The atmosphere was intense. Sitting straight, I refused to back down. Though, my opponent was strong too. Josiah sat almost lifeless, smiling upon me with a pleased gaze. Rather than sit behind his desk, he was in the chair beside me. When I walked in, he was already there, as if expecting me.

Taking a deep breath, I blinked slowly. Josiah sprung from his chair and cheered. "Huzzah! Victory!" He cried.

Recoiling, I shook my head confusedly. "Victory, what?" I asked, stretching my face. It was sore after keeping that stoic expression for so long.

Rubbing his eyes, Josiah stumbled around his office. "Staring competition, I won," he boasted, clearly proud of himself.

Stammering for a moment, my arms floundered aimlessly. Giving up, I dropped the matter and sighed. "Listen, I want to know why you brought me here. Why bring me to this school?"

Ignoring me, Josiah looked away and whistled innocently. Though, because of this he crashed into the lamp beside his desk. It thumped to the floor, making him jump. Laughing at himself, Josiah kneeled to pick it up.

"Sir!" I demanded, standing and leaning upon his table. "This school has a good reputation and is known for being thorough in its student acceptance process. Why bring me here?"

Snapping upright, Josiah raised the lamp overhead. "Why do you think?" He yelled encouragingly. Grinning, he pressed a switch and the lamp flicked on. Replacing the lamp on the ground, Josiah strolled to the window and looked out upon his school. His strong voice grew quiet. "The eye sees many things, but our perception changes how that thing look. My perception, made me choose you."

"What?" Questions had been running through my head on repeat and I can't take it anymore.

Josiah shrugged. "Helsey, your old teacher, he asked for my help with something unrelated. So, I journeyed down to the school to meet him. Whilst there, you caught my eye. After discussing it with Helsey, I decided I wanted you at my school," he mused, pausing to think.

Shaking his head, Josiah buried his hands into his pockets and chuckled quietly. "As for why I wanted you here; well, that is because of my perception. These eyes of mine have seen a lot and I dare say my head knows much more. That is why I thought you could learn more than academics at this school. I wanted you here because I thought it would be good for you, and I daresay, you will be good for this school, too."

He didn't seem to be lying, but this isn't the Josiah I knew. There was something he was hiding. His act all this time, the pretense to be caring and jovial, it made me sick.

Clenching my fists, I straightened my back and squared my shoulders. Fists balling, lips thinning into a frown, I chewed mercilessly upon my tongue. "What aren't you telling me?"

Josiah's head turned slightly. Then, smiling, he approached. Josiah laid a gentle hand on my shoulder and nodded assuredly. "I'm afraid I can't tell you. That would defeat the purpose, but I'll give you a hint. As you grew up, you lost something. The stark difference between yourself now and your younger self. That is why I brought you here. I trust you'll find what you're looking for."

Pulling myself away from Josiah, I squared my shoulders and straightened my back. Being slightly taller, I looked down into his eyes. "I'm not looking for anything."

Josiah's face fell for a moment, but then he laughed. "Of course, you are! You crave answers but ask the wrong questions." Waggling his finger knowingly, Josiah said, "Study your answers thus far and change your question."

Tearing at my hair, my eyes grew wide, and I whispered in agitation, "what does that mean?"

Throwing his head back, Josiah laughed heartily. "You'll figure it out. Now, get out of here. Go enjoy life!"

Exhaling through my nose, I bit my tongue harder than normal and pain rocketed through me. Nodded sarcastically, I spoke through grit teeth. "Umhm. Will do."

Marching from the office, I hurried from the school, towards my dorm room. My thoughts were of one thing, and I was oblivious to everything else. Meaning, I missed my chance to see a boy face plant into the soft dirt as he tripped on nothing.

Storming into my dorm room, I dropped into my chair. "Bark, video games, now," I demanded, gazing lifelessly out the window.

"Gladly," Bark replied, disregarding his half-finished essay due tomorrow.

Noticing my mood, Bark quickly prepared a simple player vs player game. After a minute, the screen loaded in. Hurrying through the rules and arena selection, we chose our characters and began beating the virtual crap out of each other.

After several rounds and my continued defeat, Bark frowned at me. "Dude, you alright? You don't normally suck this bad."

"I'm pissed," I replied bluntly, readying for another round.

"What's up?" Bark asked, choosing his character.

