[A/N: I have to give credit to my friend Madi for making my story a trillion times better!!]
Chapter 1: Nightmare at 20,000 Feet
“Oh my God! I’m going to pass out!” I think to myself. “No! No, you’re not! Calm down. Relax, Karen. You are going to be just fine,” Kate whispered back to me. Except for the fact she wasn’t speaking to me. She was inside me. She was not me but yet we occupied the same body. “Oh, shut up, Kate. You know how I feel about flying,” I snapped back at the girl inside. “You do realize that we aren’t in the air yet, right? Just take a deep breath and calm the hell down!” Kate growled. I let it drop there as the plane began to creep forward. It turned down the right runway and slowly made its way down the long tarmac before the thrusters kicked in and the plane sped down the asphalt. The tires slowly lifted off the ground and I could feel my heart leap up into my throat. My stomach started doing somersaults as I looked out the window watching as the solid ground of the Earth began to fade away. I looked away from the window cursing the airline for giving me the window seat. Looking straight ahead I attempted to take a deep breath and calm my nerves. Anything I could to keep myself from hyperventilating would be entirely grateful.
As I finally got control of my nerves I heard the distant sound of someone calling my name. “Karen? Karen? Are you ok? Karen, can you hear me?”
My head snapped to the side. I sputtered out a quick, “What?” It was a bit louder than I had expected and I cringed inwardly at the stares I received from the people sitting around me.
“Are you ok?” the blonde haired boy asked concerned. The boy next to me was Niall Horan. The one shining light of this entire trip to Australia. As a precaution our teacher, Mr. G, had employed the buddy system. I was the lucky girl to be paired up with the lovely blonde sitting next to me. He and I were supposed to be attached at the hip the entire trip. Sadly, this boy was the boy that I had been crazy in love with since I was thirteen in middle school. His sandy blonde hair, that had always been much sexier with the brown roots, and his eyes that were bluer than the sea had captured my heart within minutes of our first meeting. His toned muscles that were found all over his body only added to his appeal. The six pack that I had witnessed last year at the swimming pool was a sight that had plagued my memories almost every night since. His height of 5’8’’ towered over my minimal 5’2’’ stature and that didn’t help to the godly personality that he displayed. I had found myself wondering multiple times if he was actually a mirage. I figment of my imagination. Wouldn’t be the first time that had happened.
But, I had always admired from afar. For he was The Niall Horan, I was a nobody that was never noticed. I don’t think that we had ever had one meaningful conversation since we had met in 7th grade. The fact that he was so untouchable had always made me feel a bit nervous talking to him. Well, I am. Kate isn’t, but that’s a different story.
“Are you okay?” Niall asked again. I hadn’t realized until then that I was staring at him. The very thought that I had been staring at him scared me.
“I-I, um, f-f-flying makes me, um, n-nervous,” I barely stutter out. I look down shyly as my cheeks grow as red as tomatoes and my entire body flushes.
“There is nothing to worry about it,” he tells me placing a hand on my thigh, “Just take a deep breath and stay calm.” He gave me a reassuring smile and then put his headphones on. Great, he talks just like her. And is just as good at ignoring as she is, too.
An hour later, I had finally begun to calm down a little bit. I was able to take in my surroundings and realize that the plane I was on was quite small. It was just big enough to carry the 100 students on board and 50 other flyers. It was just as noisy as a school bus. But you had to take the fact that there were 100 high schoolers on board into consideration. I looked over at Niall to see that he had fallen asleep with his headphones. I couldn’t help, but look at how cute he was when he slept.
“Karen! Stop! That’s creepy!” Kate yelled at me. I cringed at the loud noise before remembering that I was the only one that could hear her. Her interruption did allow me to notice the fact that my bladder was about to burst though.
I didn’t want to wake Niall up. He looked so peaceful when he slept, but I had to get out some way. I could manage to climb over him though. I carefully lifted my leg over his lap and shifted my weight over. I was just about to lift my other leg over when the plane the plane hit a particularly rough spot of turbulence causing me to fly onto Niall’s lap.
“Shit, you’ve really done it now, Karen. Haven’t you?” Kate mocked. I sneered at her before returning back to the situation at hand.
I could feel the look on my face resembling a deer caught in a car’s high beams. “What the?!” Niall yelled with a look of horror on his face. I looked down out of habit before realizing the fact that I was straddling Niall Horan. In the corner of my mind I thought I had seen a smile, but I quickly did away with that.
“I-I” I started before more the plane bumped and crashed once again. I fell off of his lap and into the aisle. I looked up from my place on the floor seeing the entire plane staring at me. Even the people in the very front who had to stand up to see me. I lifted myself from the floor before dashing to the small lavatory where I locked myself in the room.
