The Broken Date

•4•: Part 1

Jack's POV:

“I killed him! I killed him!”

My voice echoed off the tile walls as I ran down the empty corridor. I ran past a blur of blue lockers, past the gym with the thump-thump-thump of drums vibrating the double door, past a startled couple who had to leap out of my way.

“Please help me! I killed him!”

Turning a corner, i stumbled on the newly waxed floor and fell. My knee hit hard, and the pain shocked me into silence.

“Jack, what's the matter?”

Was it really Felix?

Yes. Felix slowly came into focus. He still had his jacket on. He was wearing a denim shirt. I didn't remember ever seeing him in anything but jeans and t-shirts.

“Help me. Please,” I groaned, still on my knees on the floor.

“What's wrong?” Felix cried, hurrying over to me and bending down to help me to my feet. “Did you fall?”

Felix looked up at Mark, who came running behind me. “Mark, what's going on?”

Mark shrugged. “I don't know. We were in the shop. I started to talk to him. Suddenly he screamed and ran out.”

Felix looked skeptical. “Are you sure that's all that happened?”

“Yes. Of course I'm sure,” Mark insisted. He started to take my arm, but I pulled away from him.

I was on my feet now. I struggled to focus. “I---uh---” I turned to Mark and stared at the front of his shirt.

No blood. No wound. He was perfectly ok.

“Jack, what happened?” Felix asked impatiently as he waved down the hall to Cry, his date, signaling to him that he'd be right there.

“I don't know,” I said, unable to take my eyes off Mark's shirt front. “I guess I had some sort of daydream or something, I---”

Suddenly I felt terribly embarrassed.

How could I have imagined stabbing Mark? Had I become so upset, so frightened that I lost my grip on reality?

Or was I hallucinating the Mark standing in front of me? Was the real Mark lying in a pool of blood back in the dark workshop?

I reached out and grabbed his arm. No. This Mark was real. Mark was alive, staring into my eyes, trying to figure out what just happened. The stabbing was not real.

“Mark, I'm sorry---” I started.

But then I saw the shiny blade in his hand. He was still carrying the pick. Why? Had he chased me down the hall with it? Did he plan to use it on me?

A cold chill ran down my back. I uttered a short cry and lurched away from him.

“Jack, are you sick?” Felix asked, putting an arm around my shoulder.

“No. I---uh--- especially.” I felt terribly confused. My head felt heavy, the way it did when I had been studying for four hours straight. (Way to stay on topic) My eyes refused to focus.

Felix glared at Mark accusingly. Mark shrugged again. “He seemed fine when I picked him up.” He said.

“I think I'd better get home. I'm really sorry,” I said softly, staring at the yellow wall.

“Ok, fine. I'll take you home,” Mark said, reaching for my hand. “Can you walk ok?”

“No!” I cried, pulling away from him.

“I think you've done enough already,” Felix told him bitterly.

Mark's face, pale in the dim yellow light, filled with confusion. The tool fell from his hand and bounced across the floor. He didn't try to pick it up. He stood staring at me, as if waiting for an explanation.

“Mark, I think you'd better go. I'll take Jack home,” Felix said.

“Now, wait a minute. What's going on?” Mark sounded more angry than hurt. “I can take care of Jack.”

Something about the way he said those words sent another chill down my back. I shivered.

“I can take care of Jack.”

Was this the boy I had been so close to for so long? Was this the boy I planned to marry? What had happened? Had he changed so much overnight? Or had I just realized what he was really like? How had he been able to fool me for so long?

“Good night, Mark.” I said, looking beyond him down the corridor. “I really would like Felix to take me home.”

Word count: 722. Sorry this one is short I wanted to get something out and there wasn't anywhere really good to stop at so I did the best I could, the rest of the chapter should come out tomorrow. Also its 10:50 so...yeahhhhh.