Thanks, Admin! I'll try to keep post smaller. 

Hi! Not sure if anyone was too interested in this, but I'll post the next chapter anyway. 

Chapter Two

It was raining outside. I could see through the huge windows in the lunchroom, the rain, pouring down into the parking lot and the court, turning everything into a big sponge. I wanted to be out in the rain, but I’d have to wait until I’d finished my classes for that day. I loved the rain. It calmed me. Feeling the drops hitting my face and my back, vibrating my insides with every smack. It was like I was shaking all of the tension from my body.

I sat down at my usual table in the corner of the lunchroom. Chloé and Arivas, my two friends, were already there. “Hey guys,” I said.

Chloé looked up from her book, pulling her reading glasses from her nose. “Hi, Grey! How was PE?”

“The gym smells like barf,” I said passively, dropping my backpack by my feet.

“Oh, they say something really crazy happened in there during basketball tryouts…” Arivas broke in, smiling wide. She was a super gossipy girl. The kind of girl who got approximately twenty-five notes per day from random boys who had crushes on her. You’d think she’d be super shallow, but once you get to know her she’s super nice.

“What happened?” Chloé asked, scooting closer to me and Arivas.

“I heard that someone broke their arm. I think it was some boy named Jake. He barfed all over everywhere and the nurses had to take him to the hospital!” Arivas said, whispering conspiratorially.

“Isn’t he one of the boys whose always trying to get you to go to prom with them?” I said, biting into one of my three beef and cheddar sandwiches. Beef and cheddar, the best combination of flavors besides coffee with whipped cream.

“Oh, yeah, I think he is,” Arivas said and shrugged.

“How long is your list now?” Chloé teased.

“Getting longer!” Arivas said. Then she looked over and saw Chloé trying to hide her giggles. “What? Is that bad?” Arivas demanded.

“Well, it’s not bad… but seriously, how can so many boys like you and you’ve never even hugged a boy, let alone kissed one? Isn’t that kind of odd?” Chloé said.

“Well, I heard that someone fell in love with Gregory White!” Arivas said in a sort of I-told-you-so way.

Chloé blushed so hard she looked like a tomato. She shoved her glasses back onto her nose and hid in her book, Catching Fire. “I’m at a good part. Be quiet.”

“Which part?” I asked, peeking over her shoulder. I was more interested in what part of my favorite book Chloé was at than fighting over crushes.

“They’re in District 11. I’m going to start crying now.” Chloé said, sticking her nose further into the pages. I smiled slightly and leaned back, glad that Chloé was enjoying the books I had introduced her to.

“Why do you guys like those books? They’re just a big load of violence with no moral except that poverty is horrible!” Arivas said.

“Not true!” I came immediately to the books’ defense. “It has a moral. It’s about peace.”

“Peace? It’s the least peaceful trilogy ever!” Arivas said.

“Yes, but that’s the whole point. Did you even read the epilogue? Katniss ends up with Peeta because Peeta is peaceful. She says that she has enough fire herself, and Gale would just make her whole life a big angry fireball. Peeta is peaceful and hopeful, and he balances out Katniss’s hostility.” I explained.

“Ohhhh, so it’s romance.” Arivas teased. “I thought that having multiple crushes was frowned upon!” She laughed.

“Gosh, Arivas. Do you like any books?” Chloé emerged from the book to raise her eyebrows at Arivas.

“I like A Wrinkle In Time,” Arivas said after much thought.

“You like the movie A Wrinkle In Time,” Chloé interjected.

“Okay, so maybe I don’t enjoy literature. But I still like great stories! I love movies. I just don’t like reading, and you know why.” Arvias scowled at Chloé out of the corner of her eye.

“Yeah, I know. I was just teasing! You’re not really mad, right?” Chloé said.

“I’m not really mad. But I am a little annoyed!” Arivas said and began to eat Chloé’s macaroni and cheese.

“Hey!” Chloé said, knocking her hand away.

Arivas smiled at her and kept eating. Chloé sighed, giving up. She didn’t really mind when Arivas ate her food, because she didn’t eat much herself. But if Arivas ever lays fork on her fudge, I don’t think either of them will ever be the same. Chloé’s a fudge monster.

Arivas was slightly dyslexic and had a hard time reading and writing. I think that if she wasn’t dyslexic she’d be an even nerdier reader than Chloé.

“So have you guys been studying for the science test? I mean, besides you, Grey. You don’t need to study.” Arivas said, changing the subject and turning to face us.

“Guys, I’m not a prodigy. I need to study just as much as anyone else.” I said. I was pretty good in science, but I wasn’t perfect. Like astronomy, gosh, I hated astronomy.

“Yeah, but we all know you’ll get at least an A,” Chloé said, emerging from her book temporarily.

“Maybe. There have been times when I get Bs and Cs, though. I’m nowhere near perfect. Like in math. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten an A. Always A-minus or B-plus.”

“I got a D in history once,” Arivas said. “Then I was so embarrassed that I tried even harder in history. Now it’s my best class.”

“Huh. I guess determination can take you a long way.” Chloé said, descending back into her book.

I stuffed the beginning of another sandwich into my mouth, looking over the heads of my friends to see the rain outside. The sky wasn’t showing any sign of a break in the pouring. I was glad. Maybe later I could find some time outside.

I was just finishing the second sandwich when I looked up and saw Penelope Jankins, crying into her best friend’s shoulder at their lunch table. I poked Chloé in the ribs, and she nudged Arivas.

“Is she okay? Do we need to help?” Chloé whispered.

“I heard that her parents just got divorced,” Arivas said, frowning sadly.

I stayed silent.

“Oh, no. I hate it when that happens. I feel like no one respects the promise of marriage anymore.” Chloé said, slipping her bookmark into the book and closing it.