Kate was laughing. She was laughing the guttural laugh that was only present when they either witnessed someone being humiliated or Karen herself was humiliated. “Kate! Stop laughing! That was not funny! Not in the tiniest bit!”
“It kinda was,” Kate answered hiccupping.
“No! It was not!”
“Are you going to cry? Pee and get back out there.”
“I’m never leaving this room...” Karen whined. Kate huffed but slowly faded away nonetheless. After relieving myself, I sat on the floor crying into my knees. I didn’t know how long I had been in there but I was still crying when a knock rattled through the small room.
“Karen? It’s me, Zayn. Are you okay in there?” Zayn Malik was the best guy a girl could ask for. He and I had grown up together and it had never gotten weird. Of course there had been stints in every friendship where one party had developed a small crush, but that’s all it ever became. Because we meant too much to each other to risk it on a relationship.
“I’m fine,” I answered sniffing. All in all it was very unconvincing.
“I know that you are lying,” Zayn answered dumbly.
“Just go away!” I just wanted to disappear. Why couldn’t he understand that?
“Karen, I didn’t want to do this, but you give me no choice,” Kate warned. I stood up and reached for the door. Any control I had had over my limbs, my mouth, it was all gone. I tried fighting against Kate, but whenever she got this far there was no fighting it.
Kate opened the door and I could see Zayn standing there with a concerned look. Kate stepped out of the bathroom before relinquishing control back to me. “Karen?” Zayn asked, “Are you okay? You look like you just saw a ghost.”
“I’m fine,” I lied and walked back to my seat leaving Zayn standing at the lavatory door. When I reach my seat Niall stood up allowing me to slide back in. He sat back down and we both stared off awkwardly. We didn’t talk at all and in my boredom I fell asleep hoping that when I awoke we would be in Australia.
My eyes flutter open and the plane is dark. Light only being given from the phosphorescent strips lining the plane aisles. I sit up seeing the plane to be empty. No one in sight. I sight stick straight up screaming. “Hello? Is anyone there?” I hear a cabinet slam shut behind me and I slowly stumble my way through the dark towards the Flight Attendants seats. I poked my head in and an exact replica of myself only with more confidence. More presence. More noticeable.
“K-Kate?” I stutter out. An actual manifestation of Kate is bad. Very, very bad. Kate has other motives that could ultimately get people hurt.
“Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner!”
“How did she get out? How do I get her back in?” I murmured to myself. Kate rolled her eyes placing a hand on her hip.
“Stop freaking out. You are dreaming!” she piped. Her mood swung instantly. From the usual resentful, demeaning, judgmental person she became an abnormally chipper person. The difference was a shock to the system.
“Why are you messing with my dreams? I could be dreaming about Niall.” The default Kate returned at the whiny tone.
“I’m messing with your dreams because I want something.”
“You always want something, Kate. What is it this time?”
“Control. Complete and utter control.” I frowned looking at her. The ruby red lipstick made her lips shine and the smoky eye shadow didn’t help the domineering look. Her leather jacket and ripped jeans would be intimidating if it way anyone, but considering that the face was mine it only made it worse.
“C-control? Of me?” I replied looking down after the stutter.
“Ya! Let me drive for a little while. I can get things done. You know maybe a certain blonde boy.” Kate punctuated the sentence with a wink. The words had my head spinning. Let her take over and look through the passenger’s side. Watch as she gets things done. Get me the things I want. But it wouldn’t be me getting the things I want. It would be her. And what if she never gave control back. She just kept it. And trapped me in my own head.
“I can’t do that, Kate.” Her anger flared and she jumped at me pinning me to the wall. The plane started to shake and even in the dream my pulse skyrocketed.
“Karen this is your only chance. If you don’t agree I will take it by force. You know I can do that. Don’t you. Just take it,” Kate smirked maliciously. The plane shook once again and I could feel it starting to plummet.
“No, Kate. You can’t have my body. My life.” Kate glares once again before the minor stability they once had disappeared as the plane turned into a nose dive.
“Just remember I gave you a chance to give it to me willingly. Now, you won’t get a choice. I’ll just take it from you.” Kate disappeared and I tumbled down the aisle hitting my head on the roof.
I’m still shaking. I’m shaking really bad. And everyone is screaming. I open my eyes and see chaos. Everyone is crying and breathing into oxygen masks. I look over with wide eyes any trace of sleep gone. Niall is squeezing on the armrests with his eyes squeezed shut. Seeing Niall scared pushed me over the edge. I began to hyperventilate and panic. The nose dive from my dream comes to life and I feel my stomach lurch up into my throat as a blood curdling scream falls from my lips. The only thing I remember thinking is, “We are all going to die.” Then the empty blackness fell over me.