It's Only the Beginning
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
It was day like any other day the sky was clear and the temperature was perfect for a spring day in Burgess, Pennsylvania. There was beauty everywhere in the town and the sound of children playing can be heard, birds chirping away making it a perfect spring day.
Joy could be found in the town except at one location a sky blue house. It was a modest building built in a Victorian style, making it very spacious. The lawn was well kept and a deep green and there was a big tree in the front with branches reaching out towards the windows. These are the type of branches that are perfect for sneaking out for the youth who wants a little bit of adventure. It is here our story takes place.
Jack Frost appeared like any other teenager in the town he had a loving mother, friends, and a good home. But beneath the surface is the real Jack Frost, the Jack Frost that sees and hears things that is not there. He can be happy and then depressed at the flip of a switch, and he has some dark tendencies to help cope with the stress. The happy, laughing, and kind boy that appears at the surface is a façade as he does not want his other tendencies to show. Some things are easy to hide others not so much.
It was a Monday and Jack found himself walking to the local high school, he is a sophomore. When he arrived he was greeted by his best friend Zack, Zack is of slender build like a runner, toned but not very muscular with black hair and green eyes.
"Hey there Frost how goes it? Did you get that AP chemistry homework done last night? "
"No I didn't I kept getting distracted, so ended up not doing it" Jack sighed at the reminder.
His grades have been slipping, ever since the voices started and he knew that people were starting to get suspicious about his recent behavior.
"Seriously dude we had plans for the weekend that were nixed because you had homework and you didn't do it?"
Jack didn't meet his friends gaze as he felt ashamed as those plans were made months ago. But the voices just won't stop not only do they make it hard to concentrate but it also scares him. Normal people don't hear things that aren't there.
"Dude what is with you lately you're mopey, you don't care about school and that's unusual for you, you big nerd" Zack said in a playful manner
"Not only that but you seem distant like you're zoning out or something."
Jack looked at Zach and a flash of fear crossed his cerulean eyes before responding.
"Nothing is wrong okay, I've just been dealing with some stuff but I'm fine, really."
"Okay, if you say so. If there is something that you need help with you know that you can come to me right?"
"Yeah I know." Said Jack, his anxiety coming down due to his friend's suspicions.
"What are best friends for? Now we'd better get to homeroom less we face the wrath of Mr. Smith."
After the exchange the boys headed towards the school building for another fun filled day of learning. To Jack for some reason he felt like today was going to be a long day.
The day started out alright he and Zack had home room together and that was the only class that they had. Once class was done the boys separated to attend their respective classes. Jack had elected to take AP courses while Zack chose something less demanding. You see Jack is incredibly bright when it comes to school, that is why him shirking homework is a bit of a surprise. This was noticed by other people namely the teachers and not just Zack.
Jack made his way to his calculous class next, today felt like it was going to be a long day. He was right by the time he reached the cafeteria for lunch he was exhausted. He'd been chewed out by three of his teachers for no homework and not paying attention. It's hard to pay attention to the lessons due to his mind not shutting up, the voices are constant now and they are harsh. They are harsh and give no respite, they bring out his insecurities and what's worse is he is starting to believe the voices.
Being in his own little world he did not hear Zack come up from behind him.
"Hellllooooo space cadet are you in there." Zack asked while waving his hand in front of Jack's face.
This gave Jack a start and he had let out an undignified shout as he fell out of his seat.
"Really? What was that for?" Jack glared at Zach.
"I was trying to get your attention for the past two minutes and I was standing in front of you the whole time." Zack dead panned.
Jack got himself up off of the floor and sat back in his seat across from his friend.
"Wear a bell or something next time?"
"I would but I don't think that you would hear the bell anyways," Zack responded.
Lunch continued like normal with light conversation about how their day has been going and the like, what homework they will have. All too soon the bell rang signaling that lunch was ending and the last half of the day was beginning. Jack didn't mind though because the voices stopped and he was able to entertain the idea of being normal. So the rest of the day wasn't so bad for the rest of the day Jack was able to concentrate on his studies and actually getting some work done.
He explained what happened to his chemistry teacher as he was asked to stay after class, which was not a problem as it was the end of the day. Mr. Banen could be pretty cool at times.
"Okay Mr. Frost, talk to me what is going on? This isn't like you" Mr. Banen inquired
Jack looked at the ground before replying. "I'm sorry I intended to do the homework but things kept coming up (like me being a nut job)" thought Jack.
"Be that as it may Mr. Frost I can't condone that response as your studies are important and there is no excuse to not do the work."
Jack bit back a groan but then Mr. Banen continued,
"However I am willing to overlook it this time and this is the only time that I will do so. In exchange you do the work tonight in addition to tonight's assignment and turn it in tomorrow. Are we clear?"
"Crystal."
Mr. Banen continued, "You're a smart lad one of the best in the class I would hate to see your potential go to waste."
"Thank you sir, I'll get everything done tonight."
"Good. Now get going I've held you up long enough."
Jack collected his things and headed out the door, once he was out he was greeted by none other than Zack.
"So how did it go?" Zack inquired
"Not so bad actually, Mr. Banen is giving me another chance. But I have to do both assignments tonight, that and I still have a lot of homework to do."
