Dan, a man with a difficult life.

Ever since my power manifested, things have been complicated.

I was a senior in high school when it started. I didn't feel anything change and there was nothing special about the day. I was in homeroom, working furiously on some chemistry homework that was due next period. I was so focused that I didn't notice anything was wrong until the bell rang.

I had only gotten 8 of the 10 questions done, so I knew I'd be settling for a B- at best. But as I started to pack my things, I noticed that the people around me weren't getting up.

I looked around and saw that a few of my classmates towards the front of the room were slowly putting their books away. They looked dazed, like they had just woken up. The teacher, Mr. Odhill, was at the front of the classroom frowning with concern.

The strangest part was the people right around me. They seemed completely out of it. I poked the girl next to me. "Sarah?" She turned dully to me and after a second, replied. "Yeah?"

Something was wrong. Mr. Odhill spoke. "Hey, the bell just rung. It's time to get your stuff together and get to your next class." At this, the kids around me sluggishly started gathering up their things. Mr. Odhill stuck his head out into the hallway and called for someone.

As I walked to the front of the classroom, Mr. Odhill's expression changed. It was odd. He went from concerned to tired to completely neutral. By the time I reached him, his mouth was slightly open. This was really starting to freak me out.

"Mr. Odhill?"

He didn't look at me. "Yeah?"

"Are you ok? You're kind of scaring me."

He frowned like he was working out a difficult problem in his head. Finally, he replied "I'm ok."

"What's going on? Is there a gas leak or something? Why's everyone acting like this?" He met my gaze and I saw his eyes were glassy and unfocused.

"I don't know."

I stepped outside of the classroom and was surprised to see a small crowd of students standing listlessly around the door and wall. Something was really wrong. I spotted an assistant principal and called out to her.

"Mrs. Velasquez! Mrs. Velasquez, are you ok?"

To my dismay, she turned to stare at me with the same dead eyes that everyone else had. "Yeah."

At this point, the crowd was growing as more kids were stopping. I saw a pattern - they noticed the crowd and came over to see what it was about, but as they approached their gait slowed. By the time they got near enough, they also assumed that zombie-like listlessness.

Near the end of the hall, a security guard appeared. He spoke something into his radio and approached. I tried to shout and warn him. "No, don't come over here! Everyone who comes over here is getting messed up!" He paused. "I'll come to you!" I shouted.

I made my way through the crowd easily. The people moved for me without any resistance. As I approached the security guard, I saw his look of concern start to fade. With every step I took towards him he slackened. Finally, when I was close, he actually dropped his walkie. It hit the ground with a loud clatter, startling me but eliciting no response from him. "Hey man, I don't know what's going on but I think we'd better call 911."

He stared at me for a second. "Ok." He said, and pulled out his phone. He unlocked it and opened the phone app slowly, as though with great effort.

I turned around to see the crowd starting to disperse. People were staring around in confusion, including Mrs. Velasquez and Mr. Odham. When she saw me and the guard, Mrs. Velasquez started marching towards us.

"Don't!" I tried to warn her, but she kept coming. A new crowd was already starting to form around me. When she was a little closer, she suddenly stopped and looked confused. I heard a tinny voice behind me and turned to see the guard staring at nothing with his phone in his hand.

"Please state your name and your emergency." The operator was saying. He gave no indication that he even heard it. Turning around, I saw Mrs. Velasquez stepping back. Suddenly it struck me - the problem was me.

Just then the second bell rang.