The Sum of All Fears
Chapter One : And Suddenly They Was, and Were, and Could Have Been
* * *
"You sure you're okay with staying home by yourself?"
"Yes, mom" Val assured looking slightly annoyed. "I do know how to take care of myself."
Mrs. Lanier smiled and kissed her daughter on the forehead. "Oh, you".
"Bye mom." Val replied gently nudging her towards the door.
"Bye, love you.' the elder spoke grabbing her briefcase and left the home.
Val shook her head after her mother. "Its just the flu." she said to no one in particular and headed back to her room, eager to enjoy a day home sick from school.
* * *
"So, how should I ask her?" Tyler Connell stood next to Hank's locker desperate for an answer. "Should I just blurt it out or should I-"
"You know, I always thought you two were just friends." Jamie Waite snickered coming up behind them.
"Well, we are but after we kissed last year I was thinking that we were starting to be something-" Tyler started
"You know what? I don't want to know." Jamie said not wanting to get in to all of that again.
"Good choice, he could go on forever about Val." Hank smirked.
"I like you." Jamie said imitation Tyler with his hand over his heart.
"No, I don't like you." Hank replied using a girlish voice trying to imitate Val as the two pretended to hug.
"We're just friends." Jamie replied pushing Hank (excuse me, Val) away.
"HA HA very funny you guys." Tyler said smiling.
"Seriously though man, you two should really get it over with." Hank said.
"Yeah, because having someone to take to the prom is very important." Jamie joked
""Are you even going?" Tyler smirked.
"Nope, Caitie and I are going to let you jocks and jockettes have all the fun this time."
"Damn, I was looking forward to seeing your cheerleading outfit again." Hank said laughing,.
"It's only for special occasions."
Tyler looked up, "Well, that's the bell."
"Yeah, Math awaits." Jamie replied walking away.
"Are you coming Tyler?" Hank said using his "Val" voice again.
Tyler laughed and threw his books at him.
* * *
"Pay attention Mr. Waite." Mr. Defarge yelled.
"Sorry but I don't find another story on your back problems interesting." Jamie replied as a few kids laughed.
It was math class but Mr. Defarge never really taught math. Jamie had heard about his wife , kids, parents, brother, sister, anything besides math. Jamie had pretty much learned all he knew of math from the homework.
"Very humorous, Waite."
"Thank you."
"Now go to the principal's office."
*
"How much homework do you think the ol' bat will give us today?" Tom Johansson asked Hank.
"Probably another essay." Hank looked dejected. It was only 5th period and he had tons of homework to do; he didn't know how he could manage that and work at the station and actually have a life.
"She's such a --"
Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop
Someone in the class screamed and Mrs. Paterson ordered everyone to get down.
"What the hell is going on?" Tom yelled over the noise.
"I don' know." Hank replied puzzled.
*
He lay in a pool of his own blood. Not understanding what had happened. It had been 5th period, lunch during a regular normal school day. Then the cafeteria had erupted into shots and screams, so many screams that it seemed he would never get them out of his head. He hadn't even known the shooter, hadn't seen him , but he had been hit anyway., an innocent victim attacked in a mass of other innocents, that the attacker swore he had to kill.
So this was fear.
*
"I think everything's ok now, It probably wasn't anything." Jamie said as he turned to Caitie. The two .had been stuck in the halls when the shots were fired both trying to believe that nothing was wrong.
"Your probably right." Caitie nodded, "Just some senior prank."
"Yup." he replied as he placed an protective arm around her, he could hear foot steps from the cafeteria coming close. "Ah, lets get into a classroom."
"Okay."
They turned to the nearest door and pounded on it. Jamie say a teacher inside slowly shake his head. 'Damn it!" Jamie replied. He remembered that as early as last month the school had had what was dubbed a "Columbine drill" where all the students had to get away from the window and lock the door. Not letting anyone in….anyone. He know that no teacher would let them in, in case they were the shooter. The drill designed to save them actually might kill them.
