A Life Worth Living

The Parcel

The weekend had finally arrived and I could not be happier! I had been in New York for a month now and I have to say, it was starting to feel like home. Sort of. University was going well, I excelled in all my classes and my artistic juices were flowing like never before. Matt and I had become close friends and would regularly order Chinese take-out and watch Adventure Time with each other. Life was good, at least for now.

Saturdays are my absolute favourite days, because I can sleep in and do whatever I need to do during the day and relax as there is still one more day of the weekend to come. This Saturday morning, I woke up at around 9am and shuffled into the kitchen, yawning as I flicked on the kettle. I then grabbed a mug and set it up for a cup of coffee before tying my long reddish-brown hair into a messy bun. I poured my cup of coffee into the cup and flicked on the television before plopping down on the couch. Yay, Saturday morning cartoons! Power Rangers? Hell yeah! Power Rangers is so fake and horrible, that its actually kind of good. If that makes any sense. The doorbell rung and I let out a groan, far too comfortable to move. I guess we all have to make sacrifices. With that, I set down my mug and got up before walking towards the door. Before swinging it open, I glanced in the mirror to my left, my bright blue eyes staring back at me, the familiar freckles sprinkled across my nose. Feeling satisfied with my appearance, I swung open the door and looked around. No one was there. How strange. I looked down and spotted a white package addressed to me in neat cursive hand writing. I love parcels, they're so exciting and mysterious.

Grabbing the parcel, I retreated inside and closed the door, slowly walking towards my previous position on the couch whilst carefully examining the package. It was neatly wrapped and had a large sticker with my name and address stuck on the top. Plopping down on the couch, I began carefully prying open the package, not wanting to damage whatever it held inside. Gosh this is so exciting! Finally, the white paper peeled off, revealing a dull cardboard box. Raising an eyebrow, I lifted the cardboard flap and peered into the darkness.

All it held was a metal flask and a note. Weird right? I unfolded the note and skimmed it, becoming even more confused. It read :

Project 97, open the flask and we'll explain everything later.

Who the hell was project 97? And if, whoever they are, are referring to me,I have a name! Assholes. I wonder what's in the flask? Curiosity taking over, I twisted the cap of the stainless steel flask and listened as it let out a hiss. Twisting it more, I watched as a green smoke billowed out, screaming danger. My heart raced as I realised too late what the flask held. Gas. My head felt woozy as the room began to spin before I fell into darkness, leaving reality behind.

"Project 97 is ready for injections, sir."

"Good job Carl, notify Jim and we'll get started."

"Does he know project 97 is-"

"no, and he must not find out! confidentiality is vital for the mission, plus project 97 is just a trial run, nothing important. Give her some more gas and lets start."

I heard a hiss before darkness enclosed me once more.

A distant ringing stirred me from my slumber, memories of white lab coats, and stainless steel benches swirled in my mind. The ringing continued as I realised it was coming from a phone. I opened my eyes and let out a groan as the light from my window streamed in, blinding me momentarily. I slid out of bed and walked towards my phone as it continued ringing, not helping my throbbing head ache. I reach out to answer it before realising it wasn't my phone that was ringing, but someone else's. Weird. I followed the ringing noise until I was in the lobby watching in disbelief as the receptionist answered the phone. A strange buzzing filled my head and I clutched it, trying to bring myself back to reality. What the hell was happening to me?

I pondered this as I made my way back to my room, my thoughts jumbled. The hum of New York Traffic was significantly louder, almost like someone had turned the volume up over night. I listened and suddenly, I was able to hear peoples conversations, as if they were right here, but when I spun around, I found myself alone. This was getting freaky.

I sent Matt a text as I tried to come to terms with what had happened. Flashes of men in white lab coats and huge needles, flickered in my mind. Surely that didn't happen. Testing my theory, I rolled up the sleeve of my pyjamas and found a white bandage covering a large hole matching the needles in my dream. I suddenly remembered the flask and hastily ran into my apartment, frantically searching for it, but it was no where to be found. Well shit. My back ached and I let out a groan as the pain intensified. I really need to find Matt. Matt was all I could think about and when I opened my eyes, I was no longer in my apartment but above the city, sort of like a Birdseye, a red dot walking towards the apartment building signalling Matts where abouts. I blinked and I was back in my apartment. I watched as the room swirled with my thoughts before falling back into the darkness.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A/N: the first glance at Ali's super hero powers! I sort of think I rushed the chapter a bit but I really cant be bothered going over it right now, so yeah. I tried to make it longer, so please let me know what you think. I'm sort of trying to plan what's going to happen next in my head, because I have a basic idea of the story but I really need to look at it in more detail. Anyways, please let me know what you think, vote, comment, whatever. Thanks for all the support ~ Ashily101 xo