Chapter 3
A Dream Within A Dream
I believe in everything until it's disproved.
So I believe in fairies, the myths, dragons.
It all exists, even if it's in your mind.
Who's to say that dreams and nightmares
aren't as real as the here and now?
-John Lennon
“What is it, Victor,” Haney snapped. “You interrupted my detention.”
“Harold,” said Kain, gazing at Haney with questioning eyes. “What are you planning?”
“What the devil are you talking about,” said Haney, even more angrily.
“You know exactly what I'm talking about, Harold,” Kain said slowly. “I know your secret. Now, tell me what it is you're planning.”
“You're trying my patience, Victor. I have not the slightest idea what you're prattling on about.”
“Stop playing dumb, Harold-”
All of a sudden, Kain was interrupted by the sound of fifteen light bulbs exploding. They both rushed back to Haney's classroom. Haney opened the door and a sliver of light crept into the room. Haney and Kain stared awestruck at the scene before them. Shards of glass covered the floor, Shawna sat cowering in the corner, and Elliot was beating every inch of Felix that he could find.
“What the hell is going on here!!” they shouted in unison.
~
“Excuse me, Harold,” Principal Marlin said as he looked from Haney to Elliot and back again. “Can you tell me that one more time? What happened?”
Principle Marlin was a very interesting person. Although he couldn't have been a day over forty, his hair was bright white. He was very portly and his plaid-striped tweed jacket accentuated the bulge of his stomach. His pants, which were made of the same material, were rolled up at the bottom, showcasing a pair of Argyle socks. Underneath his thick, bristly mustache, he chewed on a thick Cuban cigar.
Elliot respected Marlin a lot. He was a cool guy.
“Like I told you, Bob,” sneered Haney. “Mister Davis thought it would be funny to destroy all of the lights in my classroom-”
“I told you already,” Elliot shouted, “I didn't do it-”
“And who did, Mister Davis?” Haney asked, grinning his malicious grin. “Miss Carsh was cowering in terror and as for Mister Logan,” Haney chuckled softly, “he was a little preoccupied.”
Elliot glared at Haney.
How can he pin this on me? I don't know what freaking happened!
“From what I gather,” Haney continued, “Mister Davis has a grudge against Mister Logan. It seems that, while I was having a private conversation with Victor, Mister Davis took out the lights and proceeded to pummel Mister Logan in the confusion.”
“Harold,” said Marlin, who looked very puzzled, “this is a teenager we're talking about. I find it hard to believe that he would set up such an elaborate plan-”
“Bob-”
“Let me finish, Harold,” said Marlin, still chewing on the cigar. “As I was saying, I doubt Elliot would set up such an elaborate plan because of a grudge. Personally, I blame the school's circuitry. This isn't the first time a light bulb has randomly exploded. I've been telling the school board that we need to rewire the circuits but everyone just wants new books.”
“So you're just going to let Mister Davis off the hook,” said Haney, looking as if Christmas had just been canceled.
“I'm going to let Elliot off with a warning.”
“What!” Elliot and Haney said at the same time.
A warning? I thought I'd be expelled for sure.
“Bob,” said Haney, “Elliot has severely injured Mister Logan and disrupted the sanctity of my detention! Surely, you'll do more than give him a warning.”
“Harold, I've dealt with Felix before. He's not bright. He picks a fight with everyone he meets. I'm not going to punish Elliot just because he gave Felix what he deserved. Felix will live. However, I don't want you to make a habit of fighting, Elliot. I'll give you a warning this time. Next time I won't be so lenient.”
“B-b-but,” Haney stuttered, his face red with anger.
“It's over, Harold,” said Marlin.
“Very well,” said Haney and he stormed out of Marlin's office.
Elliot turned and started to leave.
“Elliot,” Marlin said. “Can you close the door for a sec. There's something I have to tell you.”
Elliot closed the door and walked over to Marlin's desk.
“Yes?”
“Forget what I said about fighting, kid. I just said that to shut Harold up. You need to control that temper of yours, though. Can't keep replacing those light bulbs now can we, eh?”
“I'm sorry,” said Elliot, very confused. “I'm not sure I follow.”
“You'll understand in time, kid. You can go now. Have a good night.”
Elliot left Marlin's office, confused and extremely tired.
What a crazy day!
~
Lightning rippled through the air. A car rolled over and over like a gigantic deadly washing machine. Flames emerged all around, engulfing everything. A silhouette laughed in the distance.
~
Elliot awoke with a start, terror written across his face. He was covered in cold sweat from head to toe.
He’d had that dream again. Four years and it still hadn’t gone away. He tried his best to fall asleep again but it was no use. After half an hour, he stopped trying and just lay there, thinking about his dream.
Seconds later, his thoughts were disrupted by a loud rap on his window. Elliot walked to the window and looked outside. There was someone out there. He opened the window and poked out his head.
“Pssst. Elliot,” the person whispered, “do you have a minute?”
