As I walk into high school for the first time I notice the thousands of people pouring in at all angles. Today is one of those days I wish my parents just let me go to public school with all of my friends. I never really had friends with a name like Primila most people stay their distance. Fine by me I never really liked people I have very short temper most of the time and I can’t stand most of the immature idiots in my class. I was always known as ‘Fire Chick’. I wouldn’t really care it’s not really my choice, nothing has lately. I’m not even sure the gardens make choices anymore. Who’s to say what we do every day, from what we have for breakfast to when we dream. People never really liked me, oh well.
I’m not sure why people enjoy making fun of me. I always thought it was the gardens fault. My parents toke off when I was little. My dad was supposedly murdered and no one even knows who my mom is other than the fact that not only did no one knows she was pregnant but she left the day I was born. I don’t even know this woman’s name. Not that I care, she abandoned me. I couldn’t care less if the woman was dead or alive. My gardens haven’t been the worse I guess, they awaked cared for me and made sure I knew someone cared for me. Maybe I’m a selfish brat but it always seemed they wished they got little preppy cheerleader but they got stuck with me but would never admit it.
I was forced to leave the town of East Bridgewater. It’s a small town with nothing to do but I had my best friends Christina and Bruce. I miss them so much but I never get to talk to them anymore. Bruce’s parents don’t trust him with a phone or computer, with good reason but it still sucks, and Christina decided I wasn’t worth her time now that we were middle school. I don’t even know what there is in such a small town. One park that was the center, with a signal band stand with a different high school wanna-be band every week. Nothing to do but slowly waste away, But hey at least I knew everybody and had a couple of friends.
So as I walk into a new school first day of middle school I knew nobody, I was a no body. I was starting school in January and that sucked majorly. First time all year the kids had a fire drill that was later announced that it wasn’t a drill. Even though I didn’t start the fire they started calling me ’Fire Chick’. Three years later high schools starting and I’m no longer with the public school jerks, I’m with the private school preps. And I’m not happy about it. I’d rather be called ‘Fire Chick’.
I’m not sure of my ranting are different from any of the kids here but I was different. I mean I wore black in a sea of pink chicks. I knew I had to find someone like me before I went mad. I’ve always liked purples and blacks, my parents think I’m emo or something; but to be honest I just like the colors. Purple always made me feel safe and according to the gardens I’ve never been afraid of the dark. And they think that’s why I like black. I think there on crack.
“Watch it newbie” some idiot in a football jersey shouts. I roll my eyes and go to walk away when he stops me. I almost roll my eyes, this isn’t what I needed the first day, but then I toke in the size of this man and thought better of it.
I look him in the eyes having to strain my head back and stare him down; “Move” I thought about it for a second and said threw pinched teeth “Please.”
He almost started laughing. I had to work real hard on not rolling my eyes.
“Yo, Chad lets go she’s not worth it.” Says this kid in a black leather jacket with some petite girl clinging to his side. I almost started laughing and was about to say ‘thanks but I can take care of myself” when I hear a sound that made me think of nails on a chalkboard and I cringed.
Chad laughs hard and pushes the kid back and walks away. I nod to the kid and turn around before I start laughing, looking in the sea of students and buildings for student services and head off. Some kid comes behind me and grabs my arm, “So you got a name?” I don’t respond and he laughs “you’re going to make me guess then? Megan?” I turn to look at him and this time I can’t help it, I roll my eyes and sigh. I nod my head no. “Brianna?” I nod my head no again. “Sara?”
I nod my head no mumbling “You’ll never guess it.” Hopping he would give up and let me be.
He looks at me and shacks his head “Your problem right I was never a good guesser.”
“Primila.”
“And what would that be?”
The girl on his arm laughs and hits him playfully “It’s her name Nicholas.” She laughed harder as he got mad. “That’s nick, I’m Val.” I noticed him start to calm down when she spoke, as if they were one.
