Revolution: Genesis

Keeping it

AZURA

Dreams are a rare form of revelation that creates many questions in different minds; in some episodes, you know you're dreaming, yet you are unable to open your eyes from the deep slumber. How must that feel? What if you see a nightmare and only your death is the key to waking up? Does that mean you have a sense of how it feels to die? Or maybe when you do wake up, you forget all about your dream. You know you had one, but you don't remember what it was. It can probably happen when your dream feels as though a lifetime has happened in a split second. Have you ever thought that maybe your dreams were just a form of euphemism given to visions just so no one doubled over what they saw? What if you try to change your actions hoping for different results? Maybe, in the end, they are the same as what was predicted? Of course, it could be that future is never certain hence why it may also be that half the things you dream about are always just that, a dream. That could also be because your choices differ from what you saw, changing the course completely.

*`*`*

I woke up as my alarm beeped over and over again. Hitting my hand to stop it, I rubbed my eyes, deeply exhaling. I realized I had perspiration trickling down my forehead. Feeling uneasy because of the dream I just had, I started recollecting it. I wondered what had happened to make me feel this way, but its details had started to distort. I could vaguely remember the main objective: don't use the book, but even that was slipping away. I looked at the wall clock on the front high wall.

6:02 AM.

It was quite early, but I was a morning person. And also a healthy one, so I had to get going for my morning run, but first, I needed to clean my room. It was a habit ever since I could remember. I always had a thing to organize stuff and put them in their respective positions. My younger brother, Maxwell, whom I was around a year and a half older, called me a "Clean-Freak" because of it.

Successfully cleaning up my room, I went towards my closet. I wore my navy blue yoga pants, a white sports shirt with a navy blue jacket, and a beanie along with my white sneakers. I plugged my headphones in my ear, and playing the first song from my playlist, I jogged down the stairs, out of the house.

Since no one was up yet, it was quiet. My mother worked as a manager in a local restaurant. She didn't have to worry about the usual nine-to-five. Instead, she had leniency over time, but that never stopped her from waking up early. Of course, I always beat her to it, but she often would wake up right after I would.

Max, however, loved his sleep. He wouldn't trade it for the world. And knowing that school wasn't starting for the next two hours, Max gladly slept until it was absolutely necessary to get up and ready. He did like to keep himself fit, but his ways differed from mine. It wasn't something to complain about because I loved my peace and silence at this time of the day. Besides, during this time, only a few or no souls were running about like me. The Dolphin Square was quiet this early in the morning, but the breeze causing the gentle rustle of trees always sent a greeting filled with love.

This town was magical in its own way. It made everyone feel like they belonged. It didn’t matter if one was new or a native no one ever felt out of place here. Even the hardships weren't enough for one to miss the potential of this place.

It never got old to watch the scenic roads and houses pass by. They were identical, but every house held its own charm. And that was enough to sense the difference. The people were polite as well, but everyone usually kept to themselves. Only one or two families were known for their large noses, trying to meddle with other people's business.

The change of song brought me back to my main purpose as I realized I had slowed down admiring the neighborhood. I gained my speed enough to let me jog for long without burning my lungs. It did take a while to get used to it, but I never gave up. Now I could run for miles without breaking a sweat.

My playlist was on shuffle, so I didn't know which song would play next. I liked it because it filled curiosity and excitement, not knowing which song I would have the privilege to listen to next during my run. There wasn't only one genre I was interested in. I liked every kind of music, and so it only heightened my adrenaline.

Half an hour or so later, I was at the roundabout through which I always took a turn towards my house, making it my turning point. It was a fountain that held two beautiful sleek dolphins facing each other. And there were baby dolphins with their tails towards the two as water poured evenly from each of them. In the center, the water shot up straight, crossing between the two dolphins' faces. It created a filled circle before spraying down towards all the other dolphins. The collected water had flower petals floating along with electronic flowers. It was a cute sight as well as refreshing. During the night, those flowers would light up. Each dolphin's eyes would glow orange, and their backs would change colors. It was an interesting spot to attract tourists, and the selfies were non-stop.

I leaned on the black iron fence, closing my eyes, and inhaled the flowery scent that relaxed me. Smiling to myself, just as the current song ended, I wondered what song was going to play next. A few splashes from the fountain landed on my face. I turned around to continue my jog, and the moment I turned, I collided with a hard muscular chest of a person.

Instinctively, I grabbed the fence to stop myself from falling and had thrust my palm out to keep my balance as my eyes met with sea green ones. Damn, I was a sucker for eyes. The lush brown curls were stuck on his forehead in wet strands. That made me understand that this guy, too, was out for a jog.