“Yeah… Penelope’s room is two down from ours. We should go later and say we’re sorry for her.” Arivas said.

I felt a kind of twisting in my stomach. My eyes began to sting. I felt a lump rising in my throat.

Another divorce. Another life ruined. Just like mine.

My mother didn’t die for no reason, you know. She died of grief. The doctors didn’t say that, but it was true. She died because she missed my father so much. They really had loved each other, once, a long time ago. But he got scared of her powers. And left us.

So I became Guardian because of a divorce. Because a marriage was ripped apart and I was left in the middle, not sure where to go after that.

I knew what was happening. I was getting angry. I was letting my feelings get out of control. My eyes unfocused over Penelope’s crying form. Darkness slowly built in the corners of my vision.

In the corner of my eye, I saw Chloé and Arivas turning to look at me.

“Grey, are you okay?” Chloé asked.

Arivas came up to me, reaching her hand out to touch me. Just before her fingers brushed my shoulder, I remembered about transmitting memories. I jerked back, but her pointer finger just barely touched me for a tiny little fraction of a second. Arivas shuddered and jerked back, too.

I stood up. “I’m skipping lunch,” I said, my voice cold, but just barely shaking under its stiffness.

“Grey, come back!” Chloé called as I turned away and walked quickly to the lunchroom doors.

Arivas didn’t say anything, just sat there rubbing her hand and looking after me, her forehead wrinkled in thought.

The library was warm, and the seat by the window was fluffy and soft. The scene outside was smeared with gray, rain clouds turning the whole sky into a big puddle of nothing. I curled into a little ball and stared out the window.

My sadness what threatening to come up, to explode out of me. I shoved it down, clenching my fists and squeezing my eyes shut. Slowly, the whispers of ghosts came into my head, nudging for my attention. I almost panicked. But I blocked out the whispering and hid my sadness and fear under a layer of cold calm. Better to be unfeeling than to hurt the people around me.

“Grey?” Chloé’s voice reached me, and I snapped my eyes open.

“Chloé. Hi.” I said, sitting up and pulling my knees up to my chin.

“Are you okay?” She asked, sitting down next to me and putting her arm around my shoulder.

“I’m fine,” I said, standing up and walking over to a bookshelf. I fingered the books’ dusty, torn spines.

“No, you’re not,” Chloé said, pulling her legs up and sitting criss-cross on the seat. “Don’t lie to me, Grey.”

“I’m not lying. I’m really fine.” I said, still not looking at her. I pulled a book off the shelf and read the cover. Oliver Twist.

“Grey, you can be honest with me. Tell me. I can help.”

I placed the book back in its place and for a moment I stared at the shelf, stiff and cold. Then I turned to face Chloé, and tears were on my cheeks.

“No, Chloé. You can’t. You can’t help.” I said.

“Yes, I can. If you tell me, I--” Chloé’s voice was rising with concern.

“No, you can’t! Can you bring my mother back to life? Can you go back in time and make my parents stay together? No, you can’t! So stop trying to make everything seem alright!” I started to shout. Then I turned and ran away, just as the bell was ringing for my next class.

I fled to the bathroom. I had left my backpack in the library. I hid in a stall and choked on my own tears, trying to keep them down. I had lost control. I couldn’t lose control. Not again. I couldn’t hurt Chloé and Arivas. I had to shut them out to protect them. If they knew… If they knew about the elementals. About Guardians. About Darkness. About me. About Mae. They’d be in danger. Only a select few normal humans are allowed to know about elementals. The ones who shouldn’t know have their memories wiped by the Guardians, and another person diagnosed with amnesia joins the surprisingly large crowd.

I had to keep the knowledge from them so that we could still be friends. So I could protect them.

I eventually stopped myself from crying, and the shadows spreading from my feet on the floor slowly disappeared. I wiped my face with a box of tissues on the back of the toilet and went back to the library. Chloé was gone. I picked up my bag from where it was lying by the seat. I left the library after one last glance out the window at the rain, still beating down on the world.

I walked into my next class, math. Second tardy in a row.

“I’m sorry, Miss Mendoza, but one more time and I’ll have to give you detention.” Mr. Blake said when I stepped in. He pointed to my seat, the third row, by the window. Next to Chloé and Arivas. I looked at them for half a second; Chloé looking back with concern, obviously noting the redness of my face. Or perhaps the paleness, and how dark the shadows on my face were. Arivas stared at me, unblinking. But she wasn’t looking at my face. She was looking somewhere around my middle. I shifted my grip on my backpack, moving it so that it was covering where the Stone lay under my shirt.

After a millisecond's thought, I chose a different chair, at the back, next to a boy with blond hair whose name I thought might be Caleb.

I tried not to look at Chloé and Arivas throughout the lesson. I wasn't really paying attention to the lesson. My mind was elsewhere. When Mr. Blake called on me, I snapped up in my chair, throwing out my neck in the process. “What? Yes, sir?”

“The answer to question 5, Mendoza. Solve for 5.” Mr. Blake looked at me over his glasses, holding the chalk in his right hand like a weapon.

“Umm… 25?” I said uncertainly, tucking a strand of my hair back under my hat.

“Correct. Moving on,” Mr. Blake said, turning back to the board.

I sighed in relief, glad my random guess had somehow been right. I looked down at my desk, where a blank sheet of paper lay. The pencil in my hand was long, the tip perfectly sharpened. The eraser was perfectly round. There were my initials at the base of the pencil, G.M.

I lifted the pencil and slowly wrote the date at the top of my paper. Then my hand glided across the page, and I closed my eyes. I could do it by heart. When I opened my eyes, I had written these words on the page,

I love you, more than anything in the whole world. You are more special to me than anyone else is.

