Wako Island

A flash of bright light.

A tingling feeling from the tip of his toes to the top of his head.

Then came the booming rumble, that rippled through the earth shaking him to the core.

Nicolas Alexander Reed opened his eyes, something he hadn't done for a year. As the light adjusted, he blinked rapidly, a small groan coming from somewhere... Himself maybe?

He was lying down on the ground, staring up at the sky. For a second he almost thought this was the afterlife, or a surreal dream that was possibly his heaven. He laid there, staring up, waiting for something. God? The Devil? Anyone?

But nothing happened. There was no booming voice from the clouds or bright white light. Just the sky and the sound of the waves lapping against the shore.

After a couple minutes he realized that he could move, he wiggled his toes and fingers, the feeling almost foreign in a way. The sand clung to him like glue around him and he raised a hand to his forehead to wipe a few grains from his forehead. He was confused that's for sure. His last real memory being... well dying. Nic's gut twisted and he clenched his eyes shut as the horrifying noise of metal crunching and the smell of gasoline became prominent. He willed it out of his mind as quickly as it had come and slowly sat up, taking in his surroundings which he recognized. He was on Wako. Is this the afterlife? Am I dead? The questions ran through his mind. He got up, shakily, it was almost as if he was an infant taking his first steps. As he managed to stand, loose sand falling from his clothes, he noticed he was lying right next to the shore. The beach itself looked closed, it must be early... But was there even anyone else in this supposed Afterlife?

A few meters he recognized the small standing shower that he used to use to wash the sand off his feet. He slowly shuffled to the shower, for a reason unbeknownst to himself. Nicolas placed a hand against the cold metal hoping that somehow some memory would come to him, maybe to explain to him, what in the hell was happening. It took him a second to realize the reflection staring back at him in the metal wasn't, well... Him. W- What? The shock of it made him stumble back a bit, as he rubbed his eyes thinking maybe he was hallucinating.

Nicolas slowly reached a hand up to touch the strangers, his face. The person staring back at him, had an angular jaw, bright blue eyes, curly dark brown hair, hell, he could even tell he was taller and more muscular. It was then he realized he was wearing the same outfit the night of the crash, a simple cotton grey shirt and pants, except he was oddly barefoot and the clothes weren't ripped and soaked in his blood. Oh god, he felt sick. He couldn't stand to look at the person staring back and bent over, emptying whatever content was left in his stomach. Which was almost nothing.

Everything was too overwhelming.

When he recovered he stepped back and looked around, a gut wrenching sensation tearing at him as he laid eyes on the sandy trail leading up to the parking lot. A simple thought bloomed in his head, Sky, suddenly he could think of nothing but Sky. Is he alive? Dead? Even here? Where ever the hell I am... The thoughts flooding his mind were almost like a magnetic pull as he shuffled up the path. Maybe this was some sign? Good or Bad he wasn't sure.

His steps where uneven, and awkward almost like the Walking Dead. The sand was hot against his feet although there was no sun, but he was almost too numb to feel it, or anything in the matter. Nicolas found that he suddenly wasn't able to will himself any farther and turned back to the beach. He watched the waves for a moment, small tears forming in his eyes. Is this my punishment? Forced to stay in this spot forever? Forced to remember the awful terms and emotions I left him on?

Then the tears finally came and he collapsed to his knees, his salty tears mixing with the sand below him.

A year ago. A year to the day since everything had changed, since his life had fallen apart entirely. He'd kept waiting to wake up and be okay, kept waiting for things to stop hurting, and they never did. It never got any better. That did, at least, mean that today didn't feel any harder than the rest. He'd had a therapy appointment first thing that morning. The therapist wasn't the worst, but her heart didn't seem to be in it. But she wasn't trying to interfere or mess with his life, so he stayed going to keep his parents feeling like they were doing something.

He had plenty of emails to respond to, had a blog post he needed to finish and publish, had a stack of photos he needed to get edited. But after an hour, he couldn't stand to be inside any more. He needed to be outside and needed to be walking. So he grabbed his camera, called to his parents that he'd be back in an hour or so, and set out walking.

He'd always been calmer when he was outside and walking. It was a distraction from everything else that was going on, or at the least, it was an opportunity to think it through without being interrupted. Bringing his camera with him was as much a security blanket and an excuse as anything else, but still, he found himself stopping to take photos as he walked. When he'd started his blog, he'd wondered how much he could really photograph on such a small island or how long it would take people to get sick of it. But instead he'd found it to be a challenge that forced him to think outside the box and expand his skills and portfolio. He'd expanded into taking long exposures, getting inventive with composure, and also taking portraits. Nicolas had appeared on his blog more than once.

