Chapter 2: Alex

Alex Bane woke with sweat dripping down his face and body. He was breathing heavily. He looked around his room to clarify that he was really there. He got out of bed and looked over his body. No cuts, no bruises, nothing. He let out a sigh of relief. His room was just like any typical teenager's room. Clothes were scattered on the floor. His closet looked like a tornado had struck. He could see the faint blue glow of his computer on the desk to the right side of the bed. He looked straight ahead to find that the tv was still on. Then, Alex remembered. He had been watching a movie and must have been more tired than he thought. Really tired.

He checked the alarm clock by his bed, which read 6:50. School started at 8:00. He realized that he should probably get ready for school. He took a quick shower, then headed down to breakfast. His mom was already eating.

"Good morning sunshine,"he said."How'd you sleep ?"

Alex didn't really want to answer that question, so he gave a mumble that was along the words of "fine". Rachel Bane took this as an obvious hint that he hadn't got a good night sleep and decided not to pester him. That's been happening a lot lately, she thought.

It had been. Until recently, Alex had been sleeping just like any other person. Now he was plagued by strange dreams that woke him in the middle of the night. She had recommended Alex to the school counselor and he went with no reluctance. He wanted to find out what was happening.

"I had another dream again," Alex said. "This one was different though. It was longer and some really wierd stuff went down.

"Do you want to talk about it ?," Rachel asked. She already knew the answer.

"If you don't mind Mom", he said. "I'll just speak with the counselor about this."

Rachel didn't press the matter any further. She trusted her son's decisions. That was one of the reasons why Alex loved her so much. She trusted him to make the right decisions. Most of the time he did, sometimes he didn't. Whenever he didn't, Rachel would just say,"Take this as an opportunity to learn from your mistakes". That was the philosophy she lived by and Alex would have to admit that it worked. Alex looked at the clock.

"Oh crap", he explained. "I'm gonna be late. See ya Mom." He grabbed his backpack with all the stuff he would need for the day and burst through the door. He ran down the street to the corner where the bus would pick him up. He made it just in time. Kids were already getting on. He was the last one.

"Cutting it kinda close, aren't we Mister Bane ?", the bus driver, Earl, asked with a smile on his face.

"Well you would too with the night I had," Alex exclaimed.

The bus driver simply laughed at the answer and let Alex on. As soon as he walked up the steps he started feeling better. School was an escape from those dreams. It also helped that the bus was filled with friends.

"Yo Alex !", screamed Daryl. Alex smiled and walked down to sit by him.

They chatted the rest of the way about random things. The bus drive took abouttwenty minutes to arrive at Midland School. Midland was a very big school. It housed about 10,000 students, all of which were 5th grade and up. This school also served as a high school. It was a white building that had 3 floors. The first housed the cafeteria, the teachers lounge, and all the items needed for experiments. The 2nd floor was for middle school students. The top floor was for high school students.

Alex had just turned teenager. 13 years old. He was in 8th grade. Alex was one of the younger ones, but that didn't matter at all. Not in Alex's case. Alex wouldn't call himself popular. He didn't want to appear like a snob, but that is what he was. Even among the high schoolers. That was one of the things that made school easier. It also helped that Alex wasn't a bad looking kid either. He had straight brown hair that went down to his eyebrows. He had bright blue eyes that many girls had fallen in love with. He was about 5'8 which made him a pretty tall 8th grader. He was also quite muscular. He didn't lift weights either. He was just naturally strong. Boys found that to be really cool. Girls found that to be really hot. Bullys found that to be a reason not to mess with him.

Some of this popularity had to go to Alex's brother, Sean. Sean was what any high school guy wanted to be. He was captain of the football team, smart, handsome, and was a nice guy all around. While Sean still messed around with Alex because they were brothers, Sean made sure that nobody messed with his little brother. They had a bond that most brothers didn't. When word got around that another Bane was coming to school, everyone wondered how Alex was going to live up to Sean's monumental reputation. At first, Alex didn't do anything which made some people suprised. But as soon as he got to Midland, Alex started to build a name for himself.

The Midland Ravens had a good team. It was even better when Sean joined. He had helped to lead the Ravens to the championship two times in a row. Football used to be the dominating sport that everyone went to see. That changed when Alex came. Alex didn't do football. He didn't really like it all that much. So he participated in something else. Basketball.

This was where Alex really shined. Sean was the king of football and Alex was the king of basketball. Alex could make any shot, dribble through anyone and not even break a sweat. He had the muscles for shooting and the agility of a cheetah. He couldn't wait to start playing for the high school team. There was a big game tonight, so everyone greeted Alex with open arms.

"You better play good tonight you hear me ?,"Daryl said as they walked through the entrance to school.

"Has there ever been a night when I haven't ?,"Alex said. He was confident in his abilities.

