Chapter 2: The Lie
608 Words
~NOVA~
I don't sleep.
How could I?
The message sits on my screen all night.
YOUR BEST FRIEND LIES TOMORROW.
And the reply—
YOU ASK ME THAT EVERY DAY.
Every time I read those words, my stomach twists.
What does that even mean?
I ask myself that question at least a hundred times before sunrise.
By morning, I have exactly zero answers.
---
School feels different.
Not because anything has changed.
Because I have.
Every person I pass makes me wonder.
Could they be the sender?
Do they know something I don't?
Am I losing my mind?
I grip my phone tighter.
The messages are real.
The bus crash proved that.
I keep repeating that to myself.
The messages are real.
The messages are real.
The messages are real.
Unfortunately, that doesn't make them any less terrifying.
---
I spot Lily near the school entrance.
She's standing with a group of friends, laughing about something.
Normal.
Completely normal.
Exactly the way she always is.
Which somehow makes me even more nervous.
The message said she would lie today.
Not next week.
Not someday.
Today.
"Nova!"
Lily waves.
I force a smile.
"Hey."
She immediately narrows her eyes.
"Why do you look like you stayed up all night?"
Because I received messages from the future.
Instead, I shrug.
"Couldn't sleep."
"Same."
We start walking toward class.
I watch her carefully.
Maybe too carefully.
Every word she says feels suspicious.
Every smile.
Every laugh.
Every glance away.
My brain is searching for a lie before she's even told one.
---
By lunch, nothing happens.
No lies.
No strange behavior.
Nothing.
I start wondering if maybe I misunderstood the message.
Then Lily suddenly says,
"Oh, I forgot to tell you something."
My heart jumps.
"What?"
She looks away.
Only for a second.
But I notice.
"I won't be around after school today."
"Why?"
She hesitates.
Just for a moment.
Then smiles.
"Family stuff."
Something about her answer feels wrong.
Tiny.
Almost invisible.
But wrong.
I know Lily.
We've been friends since we were eight years old.
And right now...
She's lying.
I can feel it.
---
The realization hits me so hard that I nearly stop walking.
The message was right.
Again.
Fear curls inside my chest.
Not because Lily lied.
Because someone knew she would.
Hours before it happened.
---
The rest of the day drags by.
I keep waiting for another message.
Nothing comes.
Not during class.
Not during dismissal.
Not even when I walk home.
The silence feels worse than the warnings.
At least the warnings give me something to do.
---
That evening, rain begins falling again.
I sit at my desk trying—and failing—to focus on homework.
My phone lies beside me.
Silent.
Still.
Waiting.
Then—
Buzz.
I freeze.
My heartbeat immediately doubles.
Another message.
Unknown Number.
Hands shaking, I open it.
This one is longer.
Much longer.
My eyes scan the words.
And the color drains from my face.
TOMORROW AT 3:42 P.M., ETHAN BROOKS WILL FALL FROM THE OLD WATER TOWER.
I stare at the screen.
Confused.
Terrified.
One thought echoes through my head.
Who is Ethan Brooks?
Then I remember.
Quiet.
Dark hair.
Always sitting near the back of class.
The boy who barely talks to anyone.
A boy I've never had a reason to think about before.
Until now.
My pulse pounds in my ears.
The message continues.
SAVE HIM.
I stop breathing.
For several seconds, all I can do is stare.
Tomorrow.
3:42 p.m.
Someone I've barely spoken to is apparently going to fall from the old water tower.
And somehow...
I'm supposed to stop it.
- Writer
