The world is your oyster... It's vast and wide. It's chock-full of ambition, hope and just the small sense of morality we all need. Dream it, attempt it, and become it. It's surprising how such efforts can lead to the fruits of life, success and ultimately happiness, although some may live without the latter due to their focused personality.
But just as some have that very drive, that may push them to the ends of the Earth... Some have no motivation. Some struggle with the reins of living, the responsibility of a good occupation, and more importantly, understanding the very reason they are alive. That concept in itself is one that horrifies most-especially those who value life as something sacred. To have that will lost... is the most tragic thing to happen to a person.
Some people are just in between. Some people have the desire to succeed, dreaming, having a purpose... But that isn't the bad part. The bad part is being hindered by the external pressures of the world. You try and try everyday, but you sit there wondering, 'Will I ever get there?' You don't complain about life, at least not too much, but very much wish it could be better, so that you can clear your head; make your ambition full-circle. You could look at things so positively... But despite all, nudges at an emotional mindset can be catastrophic, as minor as they may be. That by no means is an indication to wreak anxieties on everyone around you...
I'm... probably one of those people...
Um... Hi. I'm a person. A regular person. I... Um... Ugh, suddenly I go from all philosophical to socially awkward. Sigh...
My name is Toxic... It's an alias, not my real name, but... It still has a bit of meaning to me; quite a bit...
But there's a reason that such a silly name means that much. It's my gateway to another place, a very special place.
It's a place with friends I've known for several years. Whenever I feel alone... Some way or another, they perk me up. I do have friends in real life, of course... I value them very much. But due to long distances, I barely see them outside of school... And I never want to pester them when I do want someone to talk to... They could be doing real important things, you know? More important than crummy conversation from me... Haha... (Or I might be just antisocial...)
But the place I go to... It's of mutual agreement. Pestering isn't so much a worry; if you go there, you want to converse... Of course, there's still a chance you might be annoying, and that's something I worry about all the time...
This morning, after another night of burning oil, drawing and speaking to my friends, I'd readied myself for school. Snow leopard print scarf (that's extremely fluffy!), lanyard, blue blouse, navy jeggings, and deep cobalt trainers were my usual outfit, after they were washed, that is. On a weekly occasion, I'd wear these hair bands in pigtails I'd gotten off the internet... Specifically, they're from a murder mystery franchise with an adorable teddy bear... which gives people incentive to murder people.
Ah... Um... I remember in old eras, people watched tragedy to feel better about themselves. I'm... not really sure I'm that unhappy with my life, but I love tragic stories. They're usually so intense and serious, and even better if there's pairings involved... I love tragedy. One second, you're stuck to your seat because your beloved hero is in peril, and the next, you're mentally cheering for him to overcome despair, overcome fate and impending doom. Some stories, though, I know, don't always end happily...
It's debatable whether this will...
The moment I opened the front door of my home, my solitude, was the moment that the very logic I'd lived with every day was fried.
Tragedy, in my opinion, is the most harsh of mistresses. A single omen could send you spiralling down into the pits of distress and suffering. It's frightening, even, when that omen is so tiny, that you never even notice it. And then, you never see the tragedy swooping in.
You are prey to its predator. Sometimes, there's no stopping it, either. Fate makes sure your past catches up with you, nearly always.
I always found it so fascinating... but when you're on the wrong end of the stick, it's both that and... something straight out of a nightmare. You wish it didn't exist. You wish life didn't have something so horrible in store for you. And the worst thing of all... It gave no hints. For that very reason... the whole world seemingly suffered for it. None of us could have been prepared...
The street was in ruins. My house was lone; its terraced neighbours were no more. The world around it was charred, empty. And around me, smoke... white smoke, surrounded the world in obscurity. Faintly, I made out shapes of fragmented walls across the street. The tree children often played football around was ripped from its roots...
I stepped out into the fog, running to my now-beaten gate, and pulling it open frantically. I looked around, my eyes wide with terror and denial.
"What... What happened?!" I yelped, my voice almost a squeak. "...Everything..."
I always loved the apocalyptic era. There's always something to do with it. There was something always enticing about it. It was always the most tense of situations and fun to play out in and watch. What stuck out the most was the way people shone, long after the world had ended...
"...Everything's gone...? I can't see anything... Just wrecks... Did... we have a war?"
I mumbled many possibilities to myself, some that seemed too illogical to be true...
I was too disorientated to think straight. Most of the theories I came up with were... those not of this world, and it was at that point that I denied them. Such things were unrealistic. I knew the difference between fiction and reality, and yet... I still thought the unthinkable. There was just the uncanny chance of something happening to someone not very unique...
The issue was... my house was standing... Why was that? I didn't understand.
Still lugging my bag along, I stepped deeper into the fog, squinting as I walked across the road, to the tree.
"...Hello...?" I called softly, my voice shaking. I swallowed, then turned to look back at my house. I frowned, expression contorting into that of anxiety and panic-I ditched my bags, and legged it back to my home.