"Damn that sucks so I'm guessing no hanging out tonight."
"Nope homework takes priority"
Zack gave Jack a pointed look, not exactly believing the statement especially after this passing weekend.
"I promise I will be doing the work, I'm not trying to blow you off I swear." Said Jack
"Fine, fine I believe you. It's nice to see that you are back to your old self."
"What's that supposed to mean." Jack asked.
"Exactly what I said this morning, you seemed kind of mopey as of late like someone killed your dog, now you seem more energetic then last week. Not only that but it doesn't look like you're just going through the motions to just get through the day. "Explained Zack
"Have I really been that bad?"
"Yes you have." Confirmed Zack
"Sorry that I've been worrying you but I'm fine really." Jack reaffirmed
"Okay now let's get out of here."
The boys had started to make their way home living relatively close to the school, Zack departed first as he lived two streets over from Jack. They bid each other good night, and Jack continued his trek home. Jack was elated as he was able to have some inner peace; the voices haven't come back which means it was one less worry for Jack. Lately he has been going through some weird changes and some of them are not that great.
He knows that he has been moody and very jumpy, but does not know the cause of it he figures that it is just puberty. But is it normal to hear voices when no one is there or get angry over nothing? Of this he is not sure. When those outbursts do happen he wants nothing but forgiveness from the victim of his moods which more than half the time is his mother. He knows that he should be kind towards her and that she did not deserve his hostility towards her when he was angry. After all, it's just been the two of them ever since his father passed in the line of duty being a cop.
It was during a shootout with someone who was mentally unstable and an operation gone wrong, several people were affected not just the police. It was the hardest news to take, hearing the knock at the door and two uniformed officers on the door step to tell his mother her husband wasn't coming back. Even worse was for his mother to tell him that his father wasn't coming back home, being the tender age five it was hard to comprehend the news when the concept of death is not one a child would understand. His name was Daniel Frost he went by Neil and was a Sargent in the police force for Burgess. He was buried with honors and a lot of his benefits continued with his family as he was the provider to protect them since he was gone. The only things left of Neil were the flag that graced his coffin, and a family photo that graced the front room table by the door. It was the last photo taken before his passing, a memory to mark he was there.
Jack arrived at home and noticed his mother's car was still there; his mom worked at the local hospital as a nurse and often worked the night shift.
"Hey mom I'm home" he said as he entered the dwelling.
"In the kitchen" replied his mother.
Jack walked into the kitchen to the sight of his mom taking meatballs out of the oven; there was also pasta and sauce cooking on the stove. His mom was gorgeous she was petite standing at 5 ft. 2 in. with blond hair and violet eyes, and Jack had noticed that she was wearing her favorite scrubs which had various colors and patterns. It suited her Jack decided a while ago it matched her personality, which was why it was sometimes hard to face her whenever he had an episode.
"Hey honey how was school?" she asked
"Oh you know school is school." Replied Jack
"Well if that were true I wouldn't have gotten a call from some of your teachers saying that you are not paying attention. They were wondering if things were good here."
Jack's heartrate when through the roof as the anxiety returned.
"Come on kiddo spill it, what's going on?"
"I've just had a lot going on is all; I got a project coming up that is really stressing me out. I just got distracted is all with all the homework and the project I'm just feeling overwhelmed." Jack lied
Jack hated lying to his mom, she is the most understanding and kind person but he could not let his mother know the real reason for his issues at school. She'll think that he is crazy and check him into a mental hospital at least that is what he feared. But he wasn't crazy he knew that, he's just got to be strong enough to fight his own demons.
They stared at one another violet eyes meeting blue to see if Jack was telling the truth or if there was a hint of a lie. In the end she accepted the reason she was given and let it go.
"Okay honey you're off the hook. But don't let this project pull you from your other studies alright, and I don't want any more calls from school. Are we clear?"
"Yes ma'am I'll do my best and try harder." Jack responded in kind
"Good now go get washed up and get ready to eat, dinner is almost ready."
"Okay."
Following the conversation Jack did as he was requested and got ready for dinner. During dinner was nothing special actually it was like what happened at lunch with both parties telling each other about their day. Jack learned that his mom had to go in around 7pm which was why she was still home, after dinner they cleaned up and Jack went to his room to do his homework and his mom went into the living room to watch some news before her shift at Mercy Hospital.
Jack worked diligently on his homework and to his surprise it only took him two hours to complete even with the extra assignment. Shortly after finishing there was a knock at the door; it was his mom telling him that she was heading to work. Before she left she reminded Jack to lock all of the doors and set the alarm before going to bed.
"I will, love you mammy" Jack said as he hugged his mom.
"I love you too sweetheart."
After that his mom departed and before he knew it her car was gone from the driveway. Since Jack had finished his homework he decided to watch a movie. When the end credits for IT started playing he noticed the time was really late, he got up and started to lock up for the night and before heading upstairs had set the alarm. Lying in bed he could not quit thinking about how well the day had gone, and hoped that there would be more to follow. Unbeknownst to him this will be the last reprieve he will get before his bright world goes dark.