Chapter Three: She Needs Coffee.
It was a shitty spring morning. Bright warm colors of oranges, yellows, and pinks along with clouds and the sun fills the sky, the fresh scent of a light drizzle from the night before and the scent of blooming flowers filled the air.
The sun shined through the windows, rays of sun filling the hall.
Meanwhile fourteen year old Atom who was standing at her locker before school started, was dying from lack of sleep and allergies well at least that's how it felt. She also has a bad feeling, one that she's been feeling for a week only today it was a lot stronger, but she just tried to ignore it.
"Stupid flowers. Stupid insomnia." Atom muttered to herself as she yawned then sneezed. A ray of sun shined through the window and hit her face.
"And why the fuck does the sun have to be so bright and happy?!" She complained while groaning as she quickly moved her face out of the way of the sun. "Why can't it still be raining..." Atom mumbled under her breath.
Her eyes were sensitive to the light. If she was in the sun or light all day her eyes would strain and be super painful, and if lights were too bright it could make it so she could bearly see or she would just see spots.
Atom had tried almost every brand of sunglasses and nothing worked, and she wasn't allowed to wear almost any accessories in school anyway. Atom loved the rain, it was peaceful and relaxing... Except lightning. Thunder was sometimes ok but it would sometimes cause anxiety.
But after she almost got shocked by lighting and had a few very small burns on her face from sparks that hit off an antenna about three to five feet away from her she wasnt as fond of it and luckily it didn't leave any scars or marks.
She thought lighting looked awesome though and she loved drawing storms. Atom was in her own world of thoughts but of course Atom knew that wouldn't last long.
Out of the side of her eye her peripheral vision spotted one of her friends about seven steps away, Atom just continued to act like she didn't see her while she counted her friends steps internally as she got closer.
"Hi A.B., woah your locker finally looks clean." Leah said laughing in shock and teasing her, while wrapping her arms around Atom's waist and resting her head on her right shoulder hugging her from behind.
"68 seconds since my arrival, right on time" Atom thought. She was moving her stuff in her locker arranging a few things to make it look nicer. "Hey Lee and it wasn't dirty it was an organized mess." Atom said in her usual emotionless voice while moving a plant to the side of the cup that held a few pencils, highlighters, and pens.
"Mhm sure, anyway you're here early!" Leah said brightly. "Yeah, my little sister got sick today so mom brought me earlier today instead of like 5-10 minutes before school starts." Atom smiled and giggled making it more like a joke and to keep her own thoughts to a minimum. Humor. Cause I'd rather laugh than cry.
A few of their friends walked down the hall to go see Atom, after they finished eating. "I SHIP IT!!!" Cassie said. "Really Cass, you need to stop with that." Atom said rolling her eyes in annoyment, closing her locker as Leah let go of her. "But you'd look so cute together!" Kara said.
"You guys think Atom looks good with everyone." Leah responded. "Well I think my crippling commitment issues might get in the way of any real relationship." Atom said in her usual monotone, brushing her white hair back. "It's only because your relationships are online and long distance, that's why you can't commit."Maya said.
"M with absolutely no respect for me, you, or anybody else, it's just easier to ghost or up and leave when I get bored in a relationship." Atom responds while they start walking down the hallway to meet one of their other friends.
"I can't tell if that's just your mommy or daddy issues talking or just cause you're a fucking bomb." Maya responds sarcastically. Atom just rolls her eyes and continues walking. "I mean we do call her A.B. for a reason." Cass said. "I'm about as mentally stable as a bomb." Atom responds making a peace sign with her hand while sticking out her tongue.
They all laughed and agreed while walking to their friends locker meeting up with Alex and then walked outside to hangout until their classes started.
In the middle of 6th period the alarms for a lockdown goes off. A voice in the speakers starts speaking as the teacher locks the door. "Hello students this is not a drill, do as told and stay safe your parents have already been infor-." Suddenly there are gunshots over the intercom and then silence. Shrieks of fear come from some of the students. Fear in most of their eyes, very few trying to actually stay calm.
"Ok everyone calm down stay away from the window and door you guys know what to do." The teacher speaks in an urgent tone and walks to some students making sure they're ok trying to keep them quiet.
Friends hugging each other silently crying. "Atom come here!" The teacher yells in a whisper looking at Atom just sitting in her seat in the third row by the window.