Somewhere in my head, I heard the song change to one of the catchiest ones. Nonetheless, I was paralyzed in my place. I couldn't move, neither my body nor my eyes. Of course, I had to take into account that he was also supporting his weight on the fence that blocked my fall. However, I hadn't found proper footing yet, so if he were to remove his arm, I’d tumble to the ground.

After what felt like a millennium later, he steadied me and said something I couldn't hear. Quickly, I removed my earbuds and apologized for what happened. I bit my lip and averted my eyes as the heat rose to my neck, getting extremely embarrassed for being a klutz. I gathered some courage to look up at him because the silence was getting on my nerves, only to catch him staring at me. I felt my cheeks go crimson. Looking down, I apologized again when I felt the body heat seeping in from him. The breeze blew on the sweat covering my forehead, contrasting the radiation, which made me slightly shudder.

I tried to observe the rest of him when I saw that he was also wearing earbuds. I closed my eyes, face-palming myself in my mind as I pointed at his ears. I caught a look at his dilated pupils that enlarged in recognition just before they were normal again. It left me questioning if I imagined them, but I did notice in all of my consciousness that his ears were slightly rosy.

He mimicked me as he removed his earbuds and apologized for the crash. I did the same in return and prayed that I didn't get stuck in the awkwardness of small talk. I was awful at making conversations but, I prided myself in being friendly. Nevertheless, meeting new people was always a challenge, and it took me a while to bring down my walls that would get built by impulse.

This situation wasn't any different, but thankfully, the person politely smiled as he went on his way as I did on mine. I looked back for no reason hoping to find a covered black back as well as knee-length shorts, only to find him staring back as he ran forward and away from me. My heart hammered in my chest as our eyes met again. I wasn't very fond of eye contact, so I hastily continued about. I wondered what made him look back at me and how it must've felt to witness the attraction that caused me to find those eyes again.

I cringed when it dawned how corny my thoughts currently were and how cheesy they must've sounded if I had said them out loud. Those pair of eyes weren't the only ones in the world! I had to get a grip on myself. There was no need to fangirl over every unique pair of eyes. It didn't stop me. I turned my neck again in a silent hope to get a glimpse of those eyes again. It stretched further than my unease of not being able to meet the gaze.

Unfortunately, he was nowhere in sight. Shocked, I stopped and looked around to find no trace of him. I frowned, shaking my head at my silliness, and turned to complete the journey towards my house again as it was getting late.

A pinch of sadness filled inside of me at the thought of losing that mysterious guy. It wasn't every day that I witnessed such enchanting green orbs. But more than that, I had felt I knew him, and not being able to at least know his name was certainly a glum in today. Although, I did have a discreet feeling that I would see him again soon. And it wasn't just an idea. It was a belief that was astonishing.

Twice in a row, I was surprised for thinking or reacting the way I just did. It wasn't how I normally was.

Usually, I would let go of stuff that wasn't for me or ephemeral but today was different from any other morning. First that dream, then the mystery guy and his disappearing skills. I didn't even want to think about what was going to be next. I let the thought wash over me just as uneasiness filled me once again.

Five minutes from my house, my phone vibrated, indicating a text message. I took it out from my pocket and looked at the text, which was from my mom.

7:18, honey! Where are you? Come home quick. And be careful. ~Mom

I smiled at her worries, and my affection heightened to know how serious she was over my routine; sometimes, even more so than I was. Still, my eyes popped when I saw the current time. Seven twenty it was, uh oh.

I knew it seemed idiotic to be obsessed over time like that when I wasn't late for something important but, this habit had developed by itself. I liked things in order because this made me feel in control. Besides, punctuality made for a great reminder. It helped me soothe myself whenever a change occurred. I could trust in time to find my routine.

I took off in a sprint and thankfully reached home in about a minute or two. Walking in the house, I saw my brother ravaging his breakfast. He had a larger appetite when compared to his physique. This often misguided other people into the thought that he was on a diet to stay fit. However, his body had no effect whatsoever on the food he ate. Be it homemade or fast food, he didn't care what it was as long as it was edible.

I yelled a greeting at them as I made my way upstairs to my room. The full-length mirror was situated parallel to the door. And it made anyone—who passed by my room—have a glimpse of themselves. I took a look at my condition and smiled in satisfaction when I saw my drenched self. The sweat was proof of my hard work, no matter how disgusting it was and felt.