Part 1. The Fog
Dec.14th, 2018
Bloomington, Indiana
I glide my hands along the alignment of my father's bookshelf and continue along the rows of bookshelves until I reach the last one. I can hear my parents in the back door of the library whispering. Something about a dangerous asteroid hitting the face of our town, almost completely abrupt. I peak my head out the door, making sure they wouldn't see me from time to time, and there they were. Standing next to eachother in disbelief as their faces were reflecting off the light of the TV screen, my mother sobbing in the midst of it all. I stopped peaking my head until the door made a loud creak. Dammit. I stand there, frozen in the belief that I've been caught and turn around slowly to face the both of them, the look of concern on their faces. Silence rang between us and the only thing that made it less awkward was our cat Geoffrey. Who, despite his impulsive intolerance towards me, gave off a sense of respect and heroism in a moment that I felt like I couldn't get out of. My mother was the first to speak. "Matt... come here." She says, gesturing me to stand next to her. I walk towards her reluctantly, afraid I might've done something I've forgotten about recently but still managed to reach her small memory. She points at the TV. The news anchor mentioning the asteroids that took over Chicago and are now making it's way towards Indiana. I stop and look closely as a video pops up. A house caught in shambles caused by the asteroids recorded by Chicago police. I soak in what I'm seeing, bewildered by the fact that my house could look just like that in a course of a few days. I feel the presence of my father creeping up on me as I feel his hand patt my left shoulder. All it took was his patting of my shoulder to let me know things were going to be okay. And I was fighting the urge to believe it wasn't. I face the TV again, only this time the news came to an abrupt end as my mother turned it off. She drops the remote unsteadily and scurries to the bedroom, crying hysterically. My dad following her lead. Within about four seconds, I'm in the same place as them, watching my dad comforting my mother on the edge of the bedside, repeatedly handing her tissues in the process. There was a part of me that wanted to comfort her too but another wanting to not get anymore involved being that my mother tends to become overworked and overwhelmed when too many people are around her...and I understood that with every knowledge. She stops crying for a moment and looks at me, tears rolling down her cheek. Something told me that was a sign she wanted to me in her arms, to help with the immense pain she was feeling. I run towards her, my dad frantically stepping away from how fast I was. She takes a look at me and examines my face, holding my head in her tear-soaked palms, eventually leading towards an unexpected hug. "Safe." She says, her voice caught in her sadness.
A couple hours past and my parents were already making their way out the back door as I trail behind them. I felt a raindrop thump against the top of my head and look up at the sky in complete oblivion. The weather was cold and the day was dreary, which inherited great factors of the mention of hurling space rocks in the news earlier. Everything seemed to match perfectly in the sense of it all. Dreary weather, the feeling of being afraid of an upcoming asteroid, and the ticking time bomb. I stand by the vintage wooden door and begin to engage in another awkward, almost unintentional, staring contest that I refused to enable it to continue any longer. My parents were standing by the front of the car when I noticed something. A cloudy, wispy, mist surrounding us all in the shape of a circle. And it only began to grow larger every few seconds. The staring came to an immediate close. "What's happening?" I ask anxiously, looking around for evidence. "Must be another storm." My dad says, trying to make light of the situation. "No... it can't be." I say. Suddenly, I catch a glimpse of a girl. A girl with long, jet black, silky hair walking towards me through the mist that was so heavy, I almost couldn't see her. I step away as many inches as I could, but somehow she managed to walk at a greater speed, catching up to me. She pulls out her hand and points at a number stamped on her arm. '011'. She stops and looks at me, waiting for a response, tears dripping down her face with blood dripping down the side of her nose simultaneously.Could this be...? I didn't know yet. But I was eager to find out who she was... and what she wanted from us. "Are you...?" I start to ask. "No." She says, her voice with a delicate monotone. "Then... what are you exactly?"
She wouldn't speak for awhile until finally I start to hear my mother's footsteps running towards us. "Hey. Who are you?" She looks at the both of us at a quick speed. Out of nowhere, I could feel the rhythm of what sounded like a helicopter shaking the ground, making it's landing across the street. Only it wasn't a helicopter. It was a wierd, almost alien-like, vehicle that came calling for one of us. The mystery girl was the first to step foward, looking back at me before she walked towards it voluntarily. I had no idea what just happened. My hands were shaking, my limbs felt like they could collapse, and my heart was beating out of my chest so much so that It felt like it could shatter into many pieces. I had to know who she was. I had to know who she was. It almost felt like it was too much too ask. I just had to know now. Even if that meant risking my life for an answer. I had to know.