“Will?” Elliot said. “Is that you?”
“Keep your voice down man,” said Will. “Do you want your ‘rents to hear ya?”
“What is it, Will?” Elliot whispered. “It’s two in the morning.”
“I have to show you something.” He looked around nervously. “Can you sneak out? It’ll just be a second.”
“Can’t this wait til’ the sun comes up, dude?”
“C’mon, Elliot. Give me five minutes. This is important.”
“Fine. Five minutes. That’s all.”
Elliot went into his closet and grabbed a sweatshirt. Slipping it on, he climbed out of his window and slid down the drainpipe. He met up with Will in the backyard.
“This better be good man,” Elliot said dazedly.
“Trust me, you’re gonna like this.”
They started walking. Down the street, through the park, and into the woods near Mega Burger.
“I thought you said this was gonna take five minutes, Will,” Elliot grumbled. “We’ve been walking for half an hour.”
“It’s just a little further. Just a little further.”
They plodded on deeper and deeper into the forest. Elliot had long since lost his bearings. He started to grow aware of just how dark and threatening the forest was. After an hour of walking, Will stopped in his tracks.
“So, what do you wanna show me, Will?” Elliot asked.
“This,” Will said as he pulled out a pistol from inside his plaid tweed jacket. It glistened in the bright light of the full moon.
“What are you doing, Will? Are you insane?”
“You are mistaken Mister Davis,” Will smirked. “If only you had paid attention.”
Right before his eyes, Will began to change. It was a lot like watching water rippling in a gale. His skeletal structure began to warp, grow, and twist. His nose grew crooked and malformed. His hair slicked back and turned gray. One moment later and Haney was standing there, his evil grin plastered across his face.
Elliot stared at him in horror. His voice escaped him.
W-what the hell is going on? Am I dreaming?
“H-haney?” Elliot finally stammered. “B-but you.. I... What the hell!”
“Don’t worry, Mister Davis. It’ll all be over soon.” He laughed: a laugh so cruel that Elliot’s hairs stood on end.
Haney raised the gun, took careful aim, and pulled the trigger. The gunshot rang through the clearing.
~
Elliot woke up violently.
What the hell? Was all that a dream?
He looked at the clock. It was three in the morning.
Elliot got out of bed and looked in the mirror. If he didn’t know any better, he would say that the person staring back at him was somebody else. He was extremely pale and had an expression of abject terror on his face.
~
Elliot stood outside the door to Haney's classroom filled with apprehension. He had a bad feeling about what was going to happen in detention today. He opened the door and his heart sank. The classroom was completely empty. It would be just the two of them today.
The broken lights had been taped up since yesterday. Candles had been placed on every desk in the room, casting eerie shadows on the walls. The broken glass had been swept up and sat in a pile in a corner.
Elliot walked into the room and took a seat at the front of the class. It would be no use trying to hide in the back. He would have to face Haney.
“Welcome back, Mister Davis,” a cold drawl said behind him. “It's such a pleasure to see you again.”
Elliot said nothing.
Just ignore him Elliot. If you ignore him then this will be a lot easier.
“You know, Mister Davis,” Haney continued, walking up and down the aisles of desks, “that was quite the stunt you pulled yesterday. I'm very curious how you manged to destroy fifteen lights at the same time. Would you care to enlighten me?”
Just ignore him Elliot. Don't let him get under your skin. Don't let him get under your skin.
Haney walked up to Elliot and stared him right in the eye.
“How did you do it, Mister Davis? Did you use a slingshot? Explosives? What did you use, Mister Davis?”
Just ignore him. Don't let him get under your skin. Just ignore him. Don't..
“Or maybe you used something else, Mister Davis. Tell me, Mister Davis, do you have some sort of special ability that you aren't telling us about?”
Ignore him. Ignore him. Ignore him. Ignore him.
“Mister Davis, we could do this the easy way or the hard way. The choice is yours.”
Ignore. Ignore. Ignore. Ignore.
Haney went back to pacing the aisles.
“I see, Mister Davis. You are a hard nut to crack. Your parents were the same way.”
Ignore. Ignore.
“Stubborn as hell, those too. They just didn't know when to quit.”
Ignore.
But it was too late. Elliot had snapped. Anger was flaring up within him like never before. It blazed like an eternal flame from within him. It consumed him.
One by one, the candles in the room were snuffed out.
At the center of the room, something was happening to Elliot. His hairs were standing on end one by one. His skin began to glow white and emanate heat. His pupils had vanished, leaving only the whites of his eyes. It was as if the fire inside him had escaped his body and taken over.
Elliot stood up and took two steps towards Haney.
“No, Haney,” said Elliot, “you don't know when to quit.”
And then a wave pulsed from Elliot, as light pulses from a Quasar. Haney was knocked off of his feet and landed in a heap on the ground. Elliot stood there for a second in a daze, the light fading from him. Then, he fell to the floor, unconscious.
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