I actually barely had to edit this yay lol
Arthur's POV
I wandered through the empty halls. Antonio had insisted we have an after school practice before our performance the next day. Mr. Ackerman was still teaching, and we had all started to assume he was getting a permanent position. Either way, Antonio held nothing sacred and he had spilled the beans about our band to Mr. Ackerman. So he insisted we play at the extremely large festival that our town always participated in. He went so far as to give Antonio an entrance slip the day after they had talked.
So here I was, dragging myself through the dark to our little practice area. As I made my way I saw something that I hadn't stopped to look at ever before. It was just a locker. Nothing more, nothing less. Well, that's what I told myself. But it was Alfred's locker. And it hadn't been touched since he "disappeared." I hadn't told anyone about Alfred being from the future... But I should probably tell Kiku. He was extremely worried. And he was open minded enough to believe it, but quiet enough to keep it to himself. I resolved to put his mind at ease the next day. Also, I needed that drawing Alfred had done.
But right now I was standing in a dark hallway staring at a normal locker.
I looked up at the clock. If I stayed here I would be late. Heck with it. I propped my bag on the ground and started rummaging through it. Along with some other random nonsense, I always kept bobby pins in the smallest zipper compartment. Just in case I wanted to try to tame my hair.
Most people didn't think twice about the part of the lock that functioned with the use of a key. They just put in their combination and went on their way. However, I had tested it on my own locker once, and a bobby pin worked if you wanted to pick a lock. Of course I never used that little trick. I just wanted to know.
Somewhere in the depths of the bag my hand grasped a pin. I quickly bent it a little out of shape and set to work on the lock. In no time the door popped open and the contents of Alfred's old locker were exposed.
It was a mess.
I dug around for a little, but there was nothing out of the ordinary. Then I found the note.
HI Alfred!
It's me, Vladimir. I forgot to mention that I can still help you from where I am. When you sleep I can somehow give you stuff. I can't explain exactly how, and even if I could you wouldn't understand. There isn't a way for you to respond, but I can kind of see what you're doing. If you look at the bottom of your locker you'll find a small journal. I recommend you write everything down at the end of every day. Maybe you'll feel less crazy that way. Be careful, everything you do there will affect Arthur. I'll keep an eye on him for you. I wish you the best of luck.
- Vladimir
I stared in shock at the tiny handwriting. This was going back to Seamus, Allistor, and the journal, which I was turning into a scrapbook of anything that related back to Alfred. Quickly checking my watch, I saw that I had been here for a long while. I slammed Alfred's locker shut, and turned to run to get to practice when I saw a paper on the floor. It had fallen out of Alfred's locker so I grabbed it and put it with the vials and the letter.
When I got to practice I was panting and my brain was screaming. I didn't want to play my bass. I wanted to sit in a corner and reread the note and Alfred's journal and look at the other paper that had fallen out of Alfred's locker.
I dropped my bag on the floor of the room while Antonio, Gilbert, and Basch stared at me. I ran to my bass, only to see that Gilbert had put his guitar down and made his way to my backpack. The container had spilled out of the unzipped section.
"Don't touch that!" I yelled, but it was too late.
Gilbert had unfolded one of the papers.
"I didn't know that you were and artist."
"I'm not an-" I started, but my brain kicked into gear. "Oh." I walked over and peeped over Gilbert's shoulder.
It was the drawing Alfred had been working on for his art one that contained Allistor, my Father, a look alike of my father, and myself. A small sarcastic voice in the back of my mind cheered because hey, even though your bandmates have found out about your strange friend from the future who they all knew and bonded with, I had gotten the picture. That drawing gave me nightmares, not nightmares like the ones Alfred had to endure, but I still didn't want to go to sleep for a few nights. Now here was the physical thing.
It was beautifully drawn, but it was so eerie I couldn't stand to look at it for long. I walked away and shoved it into my backpack, then picked up my bass and started playing. I could hear Gilbert talking to Basch and Antonio, but I ignored them. Until Gilbert came and took the bass right out of my hands.
"Arthur why do you have a drawing that belongs to Alfred in with another piece of paper in your backpack?" Basch questioned.
I gulped. "Because I have to give them back to him," I lied.
"He's been missing for quite a while. Why do you still carry them around?"
"Why do you keep questioning me on what I'm doing? Aren't we here for practice?"
Every note we played was half hearted. Gilbert, Antonio, and even Basch, were glancing over at me then going off into their own heads. As for me, I couldn't focus either. There was an ache in my chest, I had felt this before but I couldn't remember when or why. All I knew was that it was tearing me apart from the inside out. I flew out of the room as fast as I could. Sprinting down the hallway I felt tears forming in the corners of my eyes. I didn't cry often, and there was no explanation as to why I was now. I could feel it, Alfred suffered because of me. He suffered trying to come back and help me. He suffered when he was in the future because of who I was. But he was still there. Whenever I met him, he never left my side after that. And what had I done to repay him? Made him suffer even more. I wasn't sure in what way he was suffering, but I knew he was. I could feel it.
By now I was almost home, and I had more determination than I had in awhile. I would be everything the future me wasn't. Right now I felt like I wasn't in my body. I felt like I could see my whole life, and Alfred's as well. Wherever Alfred was, I hoped he heard me. I hoped that this second would send ripples through the lives of anyone I had hurt. "Alfred," I called. "I've changed. I can tell. I see the future me thinking of the past you, and my past self looking at the future me."