It’s a big problem. Parents never listening to their children. They ignore the children’s cries, and because that the children all decide to “disappear”. Though, there was this one kid who did something different.
His name is Thomas, but everyone calls him Tommy. He doesn’t say anything about it, he just lets them all call him Tommy. Tommy was a teenage boy with light brown hair. Everyone suspected that he had a problem, even his parents. But they just smiled and pretended that he was fine. If he had a mental illness then he’d never get far in life, that’s what they always told him. Tommy didn’t really understand but he still went with it.
He had a few friends. They all stayed out of the spotlight and stayed together. It was just Tommy, Naomi, and Andrew. Andrew and Naomi had been friends since elementary school. Tommy had joined their group in middle school.
“You said….” Naomi began nervously one day. She was eating lunch alone with Tommy since Andrew was sick, “You said you had a m-mental problem…. can you tell me more about it?”
Tommy slowly turned to look at her. She turned away with a red face but she suddenly turns back when she notices him looking bashful.
“It’s nothing too mental,” He said with a bright red face, “It’s just anxiety…”
She nodded and went back to her lunch. They continued on in silence before Naomi decided to break it.
“It must be hard…..” She stuttered still quite red in the face.
“Stay away from her….” A voice growled.
They both couldn’t hear this voice. Andrew sat in his room. In front of him was his laptop which happened to be playing a live video of Naomi and Tommy. He had planted it in Naomi’s book bag. Andrew shook, full of rage. But that wasn’t the only reason he was shaking, he was very sick as well. His head spun as delusions danced around him.
“He should disappear…” Whispered a voice in his ear.
“You’re right. Naomi is mine. She’s mine. Mine. Mine” He repeated that word over and over again, tears falling down his face.
The worst part was that he had gotten a cheap camera. It only showed the video not sound. So to any random person it looked like they were flirting. Andrew suddenly threw his laptop against the wall, it shattered into a million pieces.
The next day, despite his mother’s pleas, Andrew came to school. He could barely walk straight and he was pale. He almost didn’t notice when Naomi came running up to him with a worried expression.
“Oh my god. Andrew, you look horrible.” She freaked out.
“I’m fine, I just couldn’t miss another day of school. Y’know?” He said smiling. She had noticed him.
Naomi nodded and grabbed his arm, bringing him to where Tommy and she had been talking before. His expression darkened slightly as he saw Tommy, he was too close to Naomi. Naomi, a girl who’s beautiful golden hair seemed to sparkle in the sunlight. And her bright green eyes were like emeralds. She didn’t belong to that awkward brunette. She belonged to him. He was suddenly snapped out of his daze by the bell.
“Oh! We’re going to be late!” Cried out Naomi.
Andrew grabbed her shoulder.
“Wait….” He began, he was breathing heavily, “I-I left my project in my car and I need your help getting it.”
Naomi looked at him confused, but nevertheless he followed Andrew to his car. Tommy followed them as well, not wanting to go to class alone. Andrew opened the passenger seat and started rummaging around. He stopped when he found what he was looking for, a knife.
“Hey Tommy, I need you to grab this for me.” He said weakly.
Tommy and nodded and went over to the car. He reached in and grabbed something, suddenly he pulled his hand away. Tommy looked over to Andrew who just stared back at him with a neutral expression. Tommy went back to the car and pulled out the knife. Naomi suddenly yelled in surprise.
“Is that a-…..?” She whispered in horror.
Andrew nodded and went behind Tommy. He grabbed the arm holding the knife.
“And this is my project!” He said guiding Tommy’s hand and plunging the knife into Naomi’s throat.
Naomi fell back onto the ground, gurgling. Tommy stood where he was, petrified. Andrew walked over to Naomi and bent down, tears were streaming down her face.
“YOU!” Andrew looked back to see Tommy rushing at him with a knife. He stood up and let Tommy plunge the knife into him, one time, two times, three times. Andrew finally fell back next to Naomi with a smile.
“Now she’s mine. All mine. Mine. Mine. Mine……” He said before closing his eyes one last time.
Tommy dropped the knife and rushed to Naomi. She let out a small cough, spraying blood onto his face before she died. Tommy shook, he couldn’t cry. He was too angry and horrified to react. He picked up the knife and looked at it. He was about to plunge it into his chest but then he was suddenly taken down, the knife dropped from his hands. Someone, probably a teacher was pinning him down. He struggled and tried to reach for the knife.
“No, no, no” He muttered still trying. He didn’t notice the crowd whispering around him or the sirens.
Rumours were spreading around. People said that he had killed them because of a suicide pact. Others said he loved Naomi so much that he had tried to kill Andrew but failed because she tried to stop him. The rumours were all different but one thing remained the same, he was the one that had killed them.
Tommy’s parents threw him under the bus, they told the authorities that they knew he had a mental problem. But that whenever they had tried to take him to get help he had threatened them with a knife, they were too afraid to go to the authorities.
Tommy sat on his bed. He needed help, so they sent him away to a mental hospital instead of prison. He never said anything. Why would he? His best friends were dead, everyone thought he was a murderer, his parents never loved him. The staff had tried to talk to him but he stayed silent. One day a nurse had come to give him his lunch. When she was about to leave he said something quietly.
“What was that?” She asked, very afraid for he barely ever talked.
“Why are you still alive?! You stole her from me! You have to pay price! This isn’t enough!” Tommy screamed and ran towards the wall, his eyes were wide with fear. That voice in his head, the one making him talk. The one making him move. He knew that voice well.
Tommy slammed his head into the wall. Again and again and again. The nurse had run off to get help. He was being pulled away but it was too late. He slumped forwards and said one last thing.
“Mine.”