"Hey don't get cocky all right," Daryl warned. "You might be mister big man now, but as soon as you get on that court I know you get a little scared."

"Riiiight," Alex laughed. "Look I gotta get to my locker. I'll see you later.

Alex waved goodbye to Daryl and made his way to the locker. All the lockers were in a white hallway. They were lined up in rows. Upon top and bottom. Geat for people on top and annoying for ones on the bottom. Alex opened his locker with the right combination and opened it. Alex wasn't the type of person who showered his lockers with pictures, but he did have some. There were pictures of his team holding the championship trophy. Pictures of him and his brother. He looked at them with admiration, as if just realizing how fortunate he was.

"When are you gonna get a picture of me in there ?," Alex smiled at the voice and turned.

"As soon as you give me one Ashley," he replied.

Ashley Collins was Alex's girlfriend. She was a year older than him, but that didn't matter to Alex or Ashley. She was on the cheerleading squad and was one of the best kissers Alex had ever known. Not that he had kissed alot of girls, he just assumed Ashley was one of the best. She could also perfom a great spitball. She was rebel when she needed to be and that was one of the many things Alex liked about her. She was one of the most beautiful girls in the school. Alex often wondered how he got with a girl like her, but never worried about it too much. She had blond hair that reached down to her shoulders. She was a little shorter than Alex and she had green eyes.

"You know you could always take one from YOUR camera," she said, smiling.

"But that would take all the romance out of you giving it to me to put in my locker," Alex pronounced "romance" with a French accent.

"How is that romantic ?," she asked.

"I don't really know. That's basically a nice way of saying I'm really lazy," Alex admitted.

Ashley laughed and put her hands around Alex's neck. Alex put his hands around her waist. They both shared a long kiss. Strangely, when Alex kissed her he thought about that red-haired girl he saw in his dream. The dream! He had almost completely forgotten about the main reason he came to school today. It was really the only reason he came. He really wanted to hide under his bed with a lifetime supply of Oreos and a shotgun. Alex pulled away from the kiss with a faraway look in his eyes. Ashley looked at him, puzzled.

"Is something wrong ?," she asked.

Alex shook off the thoughts of the dream.

"Oh no everything is fine," he assured her. "Look I better get to class so I'll see you at lunch okay."

"I'd like that," she said, seductively. The reason was that lunch was a time for eating and Ashley and Alex's trademark make-out sessions in the broom closet. Noone knew when it happened, but they could always tell when they had done it. Alex usually had lipstick on his face and Ashley's hair would be all over the place. Today though, Ashley was worried about Alex a little. She could tell when something was wrong with him. She decided she would find out. If he wouldn't tell her, no broom closet fun for Alex.

Alex walked away wondering why he didn't tell her. He knew he was gonna have to sooner or later, but for now he would have to try to get through the day without looking like an idiot.

"I've been having these weird thoughts lately. Like is any of this for real or not."

After lunch, Alex had finally gone to the counselor. He dreaded telling him what was in his dream. He'd look like a total nutcase. But the counselor, Mr. Bledsoe, heard and listened to every word Alex says. After Alex had finished with the story, Bledsoe asked him som questions. He wanted to ask why his hair was a mess, why his mouth looked redder than usual, and why when Alex walked in he was grinning from ear to ear. He decided not to.

"What do you think Alex ?," Bledsoe asked.

"I'm scared first of all. I think I'm going out of my mind. These dreams were usually just completely random ones, like running through a forest,or something. But last night... that wasn't random. And it felt so real. The monsters, the blood, everything. Oh, and did I mention that when I woke up this morning I felt better than I've ever felt. Like I could take on the world. And that voice said the darkness was coming for me. I don't know what that means and I don't want to find out. Should I put a night-light in my room ? Will the do the trick ? Because I will do anything to get rid of this. Just tell me what the hell is happening to me ?"

Bledsoe didn't say anything. He just stared at Alex.

"Any response would be good right about know," Alex pleaded. "Do I have cancer ? Do I need to take pills ? Do I need to take a freakin prosrate exam because I will ?"

"Alex," Bledsoe finally said. "These are just dreams. Dreams are very mysterious things. I think that yours is nothing more than a fantasy. A fantasy you unconciously made up. You must be under a lot of stress. The big game is tonight. Tons of crazy things go through people's heads when they get scared. You are no different. Say it with me."

"I am no different," Alex said. "I think I believe you. I guess I have been under some stress lately. I just need to find some ways to relieve stress. The game should take my mind off of it. Thank you Mr. Bledsoe."

Alex walked out of Bledsoe's office feeling a little bit better.

"These dreams are nothing. They are just dreams. The darkness isn't coming after me. I'm not hearing voices." Alex told himself. He walked away to find Ashley and relieve some stress.

Little did Alex know that those dreams were about to become a reality.