• The school bells blared and students poured out of the overstuffed classrooms as 18-year-old Jason Evans made his way down the locker-filled hallway of George Washington High School in New York City. A slight layer of sweat was caked on his Caucasian face, an unfortunate result from having run a little too far a distance to a class he had been late to. His blue eyes flicked over the faces in the gathering crowd, searching for a single person, the one he had been looking forward to seeing all day long. "Jason!" a voice called out from somewhere ahead of him, "Over here!"

    Jason's gaze homed in on the source of the voice and felt a smile appear on his face as he recognized the girl moving through the crowd towards him. "Hey beautiful." he said as he smothered her in a hug once she reached him, "How's it going?"

    The girl, 17-year-old Amanda Harris, smiled at him and tucked a few strands of brown hair behind her ear, "Okay, I guess. Had to do an Algebra test today, and I hated every minute of it."

    "Yeah, I hear you." Jason said, "Mr. Riley can be a bear sometimes." He and Amanda had been friends since freshman year, until a couple of years ago when they finally admitted their true feelings for each other. Even though he had a lot of friends in this school, he always considered Amanda to be the friend that he trusted the most. He loved her with every fiber of his being, and nothing on Earth would ever change that.

    Amanda chuckled, then suddenly took notice of Jason's condition and her face twisted into a look of disgust as she saw the sweat that had gotten onto her hand. "Yuck! You're sweaty." she said as she wiped her hand on his flannel shirt, "What'd you do, run a marathon?"

    "Something like that." he replied with a smirk, "I...kind of had to make a mad dash for my English class."

    "Well, you look like you're about to pass out right here, so let's get going before you fall down."

    Jason laughed at Amanda's mock motherly tone and the two of them walked towards the school's entrance, hand in hand. They hadn't walked more than a yard or two down the hall when Jason felt a hand slap the back of his head. "What did I tell you about holding hands with my sister?" a male voice demanded.

    "Ow!" Jason said, rubbing the stricken area, "Careful with that slap, David, or someday you're gonna give someone a concussion."

    David Harris, Amanda's older brother, laughed and ruffled Jason's brown hair, "Ah, that's right. I forgot that you were born with a naturally thin skull. Better that a thick one, I'll admit."

    Jason saw Amanda roll her eyes, "Knock it off, David."

    "Sorry, I just can't help myself." David said, shrugging as he fell into step alongside them. Despite his crazy, messed up, blonde hair, David was actually one of Jason's best friends. In Jason's opinion, it was essential to remain on his good side if he had any chance in the world to date Amanda. "Hey, you guys feel like getting a burger?" David asked, "I forgot to bring my lunch today."

    "Again?" Amanda questioned.

    "Yep. I hate my memory."

    Jason smiled, "Sure, I'm up for it." he nudged Amanda's arm, "How 'bout you?"

    Amanda gave Jason's hand a squeeze, "I guess I can suffer through it."

    "Yes!" David exclaimed, "Burger King it is! My treat."

    With a grin and a shake of his head, Jason followed David and Amanda out the double doors of the school's main entrance and out into the parking lot beyond. The weather was sunny, save for a few clouds in the sky and a slight chill in the breeze. There was a cold front about to move into the area, and along with it a good soaking of rain...maybe even snow. Thankfully, that wasn't going to happen until the end of that week, so everyone was safe from having to shovel out his or her driveways a little longer. The three of them were about to leave the parking lot when Amanda suddenly spoke up, "Shoot! I left my purse in my locker! I'll catch up with you guys in a bit."

    Jason watched her run back into the school before he and David continued walking down the sidewalk. "She's almost as bad as me." David commented.

    "Shut up." Jason said jokingly, punching his friend in the arm.

    Suddenly, Jason heard a massive boom rumble across the sky, almost like the sound a plane makes when it breaks the speed of sound. There was a bight white light and a flaming fireball roared over the rooftops, crash landing moments later merely a few feet away from the school, to Jason's horror. The impact caused a huge explosion, shattered hundreds of nearby windows, and sent out a shockwave that knocked Jason, David, and a few bystanders off of their feet. Time seemed to slow down as Jason hit the pavement and the breath was knocked from his lungs, broken glass and debris raking his face. Seconds later, he felt darkness take hold and his world went black.