Trauma

Chapter 2 (The Letter)

I got to the class about a minute after the bell. Thankfully, Mrs. Andrews is on my side and brushed to the side that I was late. I quickly scanned the class to look for a seat and found one, empty in the very front. The front row is for the geeks and over-achievers like me so it didn't bother me. I looked behind me and saw Rylie chewing on her pencil, Brandon pulling out his vape, Travis staring in the distance at Mackenzie, and Mackenzie twirling her hair and chewing gum.

  "Okay guys, today we're gonna discuss the rules for the school year and I will hand out your first homework assignment that will begin our lesson tomorrow!" Mrs. Andrew cheerfully said.

     Everyone slouched back in their seats and grabbed their student handbooks. Mrs. Andrews continued to explain the same rules we heard in every period. It felt as if I faded away and let my imagination get the best of me.

I saw Travis, Mackenzie, Brandon, Rylie, and I in this old, crusty shack. We laughed and had fun. It looked fun. I was having fun. But then I blinked and I was alone. It was cold and lonely. I looked around and saw the bodies of Travis, Mackenzie, Brandon, and Rylie. I have no idea what this meant, and why it was us. Or why they were dead.

I zoned back in when the final bell rang. The herd of students all pushed to get outside of the school. I grabbed my bag and stood up.

"Bye Mrs. Andrews." I said as I walked out of the class.

I walked and walked till I got outside and Travis and Mackenzie came up to me.

    "Hey Dylan." Travis said to me with Mackenzie on his back.

    "Hey." I very enthusiastically replied.

    Mackenzie kissed Travis on the cheek. "You didn't tell me you had a younger brother."

    "He's act-"

    "I'm actually older." I said interrupting Travis.
"Were twins and I am a few minutes older."

"Oh, well then gross." She replied with her whole mood changing.

We sat there in silence for about a minute until Travis broke the silence with, "Well we were gonna go to Mackenzie's house and wait until it's the right time to go to the address."

I stopped and relived the vision I saw in Mrs. Andrew's class. "You're seriously going to the address? You're gonna get yourself killed."

They laughed. "You seriously think it's that serious."

"No not necessarily, but still you gotta keep precautions." I said trying not to mention the vision.

"You gotta keep precautions." Travis said, mocking me

Travis and Mackenzie ran off, leaving me alone, standing on the steps to the school. I slowly walked down the steps with my bag in my hand. Dark clouds started to appear and the thunder began to roll. And with my luck, the rain began pouring. I began to run, but still getting soaked. As I ran through the town of Weston I saw little kids scurry inside, and fathers pull into driveways and open a black umbrella and run to their doorsteps. Cars speeding on roads and splashing water on the sidewalks.

I ran inside my house and undressed. I grabbed my towel, some boxers, and shorts and went for the shower. I was already wet, so why not take a shower. As I turned on the water and stepped in to feel the hot water touch my skin, I contemplated. What was the letter? What did it mean? And why us? I grabbed the soap from the shelf and poured it onto the loofah and scrubbed. I let the water run on me to clean off the soap. I pulled the curtain to the side and grabbed my towel.

"Hey hun, I didn't hear you come in. But I was gonna tell you that me and your dad were gonna go on a date night." My mom yelled from outside the door.

"Okay!" I replied as I dried off and began slipping into my boxers and shorts. It wasn't late by any means but I just wanted to lay down before I left.

I walked out of the bathroom and into my bedroom to lay down. Just as I was about to start scrolling on TikTok or Instagram, my phone started ringing. It said Unknown Caller ID, but I was curious and answered it anyways.

"Open the letter." The oddly, freakishly deep voice said.

It hung up so I slid my phone across the bed and reached for my bag. I unzipped it and dug for the letter. The letter read an address with a time. I ran down to the kitchen and grabbed a few snacks and a drinks and stuffed them in my bag. I ran up the stairs and grabbed a shirt and slung it over my head. I ran for the door, grabbed the bag, and began running to the address, curious to see what the letter meant.

After an hour of running, my phone told me to stop, but I was in the middle of the forest. I looked around a little bit further and found an old rickety shack. But lucky enough, I saw Travis, Mackenzie, Brandon, and Rylie.

"Hey guys!" Brandon happily exclaimed while wobbling around. "I brought plenty of the stash, if you know what I mean because I didn't know how long we're gonna be here."

Rylie shook her head. "You are retarded, Brandon. Absolutely stupid."

"Wow really. That sounds great."

Mackenzie jumped in the conversation. "Okay retards, how about we just get the hell in this low-life building and party."

"I brought the alcohol" Travis added.

I shook my head and looked at Rylie. "They're dumb."

"Don't talk to me."