Chapter 10 - -Chapter 7: A NEW LIFE-

I slowly woke up to the sun shining through the window. I sat up, stretched, and yawned. The nightmare I had last night seemed to fade away… burning slowly. I remember there was a figure… he looked just like me. The air was oddly cold, and the room was quiet. I got up from my bed and looked out the window, and the suburbia isn't pitch black anymore. The water tower, roads, and even the houses now had pink lighting. The sky was also pink, and the sun was just beginning to rise. Who's my dad? My dad is already here. Who's my mom? My mom is also here. Who's my grandpa? I don't know. Yesterday, I could remember yesterday at Dream Elementary that it was a Tuesday. If I can remember that, then why can't I remember my family…? No, my family is right here. I got dressed up in my clothes, but it felt strange to wear clothes for kids since I haven't worn those in a long time. I was wearing a blue shirt, grey pants, and shoes. Right now, it feels too cold, too quiet, and too calm. I left my room and went to the bathroom. When I went inside, the shower curtains had a fun kids' theme, and even the rug did. I saw the double-step stool at the sink. That's good. It means I don't have to get Mom or Dad to help me brush my teeth. I stepped onto the stool, grabbed a toothbrush, bubblegum-flavored toothpaste, and started brushing. Brush, Brush, Brush… the artificial foam forms in my mouth. The water rushed from the faucet, and the light of the bathroom buzzed with its orange light. I spat out my toothpaste, which was mixed with saliva but no blood from my gums, no matter how hard I brushed my teeth. I looked at the mirror, and it felt like I was staring at the real me. Because that is me, that's how I look, and that's who I am. I put my toothpaste and brush away, and went to my room. I forgot something, I just didn't know what… I saw a bracelet on the ground that I had probably made yesterday. I picked it up, and it had wooden beads, a brown rope, and the words on it said, "Tim." It all came back to me, I am Tim, I am a 6-year-old boy- no, I'm a 16-year-old boy that ran away from home. 6 or 16..? Who am I? I put the bracelet on my wrist. Maybe this can help me remember. I went downstairs, and the sun shone through the curtains of the living room. As I walked down the stairs, I imagined something. It might've been a memory, but I imagined myself being tall, sitting down at a table, laughing with my parents. But my parents had faces, they're not silhouettes, and they felt real. Was it an Imagination or a Memory? It feels too detailed to be an imagination. There was a scent of brewed coffee in the air, so I went into the kitchen. Another imagination or memory came into my head, I imagined or remembered… Those times when I had been bullied. Either it's a play pretend, or that's who I truly am. In the kitchen, I saw my 'dad'- no, my dad was at the table. I don't know, this bracelet is just giving me that feeling. That isn't my dad… My dad's silhouette hand grabs the coffee mug and drinks it. Can he even drink without a face? Then, he notices me. "Good morning, buddy!" my dad chuckled, "Why are you up so early?" My dad put his coffee mug down. "Because I have to wake up for school," I answered while my soft and small hands rubbed my eyes. One imagination or memory came to my mind, I remember my dad, my real dad (I think…), always did that. Waking up early in the morning for work, not because he wanted to. Then, my heart aches in mourning the memory of that slowly fading. My dad noticed the change in my expression and asked, "You alright, son..? You seem a bit tensed" But I replied with a sigh, "I'm fine." I then sat at the table with my dad, tapping the wooden surface. "So, how was your sleep?" My dad asked. He sure has a lot of questions for me this morning. I don't know, but He could be my dad, really. It's just a burning memory, it's just a memory meant to be forgotten. "It wasn't good, but it wasn't bad," I answered again. My dad (is he even real?) nodded. "That's fine." He replied with a smile on his face… I think… But I could feel that smile even if it is behind a shadow. Then, my dad continued, "As long as you get your energy, that's great." My father grabbed his coffee and continued drinking it. "You seemed a bit tense yesterday. I just wanted to ask why," I said. My dad stopped drinking coffee for a bit, then put it on the table. I was silent for like a minute before I looked down at the table and answered, "Well, son, it's hard to explain… You popped up all of a sudden and… I didn't