phil
the next morning i wake up and find that i can't bring myself to get out of bed. i can't go to school knowing that dan is going to be there. i know that i'm breaking his heart by doing this but i just don't know what else to do. i sigh.
three sharp knocks on the door interrupt my thoughts, followed by "philip? are you up?" it's my mother. i lay back down and pretend to be sick.
"come in." i call weakly.
mom rushes to the side of my bed. "oh, honey. are you alright?"
"no." i reply. "i feel nauseous." she feels my head and luckily it feels warm enough for her to sigh and look at me with pity.
"stay home today, darling. i'll call the school."
"thanks mum."
"of course love. i'll bring in some tea."
the day passes excruciatingly slow. brown eyes and curly hair plagues my thoughts like a virus that i don't want to get rid of.
i switch on the tv to distract myself and flip to the news. the anchorwoman is stoic and emotionless as she delivers various types of information, ranging from morbid and tragic to uplifting and happy.
then, she looks down and her emotionless face turns to shock for a split second as she hears new information through her headpiece. she slowly smooths out her features back into resembling a mannequin and faces the camera once more.
"we have some breaking news everyone. president wilson has officially declared war against the gix alien species that resides here on earth. after a long period of silence and plotting, it seems the president has had enough. we have a statement from her here."
it switches to a clip of the president speaking speaking in bell tones and waving her hands like she has something important to say. my head fills with water and my heart stops in my chest.
war?
"war." i confirm to myself out loud. the word feels bitter on my tongue. it can't be real. gix are nice creatures, nobody i know has ever had a bad experience with one. it doesn't make sense and i decide i must still be dreaming.
but i know i'm not.
i shut my eyes tightly and try to calm myself down. i breathe in and out, in and out.
it's not working. finally i give in to my embarrassing desires and stumble clumsily out of my bedroom door to find my mom.
"mom?" i ask. it's lucky that she's off work today. she comes in from the living room and greets me with a warm smile, oblivious to my panicked movements and melancholy tone.
"hi, son." she says sweetly.
"have you seen the news?" i look up at her with unintentional pain laced through my voice. her smile drops and her forehead creases in concern.
"no, baby what's wrong?"
"war." i stutter out the disgusting word and it stabs the tip of my tongue as it leaves my mouth. "we're going to war with the aliens." her eyebrows furrow and i can tell she doesn't believe me. and why would she? you'd think we'd be smarter than to go to war with a species more advanced than us.
"honey, where did you get that idea?"
"turn on the news." i point to the living room television.
i can't watch, so i busy myself with making a sandwich in the kitchen. my mind fogs up as i go through the mechanical motions of peanut butter and jelly on bread. i feel like i'm waiting for something, but i'm not really sure what.
"oh my god." is what i hear from the living room. it's soft and weak and broken. my heart hurts for my mother.
i leave the sandwich and wander back into the room. my mom immediately hugs me and we both stay still for a while, embracing each other. she smells like cherry blossoms and perfume.
the rest of the day is quiet.
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love at last sight | phan
Fanfiction[soulmate countdown alternate universe] phil was raised differently than most kids. that is to say, his parents are total hippies. they told him not to believe in the soulmate garbage and that if he was caught with his soulmate, he'd be promptly pun...
