LifeTime [Prologue]

How would you like to spend your time?

"Thank you for always being there for me :)"
She pressed 'Send SMS'. A small box appeared on the glowing white screen, confirming that the message had sent. Sara replied almost instantly,
"Haha, wats this about??"
"Just thankful to have an awesome friend like you :D"
"loll" replied Sara.

Emily had already spent 12,648HR on the Methoclenic serum and syringe.
The small vial containing the thick glassy liquid glinted in the moonlight as she held it up to her face, admiring the beautiful fatality it possessed.
As an illegal substance, Methoclenic was difficult to obtain. Emily had worked extra hours after school each day at the gas station so that she could match her LifeTime to the drug, which would after the overdose, eliminate her remaining LifeTime.

Carefully, she unscrewed the cap of the vial. It smelt strongly of rancid milk. The syringe sat at her desk, still in its packaging. She separated the syringe from the plastic and filled it with the pale solution. As she rolled up her left sleeve, she hesitated, "Will everyone be okay after I'm gone? What will happen?" Emily thought to herself. She shook it off, "We decide our own ends. Mine is tonight. People die everyday. How is my death going to be anymore significant anyway?" She said aloud.

Daniel was downstairs in the living room, probably sleeping on the couch with the TV on. Mom was coming home late from Italian class.
Taking a deep breath, Emily lifted the syringed, pushed the needle deep into her arm while squeezing down hard on the plunger. The stinging sensation lasted only a few seconds as her muscles began to loosen and relax. She dropped the vial and needle into the bin then staggered towards her bed. She lay there, feeling the Methoclenic course through her veins, burning. The screen of her phone lit up, an envelope icon glowing on the display. Her arms felt like jelly, boneless, but she mustered up all the strength she had left to check her phone one last time - it was from Sara, "remember to bring the referencing papers for the exegesis, gotta finish it quick! see u 9am! xo" Emily felt guilt wash over her. They were supposed to meet tomorrow morning at the library to conclude on their assignment for history, "Sara's going to fail because of me. Some friend I am..." she whispered.
Closing her eyes, Emily sighed one last time.

* * *

My heart beats furiously as I wait for the teacher to fire the start signal.
It goes off with a crack, a small trail of smoke rises up towards the infinite sky. The grass beneath me crumples with each step. I'm in line with the other sprinters, but no for long.
My legs weaken as I begin to fall back. I feel my stomach drop as I watch the other competitors race ahead.

I can't even keep up.

Sara and Chris cheer me on from the sidelines to keep going but it's not use, I've already stopped.

Author's Note

So basically, the concept for this story that I've been working on is that the currency for people is based in time instead of money.

No, I did not copy off 'In Time'.

I typed this up in 2010 and wanted to keep it a secret before publishing or sending it off... then a friend texts me saying that a movie came out with the exact same concept..

So I'm going to publish this anyway.
It's up to the readers whether they like this story or not, and whether they believe me or not.