He found himself at the beach almost without even intending to end up there. There was a minute when he considered turning around and going home, but something made him stay and head down towards the beach. And then he saw someone on the path down to the beach, kneeling and staring out at the ocean. Sky definitely considered turning around and leaving then, but something about that... that posture, he (it was definitely a he) just looked exhausted, and for some reason, Sky felt like he had to help.

"Uh... hi. Are... are you okay?" He called as he approached slowly, not wanting to startle him.

Nicolas wasn't sure how long he sat in the sand before he heard the voice. He could never forget that voice. Every single muscle in his body seized and he felt his hands flex into the sand. For a moment he thought he was just hearing things but he couldn't deny the gentle crunch of the sand from the person standing over him. Nicolas inhaled shakily the sound quietly whistling through his teeth. He found it incredibly hard to move his head, to look, like even his body was just as terrified as he was. After what seemed like a year to him but maybe a few moments in real time he cautiously turned his head in the direction of the voice, Nic couldn't help the audible gasp the escaped his lips.

Skylar Noble. The bubbly, bright-eyed boy that offered to share his soccer ball with him that one sunny day in June. The one who helped him for four hours glueing stars and pictures to a poster board for physics. The one who sat with him as he cried on a bad night with his father. The one Nicolas knew he couldn't live without. His best friend.

xxxPerhaps the love of his life.

Surreal was the best word to describe the feeling. Nic couldn't really explain it but it was if the world seemed to pause for brief moment, as if taking a deep breath. For some reason, Nicolas felt like he was seeing Sky for the first time again. Nothing was making sense, the last thing he remembered was the crash - now the beach and Sky. Was he dead? Did that mean Sky was dead too? Are you real? The words appeared in his mind but never on his lips. He wasn't sure how much time had passed since Sky had asked him the question, Nic could only meet his gaze for a few moments before his stomach turned in knots.

But that look in his eyes, that was probably what killed Nicolas the most. Sky had no idea who he was. Hell, Nic didn't even know who he was. Was this what hell was like, forced to see him over and over again as a stranger. He wasn't exactly sure what to do next, but his mind seemed to go into autopilot maybe because he was in a state of shock. Finally finding his voice he felt words tumble out of his mouth, it was a stranger's voice. The idea made him nauseous.

"I'm fine" No, I'm not. I'm scared, confused, I don't know what's happening. "I think I'm just a little lost" I'm in the West Cove, our hideout is a short walk down the path. "I'm new here, just moved in last week" I've lived here my whole life, just a few blocks from this beach. "Are you from here?" 3476 E Seaside Drive. A quaint yellow house with a mailbox that you painted when you were thirteen. "I was just looking for the best place to watch the sunrise" Remember when we used to do that? "I'm N-... Noah. Noah... Miller" Nicolas Alexander Reed, although you called me Lassie. I hated it.

The man just stared at Sky for a while, and Sky was seriously beginning to contemplate turning and running, getting away from this strange man as quickly as possible. When he finally spoke, his words sounded somewhat normal, but it was almost like he was just reading lines. Sky was almost sure that this guy had to be out of his mind on drugs, or possibly just coming down from something. He wasn't wearing shoes, for God's sake, no normal person went to the beach at this hour of the day, dressed in a t-shirt and jeans, and decided not to wear shoes. And Skylar was tempted to just walk away, make some excuse.

But something about the man tugged at his heart strings, and he found himself sitting down on the ground, still a bit of a distance from him. Because as crazy or as strung out as he seemed to be, he didn't seem all that dangerous to Sky. He'd been pretty out of it in the days following... following that horrific night, and people treating him like he was crazy wouldn't have helped.

"Nice to meet you, Noah. I'm Skylar. I live just a couple of blocks away, I've lived here my entire life. And... As for somewhere nice to watch the sunrise, this isn't a bad spot. There's a picnic bench a few hundred yards up that way, that's another good spot to sit and watch the sunset or the sunrise." The best spot was actually a tiny hidden cove in the other direction, but Sky hadn't told anybody about it. Him and Nic had found a way to get down to it when they were kids, and it had always been their spot. It was the only part of the island Sky hadn't photographed at some point, wanting desperately to keep it as their secret. He'd been down there a handful of times since, when he needed to escape everything.

"Listen, uh... are you okay? Like. You seem really out of it, and... I'm not gonna judge you, trust me, I really don't care. But if you need help or anything, I can... I know where to send you. Because some people aren't going to respond all that well to some-" He stopped himself from saying "junkie" in the nick of time. "- Some stranger just hanging out on the beach. Don't want you getting the cops called on you or anything. I don't have the time to give a statement if they find out I was a witness," he said with a small smile.