I woke up to the sound of rain pouring down around me. When I opened my eyes, I realized I was on the path leading to the lighthouse, but a fierce storm was raging. The rain was hitting me hard, making it tough to see anything, and lightning lit up the sky every few seconds.

Confused, I wondered where the hell I was and how I ended up in a storm like this. The trees were swaying wildly, but I could spot the lighthouse through the chaos. It seemed like a safe place, if only I could reach it.

I began to walk through the downpour, squinting to keep the rain out of my eyes. The lighthouse wasn't too far away, perched on a cliff by the shore of Arcadia Bay, and I hoped I could get there soon.

As I made it, I noticed a massive tornado swirling in the water, moving straight for the town. "Holy shit..." I whispered, shocked by the size of the tornado.

I glanced around and spotted a girl walking along the same path as me, but I couldn't recognize her from my spot. "Hey! Who's there?" I shouted, but my voice was interrupted when a fishing boat soared through the sky and crashed into the lighthouse, causing the top to collapse right onto me.

X*

I suddenly woke up in my seat, realizing I was in Mr. Jefferson's class. My eyes were wide as I scanned the room, thinking, 'Holy shit, that was strange,' while barely catching what he was saying.

I couldn't remember falling asleep at all, and I knew I had to stay awake because James Amber was the reason I ended up back in this class.

The last thing I wanted was to get kicked out again. I kept wondering if what I experienced was a dream or real. Mr. Jefferson was talking about the history of the first self-portrait, or at least I think he was, but I felt too frazzled to really focus.

I suddenly heard the click of a camera from the other side of the room. I turned to see a girl taking a selfie, and she looked oddly familiar.

She had a hipster style, wearing a pink shirt that said "Jane Doe," but the logo featured a real doe, like the female deer. Over her shirt, she wore a light grey zip-up jacket and regular jeans. Her face was dotted with freckles, and her shoulder-length hair was a light auburn, with striking blue eyes. She also had three colorful bangles on her right wrist. Why did I recognize her?

"Shh, it seems Max has just taken what you kids call a 'selfie'... a silly term for a great art form. And Max... has a gift," Jefferson explained. When he mentioned the name Max, I focused my gaze right on her.

This couldn't be the same Max that Chloe and I were best friends with five years ago. Was it really her? Jefferson was talking about the history of self-portraits, but I could hardly focus because he kept saying the name "Max."

"Now, Max, since you've caught our attention and clearly want to join in, can you tell us the name of the process that created the first self-portraits?" Jefferson asked her. "You're asking me? Let me think... Um..." the girl hesitated, and I could tell this annoyed Jefferson.

"You either know this or you don't, Max," he snapped, hitting the table in frustration. I thought, 'Okay, don't be a asshole about it,' while rolling my eyes. He then turned to someone else in the room, asking if they knew anything about the history of self-portraits.

Victoria Chase made a snarky comment to the other girl, showing her usual bitchy side, especially towards those she thought were less important. Jefferson continued discussing the history of self-portraits, but then the bell rang, signaling the end of class.

I grabbed my bag and left the room while Jefferson was still talking about the Everyday Heroes contest, which was a photography competition meant to help photographers start their careers. It wasn't really my thing, but I didn't mind too much.

X

I put in my ear buds and found a random song from Green Day and let the world drown out around me. I walked down the hall, seeing Dana talking to Justin, a skaterboy that looked like the was high all the time.

There were many posters on the walls about this upcoming halloween party. I probably wouldn't go. Then, I heard my phone go off and I see that Chloe had texted me.

C: Hey, I left the truck in the parking lot. I'll be there in a few minutes. There's some bidness I gotta take care of.

A: Cool. I'll meet ya at the truck.

Ever since I came back to Blackwell, I had moved out of Chloe's house. But Aunt Joyce did say that I could come to stay there whenever I needed to. But David wasn't so welcoming. It wasn't his business that I go there or not. It was my house just as much as it is, Chloe's and Aunt Joyce's.

Just before I left the main building, I heard a loud sound of a gunshot coming from the bathroom. Then, I was hit by a horrible wave of dizziness, causing me a massive headache. Colors around me became bright and time itself seemed to slow down.