The Arise: Chapter 1

by Naomi D.
Dedicated to my best friend Glad
Who was my inspiration,
And for Roselyn whom
I will never forget
Malaysia’s hands dart to her ears as the sound of screeching passes through the school bus. She hears the groans of her classmates around her as the sound of tiny running feet advance towards her.

Let me guess, it’s Averie’s brother. Malaysia thinks to herself, holding back her smile. Within seconds of the thought a five-year-old boy jumps into her arms.

Called it.

She sighs as a girl comes through the bus doors following him. The girl meets eyes with Malaysia, and it feels like the tension between them will last for eternity.

“He’s just excited to see you,” the girl says breaking the silence, “as am I.” She takes the boy from Malaysia’s arms and walks down the steps onto the block that seems so familiar. Memories swirl through Malaysia’s mind as she walks down slowly behind her.

“So…” the girl starts solemnly, “how was your last-“

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Malaysia says cutting her off. She sighs and lifts her head to see the street. Memorizing it by heart, she looks from the field where she once broke her arm, to the café where they would always sit. Her eyes cross over to the barber shop which they would always play behind until they rest on the nursery where they first met.

“I-I’m not ready to leave this place Averie,” Malaysia says approaching her side.

“I’m not sure you have a choice,” Averie replies facing her, “but we might as well make the best of the time we have left.”

Malaysia stares at Averie, whose dark skin forms a corner of a smile. Averie’s black braided hair with purple tips reaches down to her hips, her brown eyes gleaming with a sense of unending kindness. Malaysia pushes away the tears that have been building up her entire life. She walks down the street in silence, paying to attention to Averie staying behind. Malaysia, fighting with herself, resists the urge to run and hide.

With her mind still lost in the past, Malaysia pays no attention to the world around her and trips over a crack in the sidewalk. As Malaysia comes back to present, the world around her fades, her different colored eyes lock onto the darkness filling the crack. The darkness is now getting bigger and is now swarming around her. As the darkness gets bigger, a wave of panic passes through her. She watches as it seems to eat the world, but it leaves her unharmed.

“Malaysia!”

The sudden noise breaks Malaysia away from her nightmare, and she looks up to see Averie holding out her hand. Malaysia grabs her hand. When she stands, the world is undisturbed. She calms down until the street seems to shudder or…glitch.

“Averie what…did you see that?” Malaysia says with shock shaking her voice.

“Yes, I saw you trip and completely zone out with a look of horror on your face,” Averie responds. “Do you want to tell me something?”

“There is nothing to tell!” Malaysia snaps without thinking “I… sorry I—”

“It’s alright, but, you only have so much time left here so… try to make the best of it.”

Malaysia stares at Averie, hoping something would let her break away. Suddenly her phone vibrates in her back pocket. “I have to get home, that was my sister,” Malaysia answers, glad she got leave before she shattered.

The walk home never felt so lonely. Malaysia’s feet drag on the pavement as she takes the long way home. She can’t stop thinking about the way the world seemed to glitch after the crack absorbed her. She knows that, from now on, that image would never leave her mind. No matter how hard she tries, whenever she looks at the block, it glitches; it might be from the trauma, but it seems so real.

✾

Cillin recites the path through his head as he sits down for lunch. If he even gets one step wrong, his entire mission will fail. He has been preparing for this moment for six years, and one little mistake is something he can’t afford.

“Cillin, are you all right,” asks a boy behind him.

“Yeah Jashui, don’t worry, it’s just a big day you know,” Cillin answers. No one could possibly know but Jashui was the only one who could even get close. Just as he is about to eat the bell rings.

“Wow was I really in the library that long?” Cillin says with laugh knowing the answer.

“You were having one of your panic attacks, cuz you’re Cillin, it’s your thing,” Jashui says with a laugh.

Cillin chuckles slightly, but he is too focused to have much emotion. He just gets up and puts his unfinished lunch away. Light flashes into his eye from the open window, illuminating his blonde hair in the dimly lit cafeteria. As he goes back to Jashui to say goodbye, a boy his age peers at him through the open door of the cafeteria. Cillin notices this and decides not to tell Jashui anything extra other than goodbye.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, right?” Jashui says, watching Cillin glance frantically at the boy that has now disappeared.

“Uh yeah sure,” Cillin says, distracted by the close encounter.

“You’re so lucky you get to miss class,” Jashui says with a smile, paying no attention to Cillin’s newfound concern. “Especially Mr. what’s-his-name—his class is always the same.”

“It has been over half a year, and you still don’t remember his name, wow Jashui,” Cillin replies as they walk out of the lunchroom.

“Oh, I remember his name, this name is just better.”

Cillin laughs a real laugh this time as Jashui enters a classroom. Cillin continues walking down the halls in silence. When he reaches the door to leave, he hands a small machine to the man standing by it and exits the school. Usually, he would immediately turn onto the shortcut home, but this time he takes care to be out of sight of the boy in the upper classroom watching him.

✾

When Malaysia reaches home, her sister is there waiting for her with a smoothie. Whenever her sister gets home first, she always makes a snack for Malaysia. After a hard last day of school Malaysia is glad to have everything ready for her in advance.

“So how was your last day of school?” her sister asks, handing her the smoothie. Malaysia pulls a streak of blonde out of her dark brown hair and twists it around her finger as she answers.

“It was…” She hesitated before finishing, but she can tell by the look on her sister’s face that she doesn’t have to say more. Shirley understands.

Malaysia goes to her room, but it doesn’t comfort her. When she sees the emptiness of the room, all it does is remind her of the upcoming move. She sits on her white bed and imagines it covered with the light blue tasseled bedsheets that were packed yesterday. She glances over at Shirley’s bed against the wall. At least at the new house Malaysia will have her own room. As much as she loves her sister, it is always hard to fall asleep to her snoring.

Suddenly the house starts to smell like pork chops. Malaysia rushes downstairs to see her mom cooking Malaysia’s favorite meal. Her mom smiles as she sees Malaysia coming through the kitchen doors.

“So, how was your last day?” her mom asks. Malaysia tries to hide her worry; if she doesn’t answer, her mom will definitely know something is wrong, and Malaysia doesn’t want to stress her mom with school drama when she already has to handle so much with the move.

“It was just like her first day,” Shirley bursts in just as Malaysia is about to answer.

Shirley always comes in at the right times. Malaysia’s first day was horrible too, though their mom didn’t know that. Still, it wasn’t lying. Malaysia’s mom wasn’t there after the first day, and she somehow convinced herself that it was amazing.

When Shirley walks away Malaysia mouths a silent thank you. She sets her smoothie cup on the counter and walks back upstairs. When she steps onto the staircase her father walks in, but she dashes away before he can ask the question that was so popular. As she reaches the top of the stairs, she realizes that it isn’t as much about her parents’ stress that makes her not want to answer—she doesn’t want to recap the horrible day. As she thinks this, the world glitches, again.

✾

Cillin appears in the doorway covered in dust and spiders. His feet drag behind him as he collapses onto a worn-down chair. He picks the spiderwebs out of his hair and drops his satchel on the ground next to the faded burgundy chair.

Once he regains his strength, he opens the satchel and pulls from it a small key with a faint blue glow around the edges. He sets it in a glass case, and it fades out of sight. Cillin puts his hand in the area where the case had been, and the key reappears. This time he picks it up, sets it in his hand, and studies it.

“Magnificent work Cillin, I knew you could do it,”

Cillin turns behind him to see a man come through the doorway. The man was Kentae.