As I surveyed the couple I revised they were just like my old friends. So I look the girl named Val in the eyes “Do you know where student information is?”
The kid Nick laughed “Behind the pool.”
Val slapped him harder when I give her a weird look she explains plainly “don’t listen to him. There’s no pool at Pintart. I have to go there anyways to get my schedule, I’ll bring you.” She kissed nick on the cheek and started walking the opposite way. “You coming?”
“Umm yeah.” As I start to fallow her I notice something off about her. As we continue down the twist and turns of the school I start to see frimiler face laughing and I wonder why.
“Fire chick and sister death. Perfect couple” says some blond chick in my old school, never thought I’d have to see her again. I was going to ask Val about the Sister Death thing, but by the look on Val’s face I decide to ask her later. As we walked I thought about it for a minute and thought the chicks name was Emily or something.
I relished that for the first time that I and Emily were friends when we were kids. I don’t remember why we stopped but I had this funny feeling she wasn’t about to tell me.
I was deep in thought so I almost missed when Val toke a sharp left and approached the door to a petit looking building.
As we enter the smallest building so far that that I’ve seen we approach a small girl and a very old man. I walk in questionably as the small girl grabs Val's hand “Young Valerie YOUNG VALORIE!! Oh goodie so what can I do for you Mrs.Leftmen?” I almost started laughing. Val blushed and I bit my tongue and she surprised me when not even a minute later she acted like nothing had even fazed her.
“Just my schedule Mrs. Robinson.” Val laughed and whispered in my ear “Last names A-L Mr. Rogers Le-Z Mrs. Robinson.” I nod and head over to Mr. Rogers. An old man with a haircut from the 80’s and I almost smiled. That was until he looked sat me.
He looks at me as if I don’t belong and I go to speak and he holds a hand up. “I know who you are Mrs. Demmoncar’re lets go in my office and discus some options for you here.” I nod and look back to Val but she’s already left. I wonder where she went to but quickly remember she told me she would take me here and said nothing of staying to help. I take a deep breath and fallow him into his office.
“Sorry about the mess” he mumbles moving a burger king rapper off a pile of papers and books looking like they’re about to fall over. It reminded me of the leaning ‘tower of pizza’. The two awards on his wall and some collage certificate from community college and a high school diploma, from surprise Pintart. I wonder if any principals go to teach at a random school they didn’t go to. I don’t think so.
“Why can’t I just get my schedule and leave?” I mumble under my breath half wishing I never spoke up. And half wishing I faked flu and got out of going to school today. Then again would the gardens have believed me?
“Your anger has led to putting people in danger. It hasn’t happened yet but according to your parents...”
I sigh cutting him off “Gardens. They’re not my parents.”
“Of course not. So your gardens are worried that lately your anger hasn’t been handled right.” He was waiting for me to answer. Then he sighs and counties “We could either put you in anger management like classes and have therapy once a week or you could have therapy every day and have to report to a security guard twice a day.”
I sigh “What do you mean by anger management classes?” I keep thinking about Christina and Bruce, they both where there that night, they both helped, did they have to make the same decisions I did?
He almost laughed. “They’re just normal classes but they’re full of other students, such as yourself that need to be watched more closely.”
I close my eyes in hope to hear Bruce’s voice in my head. He always knew how to make me smile or help me make a decision I was afraid of. When I hear nothing I sigh and wish he was still around. “I'll do that.”
“Very good Mrs. Demonncar’re right this way.” He seemed a little too happy. I wonder if the other option was real or just there to make students feel like they could make decisions in their life. I don’t know but I just don’t trust him.
Somehow I made it through the day, Val was in two of my classes and Nick was in all of them. I was surprised he barley said a word to me, but every time I looked he was looking at me. It was sort of creepy. At least my ‘class buddies’ -as Mr. Rodgers put it- wasn’t a total jerk. Then again I really don’t know this kid. Although I don’t think most kids would try and help the new kid knowing they were going to pay for it at some point. He was still sketchy to me. Val on the other hand was pretty cool. We sit together in English and Science and today she invited me to sit with nick and her. It was a small table of just her, nick and I but it reminded me of Christina, Bruce and I.