I stared at the words. My mom’s last words. My mind wandered, drifting away from the classroom, out into the stormy day, to the memories of her. My mother...

“Mendoza!” Mr. Blake called from the front of the room.

I jumped, shocked into reality. My hand knocked into my paper, which fluttered from my desk and landed by the foot of the boy next to me, Caleb.

I gasped and dove for the paper scared that Caleb would read it. My mother’s last words were too precious for a random boy to lay eyes on.

But I was too late. Just as I reached the paper, Caleb dropped to the floor, probably to pick up the paper and read it. As his hand closed around it, mine did too. My fingers closed around his, and he looked up at me. I looked back, my heart beating so loud I was sure he could hear it.

He hesitantly let go of the paper. But as I pulled it towards me, his eyes fell on the words there, and I knew he read them. I shot up, folding the paper and sitting back down in my chair. I used my hand to block Caleb from my view and looked up at Mr. Bee.

“Yes, sir?” I asked quietly.

“Mendoza, I want all my students paying attention in class. Obviously, you weren’t writing down what I was saying, or else that page would look more full, even from over here. Let me see it.” Mr. Bee stepped closer, holding his hand out to me.

“But, sir, it’s not… Please don’t--”

“The paper, Mendoza.”

I meekly handed the paper to him and looked down at my desk, my shoulders tight as I heard Mr. Bee unfold the paper and hesitate. Then his voice rang out, loud and clear so everyone could hear him.

“I love you, more than anything in the whole world. You are more special to me than anyone else is.”

At first, there was silence. Then I heard someone whisper quietly, but just loud enough for everyone to hear, “She was trying to give it to Caleb!”

Then the room burst out in laughter. I felt myself paling.

I glanced fearfully at Caleb. Did he think I liked him?

He was sitting in his chair again. He wasn’t laughing. He wasn’t hiding his face. Instead, he was staring down at his desk with his hands folded on the desktop. Briefly, for just a moment, his eyes flitted up to me and we both looked at each other. Then I faced forward and looked down at my desk, too.

A small look up showed me that Arivas and Chloé were looking at me, Chloé with a face of worry and Arivas one of deep concern.

 

So... I guess it's not very clear what this even is. Basically, I'm writing this story and looking for constructive criticism. Just any kind of suggestion. I was hoping I could possibly get some advice here on how to improve upon my story.

Thanks, Agent Winter! Hopefully, I end up finishing it. I'm not the best at ending stories.

This is really cool, I like it! I hope you post more!

Here's the next chapter!

Chapter Three

The stars were absent from the night sky, their constant presence blotted out, leaving a space in the scene. As I started out the window into the still continuing rain, even the moon’s constant glow was missing.

I looked away from the window when the bedroom door swung open and Arivas and Chloé stepped in.

“Where were you?” I asked.

“Mailing a letter,” Chloé said, coming to sit next to me on my bed. “What’s going on with you today, Grey?” She asked, bringing her arm around me. I jerked back before she could touch me. Protecting her.

“Okay. Okay, I won’t touch you. But will you talk to me?” Chloé said, scooting a couple inches away from me.

For a moment, I almost do. I almost tell her everything, I almost cry into her shoulder, I almost ask for a hug, I almost let myself feel. But instead, I just choke out, “I can’t.”

“You can tell us anything, Grey,” Chloé said, looking over at Arivas who was settling onto her bed across from me.

“No, I can’t. Not this.” I said, pulling my knees up and hugging them to my chest. Through my shirt, I can just feel the form of the Stone. My curse. They said it would be an honor. Me, the youngest Guardian. They were wrong. It was a curse.

“Please, try. We’re your friends. We’re supposed to help you.” Chloé said.

I glanced up at Arivas. She wasn’t speaking. I wondered why.

“Please,” Chloé said, and there was so much concern in her voice I almost burst out crying.

“Can you leave me alone? Please? I’m sorry. But I can’t tell you.” My voice was quiet, shaking slightly.

“Is it about your parents’ divorce? Did Penelope remind you about that?”

“Can. you. leave. me. Alone? Please?” I said, a little rudely.

Chloé sighed. “Okay. But if you ever want to talk… You know where to find us.”

She stood up and went to her bed, dropping her backpack and beginning to unload her books from it. I turned to look at Arivas. Our eyes met, and she leaned in.

“Can you wake up at 4:30?” She asked, quietly.

“What?” I was confused. I thought she would be trying to convince me to talk to her, too.

“Set your alarm, when you wake up, turn it off immediately. Don’t wake up Chloé.”

Then she turned away and grabbed her pajamas from her bed. She stood up and left, heading for the bathroom to change her clothes for bed.

For a moment I sat still. I just watched the door. Then I grabbed my alarm clock and set my alarm to wake me up at 4:30 am the next morning. Whatever she had to tell me, I was going to be there to listen.

Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!

My eyes shot open and I sat up. I grabbed my alarm clock and hit the button to stop it beeping. I glanced over at Chloé. She slept through anything. She rolled over in bed and mumbled something about a letter.

I fingered the smooth, round alarm clock. It was shiny gray with white numbers. My dad had gotten it for me on my birthday, the birthday after he and mom split. Right before mom died. I used it all the time, and it served more as a reminder of mom than of him.

I looked up and saw Arivas, already awake. She was sitting criss-cross on her bed, looking at me.

“I’ve got something to show you.” She said.

“What is it?” I asked, rubbing my eyes. I hadn’t slept much. The ghosts were particularly loud that night.

“Keep your voice down.” She whispered. “And come here.”

I moved across to her bed, and we sat facing each other. She glanced to Chloé. Still fast asleep. Arivas reached her hand down to her pocket and pulled out a pair of scissors.

