Reflections

"Ha, stupid ass nerd, you won't get anywhere riding on your high horse of knowledge!" said a scruffy-looking boy in a grouchy tone. "Hey, Zanthiel! Give me the bat," he ordered. ""Huh," responded Zanthiel. He blinked a few times and then thought to himself, "Am I dead? Is this supposed to be my paradise?" "Or punishment?" "Hey, Zanthiel!". Zanthiel quickly took the bat from the bench beside him and gave it to the scruffy-looking boy. "Hah, getting rid of those stupid glasses will make you look cooler!" The boy then snatched the glasses from the nerd's face, his struggle worthless, as it didn't take a second before the scruffy-looking bully kicked the nerd in the stomach before pre-emptively ripping his glasses off his face. The bully then ordered another boy, whom he called Udi, to place the glasses on the ground in front of the nerd. "Maybe if you're not wearing these, you'll see just how ugly you really are since you won't have clear vision! Those glasses were giving you an illusion!" the bully stated with a rather jarring smile. "No, please don't! I need them to study!" begged the nerd. It was too late, as the bully had already lifted the bat and swung down on them, breaking them in one strike. "Wait, this seems rather familiar," thought Zanthiel. "Why am I in this park?" It was the afternoon as the lemony orange-flavoured tint covered the soft flossy clouds, albeit if you could clearly see it beyond the thick smog covering the sky.

The bullies continued to pester the nerd, calling him names and telling him how worthless he is. They even took every golden nugget that invaded his small, neatly sowed pockets and said, "And all that sweet cash is ours now; lets hit the loos lollipops!" The bullies then called their Sargris (hoverboards made from Rivellin metal, coated with heat-resistant paste, aka Thermo, to protect the Rivellin from the jet boosters at the back and the condensed pressurised heat keeping it afloat). They rode off like a pack of hungry wolves. Before they went, they asked Zanthiel to do something special for them: "Get it done, doggy; I'll leave some scraps for you!" The words of the leader echoed in Zanthiel's mind. He approached the nerd and said, "Give it now; I don't want to get violent. Zanthiel's head pounded and beat like it was being used as a drum. He clutched his head and swung it around. He closed his eyes and then opened them again. This time he saw a battered and bruised boy. He looked him dead in the eyes and said, "Traitor!" As he said this, Zanthiel felt streams of tears leave his eyelids.

Suddenly, an icy hand grasped his shoulder from behind, and he gasped. 'Hey!', it shouted. 'Hey!', Zanthiel turned his head, and at that moment, his eyes shot open. "Heyo, are you feeling o-kk, or no-kk? He looked up to see the girl who kicked his coin back to him sitting next to him. "I mean, you made some really weird moaning sounds that sounded like you were on a vibrator or sumthin; you even started break dancing, but not on my level, lol, and not to mention the river that started pouring from your eyes!". Kayla then blew up the bubble gum she was chewing like a balloon when Zanthiel bolted up and said, "SO IM ALIVE!" Out of shock, she blew up her gum so hard it popped, and like a nuclear explosion, it spread all over her face. She inhaled and exhaled sharply, "Dude like... Never do that again; my heart just popped." "But wouldn't you be dead?" asked Zanthiel rhetorically. She looked at him smugly and said, "Well, when your me, a heart or two popping isn't such a big deal, hehe!". Still expecting Kayla to answer his question, Zanthiel just stared at her, catching on. She then laughed at him, saying, "You dumb-dumb, like dumb, how can you say that when your breathing and talking to me?" "Well, maybe I've risen from the dead and I haunt you!" replied Zanthiel in a jeering tone. The girl screamed and started calling Zanthiel a zombie. Zanthiel laughed at her and said, "Who's dumb now, huh?". "Wow, this girl is way more entertaining than that punk girl with a short fuse," thought Zanthiel. He sat up properly on the chair, his feet now touching the floor. The carriage was quiet and held an air that seemed to oppress his soul. Everyone had just witnessed people die after all; there were slight whispers, but the only ones who seemed to have a conversation were Zanthiel and Kayla.

"So, uh, what's your name?" asked Zanthiel. Kayla stood up confidently, spun around, and put up the peace sign, "Best singer n' dancer around K-Koola, that's who." Zanthiel stared at her for a few seconds, then said, "What?" and "C'mon, bruh, be more impressed, your killing me!" The exchange was all the same, but this time he just stared at her. Kayla hid her face with her hands and said, "Kayla, ok." "So embarrassing," she thought to herself, sobbing silently. Kayla then demanded to know Zanthiel's name and demanded that he embarrass himself for her enjoyment. He stared at her, "Stop!" she shouted. Zanthiel finally spoke again, telling her his name. He said he told her because she's funny; she didn't take it as a compliment, as she immediately cut him off by saying, "So why'd you stay in there?". He looked at her blankly, then said, "So you were the one that saved me! Gee thanks," she nervously laughed, and her expression grew more serious. "Death, I hate it; it makes me shudder, y'know." Zanthiel then stared at the floor. "The floor is lifeless, and it enjoys people trampling all over it," he thought. "So you knew?" he said. Kayla explained how, as she was passing, she had seen that he was at a point where he could have easily burned off his remaining pieces and went through, "You hesitated, ya?" "And so what if I did?" Kayla's expression returned to a much more cheery tone, "Because if you die, people'll miss you!" "Would they?" he pondered. Realising the severity of the subject she had rambled on into, Kayla quickly changed the subject and said, "Man, I'm a party pooper, so you like pizza or what?" "I don't know," "Burger?" "maybe," "how bout French fries?" and "I couldn't tell you.".

It fell silent between the both of them for a little while before Zanthiel broke the ice, saying, "So who saved my benevolent soul if it wasn't you?" Kayla pointed over at Shanice, "Good old doctor over there. In fact, she's the one who told me to watch over you." Shanice was going around the carriage, applying medical aid to the critically injured passengers from the previous room. Zanthiel looked over himself and realised he had a few plasters and brandades over his arms. Kayla showed him she had one on her leg. Realising he did nothing with the information she gave him, she urged him to thank Shanice. "Ya'll don't have manners around here, do you?" she said, but before she could carry on prodding him, Johnny plopped his but right next to hers and started flirting with her continuously. It was clear she cared little for it, but he carried on. "Roses are red, violets are blue, and that's why I just couldn't stop looking at you," "ugh, what a dumb pickup line dude, try harder," "your busty body is like that of a statue, the most expensive and the only one I can afford!" "so your only interest in my body is dat it, boys'll be boys, I guess." During the exchange, Zanthiel looked across the carriage on the opposite side and saw Juliana with her headphones on, bopping her head continuously. Soon, her head stopped bopping as she couldn't hear anything; Zanthiel's head was bopping instead. The music sounded as if the lord of the underworld came up to the surface to bless everyone with a bloodcurdling performance; the beats and the screams completely shatter your eardrums. This was evidenced by Zanthiel then chucking them on the floor. He looked at Juliana; her face was as red as a ripe tomato. "Asshole!" she bellowed. That was the last time we ever heard from Zanthiel.