Zero

Saturday October 3rd: 6:13pm

She should have known something was about to happen. People were always telling her she needed to be more aware, pay more attention to her surroundings. As it was though, Edlyn didn’t have the patience to deal with the real world. The world around her wasn’t kind, she didn’t fit in this life and she had always been ok with that. She found solace in her world of fiction, getting lost in books and writing her own when she couldn’t find something that satisfied the itch of adventure her mind was seeking. Her mother said she was always lost, in a book, in her mind, present but not actually there. She realized how right her mom was that day.

She was at the park, only about an hour of sunlight remained and Edlyn had resigned herself to finishing the chapter she was on before going home. She should have noticed the crowd forming, should have registered the raised voices. She was so engrossed in the words before her that even though she heard the muttered curses behind her, they didn’t mean anything. Her mind registered that people were running past her, away from something, but she didn’t care. Not until a boy grabbed her hand and yanked her to her feet, making her drop her book.

“You might want to move,” he said, dragging her as he rushed away.

“What? Why?” she asked, trying to look back.

“Because my friends are assholes,” the boy muttered, pulling her harder when she tried to grab her book.

She saw a flash before the boy yanked her behind him, something exploded just behind where she had been sitting, the concussion vibrating her body. People screamed but closer she could hear laughter. Looking up she saw two more boys were running over to them.

“Holy fuck! I didn’t think it was going to be that big!” the blonde boy laughed, grabbing onto the boy that was still holding her arm.

“Everyone got out of the way, right?” the other boy with brown hair asked, squinting through the smoke.

“Fuck, Jonah’s going to kill me,” the boy holding her breathed out.

“Zero! 5-0!” a girl’s voice called out and the boy’s head snapped to the left.

The three boys started running again and Edlyn was sure the boy didn’t realize he was still holding her arm. She had no choice but to run with him, the sound of sirens getting closer to the park. They got to the street, the boy pulling her toward a car. Getting to it the boy with the brown hair dug in his pocket for the keys and a girl popped her head around and raised her eyebrow at Edlyn.

“Who the fuck is that?” she asked and the boy holding her arm finally looked at her.

“Oh!” he exclaimed, letting her go, “I’m sorry.”

“You should be. I’m pretty sure you just blew up my book,” Edlyn snapped at him.

“In all fairness, that was Barrel,” he mumbled, catching the keys the other boy threw at him, “What book?”

“The Outsiders,” she said, trying to figure out who Barrel was.

“How appropriate. What’s your name?” he asked, opening the car door.

“Edlyn Raggard,” she said.

“Pleasure to meet you, Edlyn Raggard. I’m Zero,” he said, falling into the driver’s seat with a wink, “and we were never here.”

He shut the car door and the engine roared to life. They sped away just as the sirens began to circle the park, Edlyn stared after them trying to figure out what the hell just happened. She began walking home in a daze, the boy’s shocked expression imprinted on her mind. She had no doubt she would have been hurt if Zero hadn’t grabbed her. He seemed oddly familiar to her but she couldn’t seem to place him. She was sure he hadn’t gone to school with her and none of his friends looked familiar. Reaching her house, she tried to stop thinking of him but his dark eyes seemed to be haunting her every time she blinked.

“Where the fuck have you been?” her dad snapped when she walked in and she sighed.

“The park,” she said quietly.

She could smell the liquor on his breath and didn’t want to set him off. If she could just get to her room, she might still have a quiet night. Her dad pulled himself up from his chair and stumbled slightly, Edlyn reaching out to steady him.

“I can fucking walk,” he snapped, shoving her to side.

Edlyn hit the wall and tried not to make a sound as pain shot through her arm. Her dad glared at her as she held her breath, praying for him to just walk away. When the front door opened and her brother Jack walked in, she took advantage of her dad’s distraction and ran to her room. Slamming the door behind her she fell on her bed, suddenly feeling exhausted. Just one more year, she thought as her dad and Jack began to yell at each other. Just one more year and she would have the money to get out of here.

Sunday October 4th: 8:43am

The next morning the house was quiet as she crept out to the kitchen. Her dad wasn’t anywhere in sight, probably passed out in his room and she breathed easy as she started a pot of coffee. Jack came down and went out to grab the mail while she watched the coffee drip onto the pot. Jack tossed a stack of envelopes onto the counter, sliding a small package toward her that was wrapped in brown paper.

“What’s this?” she asked and her brother shrugged, disappearing into the living room.

Edlyn heard the TV turn on as she ripped the wrappings of the package, a slip of paper floating out. Grabbing it she gasped as she skimmed the words that were scrawled across it.

‘Remember that place we never were? That thing that never happened? The book that never got ruined? -Zero.’

She laughed as she uncovered a new copy of The Outsiders, thinking back on his words the day before. ’How appropriate.′ Why was it appropriate? He really didn’t need to replace the book, she had read it countless times, she barely had to look at the words anymore. The coffee pot beeped and as she prepared her cup, the boy’s dark eyes seemed to watch her. How had he known where to send the book? She had given him her last name but for him to be able to find her address, get a copy of the book, and mail it out all so it was there, waiting for her in the morning, didn’t seem plausible. Grabbing the paper the book had been wrapped in, she examined it. There wasn’t any postage on it and the only thing written on it was her name. He had to have placed this in her mailbox himself, or had someone do it for him. Disappearing in her room with her coffee and new book, she spent her Sunday reading it cover to cover, searching for another clue as to who Zero was.

Monday October 5th: 1:45pm

For the first time in a long time, Edlyn paid attention to the people around her at work on Monday. The Nook was where everyone seemed to congregate on weekdays, the cafe being only 5 minutes from the city’s college. Everyone was talking about the explosion at the park but so far, no one had mentioned Zero or the others. It wasn’t until an hour before her shift ended that she heard anything even remotely useful. Leaning against the counter, she was writing out what she remembered from Saturday, afraid she would forget things if they weren’t written down, when one of the girls sitting at a table near her caught her attention.

“Zero did look hot, though,” Anna said to her friend.

“You always think Zero looks hot,” her friend teased her.

“Because he does. He’s coming to Afterglow this weekend,” Anna said.

The girls began talking about their outfits and plans for getting ready together before heading to the 18+ club Saturday but Edlyn was no longer interested in the conversation. She continued to listen just in case Anna mentioned Zero again but she didn’t. That was the nice thing about never talking to anyone, people tended to forget you were around. Edlyn had overheard more secrets in her high school career than any spy ever did, she just wasn’t interested in any of it until now. Watching Anna she wondered how the other girl knew Zero. Despite The City being a decent size, there was only one high school that they all got filtered through so Edlyn thought she knew everyone around her age. Edlyn also realized she was actually going to go to Afterglow, somewhere she had never had the desire to actually go. With a deep sigh she began to figure out where she could get something to wear so she could blend in better at the club.