“What is that for?” I asked.

“Give me your hand,” Arivas said, reaching out and grabbing it before I could respond.

“Sorry about this,” She said, and as quick as a flash, she closed the scissors halfway around my pointer finger and then pulled them away.

“Ah!” I gasped, jerking back in shock. “Why did you do that?” I said.

I held up my hand. Two, small, twin cuts on either side of my finger were bleeding slightly. It wasn’t a really bad cut.

“Don’t worry, I sterilized the scissors. Just in case you’re worried about that sort of thing.” Arivas said, placing the scissors on her bedside table. “Now give me your hand again.”

I held my hand close to myself, leaning back. “Why would I do that? You almost chopped my finger off.” I said.

“Come on, Grey. I’m your friend. I won’t really hurt you.” Under her breath, I thought I heard her whisper, “I’m actually doing rather the opposite,”

“Fine,” I said, holding out my hand.

She picked up a cup of water from her bedside table and held it under my finger. She took a breath and lowered my hand into the cool water. The water turned slightly darker with my blood.

Arivas closed her eyes, and for just a second, nothing happened. Then, the water began to glow. Just slightly. And then it’s light grew brighter and brighter. I took in a breath, my shoulders tightening.

Then the glowing stopped. All of a sudden, the light was gone. The blood in water was, too. Arivas opened her eyes, gasping just slightly. “Look at your hand,” She said, pulling the cup away and placing it on her bedside table.

I slowly raised my hand up and studied my finger. Two tiny white lines held the place of the cuts. My finger was giving off a slight aura of light. As I watched, the white lines, scars, disappeared altogether.

I looked at Arivas, who was looking at me. “You’re an elemental,” I said, a little in awe. I had actually never met another elemental besides my mom and the Guardians.

“Yes,” Arivas said.

“A water elemental!” I said, smiling. “And you can heal!” I said, looking at my finger again.

“Yeah, can’t all water elementals do that?” Arivas said.

“Actually, no. It’s, like… really rare.” I said, smiling at my finger, feeling how smooth it was.

“Oh. Well, that’s a discovery.” Arivas said. “I don’t heal very well. The biggest thing I’ve ever healed was when my brother broke his pinky-toe, and it was probably only a little crack in the bone anyway. So, not that amazing. I can manipulate water, too. But I’m not as good at it.”

She looked at me, a little sneakily. “What I’m really interested in is what you can do.”

I halted my smiling and turned to look at her.

“When you were upset in the lunchroom, my finger touched your shoulder. Just the tiniest little touch. And with that little touch, you transmitted a memory to me. I only got a glimpse, because you moved away so fast. I don’t even know what it was a memory of. But only powerful elementals can transmit memories.” Arivas scooted closer, excited. “Please, show me? I’ve never ever met another elemental, at least, not that I know of.”

I hesitated. No, I didn’t hesitate, I froze. “Arivas… I can’t.”

“Why not? It would be great! You and I, secretly elementals! Please show me.”

“No, it’s not like that. I can’t. Like, If I did… You wouldn’t want to be around me anymore.”

Arivas sat back, a little shocked. “Why?” She asked.

“Because… Because I…” I put my face in my hands. After a moment of silence, I looked up and slowly reached down to the neckline of my shirt. On the left side, I pulled it down just slightly. “Look,” I said.

Arivas looked at my face for a second, perplexed, but then she trained her eyes on my hand. I pulled my neckline down just a little farther, and there it was.

“Oh, wow,” Arivas said. “That’s why.”

The Stone. I had never shown it to anyone before. I quickly let go and my shirt sprung back into place.

“You’re… a Guardian. The Guardian of Darkness. You’re the Guardian of Darkness.” Arivas whispered, still staring at where the Stone would be under my shirt.

“Yes, I am,” I said. Then I did something crazy.

“Watch this,” I said.

I got off the bed and walked into the corner of the room, which was slightly shadowy. I closed my eyes and took a breath.

This is crazy. I thought.

But I couldn’t go back now. I touched one finger to the wall, and suddenly, the shadow grew darker and darker. It covered me like a blanket. I was invisible. I opened my eyes, wishing the shadow away. I stopped touching the wall and stepped out of the corner.

Arivas was sitting on the bed staring at me. “Imagine… having that much power. Is it fun?” She suddenly burst out, grabbing me and pulling me onto the bed.

“Tell me!” She said, smiling.

“No.”

“No what?”

“No, it isn’t fun,” I said the word scornfully, crossing my arms and looking down at the blankets under me.

“Oh. Why not?” Arivas asked, slowing down. Getting quieter. “I thought that it would be… fun.” She said hesitantly.

“Here. I’ll show you.” I said. I couldn’t hurt her with a memory. I held out my hand to her. Arivas hesitated. Then she looked at me, determined, the shadows on my face darkening.

“Okay. But… Don’t… do anything. Anything bad.” She said. She gave me her hand, and I closed my eyes, calling up the memory.

It was dark. So dark I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face, so dark that I could have been anywhere and not known it. It was like being in a huge black chasm. I was trying to sleep. To rest. To escape the real world and hide in the dream world.

But when I close my eyes, I hear them. The ghosts. Whispering.

It’s not your fault. It’s not your fault. Over and over and over, they whisper, as one.

I pull the pillow out from under my head and clamp it over my ears, trying to block out the sounds of the dead. The dead, who would haunt me forever.

It’s not your fault. It’s not your fault. It’s not your--

The memory ended, suddenly. I opened my eyes, looked over and saw Arivas, holding one hand in the other, leaning away from me.

She looked at me and I saw real fear in her eyes.

“Arivas, I’m sorry. Did I scare you? I didn’t think… I’m sorry.” I said, lowering my hand and turning to face her.

