Point of View

I sit there in silence, staring at the old teacher as she shuffles tests through her hands. I glance away and suddenly hear her voice. "Good Lord, these ignorant kids. Never have I ever seen such low test scores. Dearie me." Mrs. Porter's voice says. I turn around. "We aren't ignorant," I whisper spitefully. "What?" She asks, confused. "I said, we aren't ignorant." I repeat. "Child, I never said such a thing." Mrs. Porter says. I turn around, a "yeah right" look on my face.

I sigh deeply and glance out the window. "I never did like him. He's a rather strange young man. I understand what happened to his parents but that is absolutely no excuse for his inappropriate behaviour." Mrs. Porter says. "Are you serious?" I ask, wheeling around quickly. "Mr. Barker, one more outburst and I will be forced to take you to the office. This is absolutely inappropriate." She replies angrily. I scoff once more and turn around before hearing her voice. "I'm not even saying this out loud. How the h*ll does he know what I'm thinking?" Mrs. Porter says..

This time, I do not turn around. That old bat is crazy. Of course she's saying it out loud! I can hear her!

I put my head in my hands, a headache coming on. I groan with pain and see a scene play out before me. It is rather fast and a bit hard to make out. But it is a young man looking directly into my eyes. "You are so beautiful, Meredith. You have kept me going for so long. Even when I left for the military. You stayed by my side. Through all that. Will you marry me?" The man asks, kneeling down. "Yes, yes!" An excited female voice says. I feel my mouth move and I feel myself jump up and down. What the heck is going on?!

I open my eyes and the scene slowly fades. And I realize something: Mrs. Porter's name is Meredith. I turn around and look at her. "I miss you, George. Oh, what am I thinking of him for? It's been years. Move on, Meredith. You don't have the luxury of living in the past." Mrs. Porter's voice says. I notice that her mouth didn't move. I stare at the old woman in absolute shock, unable to speak. And then another voice. I realize now that the voices are slightly different than normal. They sound internal, not like I'm hearing them externally.

"I wish I knew if he liked me. But Kyle is so quiet. He hardly ever even talks." Lisa Breyer's voice says. I turn and look at her. Lisa Breyer has a crush on me? Are you serious?! I smirk despite myself and think for a moment how best to approach this. Another voice floods into my head. "Maybe it could all end. I mean... It'd be so easy. Just one little slice. I should do it before the divorce." Jade Beckett's voice says. I turn and look at her. She looks up at me with a frustrated look on her face. "Boo!" She says rudely. I scoff and turn away but can't help thinking of what she just thought. "Jesus Christ, I hate people like him. Always staring, thinking I'm just an object to be admired from a distance, like a painting or sculpture. I'm a person! Now back to the planning... Maybe a hanging? Or maybe a gun... That might be faster..." Jade continues. I stare at her in shock, and her voice fades out. Suddenly, another scene plays out before me. I am hanging from a noose. I can feel the thick rope cutting into my tender skin. I can hear gasps from my mouth that don't sound like mine, but Jade's. I take a deep breath and the scene fades.

I reach toward my throat and continue to pant heavily. No one noticed. I sigh to myself and put my head in my hands once more in silence. Another voice, this one loud. "God, I hate this test!" Jacob McCarter's voice says. I sigh deeply and smile slightly. "I wonder what blood tastes like." Another voice says. I stop slightly and look around. Suddenly, yet another scene plays out before my eyes. This one, I'm in the office. I'm on my knees, a man with a gun aimed at my head looming over me. "Shut up! You're gonna keep your mouth shut and my boys and I are gonna hide out here," the man says, an ugly sneer on his face.

I rise to my feet and walk over to the corner, sitting against the locker. "What're you doing?" Mrs. Porter asks. "Waiting." I answer. "For what?" Mrs. Porter asks, confused. "For this." I say, pointing at the PA system just as the principal's voice says loudly "We have intruders in the school. They are in the main office. Please follow protocol."

There's the sound of a gunshot ringing out over the PA and several students scream out. I sigh deeply and a scene flashes before me. I'm on the floor, muttering unintelligibly and trying to stop the blood. The principal's eyes go dead as he falls asleep for all eternity.

I sigh once more and all of the students rush over. Lisa Breyer sits next to me. The teacher locks the door and grabs a baseball bat before standing just next to it, ready to swing. Then, I find myself walking down the hallway, gun at the ready. I find that this gunman is in this hall. Two doors down. One. "He's outside now." I say quietly. "What?!" A student whispers loudly. Right as he does, the door handle begins to rattle furiously. I question quickly why I keep seeing things from someone else's point of view. It makes no sense. Lisa Breyer clasps her arms around mine and whimpers quietly. "Shh. He's walking away," I whisper. The faint footsteps of the gunman can be heard through the door. Mrs. Porter relaxes. "How'd you know what he was doing?" She asks me. "I could hear them." I answer indifferently. "Right." She replies suspiciously. I can tell she doesn't believe me story. Not that it's very believable in the first place.