Traces Of Magic

~Chapter 17~

I wake up in my bed with a note stuck on my forehead. I yawn before removing it and reading the message.

I left yesterday after you fell asleep in my lap. I placed you on your bed since I figured it would be cozier than the floor. No hard feelings right? ~J

I think back to yesterday. Instantly, I am hit with all of the emotions. First, a wave of surprise washes over me as I recall Jarron being in my room and watching me. Then the forceful tide of fright drags me out into sea as I remember him grabbing me and pinning me to the back of the door then proceeding to get romantically intense. Finally, I sink into the depths of the silent ocean of sadness as my memory of pushing him off of me and running into the closet. All of this happens in the blink of an eye.

I place my hand on my forehead and shut my eyes, trying to pull myself together. My chest heaves up and down as I breathe heavily. My body starts to shake as I remember the last thing that happened: he told me he loved me. I hear a knock on my door. It creaks open and Adam sticks his head inside.

"Are you okay Mandy?" He crosses the room and sits down beside me on my bed as I take a deep breath. "Yeah. I'm okay buddy." His green eyes observe me as I take a glass of water off of my nightstand and take a sip from it. He looks down as I place my arm around him. "I heard a big bang coming from your room last night Mandy. It scared me." I pull him closer to me.

"I'm sorry Adam. Let's just say it was a rough night for me." He leans over and hugs me. As I hug him back, a lone tear snakes it's way down my face. I brush it off before Adam can see it. "Thanks Adam." He lets go of me and runs off, leaving me alone once again. I sigh before getting up to get ready for school. I'm not ready to face Jarron in the presence of his sister and Derrick. I pull my uniform on and fix my hair before leaving the house.

I tap my pencil against my notebook. It's only 3rd period, but to me, it feels like a whole day went by. I look up at the clock. 9:31am. The hands barely move. I sigh and lean back in my chair. As I twirl my pencil in the air, I hear a tapping noise coming from the window. Out of curiosity, I look out the window. Standing there in the shade of the big trees is Derrick. He smiles and gestures for me to come outside.

"Miss Shade! Please pay attention! This is going to be on the exam!" Mr. Rineheart's harsh voice causes me to look ahead at his bald head and red face.  He stares at me for a moment with his beady eyes before returning to the material he is teaching. I glance out the window, but to my disappointment, Derrick is no longer there. "That's it Miss Shade! Detention after school today!" Mr. Rinehart stands at the side of my desk and whacks my hand with a metal ruler. It hits my hand with so much force that it slices my skin where the edges are.

I stand up and place my hand in my uninjured hand as blood rolls down the sides. I mumble an excuse under my breath as I rush myself to the restroom. I stick my bloody hand in one of the sinks and turn the water on. The coldness and wetness of the gushing faucet helps to ease the stinging in my hand but doesn't help with the anger boiling up inside of me. I can see the anger as flames  licking my insides growing higher and higher until they reach my heart.

As I think that, a stream of fire burst from my uninjured sink, illuminating the restroom around me. It scorches the wall, turning everything it touches black. My skin tingles from the intense heat being given off. It takes my mind a moment to register what's happening around me. I begin to panic. I try my hardest to quit imagining flames, but my anger prevents me from doing that. I stick my flaming hand in the same sink my injured hand is in, hoping that the water could tame the flames.

Surprisingly, the water instantly turns to steam, providing no help. I hear drips and look down to see that the ceramic sink is beginning to melt. I move my hand away from the melting sink but that does nothing. The heat radiating from my hand is enough to keep the sink melting and dripping. Soon there is a big puddle underneath the half melted sink. The running water starts to pour out onto the floor, making the mess bigger. I place both hands on my head, the flames causing me no damage. I feel a warm stickiness on the side of my face. I remove my hand and look at it to see that the heat is preventing the wound to stop bleeding.

Great. So one of my hands is covered in blood while the other is engulfed in flames. Smoke builds up above me, causing the smoke alarm to go off. Water rains down from overhead, cooling me as I listen to the rest of the fire alarms go off in the hallways. Classroom doors open and kids spill out in complete chaos. I tune out the screams of terror and focus on my hands. The one is no longer covered in fire, but the one still oozes blood.

I look around the blackened room for something I could use as temporary bandages. All of the sinks are melted, one of them still spilling water on to the floor. I open one of the stalls to find a slightly melted toilet and intact toilet paper. Exactly what I needed. I wrap the paper around my hand before leaving what was left of the restroom and joining the frantic mass of people trying to exit the school.