Hollonent: The Gathering

Chapter 1

A cold breeze hits my face, making my eyes water a bit. My blond hair waves before my eyes and I cock my head sideways, hoping to get them out of my sight. As I'm standing next to the old school gate, it is, as usual, crowded with teenagers. People my age you know. Where I'm supposed to belong. Well, for now, I do, but that won't last for long.

It's morning and the students enter the school. Some sad, some happy, and some still sleepy. None acknowledge my existence as they pass the school gate. I don't talk a lot to my classmates, so I'm considered a "loner" in my year. Probably in the entire school as well. Now and then, I catch some students giving me a look filled with anxiety and distrust. Not that I blame them for that. You must be careful in this city, called Detroit. Even I was victim to robbery quite a few times.

At least, I can somewhat protect myself, compared to the other, ignorant people here.

I'm waiting at the school gate for a girl called Sonya. Last week, she approached me and asked me to fix her phone. She is in the same year as me, but I never knew she existed. We don't have any classes together. Our year, the last year is massive though. I don't know where she got the information that I could fix her phone, or of my existence, but it's true. I'm handy when it comes to electronics. It goes hand in hand with my power.

"Ethan!" A girl yells, speeding up to me.

I look around and spot Sonya. She has chocolate brown hair and jade green eyes. It's spring and she wears a jacket made of jeans and a pastel green skirt. I give her the grey phone, stuck with ridiculous stickers of music bands, back. It's quite a light weighted phone, considering its size. It's one of the new Samsung phones. Personally, I don't follow the entire phone market, but clearly, Sonya doesn't either. The problem with her device was that the battery was dying too fast. I only had to replace it, which isn't really what you're supposed to do. Anyway, it's cheaper than buying a new phone.

"It works?" Sonya asks cheery and hoping for a positive answer.

I nod. "It wasn't so difficult to repair it. Luckily, 'cuz It's an expensive brand though."

"I know, my parents would kill me if I broke it. It's my second phone this year."

"You could always buy a cheaper one," I say as I take my phone out of my pocket. I show it to her. "Two-hundred and fifty dollars and it's better than yours. Better processor and more memory."

"Yeah, but it doesn't look nice." She says blatantly. She clearly has no idea how phones, or any devices, work. I'm done here. I don't have time to show her the wonders of these handy devices, or how someone can make the most of them. I doubt she would even be interested in it. Even understanding is probably too much to ask.

"Yeah, I have a class now. I should go." I say as an excuse and leave Sonya behind. She ignores me and goes to her friends. The standard stuff.

Friends. That's something I never had. I know how to cooperate with people, and I know how not to make enemies over futile stuff. Which I consider a useful skill for later.

My unsure future. A future that has already been chosen for me.

My first class is 'physics'. The classroom is large and filled with long, ivory-colored tables and four wooden chairs for each table. The classroom can hold up to thirty students. There're also gas taps on the tables which are connected to gas tanks, hidden under the table. This classroom is provided with plenty of equipment for physics experiments. When I arrive, most people have already picked a spot, mostly in the back of the classroom, with their friends. I always sit in front, as the "nerds" do. I didn't realize it at first, but I'm quite possibly a nerd myself. Looking at my hobbies and the things that interest me, they have "nerd' written all over them. Not that I mind it, though. I consider my nerdy hobbies more useful than most other hobbies. Although, I should enter a sports club. I could use some physical training as well. Either way, in a narcissistic way, I consider my interests and hobbies more superior and useful.