“It’s fine. Just… Ghosts. Ghosts are real?” Arivas said shakily.

“Apparently. I can hear them now if I stop trying to block them out.” I said. “But usually I don’t listen.”

“Why not? What if they have something important to tell you?”

“They don’t. It’s always the same. It’s not your fault.” I said, bitterly.

“Is it? I mean, what happened that’s not your fault?” Arivas asked.

“It was my fault, though. I lost control. I hurt someone I loved.” I said, looking down, clenching my fists. I would not cry. I would not lose control now. Not now.

“I’m sorry, Grey. I didn’t know.” Arivas said. “Can I hug you?”

I hesitated, in the motion of pulling away. But for the first time in years, I said it. I let her.

“Okay,”

Arivas moved closer, wrapping her arms around me and putting her head on my shoulder. For a second I was stiff. But then I relaxed. I let myself fall into her. Everything would be alright. No one would find out about my powers. My friends were safe. It would mean keeping it a secret from only Chloé, which would be harder than keeping it a secret from both of them, but I could do it. She wouldn’t find out. It wouldn’t be my fault.

“I didn’t know. I’m sorry.” Arivas repeated.

“I didn’t know, either.”

I jumped out of Arivas’s hug and whirled around to see Chloé, sitting up in bed, wide awake.

 

Here's the next chapter. I've got up to chapter 13 already written, so I guess I'll just post a chapter every day.

Chapter Four 

Three days at the most. Three days until Chloé would have her memory wiped, and there was nothing I could do. Even though I was a guardian, I couldn’t do anything. I’d be outvoted. I was going to lose Chloé. Her memory would return. After years not knowing anything, it would come back, but without any memories of elementals.

It was all my fault.

“Grey? Are you okay?” Arivas’s voice reached me through my thoughts.

We were sitting at lunch together. Chloé was still trying to digest the facts about elementals Arivas had told her yesterday, but so far, she hadn’t fainted once, which I honestly thought was an achievement. She kept looking around swiftly like she was wondering if someone behind her was an earth elemental and was about to drop a rock on her head.

“Arivas… I have to talk to you about something.” I said.

Arivas nodded and swung her hand out to the side, knocking my cup of water into my lap. I gasped and stood up, looking down at my lap. 

“Arivas!” I said.

“Oh no! Come on Grey! Let’s get to the bathroom!” Arivas said loudly. “We’ll be right back Chloé!” She called over her shoulder as she hauled me from the lunchroom, past the tables of kids seated in little huddles of friends.

As we ran past a certain table, a boy nudged his friend in the ribs. His friend looked up and I saw it was Caleb. Caleb blushed and looked down, and the whole table burst out laughing.

“Don’t pay attention to them, Grey,” Arivas whispered, and we kept walking. I was sure I was blushing.

We exited the lunchroom and Arivas pulled me into the bathroom just outside. She pulled me into the largest stall and shoved me in, following behind. She locked the door and turned to face me.

“So what did you want to talk to me about?” She asked.

“Okay, first of all, next time spill water on your own lap. Secondly, I need to talk about Chloé.”

“What about her?” Arivas asked.

“I don’t think you understand what it means that she knows about elementals.”

“Of course I do. It means that none of us have to keep secrets from each other.”

“No, it’s more than that. And it’s not good.”

Arivas saw how serious I was being, and her smiling face disappeared.

“You know how… well, normal people, people without powers, aren’t supposed to know about elementals. It causes problems. Sometimes it causes wars. People get scared of our power, they think we’ll take over. So the Guardians make sure that we stay secret.”

“Yeah…?” Arivas said.

“Sometimes people find out about elementals. And the Guardians have to… well, first they decide if it would be okay for that person to know. And they only ever say yes if the person is in a relationship with an elemental, like getting married. Most of the time they decide that it’s not alright. And they…”

“What do they do?” Arivas said. She was getting nervous, pulling on her blond hair anxiously.

“They wipe the memories of whoever found out about the elementals,” I said hurriedly, worried about how she would react.

For a second Arivas was silent. Then she said, “But can’t you stop them? I mean, you’re a Guardian. Can’t you make them change their minds?”

“No. I’d be outvoted.”

“We’re going to lose Chloé. She’s going to forget everything!” Arivas said.

“The memories do come back…” I said, and Arivas’s face brightened too much I realized just how sad she had been a moment ago. “After years. Years and years. Apparently, the Guardians haven’t found a way to erase just one memory or make them come back quicker.

“It’s my fault. I should have made sure she slept.” I sighed.

“You couldn’t change her waking up any more than I could. If anyone’s to blame, it’s me, for not thinking to talk to you when she wasn’t around.” Arivas said, stepping back and leaning against the wall.

“No, I could have made her sleep,” I said.

“How?” Arivas asked, still pulling on her hair.

“It’s part of being Guardian of Darkness. Darkness is the element of shadow, of death, and of sleep. I can induce sleep, just a little.” I said.

“Oh. Should we tell her?” Arivas asked. 

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s better for her not to worry.”

“But I’d want to know. And so would you. And I feel like… it’s our fault. We’ve chosen for her, almost. Just because she overheard a conversation…”

She trailed off, and for a moment there was silence.

“We should tell her. Tonight.” I said.

“Yeah.” Arivas straightened up, and I saw her wiping tears from her eyes.

“Arivas. You’re crying.” I said. I wasn’t really sure why I said it. I just felt like I should comfort her. I didn’t know if I’d be any good at comforting, but it felt better than just letting her cry.

“Are you okay?” I asked, moving closer. Somewhere in the back of my head, I was thinking, This is weird. I hate it when people do this to me, and yet here I am.

But the louder, more worried-for-Arivas part of my brain was thinking, I need to help her through this.

