I already felt like that. Everythings black, no sound, no heat or anything weird. I hope its not the same dream though

Slowly, Taiki opened her eyes and looked around. It was an old, dark, dusty warehouse. There was a wood scent in the air, and absolute silence. Then the roof exploded as something big passed through it and crashed far from the young girl. It was scary, so she closed her eyes and covered her head with her arms. The terrible noise continued and the ground was shaking heavily. And then, as fast as it came, everything stopped. Taiki opened one eye, and the other. It was even darker than before, she couldnt see a thing.

 
-Are you alright?

 
The manly voice caused her to yelp from surprise. Someone was here too. The shock passed, the unknown person lighted up a torch and she saw him. A boy, slightly older than her, brown short hair, dark brown eyes, and a friendly face.

 
-Sorry if I frightened you. Are you alright?

-Am I? Huh I mean yes. Who are you?

 
The boy chuckled a bit and then stared at her in the eyes. He had the same expression Alex had the first time they met. Though Taiki felt a lot more comfortable with him.

 
-Im sorry, I didnt bring my costume, but Im Rand, the Sword Master. Dont you watch the news?

 
Wait, Rand? The just like in Okay I can make weird dreams. So were in on of Angels stories? If we are, then Rand is a superhero, and his team must be near. And I really hope he wont turn in

 
-Youre sure youre okay?

-Huh yeah, sorry. I Im Taiki by the way.

-Okay. Dont worry, my team will get us out here in no time.

Thats when she realised: they were buried in the rumble from the destruction. There was enough space to stand up but not much. Rand put the torch on the ground and sat, inviting Taiki to join him. There was nothing else to do after all.

 
-So, what were you doing here Taiki? This place is abandoned.

-Well I Im not sure.

 
The girls embarrassed face made him smile widely. It was good being next to him. She felt the same friendly feeling she had with Nikki or Haruka or her brothers.

 
-Taiki, you really should stop dreaming, you know? 

-Yeah, Im sorry Im just

-No I mean, you should wake up. Youre gonna be late for school.

-Whu wwhat?

 Next thing she heard was Vincent telling her it was already past seven.

 
The same city, a little while later.

God I hate this feeling. I dont even remember what I drank last night, but man I hate this.

The grumpy boy got up very slowly; eyes still closed, and yawned lazily. The sun light forced him to stay awake and he remembered he had a rendez-vous.

Ho, look at that, Im late. Thaaaats just too bad. Well maybe I should hurry.

And so he did, taking his shower, getting dressed and taking something for his huge headache. Just before he left, he opened his laptop and got connected to the internet.

This hotel is really good. Cheap rooms, and wireless internet connections. Maybe I should tell them that the security code is too easy to crack

After entering his login and password, he opened the only e-mail he received.

 
            Hi Angel,

 
Ive read your last chapter. You have improved. I really felt like I was in the action, with Seta, Rand and everyone. You still need to work on grammar though ^^ but it was great. When will you update your website? You said youll add more illustrations. I cant wait for that! And good luck for the job. Bye

 Taiki

 A little cheered up, Angel left the hotel and headed to McClintock high school. It was a new city for him. A new life. He left everything behind him and decided to change things. He had no choice, for the alternative was pretty ugly. The sun was too hot, the streets too busy, and his headache really painful. But he walked peacefully.

 
Seriously, whats wrong with me? Its the second time this week. If it was just weird dreams it would be ok, but being that late  

 
The young girl was running as fast as she could to make it in time. She wasnt used to that. Maybe it was just this new year. Maybe things would come back to normal soon. And maybe she should be more careful. Thats what she thought when she accidentally ran into someone. She didnt see him coming from her right. The two of them ended on the ground, with Taikis bag opening and her books popping out of it. Realising what she just did, Taiki got up and helped the boy.

 
-Im so sorry I didnt are you hurt ?

 
No, of course not. And you didnt just pump into me

Seeing how worried and sorry the girl was, he just kept his thoughts for himself and reassured her.

 
-Let me help you. Youre late for school?

