Day 2-02

"Hey?"

I groan, turning my head. My temple pounds, the loud voice hitting my ear drums.

"Hey-."

A hand shakes my shoulders, but I don't open my eyes.

"Wake up-!"

Hands press down at my chest, and I remember my heart squeezing and bursting like a grape.

I sit up, gasp, and push whoever was leaning on me off my bed and on the floor.

"Fucking L," My brother squirms, rolling and holding the back of his head. "Why the

fuck-the hell?!"

I peer down at him, first confused, but then I let out a nervous chuckle.

Zachary looks up, glowering at me. "Stop laughing and help me up, you fuck head!"

My nervous chuckle turns into a full-blown laugh. I reach a hand out for my

brother to take. He roughly grabs it and stands up, dusting off his red shirt

and blue jeans.

"Why are you in my room," I asked. "And why are you up before mum has to drag you

out of bed?"

Zachary rolls his eyes. "I have a field trip today, remember?" I don't. "And you have

to take me to the train." He said.

"Why can't mum and pops do it?"

"Mum had an important meeting, and dad had some car shit to do." Zachary looks away,

his eyes focused on my bed. "And I forgot to ask."

I sigh. "I have school, you know?"

"It's 7:00. We leave from the train at 7:30. You'll make it." Is all he said. Zachary

struts out my bedroom and shuts the door behind him. I roll my eyes, shake my

head, and throw the covers off me to see my leg covered in blue smoke, my skeleton

bone bare and on display for the world.

I stare at my leg in shock, until reality finally fully processes in my brain.

Now, I'm freaking out, silently screaming to myself, but Zachary knocks on the

door, interrupting my mental breakdown.

"Hurry up." He said. "The sooner you drop me off the better, asshole."

"I-I'm coming." I respond, stepping on the floor with my ghost foot and not as

surprised as I should be that I could still normally walk on it. I've lost my

toe to now my leg, and now the panic is starting to finally sink in.

 Am I just going to disappear? I start to ask

myself. Limb by Limb? But why is that? Why am I disappearing? Am I turning into

a ghost, or becoming half dead, like Sebastian? What's going on? What's going

on? What's the hell is going on-?

I turn my head, and I come face to face with the women, staring at me, smiling

innocently. We just stand there silently, observing each other, having a

staring contest like our lives are on the line.

And then someone knocks on my door again. I turn my head from the door to her. And

she's gone again.

"Hurry-." Zachary starts, but I cut him off.

"Wait!" I huff out, throwing on a hoodie and a pair of jeans laying around. My brother,

for the first time, is silent behind the door. I swing it open, revealing a wide-eyed Zachary giving me googly-eyes when I rush to the bathroom, brush my teeth, and hurry back to my bedroom. I grab my phone, stuff my laptop in my book bag, and grab my sports stuff. But then I pause, look through the already packed bag, and sigh at the basketball shoes.

I zip up my bag, swing my stuff over my shoulders, and shut my bedroom door.

Zachary holds his stuff loosely in his hands and gives me a surprised look.

"What?"I mumble, jogging down the staircase. Zachary follows closely behind, grinning.

"You've never snapped at me like that before," he snorts. "Never knew you had the balls to do that."

"I have feelings, you know?" I mumle lower, focusing my footwork on the steps I'm

climbing down.

"Yea, but you never show 'em." I grab my car keys and turn to Zachary, looking

anywhere but me.

"What do you mean, Zach? I get mad at you all the time-." I said.

"No, you don't." I freeze, confused. "When I do something bad, you either laugh or

tell it to me nicely, kind of like you're just shrugging it off. Unless mum and

dad are fighting, that's the only time I really see you get shaken up." Then he

finally looks at me, the tough, bad Zach cowering like a puppy. "Sometimes it…kind-of

scares me, man."

I frown, even more confused. "Why would that scare you, Zach?"

He clears his throat and pauses, like he's actually thinking before he speaks. "Because

it-urgh-it feels like you're carrying everything yourself. And that you feel everything alone."  Zach fumbles with his jean's belt loops. "I might be younger, but I'm not stupid. And I'm

not ignorant. And I'm not-not there. I'm here. For you. To talk to me. You never talk to me, man. I might be a asshole, but I'm still here for you."

"Zach-." I start.

"I want you to talk to me." He said.

"Zach-." i start again.