So I walked up to her and after just a millisecond of hesitation, I put my arms around her in a big hug. 

“I’m worried that this is our fault. Isn’t there anything we can do?” Arivas said into my shoulder. I could feel her leaning into my hug.

“I can try to make them change their mind, but… I don’t have a guarantee they will.” I said. I could feel tears in my eyes, too. But I wouldn’t let them come. It could get out of control.

I wanted to cry with Arivas. I really did. I wanted to tell her about how I was blaming myself, I wanted to tell her about Mae. How it had been my fault, and it was this time, too.

Arivas began to sob into my shoulder. Her knees began to give way, and we sank to the floor. Her tears were soaking my shirt. I hugged her a little tighter.

“It’s like… It’s like if she died. But worse, because I know it’s going to happen. And I can’t do anything to stop it!” Arivas said through her tears.

“I know. I’m sorry.” I whispered. A single tear slipped from my eye, and I fought to keep the ocean back.

After a while, Arivas’s crying slowed. Then it stopped entirely. But she stayed attached to me, in my arms, her breathing shaky.

“I think… I think I can go out now.” She said, and stood up, helping me up too.

“Now it looks more like I spilled a whole pitcher of water on you,” She said, almost laughing.

“Yeah. How are we going to explain this to Chloé?” I said, looking down at myself. My jeans were soaked from the water, my shoulders from Arivas’s tears. It looked like a bunch of tiny rainclouds had rained on specific parts of my body.

“I think we should tell her about the memory thing,” Arivas said, wiping her eyes with her arm.

“The memory thing? That’s what we’re calling this?” I said, giggling. Giggling, though it wasn’t a happy giggle.

“Yes. The memory thing.” Arivas confirmed.

She unlocked the stall and swung the door open. We stepped out and Arivas walked to one of the sinks. She splashed water on her face, then dried it with a towel. She looked in the mirror.

“I look like someone punched me,” She said and turned away.

“Let’s go,” I said, wrapping my arm around her. We walked to the bathroom door and left, entering the hallway and then the lunchroom.

We started weaving our way through the tables, and I thought about Chloé. It was like her dying. She wouldn’t ever remember anything. She’d forget everything. Everything. Her name, where she lived, her favorite color. Her friends.

As we passed the table where Caleb had been sitting, something hit me in the head. I whirled around. “Hey!”

It hadn’t hurt, but it sure was annoying. The whole table was pretending to be looking at their phones except for Caleb and some other random kid. Caleb was staring down at his lunch tray and blushing like a beet. It didn’t compliment his hair. 

I rolled my eyes at all the boys at the table and looked down to see what had hit me.

“Here,” Arivas said, kneeling down. She picked up a ball of paper. 

On it was a slip of tape with Open! written on it in sharpie. I sighed and un-balled the paper. On it was scrawled:

Love from Caleb!

It looked like someone had tried to yank the pen from whoever was writing it, smearing the ink all over everywhere.

I rolled my eyes again and ripped the paper in half. One of the boys began to snicker. I was about to turn away, but then I went back to their table. I knew they were expecting me to be mad, or annoyed, or something and they wanted me to walk off in a huff. So I did the opposite.

I walked right up to Caleb and held out the pieces of paper. The whole table was staring at me, surprised by my actions. I don’t think they realized how dumb they looked.

“You dropped something,” I said to Caleb.

He looked up at me, still blushing. “That wasn’t my idea, you know.”

“Yeah, I could figure that out. Tell your jerk friends I take karate.”

With that, I turned around and went back to Arivas. I linked arms with her and we continued on our way to our table, leaving Caleb looking after me and all the other boys wondering if I was wearing a black belt with my jeans.

“I didn’t know you take karate,” Arivas whispered to me.

“I don’t. But now they think I do, so they’ll leave me alone.” I said, smiling a little.

“You know, Caleb’s a nice kid,” I commented.

Arivas shrugged her shoulders. “Meh. But I hear that he lives on a farm in the countryside and owns three horses.”

“That just makes him nicer,” I said, smiling.

It’s strange how sadness can melt away in a moment, replaced by joy. Or maybe it was just that one time.

Just as we reached our table and Chloé started to talk to me about how awesome I looked talking to Caleb the bell rang for our next class.

“Hurry up, guys! And Grey, I have no idea how you got wetter while you were gone, but I don’t think Mr. Blake will like it.” Chloé said, tossing me my bag.

I smiled at her. Maybe soon she would be gone. But I wouldn’t ruin the time we had left by always being sad about it.

I'm cutting the chapter in half because it's kind of long and I don't want to pester the admins with lengthy posts. I'll post the second half later.

This story is really good! Kudos to you for sitting down and writing so much! I love the world-building so much and I'm excited to see what happens next! I hope you stick with this. I only have one bit of constructive criticism: I'm a bit confused-- How much does Grey's dad know about Elemantals? At first you said his whole family knew nothing, but later you said he moved away/got divorced because he was scared of grey and her mom's powers, implying that he knew about him. Could you clear it up for me?

Here's the rest of chapter four! :)

-----------------------

We weren’t late for math, luckily, or I’d have gotten detention. We got in and sat down a little later than usual, so there weren’t that many seats still open. Our usual seats were full. There weren’t three open seats next to each other anywhere in the classroom.

“Here,” I said, pointing. Three seats in a row, back to back, by the windows. We’d be as near to each other as possible.

I took the seat in the middle, Chloé took the one in the back, Arivas in the front. I sat down just as Caleb and his jerk friends entered the room. Next to me was an open seat, and I knew I’d be sitting next to one of those boys because we had a full classroom and they were the last to arrive.

I clenched my jaw at the thought of having to put up with one of the boys and set my gaze to the front of the room where Mr. Blake was counting heads.

