14:30 (5:00)

A bell rang in the distance, breaking James from his trance. He leant back in his chair and watched with mild curiosity as the mood in the room slowly turned less sour. 4th period on Friday was always a bitch. The combination of the weekend expectations and the week's fatigue raised only to be crushed by one more lesson. the class always relished the 10-minute break, though. Time enough for the smokers to disappear and feed their addictions. James smirked inwardly. it took a certain kind of idiot to smoke as frequently as many did as a teenager. Feeling his smugness rising, James quickly averted his focus and quickly scanned the room. The class had split, and there were still several people in the classroom. Absorbed in their respective books or handhelds, living their fantasies if only to distract themselves from the dull monotony of life.

14:31 (4:00)

James smirked again, on the outside this time. He sort of felt sorry for these poor souls. People who were so adverse to their own lives, that they would rather abandon it whenever possible. They just didn't know what they were doing. Not like James. James had devoted all of his free time to improving himself with no end in sight. James was not the smartest, the strongest or the most handsome, but he was not far behind. Though he was no stranger to ideals of fantasy and fiction, all his attempts to remain the most popular did nothing but discourage him from ever continuing on that path.

14:32 (3:00)

"Jamieeee" a rather high pitched squeal tore across the room, quickly followed by the rushing body of a petite, ginger-haired girl.

While many of the occupants visibly winced, James simply smiled; it was always good when Dana visited. Dana was James' girlfriend, but like all juvenile relationships, it was likely going to crash and burn. That didn't mean he couldn't enjoy it while it lasted though. He stood to greet her, and her mad charge almost took him off his feet as she wrapped her arms around his chest. The smell of her hair alone, as it gathered under his nose, was enough for him to forgive her purposely calling him the wrong name. The daggers being stared at him gave him another sense of joy separate from the girl in his arms. Not that it mattered to him if they hated him. Unlike roughly 80% of the people in his year, he refused to have enough in common with them to have them join what he liked to refer to as his mass-harem.

14:33 (2:00)

Dana gave him one last rib crushing squeeze, and James once again marvelled at the strength hidden in her skinny frame. She pushed him down into his chair and sat on his desk, and promptly began to gossip about what had just happened in her class. James had long since gotten used to this occurrence and had learnt to listen enough that the basic responses were still relevant.

While half focusing on a daring tale of a certain specific hairstyle, James watched the clock on the wall next to Dana's head, eagerly counting down the minutes until the next lesson started.

14:34 (1:00)

(0:30)

(0:20)

(0:10)

Warning: Shift Initiating in 10 seconds

Warning: Shift Initiating in 9 seconds

A small white box appeared in the top right of James' vision, offering to him some sort of warning, flashing every second the timer decreased.

"The fuck..." James muttered, hearing Dana trail off and stare blankly, a confused look covering her face.

Thoughts quickly flew through James' mind, forming a small list of exactly what he knew was happening:

Something was about to happen and happen soon. Whatever this was, it was affecting his eyes, and probably his brain This was happening to everyone else What the hell is a shift?

As the question entered his head, James threw one look towards Dana, panic obviously taking her over

"James... " she started quietly, moving towards him. But before she could reach him or finish what she was going to say, the counter reached 0

James' world turned black for a second as if the lights inside the classroom and out had all been turned off, then all turned back on again. But now, the classroom was empty. James felt panic spread across his chest, and a look that likely mimicked the one on Dana's just a moment ago fall over his face. he stood abruptly, knocking over his chair and desk at once, rapidly looking left and right for another person. Anyone else.

James forced his breathing to slow, and began to calm down. Another list began to formulate in his head of what he was sure of, but in this situation, James drew a blank and let out a defeated breath. Just as he was about to lose all hope though, another white box popped up in his vision, following his eyes, remaining in the centre of his gaze.

Welcome to the Reality Shift!

Your world has been chosen to undergo a transformation.

Hence, you must become a character.

Accept the change to begin creation.

"no..." James whispered under his breath.

"No...NO....NONONONONONOOOOO" James felt his world falling apart before his eyes as he screamed his mind, closing his eyes.

But the words were burned into his eyes, torturing him.

"NO" James yelled at the window.

"I do not accept!! I don't want this!! REJECTED!"