Cracks in the Future

Miike was starting to see it again. This time, he wasn’t alone.

“Miike?”

He turned to see her staring at him. Only this time, she wasn’t smiling. She had a worried look on her face.

“Do you see them too?” he asked. She trembled as she nodded. Miike took her by the hands. They weren’t the only ones to feel it either. As far as he knew, the boy thought he was alone with his powers. He never tried to interact with the other children. In return, they thought that he was weird. It didn’t bother him, however.

That solitude was about to vanish into thin air.

The playground at his school was unusually quiet lately. The children were all looking up at the sky. Nobody said a word. The teachers couldn’t figure out what was going on. They tried talking to the kids, but they didn’t answer. Right now, the teachers sat at their desks, watching their students.

“What are they looking at?”

“They’ve been like that this morning.”

“It’s creeping me out.”

“It’s been too quiet around the school.”

“Do you think they might be sick or something?” That comment merited a strange look from all of the teachers. Their colleague shrugged and shook their head.

“What? I’m just spitballing here.” That was the best that anyone could do.

Aside from the children being quiet and staring at the sky, there was nothing else wrong with them. At first, they acted normal at home, not causing alarm from their families. The students changed when they made it to school.

Miike looked around at what had become of his school. He could feel his insides twisting into knots. Could his classmates and peers feel it coming too?

“Are we going to be okay?” she asked. Miike gently touched her on the cheek.

“I don’t know,” he said in a low voice. She held onto him as tightly as she could. Miike let her hold onto his shirt. He didn’t hold onto her, though. The boy wasn’t good with that kind of touch. His father tried to help him adjust. So far, it hasn’t helped.

However, that was nothing compared to what was about to come to that silent school. Miike felt that something was off. Still, he didn’t predict what was coming next.

July 16, 20xx started out like any other day.