The chirping of birds, the breeze of the wind and the smell of fresh cut grass awaken me. My eyes spring open only to be blinded by the sun that beams down at me. I stand up and take in my surroundings. Why was I sleeping in the middle of the school soccer field? I can’t shake that feeling of déjà vu. I’ve been here before; not just to watch a school soccer game, but I think I’ve woken up here before. I look around and notice a figure lying on the other side of the field. My eyebrows come together as my forehead wrinkles in concern.
“Hello? Are you alright?” I yell.
At first, silence pierces my ears. Then I feel as though a bomb has just been thrown near me, and all I can hear is this ring, the warning bells in my mind. My mind is yelling at me to run, to go make sure this person is okay, but my body is forcing me to stay. My feet seemingly glued to the grass, I have to shake my head to remind myself that I have control of my own body. I then sprint to the other side of the field. Once I’m there I realize it’s a boy, but I can’t see his face. I gently turn him over, afraid he’s going to spark up at me like a firecracker. Oh my God, it’s him.
I could tell you that when I look at him our eyes instantly meet. I could tell you that when I cry he holds me until I fall asleep. I could tell you that when I have a bad day he rubs my feet. But I can’t tell you that, not without lying. The truth is that I’ve never tried to talk to him, not because I don’t want to, but because I can’t. Whenever I get nervous my mind screams at me to take action, but my body turns into still ice. All I can do is stare, which is exactly what I’m doing now. I stare at his blonde hair glistening under the sun and his muscular arms that would take both of my hands to wrap around. I watch as his eyelashes flutter open, revealing his cerulean eyes, a color I swear I just saw in the sky. He screams. This is definitely not the reaction I was hoping for.

“Who are you? What’s going on?” He bolts up, looking back and forth.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you… I’m Kate,” I say.

“I get scared easily, not that you’re scary or anything… Ah, where are my manners? I’m Jack,” he says, holding out his hand. I shake it, feeling my cheeks flush as his cold hands refresh my constant clammy ones.

“Sorry,” I say, whipping my hands back and wiping them on my shorts.

“Don’t worry about it.” He smiles and after a brief pause he asks, “Where is everyone?”

“I’m not sure exactly. I woke up here just like you.”

“That’s strange. Maybe I should take a look around. Care to accompany me?” he asks. I nod my head in response, unable to hold back the huge grin that stretches across my face.








***

It’s night time now. The streets are empty, the breeze is strong and the noises are hushed. Jack and I consider that the world is abandoned. Did aliens attack? Did a sickness breakout? Did everyone up and move? We don’t know. All we know is that nothing else has changed. The flowers are still blooming, the moon is still glowing and the streetlights still guide us through what seems like an eternity.

Time has become endless, meaningless, transformed into nothingness. Time is nothing but a word. As it progresses we don’t change, the only thing that changes is what we experience. Every day we go to the field where we met and lie flat on our backs. We sit by the pond and go feed the ducks. We stand at the edge of the ocean shore and wait for the water to tickle our feet. We dance in the rain on the dirty streets. Despite the world being empty, it feels so full. I could do the same things every day and just want more of it, want more of him. But eventually time rebels and forces me to remember it has the power to make things end. One day I hear the echo of my name booming from the sky, which gets louder and louder until I wake up.
“Kate? Kate? Wake up honey,” says my mother. I open my eyes only to see the whiteness of my ceiling. When she realizes that I am truly awake she leaves me alone, which has become somewhat of a drill. This isn’t the first time I’ve had this dream, but I’ve decided it will be the last. I look out the window, out into the field of my school, and although I know I can’t meet him the way I’ve always dreamt, I will meet him. Once I’m at school I pass by his locker, which happens to be three lockers down from mine. I see him sifting through his books and although my mind begins to scream, I shake my head to remind myself that I have control of my body. I casually walk over to him and once he shuts his locker, our eyes instantly meet.