I heard a little gasp and one of the boys whispered, a little too loudly, “Who’s going to sit next to the karate girl?”

Obviously, he meant me. Apparently, they were all really afraid of girls who know karate.

I heard a rustling and a scraping of chairs, and I guessed they were all rushing to the nearest chair that wasn’t next to me. Musical chairs. One would be left out.

I glanced up. Caleb was standing by the door, still blushing, staring at me fearfully. All his ‘friends’ were seated. He was the one left.

Inwardly, I groaned, and maybe a little outwardly, too, because I heard Chloé whisper from behind me, “It’ll be fine. The worst that’ll happen is he’ll make fun of you.”

“That’s not what I’m worried about,” I whispered without turning my head. “I just really don’t want to feed the rumors that I like him,”

Caleb slowly and stiffly made his way towards me, plopping his bag down by his feet and sitting down in the chair.

“Okay, people!” Mr. Blake dropped his attendance binder into a drawer. “How is everyone? Good? Good? Good!”

I sighed at his usual greeting. Sometimes it was a little irritating, always the same thing. Especially when you were having a bad day, and he just assumed it was “Good? Good? Good!”

I put my elbow on the desk and my chin in my hand. I zoned out for the beginning of the lesson. I was listening, sure, so that I wouldn’t get an F. I usually got an A or an A-minus in math. It wasn’t my worst class though. My worst was history. Gosh, I hated history. Honestly, I didn’t really care what my ancestors were doing. Sure the Egyptians were a little interesting, and the Age of Exploration was pretty cool but other than that I really didn’t care.

I’d rather to science, my favorite. Simple, unchangeable rules. Things that you found out once, and never needed to look at again. Stark, clear, simple, understandable--

My train of thought was stopped by a paper sliding into my lap. I looked down, surprised. It was folded twice into a small square. On it was written in careful handwriting,

Caleb

I raised my eyebrows, glancing over at Caleb. He was watching Mr. Blake, but I saw his eyes flit over to me and then shoot back to the front of the room.

I reached down and silently unfolded the paper, looking up at the front occasionally to make sure Mr. Blake didn’t notice. I looked down at the paper, reading the words written there.

Sorry about my jerk friends. They’re not really my friends, actually. Do you actually take karate?

For a moment, I stare at the words. Then I pick up a pen.

No. But don’t you dare tell anyone that, or I’ll have to find a new way to stop people from teasing me.

I folded the paper again, then silently passed it to Caleb. He opened it, read, and I saw him carefully writing down his response. A moment later, the note was back in my hands.

Caleb had written,

I’m sorry about the teasing. I’m sorry I read what you were writing down.

I take a breath in. I knew Caleb wasn’t a jerk, but I thought maybe he’d be less… apologetic.

It’s fine, it’s not your fault. But don’t think I was writing that for you.

My hand was shaking slightly. I passed the note back. When it returns, Caleb had responded.

Were you writing it for somebody else? You don’t have to answer any of these questions, by the way.

I hesitated. Should I let this random boy know how close to my heart those words were? Before I could change my mind, I wrote,

No. It’s something someone once said to me.

Vague, but then I wouldn’t have to pretend I had a crush on somebody else. I passed the note back, and it returned quickly.

Who?

His handwriting looked quicker, slightly messier.

My mother.

It came back.

Oh, okay. 

I was glad he wasn’t asking any more questions. But for some reason, who knows why my hand glided across the page and I wrote back,

She’s dead now.

It took a long time for Caleb to write his response.

I’m sorry. It’s hard to respond correctly when someone says something like that, because ‘I’m sorry,’ doesn’t really sum it up. 

Then, below his response, written like an afterthought,

My aunt died a few years back, so I almost know how you feel.

I took a long time to write back.

Thank you.

Just as I was passing the note back, I heard some boy’s voice calling out loudly, “Caleb and Grey are passing notes!”

A few boys snickered, and I heard Chloé and Arivas groan sadly.

“Let me see that,” Mr. Blake said, coming over and holding out his hand. Once again, I passed the paper to him and he unfolded it. I saw him preparing to read aloud. Then he stopped.

“I’m giving you extra homework, Mendoza. You too, Peterson.” He said, addressing me and Caleb. “Don’t think you can get out of something like this. I will not tolerate notes being passed in my class.”

I heard Caleb whisper quietly to me out of the corner of his mouth after Mr. Blake walked away, “Sorry.”

“It’s fine, it wasn’t your fault,” I whispered back.

After the class was dismissed, Mr. Blake called me and Caleb to the front. Before I saw them leave, both Arivas and Chloé exchanged sympathetic looks with me. 

“You two need to pay more attention, be more respectful. I won’t tolerate this. No matter how much you two… like each other--”

“Mr. Blake!” I interrupted loudly. 

He raised his eyebrows at me, hands on his desk, mid-gesture. “Yes, Mendoza?”

“Sorry, sir. But, um… I’d like to… uh, correct you about that statement you just made.” I glanced at Caleb as I spoke. “I am not in love with anyone,” I said, gesturing to myself.

“Alright, well, anyhow, I can’t have you two passing notes. I’m glad your friends--”

“We’re not friends,” I said.

“Alright. That’s fine. Just no passing notes. Now for your extra homework. I want you to do three extra lessons and be prepared to demonstrate in front of the board when the rest of the class catches up to you. It never hurts to be a little ahead.”

“Yes, sir,” I said.

“You are dismissed. Don’t be late for your next class, Mendoza.” Mr. Blake stood up and began to prepare things for his next class.

“Thank you, sir,” I turned around and hurriedly left the room, itching to get away from Caleb. I felt awkward, having declared that we didn’t love each other. And then having declared that we weren’t friends. Were we friends? No, I hardly knew him. I didn’t want to be friends with a boy. It always went wrong, and people started to assume you two are dating or something, which is stupid because I strongly believe dating should wait until you’re 15.