"People lack the ability to say what they mean." I grunted, diving in with a powerful attack. Anticipating the move, Bark easily dodged it and countered.

"People suck," Bark said off-handedly. Quickly securing himself another victory, Bark sighed. "Whatever though. Who even cares about people? They're all idiots so just ignore them."

Groaning, I shook my head. "Even idiots can be right sometimes."

"Are they right this time?" Bark asked, his tongue poking out the corner of his mouth.

Refusing to answer, I focused harder on destroying Bark, but I lost once more. I lost. Lost what? What changed?

Leaning back in my chair, I rubbed my temples. I lost my house keys once, that didn't seem like the answer. So, what then? This question is- Question? This question? The wrong question.

Leaning forwards in my chair, I stroked my chin. It's not a question of strength. What Evelyn had told me to search for and what Josiah wants me to find is the same thing. I'm certain of it, but then, if the answer is the same, then is the question also the same?

My character died a cruel fate as Bark used my distraction to shamelessly crush the digital man. The match ended and Bark pulled out his phone, swiveling in his chair.

"Just a little farther," I said, watching Bark curiously.

Bark frowned but kept staring at the roof. "Where are you going?" He muttered a distracted response.

Just a little farther, but where? What is my destination? It was self-preservation, constant improvement, but it isn't a question of strength. So, what is my goal? Where am I going? I'm going to find answers, but the answer was something I had once, I just lost it. So, I probably never realised I had it.

Suddenly, I was back in Josiah's office. Two photos sat on the desk, one of me when I was young and one when I was older. The photos had made me angry once but now as I looked at them, I saw the differences and only felt sad.

Reaching for the photo where I was older, I cradled it gently and looked at myself. The smile I wore was fake. I wanted someone to know it was fake. I wanted someone to see that I was hurting. Where did your joy go?

So, it is really that simple. Groaning at my stupidity, I rubbed my temples with one hand. Seriously, give me a break.

Standing, I dropped my controller on the desk. "Catch you later" I muttered.

"Huh?" Bark asked, looking up from his phone. "You say something?"

Grinning, I raised my eyes to look at him. "I said screw you."

Bolting from the room, the door slammed shut behind me. Bark was confused for a moment, then decided he didn't care and returned his attention to his phone.

Meanwhile, I raced across campus. Dashing into the near empty school building, I ran through the hallways. I stumbled on the stairs, but rather than stop, I simply pulled myself up, shooting upwards on all fours. Very luckily, my pants didn't rip.

Slamming my shoulder into a door, I stumbled out onto the roof and hurried to the edge. I was gasping for breath, but a smile split my face. To think, somewhere in life I forgot. Though, chances are I'm not the only one. Children don't have to be told, they know it instinctually, but tend to lose it as they age. Strange that anyone can forget something so basic.

Shaking my head, I laughed at myself, laughed at the absurdity of it all. When I was little, every day was exciting. Every day could be incredible. Where did that go? When did I lose it? I suppose it doesn't really matter because now I reclaim what is mine.

Gripping the handrail, I smiled at the courtyard sprawling before me. Taking a deep breath, I smiled, feeling the warm sun on my back and the cool autumn breeze on my arms.

Opening my eyes, I announced it for everyone to hear. At the top of my lungs I bellowed, "I love being alive! Hell yeaaaaaaaah!"

The effect was instantaneous as students cheered and laughed, some shouting their agreement. Feeling something fresh within me, I witnessed a new thing in the school that day. Hundreds of people, all of them alive. Though, some are hardly even living. I guess it is so easy to get caught up in our pain that we forget how exciting this life can be. That's a mistake I won't make again. This fake smile I wore for so long, I could finally peel it off and eagerly await tomorrow.

In his office, Josiah roared with laughter. "Good show!" He yelled, grinning manically. Josiah felt a swell of pride, a small amount of it for himself and a large score for this boy who would no doubt go a little farther yet.

Lining the school fence, many trees stood tall and mighty. One particular tree harboured a grey-haired girl beneath its branches. Her lips twitched into a smile at that familiar voice. So, he finally figured it out. She'd always known, he'd be alright.

Anxiousness dripping off me, I felt lighter than I had in years, and I couldn't wait for the future. I didn't have my answers yet, but I was still one step closer than before. I could not wait for the destination that lay just a little farther ahead.