Chapter 1
A Fated Evening
A Fated Evening
Eighteen year old Zack McFlaren awoke to a sunny morning. That was weird. He thought. I have never had interesting dreams like that before! He got out of bed and went into his bathroom to take a shower.
When he was done, he walked over to the mirror and wiped the steam off. He looked at his face and smiled. His short brown hair glistened from the water and his hazel eyes glimmered. He went into his room and put on fresh clothes. He left his room and went downstairs. He entered the kitchen and saw his mother cooking breakfast. “Good morning, mom!”
Claire McFlaren was a small plump woman in her early forties. She had long brown hair and deep blue eyes. She walked up to Zack and kissed him. “Hi, honey. Are you ready for graduation?”
“Yes. Are you going to come?”
“Of course! I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
“What about dad?”
“I’m sorry, Zack. He’s going to be really busy at the hospital today.”
Zack sighed. “Oh well. I was hoping he would come.”
“I’ll record the graduation for him. Besides,” Claire brushed Zack’s hair with her hand. “he may bring you a graduation gift.”
Zack’s father, Leonard McFlaren, was a famous doctor at the local hospital. His patients loved him and his fellow doctors idolized him. He had sandy hair and hazel eyes. “I’m glad dad got this job.” Zack said. “He seems happier than he did in the other hospital.”
“It’s also in a more peaceful location than Boston. Now, go to school. I’ll see you later.”
Zack smiled. “Okay, mom.” He grabbed his keys and kissed his mother as he left. He jumped into his blue Cadillac and drove to his girlfriend’s house.
While he was driving, his mind flashed back to the dream. Why did I have that strange dream? Who were those people? Does the dream have any meaning? His mind was filled with questions as he pulled into the driveway and honked his horn. “Come on, Jen! We don’t want to be late!”
Jennifer Miles was a beautiful eighteen-year-old girl. She had blonde hair and blue eyes. She opened her window and saw Zack sitting in his car. “Hey, Zack.” She said gregariously. “I’m coming down right now.” She closed her window.
Zack waited a few minutes. The front door opened up and Jennifer appeared with her father. She gave Mister Miles a quick kiss before walking towards the car. She got in and kissed Zack. “Bye, daddy!” She said as she waved from the car.
“Good bye, sweetie!” Mister Miles said. He had a large bald spot in his black hair and gray eyes. “Zack, be careful when you are on the road.”
“I will, sir.” Zack shouted over the car engine.
“I’m serious. There are a lot of crazy drivers out there.”
“Don’t worry, sir. I won’t let anything happen to her.” Zack said before he drove out of the driveway and headed towards the school. He arrived a few minutes later and parked the car. He got out and went to open the door for Jennifer. He opened it and she got out. “There you go.”
“Thank you.” Jennifer smiled and kissed Zack. “You’re such a gentleman.”
Zack grinned. “Well, I try to be.”
“That’s why I love you.” Jennifer kissed him again.
Zack returned the kiss. “Shall we go?”
“We shall.” Jennifer waited for Zack to lock the door. She grabbed his hand and walked towards the auditorium.
During the graduation, Zack’s mind returned to the dream. Does Avarisix really exist? Or did I create some weird adventure in my mind? Zack was so busy with the questions in his mind that he failed to hear his name being called.
“Zachary McFlaren!” The principal shouted.
“Huh? What’s up?” Zack asked among laughter.
“Please come up here.” Zack walked up to receive his diploma. “Zachary is a real treat for all. There are very few people who can be valedictorian and captain of this school’s basketball team. We will surely miss you.”
Zack grabbed his diploma, gave his speech, and returned to his seat. His best friend, Anthony Smith, slapped him on the back. “Way to go, man! Do you know what college you’re going to?”
“Well, I’m going to the same college as Jennifer. I don’t want to be too far from her.”
“You two are really serious! You’ve become a hot topic at this school.”
Zack blushed. “Come on, man. Now you’re just teasing me.”
“I am not! I’m really glad you’re with her. She’s really great.”
“That she is.” Zack suddenly thought of his dream. “You know? I had a really strange dream last night.”
“Was it about Jennifer?” Tony teased. “You’ve got her on the brain, you know that?”
“No, it wasn’t about her. Listen to this.” Zack told him about his dream. “Before anything else happened, I woke up.”
“Do you know what the dream means?”
“I wish I knew. I’ve never had dreams like it before. Do you think it could be an omen?”
