Trauma
Chapter 2
Too much and nothing at all, he had both at once. He had too much in his head, too much of the painful memory of the island. But he had nothing, gained nothing, nothing good for his heart. Everything fuddled him. He couldn't piece details in order, as if only shards of broken glass were left and there was no way to see the whole mirror ever again. And the sad devastating parts remained, like the fear. Oh the awful, gritty grime of fear that slowly became forever etched in his heart.
But there was a piece of this mirror that went missng. Could he have forgotten something? He couldn't articulate what it was since it had been such a long time ago. It sounded impossible to call it his past. It felt like he had lived in another life, in another body, with another kind of meaning to his name.
"Roger!"
The wind gently blew his bangs off his dark eyes when he turned to the direction of the voice. A redhead in a black hoodie was jogging to his direction. Roger, sitting stiff on a bench, waved at him in acknowledgement.
As his friend approached, his view suddenly changed. The trees around the school grounds looked thicker, almost like those in the forests. Car horns and faint conversations shifted into the sounds of birds, hooting and chirping, and the sound of insects, buzzing and singing. Then the sound of the ocean crashing against the shore flooded his senses.
Jack came closer, but his clothes started to vanish until a small piece of dirty cloth covered his private part. A belt hung at his waist and a knife dangled at the left side. His body gleamed with sweat and blood. A long stick protruded from his bloody hand. Clouds of sand puffed up at his feet as he trudged on the shore. Roger swore he heard him cussing, but when he stood right in front of him, "How do you do now?" was all Jack asked in puffs of broken pantings.
And everything was back to normal. The sun was high in a clear sky and they were still in the university. Cars revved their engines until they roared vroom-vroom-vroom! Students, both boys and girls, walked by, mindlessly awake in the virtual world of text messaging and the wifi atmosphere.
"Want to have tea at my house again?"
Roger merely shrugged his shoulders, feeling indifferent as usual. But a small smile stretch upon his dark face. He only needed to stand up from his position and soon, the two friends were silently walking to the Merridew's.