"I'm your brother, Andy." I don't know why, but I'm crying. "Your bro."

"I know," I don't know why I'm crying so hard, but Zachary pats my shoulder, giving

me a one-armed hug. He's only two inches shorter than me, but it feels like

he's bigger and older. "I know, I'm s-sorry."

"You're an idiot for apologizing." He said, but his face is soft, gentle, like he knows

that I could break with the harshest of touches.

I think of everything; dying and not dying, seeing my parents fight to seeing my

parents cry, and I cry harder.

"Maybe I should have been gentler with this…dude I didn't want to make you cry…" Zach

said, panic on his face.

I laugh, sniffling and wiping my eyes. "I don't know why I'm crying."

"Me neither, but it makes me kind of glad." He walks over to the kitchen, takes a

couple of tissues, and hand them over to me. "You never really cry and whine

like a bitch to me. Makes me feel like a brother for once."

I roll my eyes. "Dude, you're just an ass."

Zachary shrugs, but he smiles. "It's in our DNA, brother. It's in our DNA."

                                                  …

By the time we get to the train, it's 7:25, and most of the kids are there. Zachary's

playing on his phone, grumbling under his breath, occasionally chatting with

classmates. I'm standing far from the edge, my hands in my pockets.

"Everyone, listen up." The teacher said. "I'm going to start rollcall now…!"

By the time everyone's names are called, I'm almost ready to leave, but Zachary

has this deep scowl on his face, so I pause and tap him on the shoulder.

"What's wrong with you?" I asked. Zachary frowns, then rolls his eyes while

spontaneously texting someone.

"She's late." He said.

"Who?" Iasked.

"A moron, that's who." Zachary grits his teeth. "A fucking moron."

Zachary's teacher sighs, shaking her head. "I told Jada to be extra on time

today..."

"I did too," Zachary murmurs. "Her stupid ass didn't listen."

"A friend?" I asked. Zachary nods, but not without hesitating. "Yea. A friend."

I frown, confused by his response, but I nod my head anyway. The teacher calls

for all the students to gather. I step back, freezing my ass off in the early

winter weather. There's nothing to shield me from the cold except for a bench

covered in a glass hood and a small convenient store a foot away. Other than

that, it's only train tracks, and a long strip of pavement to walk back and

forth on. I hate waiting for the train outside in the cold. That's why I got a

car, to not do what I'm doing now.

"It's time for us to go…no word?" She looks to Zachary, who shakes his head.

"I'll tell her to meet us there if she can."

The teacher nods, grateful. She rallies up all the kids.

 I'm standing off to the side-line, ready to

book it and warm up my car in any moment. But then there's a tug on my sleeve.

Zachary frowns, a big pout but a big flush on his face too. He takes a while to

keep his mouth from locking shut, until he peers at me through his blonde bangs

and says "thanks."

I look at him, until I accidentally snort, and until I'm laughing quietly,

petting his hair.

"You never told mom and dad, did you?" I asked.

Zachary looks away and shrugs, turning back to join his classmates.

I'm a little happy, and I stay happy when the teacher tells the students to gather

once again. I'm happy when the train finally comes and stops, waiting for the

children to step in. I'm happy when it the train opens its big doors, welcoming, inviting the twenty-something kids on the train. I'm happy when Zachary turns to me—one last time—and smiles, and I mean really smiles—big teeth, small dimple, and a blush covering his pale cheeks.

And then I'm no longer happy, but fearful when Zachary steps on the train, and

Masked Face is leaning on a pole, face directed at me.

Ilook at the kids, all laughing and carrying on without care. I look at my brother, holding his phone to his ear and tapping his foot, unaware of the fiend a foot away. I look at the slowly closing doors and I don't hesitate to run and push through the crowd of people in front of me, barely being able to slide

through the train doors right before it closes shut.

Zachary rolls his eyes, hangs up his phone, and looks at Masked Face, confusion written

all over his face. He follows where Masked head is faced and links eyes with me. I look from Zachary to around me, taking in my surrounds, trying to spot some sort of escape route.

Then I spot Not-so-Sebastian--standing in the middle of the train--looking directly

at me.

"Sebastian-?"

"Andy-?"

"Andrew-."

"Fucking Sebastian-?"

"Sebastian?" My brother turns to me and Masked. "Who's that?"