-Huh yeah. Im sorry, and thanks.

-Dont worry about that. Im late too.

 
He was very nice. Or trying to be at least. Then she remembered Haruka and what she said. So, while picking up her books, she checked him out. There was nothing special about him. Short brown hair, a little darker than hers. Soft green eyes. He was wearing dark brown pant, with a white tee shirt and a black shirt. Nothing cool or really noticeable. He seemed to be in good shape, but wasnt hot or anything. Or maybe she just couldnt find him attractive. Maybe Haruka was wrong, it wasnt working at all. After he helped Taiki gathered her things, the boy simply wished her a good day and left her.

 
A little while later, Taiki sighed when she entered in her class. She was just in time, but already tired. Haruka helped her to cheer up with her natural joyfulness. After the English class, when doing the weight training, she found it pretty easy. Maybe the running from earlier was helping after all

 
McClintock high school well I guess this is it. Lets find the principal now.

 
He pushed the door and was almost immediately assaulted by a orange haired girl.

 
-Hey, do you think fishnets look nice on me?

-Whu What?

 
He didnt have time to think that another girl pushed the first one aside and glared at her.

 
-Raine, how can you be so rude? Sorry handsome. Im Lil, this is Raine. What would be your name?

-Hu Ezekiel Parker

 
Giving his name so easily wasnt like him, but those girls sure werent like everyone. Right after he answered, they almost giggled and made comment on how cute was this name, before totally changing the subject. Before long he was no longer included in the conversation. Thats when he tried to walk away, but he remembered he had to find his way. And the hallway was dreadfully empty. After a big sigh, he turned back to the girls and asked for their help. Unfortunately, they had nothing else to do, so they went with him.

Stop talking that loud Man I wont drink again I promise

Soon he entered, relieved, into the head teachers office. His secretary smiled at him and greeted him.

 
-Im Ezekiel Parker, the computer specialist. Im waited.

-Oh yes, I remember. But youre early.

-Really? I though I was late.

-No, dont worry. Ill see if the principal can see you.

 
Well it wasnt so bad for a first impression. This place wasnt the most perfect one, but at least it was clean. Soon enough, a middle aged man opened the office door and went shaking Zekes hand. They spent the next thirty minutes discussing about what needed to be done. The last network administrator left the job some weeks ago and they had no one else to take care of the computers. Zeke though it would be pretty easy, but when Mr. Andrews, the principal, showed him how the high school was working, he immediately saw thousands things to change. He spent half the day at the office the school gave him and still couldnt understand. The network was such a mess. Shared files everywhere, games hidden by students, random files And all the listings were on an AS400 server. This was so old even him was having troubles using it. Frustrated, Zeke rested his head on his desk and groaned loudly.

 
-Are you giving up ?

 
The voice came from the door. The coach Merrick managed to open it without getting noticed. He was always good at that.

 
-No, Im not. But I cant believe youre working like that. Even I have never seen such a chaos.

-So you have the job?

-Well see in a week. But for the school sake, I hope Mr. Andrews will keep me around.

-Youre such a genius, Im sure youll have finished before getting started.

-Not if Im disturbed all the time.

-You do realise its almost fourteen?

 
No, Zeke didnt. As always when he was working. His hangover was almost gone too. He felt ashamed about last night while looking at the coach. Zeke had this job thanks to him, and he didnt want to disappoint him. He was the only person he could really trust. Merrick was his uncle, but they hadnt met since Zeke was just a kid. They stayed in touch all those years though, and thats why Zeke had now a chance to make something of his life.

They talked timely and then got back to their mutual work. The rest of the day was peaceful enough. Back in his room, Zeke glared at his laptop and decided to surf a little on the web. Before he went asleep, he sent an e-mail to Taiki.

 
Hello Taiki. Thanks for the last e-mail (I know I suck at grammar, do you have to point it out again ? ). My first day at work went out well. I have a lot of things to do though, so my updates will have to wait a little. Dont worry, I wont forget. I have to find an apartment too, so you see, Ill be busy. Ill let you know about it.

 
Bye