The girl pushed aside locks of hair from her face to look in the mirror.  A bruise was developing on her eye, and a dark crimson leaked from the cut on her forehead to her chin.  She stared at her reflection intently for a moment more, but decided it was no use to worry about her appearance, but rather to fix the injuries on her face and hope no one worried about it on the first day of school.

It was August 21st, and Arc wasn't prepared in the slightest for the day ahead.  School, her Sophomore year, would be starting back up again.  Arc was never the type to enjoy being forced in with hundreds of different children, but it's not like she didn't enjoy the mandated escape from her house.

Arc opened the well-used First Aid kit from under the sink and her hands knew where to go, pulling out Neosporin, a few bandages, and maybe she could use an ice cube downstairs to help the black eye.  Of course, that would mean she'd have to sneak around her sleeping mother and she wasn't prepared to face her again.

The girl eventually cleans up her face enough to feel alright with it, and she tip-toes to her room.  She slinks down into her desk chair and opens her laptop, starting up the old thing for about ten minutes.  She clicks her friend's username on the side of the screen and sends a quick text message.  The room is completely dark except for the bright screen casting light on her face.

The clack of her keyboard is known when she starts typing back to the person on the other side of the screen.

a_RC90  1:10 AM

ughhh.  mom sucks lol, you on?


MasterDasher_1  1:12 AM

awww that sucks, and yeh i'm on

Arc smiled at the message slightly and typed back a response. 

a_RC90 1:12 AM

wanna call?

MasterDasher_1 1:13 AM

sure lol

Arc clicks on the phone button on the corner of her screen, and the ringtone pops up for a second or two before he answers.  

"Hey!"  Arc whispers to Dash.  Actually, that wasn't his name, but it's a nickname she just decided on randomly one night, and it's stuck ever since.

"Hi!" he answers back, "How're ya holding up?" 

"Managing...you?" she whispers back.  

"Good!  I hung out with the gang earlier!"  he replied, and she could almost hear the grin in his smile, probably remembering something stupid they did that time.

"What'd you guys do?"

"Oh, we went to the nearby lake which was pretty cool."

"Oh, sweet.  I should go to the lake by my house at some point,"  Arc thought, before she got up from her seat and looked out her window to the lake outside.  The lake glistened from the moonlight outside, and it almost sparkled from the light.  The trees around it were all the same color of black in different shades of darkness.

"Anyways, I have to go to sleep soon, since the first day of school is tomorrow,"  Arc said.

"Ah, same.  You should go to sleep soon, Mrs. I Never Go To Bed At A Decent Time,"  Dash replies, a bit of a teasing tone to his voice.

"I like how you call me  Mrs. instead of a Ms. there, buddo.  Anyways, good night!  You better sleep tight!"  Arc whisper yells.

"You better too!" he whisper yells back, before adding on in a slightly more tender tone of voice, "If you ever need to talk you can."

Arc disconnects from the call, and as she turns off her monitor, and puts away her headphones, a sense of loneliness washes over her.  It was a bittersweet feeling, but she quickly put the thought away in her mind when she slipped into her bed and drifted asleep.

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It was white.  Blindingly so.  Arc squinted, and the world around her slowly but surely became an easier to see place as her eyes adjusted to the light.  She started walking in one direction, noting the white sky with the only splash of color being dark blue clouds.  

A glint of something in the distance attracted her eye, until harsh winds pushed her away from it for a split second.  She pushed forward using her arms to cover her face as she put all her energy into stepping forward.  As she kept going, it became more and more difficult to continue walking, but she couldn't stop.  She didn't know why, but she knew she had to keep moving towards this light.

So she walked.  Left.  Right.  Left. Right.  Her legs ached as she moved, and sweat beaded down her forehead from the effort.  

She barely realized she was at the end of her journey until she collapsed from exhaustion.  She could see the details of marble tile under her feet, decorated with golden leaf in swirling fantastical designs.  

"Arc.  You made it.  I'm glad," a calming voice said in front of her.  Arc looked up.

There was a lady.  She had tan skin, and amber eyes, and the prettiest black hair you could only see in paintings.  She almost looked like she was a painting.  Smooth skin, and delicate hands, and a flowing white dress.

Arc brushed their hair out of their widened eyes.  "Who...Who are you?"

"I think you know that.  Regardless, Arc, this is very sudden to you.  I understand.  But I deeply need a favor from you."

"Irene.  Y-you're Irene," Arc said, her amazement slowly turning to anger.  "Wait, if you're God then-"

"Why didn't I save you from your situation?  Arc, you know I can't do that.  Human's free will is important.  I'm sorry, but I cannot help you with that."

Arc sighs, "Yeah.  Yeah, I know.  What..uhm, what did you need help with then?"

Irene's face smiles again, "I cannot interfere with the delicate balance of human lives, so I need you.  I need you to protect a group of people who will form at the school you go to this year.  I don't care how you go about this, but I trust you'll find out."

"Who are the people?" Arc asks.  "And what makes me so great at protecting them?"

"You'll know.  You'll find out there is strength in you you have never comprehended before this moment.  I don't have much time left, so here's my final message to you for the time being.  I love you.  I love you dearly.  I love you as if you were my own child, Arc.  Please never forget that, even in your darkest moments."

The room was fading, and Irene's face was getting harder to comprehend, "I-Irene!"

"Hm?"

"I love you too!"