"Ryan, are you alright? I just heard the news that your school was attacked!"
From the other end of the phone, his mother's worried voice chimed in.
"Yeah, I'm perfectly fine." He assured her.
His mother, Sophia worked as a medicine formulator, and most of her office time was spent in the laboratory, where mobiles were not allowed. Naturally, she could only know it after she came out of the lab.
"You aren't lying, are you?"
"No, Mom!" Ryan chuckled, "I'm perfectly fine, if you don't believe me, check yourself after you get home."
She grinned. "Okay then! Your favourite chicken noodles are in the refrigerator; just microwave them for three minutes. Eat on time. Hanging up then gotta go."
"Yeah, bye." He ended the call and headed towards the kitchen. With all this happening, he hadn't eaten anything since morning, and his stomach was growling with hunger now.
Ryan took the noodles out of the fridge, heated them, and put them in a large bowl. He then sat down comfortably on the sofa. As soon as he put a spoonful in his mouth, his eyes closed.
'What a wonderful taste!'
Alongside being a researcher, his mother was a genius cook.
Being an only child was beneficial, he didn't have to share his food.
After quickly finishing his meal, he went to his bed and lay down. Though he had laughed on the phone and assured his mother, it wasn't the truth.
A tightness settled in his chest. His shoulder — still ached, and his mind kept looping the images of blood-stained hallways and lifeless eyes.
Since childhood, Ryan had grown up in a single-parent family. His father had lost his life in a monster attack when he was only two.
Sophia raised him alone as a single mother. Managing a kid along with a full-time Researcher's job wasn't easy for her, but she did it.
Ryan still remembered, till the age of five, sometimes Sophia would take him with her to the lab when she had all-night research work.
She taught him to be stronger, and Ryan was mentally stronger than most of the children of his age.
But today's events were a bit difficult for a fourteen-year-old boy to take in.
Seeing so many deaths right before his eyes... He remembered how several students in his class were panicking, some crying, and some even fainted at the sight of that hellish scene.
Thinking of this, he sighed.
Ryan didn't remember anything much about his father, he only heard stories about him from her mother. This tragic fate of his father encouraged him to become an awakener; so that he could save so many lives.
Then... His thoughts shifted towards today's fight. Ryan was still amazed that he had fought with some deadly creatures!
It was hard to believe—just one day had shifted his entire world. Yesterday, he was invisible. Today, he had fought monsters, made friends, and felt like someone who mattered.
Before leaving, Ryan, Freddy, and Sylvia exchanged each other's numbers. He hoped this friendship would last.
Thinking about all these random things, he finally drifted off to sleep.
---
And thus, ten days passed in a flash.
After the disaster in the school, Kingston High remained closed — under repair and heavy security reinforcement.
In the past few days, there was no news of attacks anymore.
The news channels were busy with the news for the first two to three days, their focus gradually shifted to other newer news. Everything was returning to its normal rhythm.
---
A loud knock on the door broke his sleep. With that, Sophia's scream was heard. "Ryan, are you getting up or not!"
Half-asleep, Ryan groped around the bed, searching for his cell phone. Within moments, he had his mobile phone in his hand; when he looked at the dimly lit screen with half-open eyes, the time flashed before his eyes, 9 AM!
He almost jumped up from his bed, it was already too late!
And at the same moment, his mother screamed from outside. "Ryan, it's already nine! Get up or you'll be late!"
"Ok, ok, Mom, I'm up!"
He screamed from inside and rushed towards the bathroom.
Freshening up quickly, he had on the school's uniform. Putting on the jacket, he came out of his room.
Sophia was waiting at the dining table. "C'mon, finish it quickly." She pushed a plate towards him. "Hurry up, but chew. Or you'll choke again like last week."
Ryan somehow finished his plate and ran towards the main road. Boarding the bus, a sigh of relief left his chest.
'It was close!'
He hadn't missed the bus just for a few moments.
The bus was relatively less crowded today, he settled in an empty seat and looked outside the window.
After the attack, the awakening day was rescheduled. Finally, it was the day he awaited since childhood.
It was the annual awakening day.
Last night, he barely slept.
As soon as he arrived at school, he noticed that the school looked different today. Security had been beefed up.
Two armed guards were standing at the school gate, who weren't there before. One more thing he noticed was that high-voltage electric fencing had been installed alongside the school's laser boundary.
This time, the school authorities did not want to leave any gaps. The message was clear: 'No one's getting in or out unnoticed again.'
Ryan walked to his classroom and sank into his desk.
The classroom was bustling today. The students were busy talking in small groups. Everyone had only one topic to discuss - Annual awakening.
His eyes darted across the classroom, and soon he found the familiar faces, Sylvia and Freddy, sitting far from him, in two different directions.
As his eyes met Sylvia's, she returned him a smile.
The bell in the corridor rang out loud, and within a minute, their class teacher, Mr. Abraham Moore, entered the classroom.
Ryan fidgeted in his seat; most of the students did, too.
Mr. Moore stood in front of the large wall-mounted smartboard, and, looking at them, offered a gentle smile.
"Students, finally the day has come, which you all were waiting for. But, failing this test doesn't mean you're a loser! Remember, fate has something in store for each of you."
After giving a short philosophical speech, the teacher asked them to head towards the meditation room.
With every step toward the meditation room, Ryan's heartbeat quickened. This was it—the line between dream and destiny. And he was about to cross it.
Was he?