I hadn't heard my Mother this morning. I called to wake her up before I left, but she hadn't answered... I'd dismissed it since I was in a rush to get to my bus...
I rushed up the stairs, my steps heavy and swift.
"Mum?!"
I threw open the door, and in there, I found something that twisted my stomach. Mum was gone. She simply wasn't there... I ran to my little sister's room, and peered into her domain of pink and purple. There was a lump under the bed, and my heart throbbed slightly as I snuck towards it. I lifted the duvet, with the small hope that my sibling was here...
It was a teddy bear.
My heart felt like a crumpled up piece of paper. I seized up, and swallowed, looking down. I leaned against the wall, and slid down...
"They're... gone..."
There's so much sadness in everything ending. Everything has its end. What I admired was the very will to live on...
...of which I didn't have...
"...wha-what should I do? I don't know what to do... I don't know... School... Maybe I should go to school... Maybe it'll be fine over there... But I can't get there... It's an hour on the bus... Maybe I could walk it... Or maybe I could go to my older sister's... Maybe..."
My sentences consisted of that very uncertainty. It was consecutive and consistent. I stepped out to the road, and picked up my bag.
"..."
Silence. The only sounds were my footsteps and breathing.
"I have to find someone... Someone... Anyone... I can't be the only one left... It's unfair! Not on me, but the world... There's so much better people-I-"
"Watch out!"
There was a sudden explosion behind me.
"EEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeEEEEKKKKKKKK...!" I screamed as something suddenly picked me up; something was holding me, and I was too busy panicking to look what. I flailed, trying to get out of this grip on instinct. "GetoffGETOFFGETOFFFFFF!"
"Hey, calm down! Not trying to kidnap you or anything!"
"THAT'SEXACTLYWHAT-"
It was then I realised. A voice.
Someone else.
Someone was around.
They were here.
I wasn't alone.
Suddenly, I felt so happy and relieved-my flailing came to a halt, and I hugged the person tightly.
"Thank you for existing!"
The person was seriously confused.
"You're welcome...?"
The person was also... quite sharp...?
"OW!"
I yanked myself away, and looked at the source in shock.
"...yeah, I'm kinda sharp."
I cringed in pain, and then my gaze moved to the speaker in confusion. Why would a hug hurt so much, I asked myself.
It's funny how easily one can question themselves. Their sanity, their perception, just about everything. One's dream could come true, but for the life in them, they could never truly believe it.
It was a blue hedgehog. A blue, talking hedgehog. A blue, talking, speedy hedgehog.
"...SONIC?!"
"That's my name!" The hedgehog grinned.
"..."
I stared for a minute.
It took so long for those words... that appearance... and that understanding... just... to sink in...
And finally, I had decided to react. I lifted my bag (its nickname 'the kitchen sink'), about to swing it over my head, but he stopped me.
"Hey, what're you doing?! You'll hurt yourself!"
"I MUST END THIS HALLUCINATION! THIS NIGHTMARE SLASH DREAM!"
"This is real! Snap out of it!"
"You're a figment of my imagination and hardcore fangirling-HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY KNOW?!"
"...Hrm. Well, hardly anything's a blur, you're talking coherently, and you're not floating or anything..." Sonic rubbed his muzzle.
"Besides the point! This isn't Fanfiception! You're a talking blue hedgehog; you shouldn't be in this world!" I folded my arms.
"You just THANKED me for existing."
"I meant... uhhh... Um... ... I'm sorry... I'm just not built for conversation right now..."
Sonic sweat dropped. "It's fine... You've got reason to..."
"Ahem."
"Yeah, yeah, Eggman, I know-"
"OH MY GOD. DID EGGMAN NUKE MY HOM-...wait, Eggman?" I blinked, then looked up. "...WHAT THE-?!"
My eyes widened at a massive mech behind Sonic. It was tall, round, and supposedly powerful. An obese scientist was sat at the top. Sonic seemed pretty relaxed, though I kinda expected that...
"Oh, yeah, I was fighting Eggman," Sonic remembered, smirking slightly. He turned his head slightly, giving Eggman a cocky smile.
"That hurts, Sonic," Eggman growled, but then raised his fist, slamming it down onto a button, "but not more than this! HAMMER ARM!"
The hammer in the robots right arm came slamming down to the ground.
"Whoops, hold on!" The blue blur dashed forward, narrowly avoiding being flattened.
I just stared, more confused than I've ever been...
I had to admit, I was speechless... I didn't know what to say... Fictional characters showing up on my doorstep, Sonic no less...
But... I guess I was happy. I met my idol... Well, even if he was the fastest thing alive; I could never dream of meeting that goal... But what he stood for... I admired that too...
I wasn't alone, too. So... maybe it wasn't all despair.
That's what I thought. Ever heard of omens?
What else could be out there?
New fic! :3 New peeps will appear next chappie hopefully, when things are sorted. :3