A normal day

It was a typical day, the sun gently resting on my cheeks. The alarm had been ringing for a while, but I turned it off without realizing it. Then I heard quick footsteps approaching me. A shadow placed its hands on my bed and stared into my face.My younger brother tried to wake me.

"Wake up, we're late!" he shouted, piercing my poor ears. I dragged myself out from under the covers, with slow and heavy movements. When I reached the kitchen, my mother greeted me with a smile that warms the soul to the core. A sincere smile, full of love. Breakfast was already prepared on the table, ready for me to devour. Once outside the house, I waited, until my girlfriend arrived.
I'm such a lucky guy!

She was always well dressed, her wavy blonde hair embracing her from behind.Her sweet little face made me happy, and every smile she gave me was like a shot to the heart.
I always get emotional when she looks at me, even though we've been a couple for six months now. She and I walked to school, our hands brushing against each other, then blushing. Then we said goodbye and went to our respective classes; even though we were the same age, we were in different classes. As soon as I got to class, I couldn't wait for lunch. My mind was lost in the clouds, and I didn't notice my friends waving at me. At that moment, I regained control of the situation by greeting my dear friends, whom I'd known for years. One was tall, thin, and intelligent. My other friend, on the other hand, was a little shorter and had enormous muscles. Whenever someone approached me threateningly in middle school, he always came to my aid. And when I couldn't do my homework, I could always count on the tall guy.

My life is truly perfect!

"Hey, Issei, how are you?" they asked me in unison.

"Everything's fine." I was still in the clouds, thinking about my girlfriend.

"I see you can't stop thinking about her, huh?" he scolded me with a smirk.The teacher entered the classroom, the noise died down, and everyone settled down at their desks.During the lesson, one of my classmate dropped his pen on the floor.

-1-

He always had some strange sauce on his face. He was being bullied, but part of me didn't mind.
Maybe I'm not as good a person as I think.
I carefully watched the overweight boy bend down to pick up his pen. The philosophy professor's voice was muffled, as if I were underwater. He was talking about the concept of collective guilt, how silence can be as much of a crime as action. I looked out the window: the sky was a blinding blue, too bright to be true.After class, I headed to the cafeteria, meanwhile, I could hear gossip about the bullied boy behind me. I felt a little sorry, but as long as he doesn't want to change his way of life, I can't do anything about it.When I got to the cafeteria, I immediately saw my girlfriend at a table far away from everyone else, ready for those who wanted some privacy. But without me realizing it, my friends had followed me.

"Where are you off to in such a hurry?" they asked me with disturbing smiles.

"I-I wanted to sit over there." I replied, almost tortured.

"Why so far away? Oh, I get it, have fun." They understood my true intention but accepted it without too much trouble. I went to sit down as they walked away.

"H-Hi. I managed to shake off my friends. haha." I said, all excited, with a pathetic laugh.

"I'm glad." she said sweetly with one of her usual breathtaking smiles.As soon as I sat down, I found myself back against the wall again; they had returned with trays full of food.

"We thought we'd keep you company, you're all alone." the bodybuilder said.Maybe because that was the intention! I screamed in my head.Out of my mind, only an angry look escaped.

"So you're his girlfriend, right?" Four-Eyes asked.

"Haha, yes, it's me. Do you need anything?" He replied gently.

"Treat him well." He concluded his speech by walking away, taking the tall guy with him.With my great extroverted skills, which I am not, I spent the entire lunch break admiring my girlfriend instead of talking to her.It seemed like a scene from a romantic movie.

-2-

I noticed how perfectly smooth her skin was, not even a single teenage pimple. Her lips felt like rubber, her eyes defined like the glass of a security camera. Her clothes were always fashionable, her composure, her manners. She was, in every way, the ideal girl. I, on the other hand, had no flaws, but I wasn't the most handsome either. I was a normal guy.After finishing lunch, I said goodbye to my girlfriend and headed towards my friends, but as I walked, the bullied boy tripped, falling on me and staining my sweatshirt with salsa. My gym-trained friend, who had some anger issues, lunged at me. He kicked the boy away and then punched him again and again. I stood there, unable to do anything. Once school was over, I went home, but not my girlfriend. She had to stay at school for club, so I walked home alone. The air was hot and heavy, the sky, even though it was late afternoon, was still blue, and the trees had lost their blossoms; summer was upon us.As soon as I got home, I found my parents arguing with my brother. He'd probably messed up at school, as usual. I didn't want to know anything, so I rushed to my room to relax. I lay down on the bed to read my favorite manga, put on my headphones, and turned up the music, so I could end the day calmly. Once the chaos downstairs was over, my mother entered the room without knocking.
Maybe she had, but I didn't hear her.

"Issei, can you go buy some bread, please?" she asked, a little out of breath. She'd been yelling for a while, so she was tired. So without objecting, I got dressed and went to get the bread indicated on a piece of paper.Luckily, the bakery was still open and close to home. When I arrived, I saw that it was completely empty, no bread. I looked up to see a bearded man in his thirties perched on the counter.
He must have had a rough day, I thought.I turned to him and asked for the bread I wanted, and he looked at me perplexed.

"Can't you see there's no bread left?" the bearded man asked me.

"But you're lucky. I was making some bread for myself," he continued.

-3-

"It's not what you wanted, but at least it's something," he concluded without me being able to say anything. The man took the bread and put it in a paper bag. It was freshly baked and smelled of good bread made with love. Even though he was broken, that man loved his job. I returned home happy with some warm bread. As soon as I arrived, I saw the lights on, but silence reigned. I entered the house and said hello, but received no response.I moved to the kitchen and there I saw my younger brother with a bloody knife in his hand. What's going on?! The room was quiet and half messy. There had been a battle of some sort.

"Brother, are you okay?! What are you doing with that in your hand?!" I asked worriedly.Then a strange smell filled my nose, like a dead animal decomposing. I remember seeing one not long ago.I turned toward the strange smell and saw a pool of dark red blood.

"B-blood?!" I said out loud, frightened.
Had he killed some animal in the house?
That amount of blood was a lot, though. It can't be a small animal, but I don't think my brother could have killed a large one.
I didn't know blood was that dark, I thought.

I turned to my brother and found him staring at me with a creepy grin, and then I immediately understood what had happened. There was no animal beyond my sight!I screamed in despair, but I slipped and lost my balance, falling to the ground. When I opened my eyes, I saw my parents' bodies torn to pieces. My heart began to beat faster and faster, and then I lost consciousness from shock. It was all dark, I heard my brother's laughter, I felt the warmth of my girlfriend's hand in mine. I smelled the sweat of my friend, fresh from the gym. And I remembered perfectly the last weekend I spent studying with my friends. But then something wrong happened.