monday.
MONDAY.
*buzz* *buzz* *buzz* *buzz*
*buzz* *buzz* *buzz* *buzz*
My phone’s alarm won’t let me get a moment’s worth of peace.…
I pulled the little strength I had and got out of my bed. I went to my parents’ room and saw their beds empty. I looked around the one floor house and neither of them were anywhere to be found.
It’s true. It’s really true…they left me here for the entire spring break week…
I understand that they’ve been saving a lot of money, and sacrificed a lot, in order to afford to take the full week off for their 25th wedding anniversary, but I just wished that they would’ve taken me with them, or, at least, gone for a couple of days. I know they would probably want some alone time, but……
Your typical teenager would probably think, “Oh hell yeah! No parents! I’m all alone! Let’s party!” but not me. It’s scary for me to be here without my parents. When I’m here by myself, my anxiety is cranked up to 1000. Every little noise is just as loud as thunder. Every movement in the shadow sends chills throughout my nervous system. It especially doesn’t help that I’m not fully adjusted in this town. At times, I feel like I can hear whispers tip toeing around the house.
Sometimes, it feels like someone is whispering my name...
I like spring break and all, more so for the fact that I can breathe from being away from school. The only thing I hate about it is the fact that I can’t see my closest friends, Tixel and Christene. It sucks that they don’t live within walking distance and none of us have a car, so our only form of communication right now is via phone. The phone is fine, but sometimes it doesn’t feel the same as an in-person interaction.
Bored out of my mind, I decided to call Tixel. He’s my main guy when it comes to anything video games, comic books, and anime.
“Hello?” he asked.
“Hey, bro,” I said. “You wanna get on the sticks and play some games. My dad just got me that new fighting game the other day so I can finally show you who’s the king of gaming, which is me if you weren’t aware already.”
“...uhhh, sorry, Miles. My family and I just arrived at the hotel at PCB. We’re going to be here all week and they have an air tight itinerary. You know how my parents are when it comes to time and schedules, and they don’t really want me using any electronics while we’re here.”
“Oh…it’s fine, bro. I don’t want to intrude. Um…have fun with your people.”
“Yeah. Enjoy your spring break, man. And hey, the minute I get back home, we can play whatever so you can lose to me for the hundredth time. I didn’t think you had that kind of kink going on, but, hey, I’m not judging.”
“Oh my--haha. Whatever, bro. Enjoy your vacation…”
I wonder what made his family bump up their vacation this early…but that’s neither here nor there. I’m pretty sure he has one of his consoles on him, but I don’t want to cause any problems with his folks. Damn this sucks.
I quickly decided to hit up my other friend, Christene.
She’s so dope. We talk a lot about the supernatural and ghost realm, and even random conspiracy theories. I want to know what her thoughts are on the U.S. government and weather control.
I sent her a couple of texts and even called, but she didn’t respond.
98% of the time she says something within 5 or so minutes. I don’t want to blow her phone up, but I hope everything’s okay…
With limited options, I hopped on to different social media platforms for a while.
I hate going on them sometimes, mostly because of the lawless anarchy, but I honestly stick around for the memes.
After some scrolling, I came across some photos and posts that came from some old elementary and middle school friends online.
It feels kind of weird to see them again, mainly because of how long it’s been. Those people were my homies back in the day. We used to have so much fun, making ninja stars, getting into class fights, and trying to compete with each other by either racing across the gym or seeing who can jump the highest off of the swing set.
I went to their profiles and tried to send a message, just wanting to say hi and chat a bit, but every time I deleted it and stepped away.
On top of being considered kind of awkward and shy, I don’t necessarily feel good about reaching out to someone I haven’t spoken to in years only because of rejection from people I actually wanna talk to. Plus, I don’t even know if the kids I knew then are the same ones now. People change so much, it’s hard to keep up.
I’ve also tried online social groups before, but I don’t do those anymore. I can’t really remember why or what happened, but it’s probably best for me to avoid it all together. The Internet is a very weird space, even in spaces “fit” for you.
At the end of the night, I heated up some leftovers and sat on the couch, with my “best friend” being the t.v.
That still doesn’t help fill the large lonely hole in my heart. It might even be increasing. Some of my favorite memories include watching amazing tv shows and movies with my family, especially with my parents. It sucks that we had to move across the country, but my dad said it was a job offer he couldn’t refuse. I miss them right now. I mean…it’s not like I’m super close to my aunts, uncles, cousins, and extended family, but any sense of comfort will do.
A sudden couple of knocks entered my ears, giving me a startle. I quickly turned the tv off.
Who could be here at this time of night?
Soon after, this eerie presence weighed on me like a heavy and wet coat. I quickly got down on the floor, in case they could see my shadow through the blinds. I slowly crawled towards the door and lightly pressed my ear against it, trying to hear if they’re still there.
Waiting for the next knock feels like waiting for traffic to clear up. I’m not sure if I can hear their breathing pattern behind this door. Maybe it’s my own. Maybe it’s all in my head.
Coming back to my senses, I got up, walked to my room, and got under the covers.
Whoever out there will sit out there. Maybe they went to the wrong house or something. Then again, who would be coming over to someone’s house this late unless it was for certain reasons, but no matter. I would look insane if I invited someone in and potentially helped them get closer to whatever insane plan they might have.