When I got home I avoided the gardens and went straight up to my room. I felt at ease the moment I walked in the door. The purple walls and carpet and the black furniture with a constant black light haggling from the ceiling hasn’t changed much. Since I was little I’ve always had the purple walls and carpet. The only thing that’s changed is the furniture was once white, but when Bruce got a hold of some black spray paint, well we said goodbye to the white. Then once I moved Bruce and Christina pulled their money together and got me the black light as a goodbye gift. It was so sweet. It’s now my main functioning light. The gardens hate it.
My phone went off which was odd nobody but Bruce, Christina and the gardens even had the number. I listened for a moment hearing the gardens discussing some golf show that was on and couldn’t help but remember Christina hated me and Bruce has never had a phone for more than an hour.
‘Yo Prim guess what? That’s right my parents got me a phone –Big Bad Bruce’
I smiled I missed him so much I read the message five or six times before replying.
‘Bruce! Oh my god I missed you so much. The gardens set me up with a private school meant for ‘ANGRY TEENS’ –PRIMEDIA’
I smiled not even a minute later he replied and I couldn’t help thinking ‘that’s my Bruce.'
‘That sucks. Schools okay. I guess. Its still school. I’m moving to Derry. Nobody knows where that is I don’t even know. –Big bad Bruce’
I’m not sure what to say. I live in Derry but I don’t thing Bruce would like it. Then again why does he still have my number? After all these years.... I moved maybe six years ago. I had to catch my breath before replying my mind was working a mile a minute.
‘I know where it is. –PRIMEDIA’
‘Really how?-Big Bad Bruce’
‘I live there. -PRIMEDIA’
After that I went down stairs for a snack and started on my homework. Not sure what else to do until him texted me back. And all I knew was he wasn’t going to text me back. I finished with my homework and went to sleep. Even when I woke up in the morning he hadn’t replied. I hoped it was because his parents reslized their mistake and not him avoiding me.
The next few days went without much happening. Val, nick and I were getting closer and we sat together at lunch. They defiantly had their secrets but for now I left it alone. Bruce hasn’t talked to me since that first week of school. I’m not sure if has still moving or what it just gets aggravating.
“Val, Val, VAL!” nick was resentful. I don’t think he likes how close Val and I have gotten over the last few weeks but its okay with me. I hope I don’t sound like a total jerk. It’s just weird never really had someone as close to me as Val, were like the same person.
“Nick she’ll be over a minute. She’s getting lunch.”
I never noticed how much he looks at her; he really seems to like her. “But then she’s just going to talk to you that are all she ever dose anymore.”
I looked into his sad little puppy like eyes. “I’ll try and include you.” I looked at him
“Don’t you get it? She was mine. I mean I’m glad we all have you as a friend and all but I just wish it was me and her. You know?”
I think about this for a minute “I have an idea.”
He looks at me and I counties “Make something special for somewhere and tell me an ill tell her to go and we’ll surprise her.”
He seemed to conceder this for a moment. He held his hand out “Deal.”
I shook his hand nodded as Val came and sat down. “Hey Val I totally forgot I have to make up a science test. I’ll talk to you later. Bye” as I left and turned around and saw nick mumble ‘thanks’.
I walked into the hall and thought about what my next step would be I didn’t really have to make up a science test. That’s when I saw him, a tall dark haired man staring at me. I walked over to him trying to figure out if I knew him or not, when he takes off. Threw the twist and turns of passing students and a campus I can’t describe it was like he knew exactly where he was going, like had been here before.
He stopped.
It was a used science classroom with the electricity off. I stared at him in the dark as the warning bell goes off. He expects me to move, run to class before I’m late; but I did not chase him here to leave without answers.