"Jamie?" Caitie asked.
"Run!." he exclaimed, but he was too late, the assailant came close and shot the two of them down,
Jamie felt a sharp pain go through his chest as he fell to the ground. His eyes danced around wearing a mask of disbelief and fear.
* * *
Val rolled over, 5:00 pm. She had slept the whole day and still felt like crap. She sighed and got up to make something to eat.
"Apparently kids are still killing kids as there was another school shooting to day -"
The radio blared as Val prepared a sandwich. She shook her head. Not again. When would they stop. The scary thing it was starting to get ordinary , like another evil of the world that would go away. The thought scared her.
"-reportedly at 10:00 am a student of Kingsport High school walked into his school cafeteria and killed six students and then went on to kill three more and one teacher. More to come after the break…"
Val dropped her cup. The glass shattered mirroring her heart. The unbelievable had just happened at her school. She walked shockingly towards her TV and turned it on. How could this have happened?
"John Cooper, a senior at Kingsport High killed seven people and injured dozens more before turning the gun on himself-"
Val turned it off. She didn't want to hear anymore. This couldn't have happened, it just couldn't. Things like this happened at other schools in different towns to other people. Not to her, her friends and John. She knew him. He was Brooke's friend Nick's brother. The thought sickened her. She had talked to him, let him into her house, not knowing that one day he would go to school and shoot her friends-- her friends?
Caitie, Hank, Tyler, Jamie and others who made up her whole world, could any of them be gone?
Then suddenly, as if magic her mother appeared and engulfed Val into a hug.
"Oh, Val I'm so sorry."
"Do you know who-- I mean…" Val stammered.
"Honey," Mrs. Lanier started bushing a hair away from her face. "Caitie's gone and Jamie and Tyler are seriously hurt, I don't know about your other friends."
"What?"
"I'm so sorry." she repeated. "I know she was your best friend."
Was her best friend? How could one day change everything? Someone is you're friend one moment and then all of a sudden they was, and were, and could have been.
Chapter One : And Suddenly They Was, and Were, and Could Have Been
* * *
"You sure you're okay with staying home by yourself?"
"Yes, mom" Val assured looking slightly annoyed. "I do know how to take care of myself."
Mrs. Lanier smiled and kissed her daughter on the forehead. "Oh, you".
"Bye mom." Val replied gently nudging her towards the door.
"Bye, love you.' the elder spoke grabbing her briefcase and left the home.
Val shook her head after her mother. "Its just the flu." she said to no one in particular and headed back to her room, eager to enjoy a day home sick from school.
* * *
"So, how should I ask her?" Tyler Connell stood next to Hank's locker desperate for an answer. "Should I just blurt it out or should I-"
"You know, I always thought you two were just friends." Jamie Waite snickered coming up behind them.
"Well, we are but after we kissed last year I was thinking that we were starting to be something-" Tyler started
"You know what? I don't want to know." Jamie said not wanting to get in to all of that again.
"Good choice, he could go on forever about Val." Hank smirked.
"I like you." Jamie said imitation Tyler with his hand over his heart.
"No, I don't like you." Hank replied using a girlish voice trying to imitate Val as the two pretended to hug.
"We're just friends." Jamie replied pushing Hank (excuse me, Val) away.
"HA HA very funny you guys." Tyler said smiling.
"Seriously though man, you two should really get it over with." Hank said.
"Yeah, because having someone to take to the prom is very important." Jamie joked
""Are you even going?" Tyler smirked.
"Nope, Caitie and I are going to let you jocks and jockettes have all the fun this time."
"Damn, I was looking forward to seeing your cheerleading outfit again." Hank said laughing,.
"It's only for special occasions."
Tyler looked up, "Well, that's the bell."
"Yeah, Math awaits." Jamie replied walking away.
"Are you coming Tyler?" Hank said using his "Val" voice again.
Tyler laughed and threw his books at him.
* * *
"Pay attention Mr. Waite." Mr. Defarge yelled.