“I don’t think so. It’s too weird to be an omen. It could be a premonition of what’s to come. You should find out more about it.” Tony got out of his seat as his name was called.
Jennifer took his seat. “Hey, Zack. Are you ready to go?”
“Go? Go where?”
“Our date, silly. Did you forget?”
“Yeah, I’m sorry. My mind has been clogged with weird dreams recently.”
“Like what?”
“Well, I had a weird dream. It’s weird because I’ve never had dreams that felt so real before.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
Zack smiled. “Sure. I don’t mind.” He told her about the dream. “I would have seen more, but I woke up.”
“Do you think it really happened?”
“Maybe. I’m not really sure about it. Maybe my mind was so bored that it created an adventure all on its own.”
“I’m sure you’ll figure it out. You’re incredibly smart.”
Zack kissed Jennifer. “Thanks, Jen. Let’s get out of here.”
“Okay.”
Zack left his seat and followed Jennifer out of the stadium. They got into his car and Zack drove away. “Where do you want to go?”
“Let’s go to the fair!”
“Alright, here we go!” Zack sped towards the beach. Jennifer squealed with delight. “Having fun, are we?” He asked.
“Yeah! Daddy would never go this fast.”
“No kidding! I think being the commissioner has made your dad a little too overprotective.”
Jennifer laughed. “And that’s an understatement.”
They arrived at the fair an hour later. Zack exited his car and helped Jennifer out. They raced towards the fair among laughter and joy. They had fun as they rode many rides, ate food, and won many prizes.
Trouble hit them as Jacob and his gang walked up to Zack while he was winning another prize for Jennifer. Jacob was the bully at Zack’s school. “Hey, dirtbag! What are you doing in a gay a** place like this?” Jacob asked.
“What’s it look like?” Zack answered sarcastically. “I’m having fun with my girlfriend.” Zack walked towards Jacob.
“Zack, don’t mess with the bull!” Jennifer pleaded. “It’s not going to be pretty if you confront him.”
“Shut up, Blondie! Stay out of this!” Jacob motioned to his thugs. “Keep her busy while Zack and I talk, boys.” He laughed.
The thugs laughed as they surrounded Jennifer and began groping her. “Zack, help me!” She cried out.
“Jennifer!” Zack rushed over to her, only to be taken down by Jacob. He was pinned to the ground. “Get off me!”
“You ain’t going nowhere, buddy.” Jacob stepped away from Zack.
“I swear! If you harm Jennifer anymore, I’ll….” Zack said as he got to his feet.
“You’ll what? Kill me? You don’t have the balls to fight.” Jacob punched Zack in the jaw. He released a barrage of kicks and punches on him. “You’re making this too easy.”
Zack fell to one knee. His left arm was covered in bruises and his right eye started to get puffy. He looked up at Jacob. “That’s the idea, dumbass! I’m not trying to fight back!”
Jacob laughed. “You’re just a weakling! You’re girl is going to look great as my woman.” He continued to hit Zack with brute force.
“Shut up!” Zack got up and kicked Jacob in the gut. Jacob fell to the ground in agony. Zack punched and kicked him relentlessly. One kick landed on Jacob’s arm and shattered the bone. Jacob let out a yell of pain.
The thugs lost interest in Jennifer as they saw Zack towering over a sobbing Jacob. They pulled out an assortment of blunt weapons. “You’re going down, tough guy.” Ryan, Jacob’s right hand man, said.
“Zack, watch out!” Jennifer yelled.
Zack noticed them and grinned. Ryan rushed him with a bat in his hands. He swung, but Zack ducked and kicked the bat out of his hands. He grabbed the bat and swung. Ryan let out a low grunt as the bat connected with his head. Ryan fell to the ground.
Sean rushed in with a wooden plank. Zack grabbed his arm, twisted it, and kicked him in the gut. Sean cried out in pain as his arm was dislocated. Zack knocked him out with a kick to the jaw.
Billy and Harry rushed him together. Zack kicked Harry in the gut and punched Billy in the face. He grabbed Billy by the collar and flung him into Harry. He picked both of them up and slammed their heads together. They fell unconscious.
Jennifer rushed over to Zack. “You were amazing!” She said as she kissed him. “You beat Jacob and his thugs so easily!”
“It’s no big deal. You were in trouble and I had to save you.”
“I’m glad you did. Let’s get out of here. Are you okay to walk?”
“Yeah, I’m okay. Let’s go.” They left the fair and walked towards his car.