I look at his face to see if I know him from somewhere, but I can’t look away from the scare that travels down his left cheek.
He watches me, nothing more nothing less. This man was at least a foot taller than my 5’2”. I’m not sure how to describe such an odd man. He looked normal, like anyone else at school, but taller. Darker, somehow in his eyes I saw madness. As I stare into his eyes, I realized I did not have an answer for this man. I didn’t know what to think of this man. All I knew was I did not want to be in that room with him.
He looks at me like he knows me, but something about this man worries me. I know I don’t want to be there, in that room, but I was compelled to stay. I couldn’t leave and I don’t understand why. He takes a step towards me.
“Hello, I’m Aidan.” I watch him for a moment and lean forward shaking his hand.
Heasently I say “Primala, nice to meet you.”

Aidan
She watches me like she doesn’t know who I am. Like we haven’t been sworn to each other since birth. I look at her “Primala that’s a nice name how did you come up with that Demetria?” I watch her face closely and she takes a step back.
“My name is Primiala. Who is Demetria? Why do people think I’m this girl?” she asked heasently. I look at her as if she’s gone mad.
“Primiala are your parents dead?” I watch her eyes; the truth is in those beautiful black eyes. Some would call it dark brown but the color is defiantly black.
She nod; slowly she adds “ How did you know?”



He's coming, chasing me. I turn to look at him, he’s gone. Just like that, I can’t find him; I don’t know where he went.
I run. That’s your first instinct. To run until you can’t feel your legs or you can’t breathe. Something's not right. I run for what seems like hours my muscles are sore, my mind is racing, my legs are slowing, and I can’t breathe, I have to keep going he’ll catch me I know he will.
When someone tells you something you can’t understand. Something you don’t want to understand. Something impossible. You run but in reality how long can you run when you can’t see what you’re running from. O where you’re running too? What’s the future if you run? But if you stay will there be a future? How did I get here? How could I trust him? I run blindly from the force that holds me. He has me; I try to run from him, I’m out of his grip, the doors move I can’t get out the world is spinning.
I fall.
He grabs me.
The world falls black.
My grandmother used to tell me dreams were passage ways, fallow one to your deepest desires. That a single dream can tell you your future and your life. Or in this case, your death; or perhaps someone else’s death.
This woman, her face is nothing to me, her beautiful brown hair and dark green eyes have no effect on me. It’s almost like I don’t care if she lives or she dies; but she dies they never live. I wonder who this woman is, why is she important, who killed her, why am I seeing this, and most importantly how can I stop this?
I shake my head, what am I thinking. She’s not real. That’s all there is to it, it’s a nightmare. One I’ve been having a lot lately but still it’s just a dream. Dreams are just looks into your soul. So mine is a little darker than most people it’s still just a dream.
I mean everyone dreams of people dying. Right?
Bells go off and I nearly fall out of bed hitting the snooze on my alarm knowing I won’t be going back to bed. I sigh as I roll out of bed and glare out my window another day, another day not to change to do the same thing for the hundredth time, when every night my world is tipped upside down I’m expected to go on day after day doing nothing, sitting in Geo2 with Mr. Harlan like I give a crap.
As I pull myself into the shower I notice the silence, it’s never this quite. Wheres the pots and pans banging as the Gardens make breakfast together, or my ‘dad’ singing some stupid show tune. Something’s wrong.
I push the thoughts out of my mind and try to focus on the Bio test I have today and try to forget my nightmare. It’s just a dream; I’m fine everyone is fine. I put too much into this. So I have a couple bad dreams, that don’t make me crazy. Does it?
_____
I walk downstairs ready to move on with my day, grab a cup of coffee and head for the door when I notice something odd, the news is on. The guardians never watch the news, too much violence and sadness according to ‘mom’. Besides no one was home, the volume turn to zero impossible to hear. Maybe I’m being paranoid but something’s off and not just the TV, the whole house feels… I don’t know weird. Now I’m sounding crazy. I reach for the remote turning up to volume.
