Darker Than Black

I heaved a heavy sigh as I walked home from the grocery store, my arms full of heavy bags. My arms were starting to get sore, and I wasn't even half way home. I scowled and kicked a rock that was in my path.

It had been exactly one week since Hudson had told me I was "a nuisance". Over this past week, whenever I looked in a mirror, I would only see my reflection. Did that mean Hudson was stopping the predictions before I even got a glimpse of them? But how was it possible because I sometimes got them before him... unless the reason he kept getting them so quick because I wasn't around any more...

I shook my head violently. That thinking would get me nowhere quick. I continued down the street, looking at the ground in front of me. Why hadn't I been getting visions? It didn't make sense. Maybe if I wished really hard I could. I wished for a second with my eyes squeezed tight.

After a second I realized what I was doing and my eyes snapped open. I was wishing for a disaster. I laughed slightly. Why couldn't I remember how I used to live without hanging out with Hudson? It hadn't been too long since I met him, and yet I couldn't think of what I'd do without him. Like now.

I sighed once again and looked up from the ground. A bakery was a few yards away from me, with fresh baked goods in the oven. I wandered over there. Maybe a scone would make me feel better.

As I bent down to check out the goods, suddenly I was pulled into a vision. I gasped as something forced the top half of my body down. I fell onto something soft and opened my eyes. It took me a few seconds to realize I was in a car.

I looked over at the driver, who had a frightening face on. I looked outside the window and the scenery whizzed by. Startled, I looked at the speedometer on the car. We were going over 100 mph. Even if it was a vision, my hand started to shake. What was this idiot doing?

It took me a few seconds to realize we were in a taxicab. I figured it out by the hood and the driver's outfit. I quickly checked the time on the dashboard. Seven o'clock. That was an hour from now. I looked around and realized we were in the downtown area, speeding down a hill that led to the park.

I looked back at the man. He seemed scared for some reason. Was it going to be an accident? But it looked like he was doing it on purpose; his foot was all the way down on the pedal, and his other foot wasn't on the break. But where was he going?

I looked back out the front just in time to see a bus crossing right in front of our path. I screamed, grabbing onto the dash. The bus just barely avoided the front of the car. I relaxed again, but than noticed what was in front of. A gas station.

"No way," I gasped as we sped towards it.

We were in a beeline straight for the gas tank. I started screaming again as we came closer. The impact was awful. I smashed my head against the glass and it shattered. Then there was a gigantic explosion.

I snapped back to reality, sweating profusely. I groaned, holding my head tightly, and panting heavily. I really hated visions that hurt. In a few seconds the pain subsided and I was able to release my head without it pounding. I looked around to see if anyone had noticed my awkward moment, but no one was around.

I ran as fast as I could back to my apartment, taking the stairs two at a time. I fumbled with my key for a few moments before managing to jam it into the lock. I threw open the door and quickly stuffed the grocery bag with freezer groceries in the freezer, and fridge ones in the fridge. I dropped the rest on the counter and hurried out of my apartment again, locking the door behind me.

As I turned around from locking it, I ran into something hard. I jumped and backed up, rubbing my nose. I muttered an apology and looked up to see who it was. Hudson was staring back at me. There was an awkward silence and my eyes wandered to my feet.