Dawn Hollow

XXI

Kane's mind slowly began to arise from a dead sleep after what was probably the best slumber he had had in years. It was perfect. No nightmares. No creepy noises. No water droplets through the dead tree he called his home. Just peace and air conditioning, two things he missed the most.

    He awoke gradually with the sounds of teenage chattering, school bus exhausts, and the bustling of hallway traffic right outside the gym door. He leaned off the stone-cold bleachers, rubbing his tired eyes of exhaustion. A smile naturally arose as he remembered where he was, the place he dreamed of being for years. Catching the clothes on his body in the corner of his vision made the joy grow only bigger. He was an entirely new person. He was a person.

    The forest boy scooted himself off his seat and towards the doors out into the school. The excitement continued to build the closer he came to it. The dawn of a new day was the most exciting part for him. New beginnings met the world to him. Every fresh start met an opportunity to make the day better than the last. Signs of the rising sun after the everlasting rain was his reality. Years of abuse, treatment, and mistreatment lead to this.

    "Let's do this," Kane whispered to himself, pushing the doors open. It looked exactly as it did yesterday, full of people and life. Students were already gathering in their cliques to discuss what they'd missed from the previous night. It was all meaningless noise as he walked down the hall with the voices blending together in his ears until it was just masses of sounds. Beautiful in a strange way amongst the chaos.

    Kane blindly wandered to where he remembered PJ's locker to be. It was difficult to see the same continuous colors and similar structures as he turned each corner, but it oddly reminded him of the facility he was kept in. Everything was uniform; nothing was unique except the people who roamed inside. No fun or individuality. He hated that somethings reminded him of his old life, no matter where he was or what he was doing.

    But there, Joseph, Noah, and Erica were all standing together by PJ's locker, waiting for the boy who was nowhere to be found. Joseph noticed his arrival first, giving him a wave and a smile upon joining them, Erica beaming too. Even Noah gave him a slight smirk and a glance before turning back down to look at his shoes.

    "How was your night?" Erica questioned at the sight of his joyous demeanor.

    "Absolutely amazing! Nothing beats a stable roof over your head at night!"

    "I don't know about stable," Noah joked under his breath, making them all laugh.

    "Have you guys seen PJ?" Kane asked.

    "Not since last night. I was supposed to go to his house last night, but he canceled!" Joseph exclaimed nervously.

    "Wait, what?" Erica gawked, "That's not like him! What happened?"

    "I don't know which is what makes me more nervous. He never cancels plans without a good reason."

    Just as they finished, PJ turned the corner and showed face, everyone indulging in a big sigh of relief at the sight of their friend. He didn't say much, just glancing at everyone but Kane with small grins at each of them. Then, after opening his locker and grabbing the things he needed, the sharp pains of his friend's glares got the better of him. "What?"

    "You seem quiet this morning. It's just a little odd from you," Erica pointed out.

    "I-I know, I'm sorry," He apologized, finally keeping a look at Kane, which made him both flustered and scared. "My dad just had people over last night for dinner, and i-it just scared me because of who was there, and I got super scared a-and-!"