2 March 2016
Aiden lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling.
Everything felt quiet now. Too quiet.
He thought about his parents. His real ones.
How they said goodbye in the mornings. How his dad always forgot his keys.
His mom's laugh.
They were gone. Just like that.
He turned on his side.
"I didn't even say goodbye," he whispered.
He knew they'd never see him again.
But this world had its own version of them. Somewhere downstairs.
People who thought they were his parents.
He rubbed his eyes. "I guess they are now."
It felt wrong to think that. But what else could he do?
He couldn't go back.
The man had made that clear.
He sat up again. The room looked normal, like nothing strange had happened.
The computer, the desk, the posters.
A normal kid's room.
His head still felt heavy.
He thought about what the man had said. About music.
Music had always been there for him.
When things got hard, he'd put his headphones on and disappear for a while.
EDM, festival sets, anything with a beat.
It made him feel alive.
Maybe that's what the man meant.
Maybe this was his chance to do something with it.
He sighed and leaned back again.
"Fine," he thought. "If this is really my life now, I'll make it work.
3 March 2016
Aiden woke up to the sound of voices downstairs.
He sat up and rubbed his eyes. The sunlight came through the curtains, soft and warm.
For a few seconds, he just sat there.
Then it all came back the accident, the man, the new life.
He got dressed and went to the mirror.
Same face as last night. Sixteen.
Still strange to look at.
He opened the door and stepped into the hallway.
The smell of coffee and toast hit him right away. It made him stop for a second.
He used to wake up to that smell too. Back home.
He walked down the stairs.
In the kitchen, a woman stood by the stove.
She turned when she heard him. "Morning, honey. You're up early."
Aiden hesitated, then said softly, "Morning… mom."
The word came out before he could stop it. It sounded right and wrong at the same time.
She smiled like nothing was strange. "Breakfast's almost ready. Sit down."
He sat at the table.
His dad the man from the photos was already there with a cup of coffee.
"Morning, champ. Big day today?"
"Yeah," Aiden said. "First day back, I think."
He didn't even remember saying that. The memories in his head were doing the talking for him.
His mom placed a plate in front of him. Eggs, toast, orange juice.
"Eat up," she said. "You were up late last night."
"Yeah," he said again. He smiled a little. "Couldn't sleep."
His dad folded the newspaper. "You're not getting sick, right?"
"No, I'm fine."
They talked while he ate.
It was small talk school, the weather, some sports thing on TV.
He answered automatically.
Part of him felt like he'd done this a hundred times.
Halfway through breakfast, his mom looked at the clock.
"You should hurry up or you'll miss the bus."
"Right." He finished his food and stood up.
"Thanks, mom."
She smiled. "Have a good day, sweetheart."
He stopped for a moment when she said it.
Sweetheart.
It hit him harder than he expected.
He nodded once and walked to the door.
His dad called out, "Don't forget your lunch!"
"I won't," Aiden said.
He adjusted his backpack. "Okay," he said quietly. "Let's do this."
He walked to the bus stop at the corner.
Two students were already there Jonas and Lena.
They looked half-awake, sipping drinks from paper cups.
"Morning," Lena said.
"Hey," Aiden answered.
Jonas gave a tired nod. "Wish it was Saturday already."
Aiden smiled faintly. "Yeah."
The bus came not long after. They climbed in, found seats near the middle.
Aiden sat by the window and watched the houses roll past.
Nothing felt strange anymore. It was just another morning.
When they reached school, the yard was already crowded.
Groups stood around the bike racks, laughing and talking.
He spotted Leo near the entrance, waving.
"Morning," Aiden said as he walked up.
Leo grinned. "You look less dead than usual."
"Guess that's progress."
They headed inside together.
The hallways smelled faintly of coffee and cleaning spray.
Aiden went straight to his locker, switched books, and followed the others to class.
The morning moved fast.
Math, English, history.
He kept up easily and stayed quiet. Nobody treated him any different, which helped.
By lunch, he sat at the same table as Leo, Jonas, Lena, and Maya.
They joked about homework, a broken vending machine, and who had forgotten their gym clothes again.
It felt easy nothing special, but real.
After lunch came music class.
The room looked old but warm.
Guitars hung from the wall, a few keyboards stood in the corner, and sunlight came through the tall windows.
The teacher clapped his hands once. "Alright, just relax today. Play what you want, try something out."
Everyone spread across the room.
Leo started tapping a loose rhythm on the drums.
Lena sat behind the piano, pressing random keys and laughing when it sounded wrong.
Jonas was tuning a bass that clearly hadn't been touched in weeks.
Aiden stayed near the back, just watching.
He hadn't planned to play anything.
But one of the guitars was close, and for some reason, his hand moved toward it.
He picked it up, adjusted the strap, and sat down on a nearby stool.
He wasn't sure what he was doing his hands just felt steady, like they already knew where to go.
The first few notes came quiet. Then smoother.
He recognized the melody halfway through. I'm Yours, Jason Mraz.
He played it straight, no showing off, just the chords as they were meant to sound.
The chatter in the room slowly faded until only the guitar filled the air.
When the song ended, a few people clapped softly.
The teacher smiled. "Nice, Aiden. Good control."
Leo looked over from the drums. "Dude, since when do you play?"
Aiden shrugged.
The class went on. Others took turns with different instruments, and the noise came back.
Aiden stayed quiet, still thinking about how natural it had felt to play.
When the bell rang, they packed up and walked out.
The sun was low now, orange light hitting the windows.
He followed Leo and the others out through the main doors.