Atom gets up from her seat and walks to the window with absolutely no emotion showing as people watch her. "Atom!" The teacher repeats.
Atom takes the screen out and places it in a spot that can't be seen from the door and then proceeds to jump out the window and then close it.
Students look at the window shocked and stunned as the teacher gets up and locks the window. Suddenly they hear more gunshots. They all get closer and shudder sobbing harder. The boys are trying to act tough saying stuff along the lines of
"We'll protect you guys, don't worry.". Well that's a fucking lie if I've ever heard one.
"Didn't think I'd be that simple." Atom said to herself as she walked through the woods next to the school, walking home. She texted her mom telling her she was fine and heading home. Atom didn't get a response and thought nothing of it when she finally got home. She walked through the porch and opened the door quietly and saw her family in pools of blood gun holes in them and few other guys in the same state.
Atom immediately went into survival mode. Out of instinct she looked around she found her wallet and grabbed it and put her phone in it and saw all the stuff she needed that were small. It was small enough to hide on her so she put it in her bra in between her breasts pushed down far enough not to show a bump on the hoodie she was wearing to keep it hidden.
She went over to her family's bodies and the other men then checked their temperature checking and observing everything around her every 30 seconds to a minute. The bodys had a slight decrease in temperature. It was warm but also cold enough to know that the body was killed about maybe 45 minutes ago. She then put on a glove, grabbed her moms 9mm off the floor and checked it quickly. "Safety: off, bullets: seven. "Nice mom got them each on the first shot.".
She quickly observed her surrounded the rest of the way. Suddenly Atom heard the back door quietly open. She got to a hidden location but also in a spot that if needed she could escape. She heard the quiet footsteps walking closer and closer.
After a minute or two a man started speaking. "Where is she!" a very frustrated husky male voice said. "I could have sworn I saw her enter the house!" A soft but urgent female voice said to the man. Atom tried not to make any noise and to control her breathing, keeping her finger lightly hovering over the trigger of the semi-automatic.
"Two people so far, The female looks like a twig. So if I shoot her while the man stands behind her then the bullet should give through them both and depending on the angle and spot I chose to shoot I can potentially kill them both. Aww it's almost like they were made to be killed together considering their height comparison." Her inner monologue narrated in her brain.
Her mind's thoughts immediately switched to memories of her childhood. Her inner monologue then started yelling at her for thinking about when she would play hide and seek with her cousins and how long it would take for them to find her, while her brain was trying to explain that these are dangerous people.
Snapping her out of her thoughts, her inner monologue directed to the sound of more footsteps and her mind wouldn't focus on the importance of her life infront of her. Her thoughts and anxiety switching back and forth not choosing just one to keep overwhelming and distracting her.
"Two more people... That sounds about right." Atom thought thinking back to stories that she had read about gangs and kidnappings while internally laughing. They all exchanged a nod while Atom saw a glint in the one man's eyes that sent shivers down her spine.
Her anxiety spiked as she hid her head into her knees gripping her three fingers tighter against the gun trying to calm herself down trying to think of something else before she had an anxiety attack still in the back of her mind resting why she had never felt that scared from a person in years. She heard the footsteps going all around the house trashing it while hearing a few other people's steps, her mind now realizing she was outnumbered.
Eventually a man found her and as soon as he was about to speak she shot him in the head. "Fuck why can't silencers actually be silent?!" Atom muttered under her breath. A few guys rushed in through the door that lead to the kitchen, Atom survival instincts immediately kicking in fully. She shot the three people, the woman, the man who Atom guessed was the first or second in command and then the intimidating man from earlier.
"SHIT!" Atom realized she had 3 bullets left. Grabbing the knife from out of her right black combat boot she started to try and run out of the house.
As soon as she opened the tall oak wood door and started to run out she saw a tall white man with slicked back, black hair. Immediately she jumped on him and stabbed him in the neck then got up and tried running away until two men grabbed her arms and put them behind her back while taking her knife.
Then they placed a damp rag over her mouth and nose trying to use chloroform on her. Atom held her breath while bringing up her legs putting her body weight on the men while wrapping her legs around their necks then flipping over breaking their neck causing a release of their grip on her.
She moved her legs and stood up taking a deep breath realizing there was residue left over on her skin. "Fuc-." Atom said as she fell fainting on the dirt and grass.