"Sorry but I don't find another story on your back problems interesting." Jamie replied as a few kids laughed.
It was math class but Mr. Defarge never really taught math. Jamie had heard about his wife , kids, parents, brother, sister, anything besides math. Jamie had pretty much learned all he knew of math from the homework.
"Very humorous, Waite."
"Thank you."
"Now go to the principal's office."
*
"How much homework do you think the ol' bat will give us today?" Tom Johansson asked Hank.
"Probably another essay." Hank looked dejected. It was only 5th period and he had tons of homework to do; he didn't know how he could manage that and work at the station and actually have a life.
"She's such a --"
Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop
Someone in the class screamed and Mrs. Paterson ordered everyone to get down.
"What the hell is going on?" Tom yelled over the noise.
"I don' know." Hank replied puzzled.
*
He lay in a pool of his own blood. Not understanding what had happened. It had been 5th period, lunch during a regular normal school day. Then the cafeteria had erupted into shots and screams, so many screams that it seemed he would never get them out of his head. He hadn't even known the shooter, hadn't seen him , but he had been hit anyway., an innocent victim attacked in a mass of other innocents, that the attacker swore he had to kill.
So this was fear.
*
"I think everything's ok now, It probably wasn't anything." Jamie said as he turned to Caitie. The two .had been stuck in the halls when the shots were fired both trying to believe that nothing was wrong.
"Your probably right." Caitie nodded, "Just some senior prank."
"Yup." he replied as he placed an protective arm around her, he could hear foot steps from the cafeteria coming close. "Ah, lets get into a classroom."
"Okay."
They turned to the nearest door and pounded on it. Jamie say a teacher inside slowly shake his head. 'Damn it!" Jamie replied. He remembered that as early as last month the school had had what was dubbed a "Columbine drill" where all the students had to get away from the window and lock the door. Not letting anyone in….anyone. He know that no teacher would let them in, in case they were the shooter. The drill designed to save them actually might kill them.
"Jamie?" Caitie asked.
"Run!." he exclaimed, but he was too late, the assailant came close and shot the two of them down,
Jamie felt a sharp pain go through his chest as he fell to the ground. His eyes danced around wearing a mask of disbelief and fear.
* * *
Val rolled over, 5:00 pm. She had slept the whole day and still felt like crap. She sighed and got up to make something to eat.
"Apparently kids are still killing kids as there was another school shooting to day -"
The radio blared as Val prepared a sandwich. She shook her head. Not again. When would they stop. The scary thing it was starting to get ordinary , like another evil of the world that would go away. The thought scared her.
"-reportedly at 10:00 am a student of Kingsport High school walked into his school cafeteria and killed six students and then went on to kill three more and one teacher. More to come after the break…"
Val dropped her cup. The glass shattered mirroring her heart. The unbelievable had just happened at her school. She walked shockingly towards her TV and turned it on. How could this have happened?
"John Cooper, a senior at Kingsport High killed seven people and injured dozens more before turning the gun on himself-"
Val turned it off. She didn't want to hear anymore. This couldn't have happened, it just couldn't. Things like this happened at other schools in different towns to other people. Not to her, her friends and John. She knew him. He was Brooke's friend Nick's brother. The thought sickened her. She had talked to him, let him into her house, not knowing that one day he would go to school and shoot her friends-- her friends?
Caitie, Hank, Tyler, Jamie and others who made up her whole world, could any of them be gone?
Then suddenly, as if magic her mother appeared and engulfed Val into a hug.
"Oh, Val I'm so sorry."
"Do you know who-- I mean…" Val stammered.
"Honey," Mrs. Lanier started bushing a hair away from her face. "Caitie's gone and Jamie and Tyler are seriously hurt, I don't know about your other friends."
"What?"
"I'm so sorry." she repeated. "I know she was your best friend."
Was her best friend? How could one day change everything? Someone is you're friend one moment and then all of a sudden they was, and were, and could have been.