Dimension Danger

Chapter 17: Sick

Gwen shut off her alarm with a groan. The sound pierced through her skull and made it throb. Her body felt like it weighed an extra fifteen pounds and her nose flowed like Niagara.

She cupped her forehead, trying to soothe the pounding in her head. With a grunt and a feeble push she got herself out of bed and stumbled over to her dresser, nearly tripping over her own feet. With a begrudging sigh she began to ready herself for the nightmare known as school.

She looked herself over in the bathroom mirror: dark circles under her eyes, red nose, and pale skin. She looked like a mess.

Gwen couldn't help but sigh heavily as a thought came to her mind.

"I hate when Miles is right."

She couldn't be bothered to do her hair. She just finger-combed it a few times and decided that was good enough for today.

She slug her school bag over her shoulders and trudged down the stairs.

Gwen wondered how today would play out. She assumed Em Jay, Glory, and Betty would still be upset with her, so she'd probably sit alone at lunch in the back table. That part didn't really bother her though. She'd done that for two years. She could manage it.

What really ate away at her was the idea that she might have ruined what she had with her bandmates. She remembered the way they had all looked at her that day. They were mad, but most of all- they were disappointed. They were disappointed that she wouldn't tell them what was going on in her life- the thing that made her always late to practices. She couldn't tell them, though. They didn't deserve that burden.

If they were to know about her being the wanted criminal, Ghost-Spider, they would be counted as accomplices. They would be at risk of getting arrested as well. Gwen couldn't do that to them.

With her emotions running rampant and her body feeling like a ton of bricks, Gwen contemplated just crawling back into the safety of her comforter and drifting into sleep once again.

She ultimately decided against it, as she remembered the test she had scheduled for today that she'd rather not miss.

The girl made her way through her dark barren house. The emptiness in it was eating away at her. The absence of company was something she should be used to, but never seemed to be.

The only sound to be heard was the soft thudding of her footsteps. She just wanted something- anything to break it. If it was possible to drown in the absence of sound, Gwen would have. Her feet began moving faster, carrying her toward the door as she tried to claw her way to the surface.

The walls of water came crashing g in. Her lungs were being filled. She couldn't breathe. The girl needed to get out of this house.

With a deft heave, Gwen flung open the front door, cherishing the sound of her yelling neighbors and cooing pigeons. Where there was once the dark silhouette of her living room, there was now the sight of light blue, yellow, and green houses as well as the pastel pink sky and... Lincoln?

Beside the car stood a familiar red head. Gwen winced. Em Jay arms were crossed over her chest and her face held a guarded expression.

"Crap."

Gwen sucked in a breath as she strode over to Lincoln. Em Jay's eyes were trained on her every step. Gwen thought she might combust under her friend's glare. The girl felt as if she were trudging through quicksand as she was sinking further and further into trouble with every step.

Gwen opened her mouth to speak, then thought better of it. She opened the car door and slid into the passenger seat, folding her hands in her lap as she prayed for something to save her.