Wishing: Chapter Three

Okay, before you go assuming that I blacked out on the spot and was rushed to the hospital, let me tell you what really happened.

The darkness lasted only a few seconds. It was kind of like a head rush, like you get after laying in bed all day and then standing up too quickly. I hit my head on the locker, raised my hand to make sure there was no blood, then realized I couldn't see. I steadied myself, and after a few seconds the light returned.

By now the boys had stopped fighting and everyone was running over to make sure I was okay. The older boy -the one that hit me, I assume- looked incredibly guilty. He started shouting about how he hadn't meant to hit me, but I barely heard him. I was still in a daze, and the bottom half of my face hurt terribly.

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You can bet I left school early. It was around one o'clock as I sat in Joe's old pickup truck, staring out the window at the little drops of rain as they sprinkled softly to the ground. We were halfway home, and my uncle hadn't said a word the whole way.

I held a bag of ice to my cheek, it still aching, though not near as bad. They had given it to me in the school office before I quickly ran out the door with my uncle- they didn't even get the chance to tell him what happened.

Finally he spoke. "Honestly, Storm? A fight?" at first I couldn't understand why his voice was low and shaky. Like he was about to cry. Or start yelling. It wasn't like I had done anything wrong- okay, maybe I had, but trying to stop a fight is more stupid than it is bad.

"It's not like I did anything wrong," I said defensively, shooting him a glance out of the corner of my eye but not turning around to face him.

I saw his eyes go wide before he narrowed them in what was almost a glare. "Nothing wrong? Storm, how could you get into a FIGHT the day after your father's d-"

I cut him off right there. No, it's not because I didn't want to hear the word. It's because if I was an anime character, I literally would have facepalmed. "Joe, I didn't get into a fight," I spat. "I was trying to stop one."

My uncle fell silent again. I could tell he felt bad for accusing me. "I'm sorry," he said eventually in a soft voice. "I didn't know-"

"Don't worry about it," I cut him off again.

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I hadn't had the music on long before I realized that my uncle could probably hear it from upstairs- though this basement was supposedly soundproof, I didn't believe it. So I grabbed a pair of headphones off my night stand and put them on, staring up at the deep purple canopy hanging above my bed.

I had completely forgotten. On the canopy there were little golden stars, each painted on, each one that shimmered a bit. I'm surprised I noticed it, since the lighting was really dim on this side of my room. How could a person sleep under the stars every night for years and not notice it? It made me feel like I had some mental problem.

I continued staring at the stars, as if one would move. "I wish one of you were a real shooting star..." I whispered (Oh great, now I'm talking to myself) . "Because a wish would be great right now."

I closed my eyes and went back to concentrating on the lyrics of the song. When I couldn't place the song or the artist, I realized that this little exercise was pointless.

Listening to music -and thinking of what the song was, and who sang it- was something I did when I needed to get my mind off things. I listened to songs I hadn't heard in a while, so I'd really have to be focusing on that, instead of what was bothering me.

But it was absolutely pointless. Because it always ended this way. I'd just give up.

And as that thought crossed my mind -about giving up- I suddenly had a terrible feeling inside. I'd promised my dad long ago that I'd never give up- on ANYTHING. Even something as simple as this.

But, man, this song was getting really annoying. I ripped off my headphones and threw them, watching them crash against the wall and fall to the floor.

"Everything is meaningless..." I whispered. "But I guess it can't be helped."

The sound of the door leading downstairs opening brought me back to my senses. "Storm?" a voice called down the stairs.

"Yeah?" I hollered back at my uncle, not in the mood to stand up and walk all the way to the stairs.

"Your friend is here."

Friend? What friend? Michaela? No, she was mad at me... Then, who?

I sighed, standing up and lazily walking towards the stairs. I hadnt bothered to get dressed yet today and I was still in sweat pants and a tanktop. My hair was pulled up but I'm sure it looked terrible.

Well, I sure was not expecting what awaited me at the back door.

Megan Lucide greeted me with a huge smile and a slight wave. "Hey, Storm!" she said cheerfully.

I wearily approached. "Hey... Megan, right?" I said, knowing that was indeed her name but not wanting to appear as though I cared enough to remember.

"Yep!"

Ignoring the urge to say, "What do you want?" I walked into the kitchen, throwing an arm carelessly in the direction of the table and motioning for her to sit down. I opened the door of the fridge, pretended to examine its contents, then looked back to the brunette who was staring at me with interest. "So, 'sup?" I asked, trying my hardest not to show any annoyance.

"Well, after you left yesterday, I was sorta worried about you and I asked the office where your house was located-"

"And they TOLD you?" I cut her off in disbelief. What kind of a school would do that? What if this girl was some kind of secret agent-

I silently laughed. Thinking about secret agents. Stupid ADHD.

She grinned. "Yeah, hard to believe, right?" she didn't wait for me to tell her whether I thought that was right or wrong. "I'm sorry if I interrupted anything."

"Well, if you consider listening to music and inwardly ranting about my life 'anything', then yeah you interrupted."

She opened her mouth to say something, but feel silent as we heard a loud Thud! I looked towards the glass backdoor in time to see the white dove slide down the glass and fall onto the step.

"No way!" Megan exclaimed. "Is that...a dove? In this part of Illinois?!"

We both jumped towards the backdoor, me being the one to pull it open.

On the back step there lay an unconscious white dove, with a pink envelope sitting right next to it.

Careful not to disturb the bird I picked up the envelope. Megan gasped. I sudden had a queasy feeling inside.

Scrolled across the envelope in perfect cursive were the words, "Myranda 'Storm' Rush" .

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Prologue -------> http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/item_id/1730006-Wishing-Prologue
Chapter One -----> http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/item_id/1730060-Wishing-Chapter-One
Chapter Two ------>
Chapter Three -----> You're Here
Chapter Four ------>
Chapter Five ------> http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/item_id/1760789-Wishing-Chapter-Five