. His dad died early because of an accident and his mom became more ruthless in her punishments. It got to the point that the boy now had cuts and bruises all around his arm.

It was then that he realized...

This is wrong...

He began to fight back against his mom. Soon, they were estranged from one another, barely meeting one another in the same house. The boy was dead inside....yet, to the outside world he was happy. It was only until he started reading novels that he regained his ability to feel emotions.

Happiness, sadness, anger. He felt everthing as he read one story to another. But, even with the improvement, he knew that something was missing. But, he didn't think too deeply since he was afraid of losing his last sanctuary. But now...

The emotions were disappearing and he was reverting to his old self.

I want to change...

The boy thought as his eyes began to fall asleep.
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Thy wish is granted.