"New this morning, the 5th girl in a string of murders that is shocking the Derry area Sierra Zock high school dropout was found brutally murdered last night...." I turn nearly spilling my morning coffee trying to hear more but all I can see is that face. The girl with the black hair and the green eyes. How can this be? How is this possible?
That’s her. The girl from my dream, she’s real… she’s dead. I sit there taking deep breaths, trying not to panic. I almost whish the guardians were here. I jumped from my skin when the table started vibrating. As I try to catch my breath I looked down at my phone cautiously like it’s a cobra in the desert trying to see through the fog that has become my brain.
'I know where you are Demetria. I know your there. I will find you my daughter. I will kill you.'
I stare at the words for a minute when the bus honks. It’s impossible, my father’s dead, I verified the body this must be some sick joke. Then again I’m not Demetria. Who is Demetria, and what does it have to do with me? Why for some reason does it seem… know it’s obvious… I am being hunted.
I walk out the door nearly missing my bus as I take my normal seat with Val I can’t help thinking, what if it’s me killing these women?
“Hello earth to Primilla, HELLO!” Val yells at me from her spot next to me and I stop my thoughts from heading and more depressing then they already are.
“Hey sorry, odd morning. What’s up?” She smiles like nothing’s wrong like there isn’t a string of murders going on around town. As she rambles on I find myself wondering if were really friends or if its an all and act. If any of this is real. How can my life suck this much?
“If you’re not going to listen to me Prim I’m just not going to talk. And you can’t hear any of the gooey secrets in my brain” Val looked positively pissed off, but what was I to do.
“I’m sorry you know I love you, it’s just I don’t have my head on straight.” She sighs and try’s telling me her story again. But I still don’t catch it I hope she doesn’t notice but I guess it doesn’t matter too much. Just as she was about you ask me if I was listing again Nick walked over and I ran into the sea of students trying not to get noticed or run over by the student population.
I sit through class after class trying not to think about it. Somehow whenever I would let my mind drift it would be the first thought in my head. I couldn’t think about anything straight. It was going to be a long day with the never ending battle in my head.



I’m fallowing the screams. They lead further and further away from town. I feel like theirs someone fallowing me, watching me. The night air runs down my back. Why didn’t I tell someone where I was going, what I was doing? The screams stop for a moment, imp in front of a building with ivy crawling up the windows, hiding in the depths of the cracks and shadows. I hold my breath as I enter the building. Something propels me, something, and something. Something’s inside, I need to help it.
That’s when I hear them again, the sound of a women dying, the screams grow louder more pearling. The smell of blood fills the air as I open an old rusty door where blood seemingly is pouring out. I pear in the door, bite my lip and walks inside.
I think of all those horror movies where everyone yells at the girl "Don’t go in there! Are you stupid walking away now!” and she opens the door to her death. Now I know why they do it, the need to know. The need burns with in them. They will never know if they don’t open the door.
Blood stains old bones of victims with no names, victims I have dreamed of. Their body left carelessly around. I can see it more clearly now, the murders, without the fog of dreams it’s easier to understand. But I still don’t know why I’m having these nightmares. These nightmares are coming alive right in front of me, these people are dying, is it my fault? How can I save these people? I think of my dreams, how the all end, how no one’s ever survived. I turn and run to the door.
Just as I turn the door slams, I look for who did this, 'remember the dreams Primila think', the attacker; I’ve never sent him before. I look for a window, but there are no windows, no way out. I look around, finding a small door hidden in the floor and against my better judgment crawl threw it to an empty room.
“Dem…Demetria…” the name from my dreams, the girl I must save. I turn to look for the woman the voice belongs to, I head threw passage ways and old doors that lead in to the dark.
