I climbed the ladder as fast as I could, ignored Selene (sorry), and ran out the door. My face was immediately hit with the piercing cold night air. I shivered and scanned the area for a mid-thirties man and a tall teenager. I caught the blue eyes of someone I hadn’t seen in a long time, I was praying that it wasn’t my imagination.

I quickly made my way towards him, heart on my sleeve. As I neared him, another man turned around: Chronos. I had my arms out, ready to hug Noah, only to be intercepted by an old man. He caressed my head in a sarcastic-almost teasing-manner. He whispered in my ear, laughing between words, “Like I’d let you do that.” I pushed him away, rolling my eyes. Noah looked filthy. Dirt marks on his face, dirty blonde hair going up in every direction, he reeked of sweat. I covered my nose and waved at him, a gesture that he returned.

“So, I assume you’ve met Selene and Aether, good kids, aren’t they. Well, I’m going inside, it’s freezing out here.” Chronos hugged himself tightly and entered the hut.

“Uh, hi, you look terrible, to be frank. Where exactly have you been?” I asked Noah. Noah appeared to be unfazed by my comment on his appearance and smiled. I mentally let out a breath and spoke in my head. It’s nice to see he was fine without me. My last thought brought down my mood a little but a voice decided it was a good time to opinionate.

Hah, not even close, Callum. Noah might not look like it but he was worried about you. Now, you might not believe it, but he cares about you. ‘Guess that “talk” you guys had at the bus stop really left an impact on him.

I ignored Chronos, I did want to believe it but I couldn’t get my hopes up.

“You okay, you look distracted. But yeah, I kinda do look like crap. Can we go inside now? It’s really cold.” Noah walked past me and tripped on his loose shoelaces. I chuckled lightly and followed behind him.

When all three of us entered the room, Selene rushed over to Chronos and hugged him tightly.

“I haven’t seen you in forever!” she said, embracing him tighter. Chronos looked uncomfortable and cut the greeting short by replying, “Likewise.” It wasn’t rude in any sort of way, he just seemed very strained.

I noticed a warmth that wasn’t there before and opened the window to feel the air. Maybe the air got warmer, I don’t know how the weather here is like, maybe this happens a lot. A small fire in the distance. I patted Selene’s shoulder lightly, pointing at the window. She covered her mouth and gasped, rushing over to it. I looked closer and saw the buildings burn, there might have been people in them. Chronos mimicked her and shut the window.

“It’s nothing you should worry about, I’m sure the people will eventually notice and put it out.” Chronos reassured and went down the trap door. He yawned and I realized I should go to sleep too. One by one, we said our “goodbyes” and “good nights” and went to sleep.

As I lay on my bed, I began to ponder everything I had gone through this week. First, I learned that I was reliving a day I’d already experienced. Next, that there was a voice in my head that just happened to be my History teacher. After that, he told me about this dimension, the one I’m in right now. I didn’t know that would be able to change my life so drastically, I met Selene and Aether, learned more about this dimension, including all the magic and the fact that Chronos is a powerful god that is getting weaker. I smiled as I thought about everything that happened that second Tuesday. Noah standing up for me in class when everyone was laughing at me, the letter to my parents, not even getting to say goodbye properly. I miss my mom and dad. Though I’m always in my room, they support me and feed me. It’s weird not having them around to help and guide me. Without them I feel… stranded. I can’t make solid decisions because I have to think about how it affects everyone else in the world. It’s frustratingly annoying. I just wanted to go to school, you know? Live my life without all this conflict that has actually nothing to do with me.

I felt tears prickle my eyes. I sniffled and wiped them away, nervously laughing. I hope this ends soon, I miss Earth, school, and I miss being normal. To not have to worry about saving the Earth. I rubbed my nose and thought it best to go to sleep. Thoughts like these would only bring me down. And so, I fell into a deep sleep for roughly 9 hours. We’d come up with a plan to beat Erebus tomorrow.