even get a chance to react. But, I'll accept you, son, no matter what." My dad's shadow hand reached out and ruffled my hair. I actually smiled and giggled a bit. Maybe I'm doing too much. I should forget it. My dad looked at the clock on the wall. "Well, what would you look at that," My dad said. "It's time for you to go." Then, his shadowy hand pointed at the living room and instructed me, "The bookbag is in the living room next to the TV, it's for you." I nodded, stood up, and went to the living room. The bookbag looked like the sky. It was blue with realistic clouds on it, almost as if it was painting. But, here was something off, the clouds looked like they were moving, almost following a pattern, moving very slowly. I put on my backpack and was about to leave until my dad said to me, "Hey, kid.. If something's bothering you. Then, I am always available." I remember those words… they were from my dad. But which dad? The one with skin or the one with shadows? "Okay, Dad! I love you!" I waved before I exited the house and shut the door. When I was outside. I saw sirens nearby, but they weren't blaring, It played jazz music instead. The cookie-cutter houses on the hills sat silently, and the other houses, being lined up on the street, were also silent. It was oddly quiet. The only sound was trains passing by and the jazz music playing from the sirens. I walked on the sidewalk, then this final imagination or memory. I remember or imagined myself walking to school. With the sky being dark blue, the cars passing, and the birds chirping. No, that might've just been a little play-pretend. I saw a bus stop, it had a yellow bus sign, and a bench underneath the plastic shelter. It seems off. Mostly, these bus stops were always in cities, not suburbs. I walked to the bus stop and sat on the bench. I waited for the bus, as I heard the jazz music playing. For some reason, I actually feel excited to go to school and see Ms.C again. If the first day of school was good, then today, it will also be great. I wonder if we're gonna draw, learn, or read. I guess it doesn't matter, as long as I am safe, happy, and comfortable. And that is how I should feel. Soon, I heard the bus. It was driving down to the bus stop I was at. So, I stood up and waited for the bus. The bus comes to a stop and its doors open. I walk into the bus. The bus was quiet, and the kids were sitting silently in their seats. They seemed tired, and I can't blame them. I'd be tired too. I went to the exact bus seat that I sat in yesterday. Then, the bus starts to move, and it is now driving away from the bus stop. While I was staring outside the window, I heard a voice call out to me, "Hi, Tim!" I recognized that voice. It was Nyx. I turned to look at Nyx sitting right beside me. She was about one seat away from me. The bus drives away from the suburbia, passing the gates and now driving on the road with hills nearby. "Hi," I replied softly. I didn't feel like talking, but I had to talk anyway. "You don't feel like talking right now…?" Nyx asked softly, just like I did. "Yeah," I answered, "Not right now. I feel tired right now… maybe in the afternoon?" Nyx then nodded. "That's alright… I didn't feel like talking anyway. Everybody doesn't want to talk in the mornings. They just want a bit of a head-start, you know?" I nodded at her words. We both turn our heads away to look at the outside. We were passing the wind turbines, and it was more beautiful with the pinkish sky. Eden… "Hey, Nyx," I called out to her. Nyx turned her head to me and asked, "What is it?" I also turned my head towards her and said, "Do you always have a feeling that you're forgetting something, but you just don't know what?" Nyx shook her shadowy head at my question. "No, I never did that before. Why?" Nyx asked me. I didn't know what to reply. "No reason…" I answered. We both went back to staring at the beautiful view as the bus drove us. Kinda thinking of it, did anybody in reality even care that I was gone? But that doesn't matter. I'm already happy here. Why should I really care about that now? Soon, the bus finally arrives at the school. My second day in Eden and my second day at Dream Elementary. I can't wait. The bus opened its doors and let the silhouette kids out of the bus. I grabbed my backpack and headed out of that bus. I walked inside, and the hallway was packed with kids trying to get to their classrooms. I managed to make my way through the crowd. I finally managed to get to the classroom door. I took a deep breath before I opened the door and went inside Ms.C's classroom.