I look into a room it looks empty so I turn to leave when I hear the woman again “Demetria, please…” I look in the once empty room to see a woman with long dark hair and a blood stained face tied to a chair with blood pouring from her body. I’m still for a moment looking around to see what I could do, and to look for this Demetria, when I assume she’s too sick to leave I enter the old room. I run to the woman and start to untie her.
She whispers to me without moving her lips, “you must leave. Now before he finds you here." I look at this woman I do not know and look in dead eyes. I start to protest but feel like I should trust her. I nod and scope her mangled body in my arms as she screams “behind you my child” with such panic I look around trying not to drop this woman. A shadow moves and I drop her and run. I run for what seems like miles, miles that turn out to be a few blocks. I recognize the edge of the city. I look back feeling horrible about leaving the woman behind.
I didn’t even see him there. We hit dead on knocking both of us down. “Whoa there. In a rush are we.” He helps me to my feet and notices the blood that covers my clothes. “Now what’s a pretty girl like you doing around here?" He looks generally upset and keeps looking at the blood that covers most of my clothing.
“Dem.... Primila I’m coming sweetie. You cannot escape me.” The voice says in a low husky voice. Primila screamed and tried to run.

The man who caught Primila turned hearing the voice then the scream and brought her to the coffee shop down the road.
He bought her coffee and gave her his jacket to hide most of the blood and they spent what felt like hour’s just sipping coffee and look at another. She sat with her legs up against her chest in the chair keeping her eyes low. When they were almost done with their coffee she went to stand and just walked out the door heading for the park.
He sat there confused for a moment then got up and fallowed her threw the city. Once they both got to the park she noticed him and turned around to look at him.
"I...I was worried about you... you looked like a mess." she looked at him and he stammered "well not like a mess, you’re very pretty, it’s just with all the blood, but you can... I mean... I’m just gonna shut up now."
She suppressed herself and giggled, she held out her hand "Primila" she looked almost as nerves as he did.
He shook her hand "Justin" he smiled “I’m new around here. Tomorrow’s my first day at the high school."
She felt momentarily bad for him remembering her first day. "It’s not too bad if you know the right people."
Justin looked at her and shakes his hair out and for the first time she relied how long it was, "I'm not going to the public school."
I look at him for a moment confused and then mutter ‘Pintart’ as if it was a curse. I smile and ask him what his schedule was, when he shows me I point out the classes I have with him and tell him where to meet me in the morning so I can drag him to first class with me.
-------
I'm waiting for Justin as nick and Val show up laughing and kissing just like every other morning.
"YO Primster, whatcha hatching?" I look at Val in hope she might help me understand why nick is acting so utterly bazar. Unfortunately she looks as confused as me.
I sigh before replying "You know same old. You?" Looking around I barley hears Nick's response when I see Justin wave at me from his car and walk over. Valarie mutters something under her breath and we all start laughing.
The bell goes off and there’s a collective groan as the day starts. The fingers of light reaching forward with the start of the day. Val and Nick kiss before breaking a part and as Justin reaches us he says a quick 'Hi' before returning to the sulks and lowers his head becoming a turtle hiding in his shell. I sigh and smile walking to class with everyone.
I was watching Justin from his spot in front of me. Nick landed over and passed me a note. I looked at him and read it 'So you swapping spit with newbie?' I laugh and nick smirks as Justin turns around. "no. no. no. god dammit nicks." hushed under my tongue and look back trying to keep the blush from my meeting with my cheeks.
Nick smiles as Mr.Baren says "Mr. Lee since you want to talk how bout you tell the class how the big bang came to its current state."
Nick grins at Mr.Baren and says "I’m sure you could explain it much better sir; I’m afraid I never was good at explaining things to morons." Mr. Barren stares at Nick "Watch your tongue child," but continued with his lesson glaring at Nick every time his eyes roamed in his direction.
Nick tried to keep the laughing under his tongue but I could see it in his eyes. No matter what I said Nick would assume the worst. It was why I loved him.