I heaved my backpack up onto my back and started walking to my next class, science. I really didn’t want to be late for science. Mrs. White was my teacher in that class, and I loved her. She was clear, straightforward, and easy to understand.

As I walked I noticed Caleb had just come out of the classroom. He looked up and saw me quickly walking away.

“Grey!” He called out, and I groaned quietly.

Caleb ran up behind me and grabbed my shoulder. I whirled around, pulling myself from his grip.

“Don’t touch me,” I said. Then, as an awkward afterthought, I added, “Please.”

“Okay, I won’t touch you. Is it okay that I call you Grey?” Caleb asked.

“I don’t know what else you would call me, because if you called me by my last name it would sound like you were a teacher,” I said.

“Okay. So, um, back in the classroom… what you just said… It isn’t really true.” Caleb shrugged.

“What do you mean? We’re not in love, and we hardly know each other enough to say we’re friends.” I said, adjusting my backpack so its straps covered where the stone lay under my shirt. I always did that when I was nervous.

“Well, I’d like to be friends. Can we?” Caleb asked anxiously.

I was about to just say no and turn away, but I thought for a second. “You’re nice, Caleb. Unlike most of the boys here, you’re nice.” My face was darkening, my body stiffening. “You’re better off staying as far away from me as you can.”

I turned away and began to walk quickly down the hall, my steps echoing through the silence.

“Why?” His voice suddenly rang out.

Why.

I didn’t turn to face him, but I did stop walking. “Because the closer you get to me, the more dangerous everything you do will be.” 

I kept walking, leaving him in the hallway. 

I didn’t know why I had said so much. It was stupid of me, now I felt like crying. I couldn’t cry. I couldn’t hurt the people I loved. Why had Caleb been so persistent? Why hadn’t he just taken an obvious declaration of how I didn’t want to be paired with him?

Why had I gotten so close to the truth when I talked to Caleb? I had almost wanted to tell him about Chloé. But I knew that if I did, it would mean another memory wiped, another person’s life ruined because of me. Why couldn’t I just keep everything to myself? 

Why.

I was late to science, but just barely. I explained I had to stay a little longer in Mr. Blake’s class, and Mrs. White let me off.

“Just try not to be late again, or you’ll miss the beginning of class.” Mrs. White said with a smile. She knew I loved her class, and she was nice to me because of it. Teachers are like that. If you want them to like you, give them a compliment and you have an immediate “actually I won’t give you detention.”

I sat down between Arivas and Chloé, who had saved me a seat. I’m sure they noticed my tears as the class went on. I never raised my hand once, even though I knew all the answers. Mrs. White called on me anyway, like no matter what I did I was the science girl and I had to answer the questions.

Mrs. White had just finished assigning our homework when the bell rang for the end of the day. I stood up quickly, not waiting for Arivas and Chloé as I usually did. I felt jumpy all of a sudden, and scared. I was worried something would make me lose control. In a classroom of that size, no one would be safe.

I exited and immediately started making my way to my room. I shared it with Arivas and Chloé. It was on the top floor like all the other dorms, on the right side of the school, looking at it from the parking lot, with all the other girl’s rooms also on that side.

It was a large room since it was meant for three, but it wasn’t uncomfortably large. There were three windows, each above the three small beds. The beds had drawers in them where we kept our clothes, and next to each bed was a bedside table. Our room was right near the bathroom, which meant we were always first in line for showers.

My bed was on the left side of the room, in the corner away from the door. My window had white curtains covering its panes, blocking the bright light of the clear day outside. The rain had been swept away. 

The first thing I did when I got into the room was to toss my backpack onto my bed and rip open the curtains. I dropped myself onto the bed, burying my face in the pillows. I would not cry. I would not let myself get out of control. I had to stay together, for my friends. For them, to protect them.

What was wrong with me?

Something Caleb had said had really gotten to me. Or something I said.

I guess saying aloud what I had been thinking, that I was dangerous, that no one should come near me, had made me realize how horrible my situation was. I was scared of myself, of my own power, and I couldn’t allow myself to get near anyone for their own safety. I couldn’t tell anyone about being a Guardian, or really any details about my mom’s death, without deciding their fate for them. Without revealing elementals and condemning them to lose their memory.

The door swung open and my friends stepped in.

“Grey, what happened with Caleb?” Chloé asked, plopping down onto my bed next to me.

I stayed face down but turned my head so I could speak without the pillow muffling my voice. “I don’t know,”

“Do you want to talk about it?” Arivas asked, also sitting down on my bed.

I was angry now, not sad. I was angry about everything, how my life had ended up, how I couldn’t talk to my friends. How they wouldn’t just leave me alone. If they stopped asking, I wouldn’t have to keep pushing them away. I was angry at their comfort, I was angry about them caring for me.

“I want to, but I can’t,” I said. I felt my shoulders and chest tighten with the effort of holding my tears in.

“Why not? Now that I know about elementals, you can tell me anything. Even about them. Even about your powers.” Chloé said. I knew she was happy that she knew about elementals. I knew that her knowledge, that she was so glad she had, would soon ruin her life. Erase her life from her memory.

“Chloé… I have something to tell you.” I whispered.

Arivas stiffened. Chloé picked up on the tone of my voice and when she responded, I could hear the worry in hers. “What?” She asked.

I sat up, slowly. 

How to begin? How to tell someone that within three days they wouldn’t remember anything at all?

I took a deep breath and began before I could change my mind, convince myself that it would be better for Chloé to be happy. “Normal humans--not elemental normal, I mean-- they aren’t supposed to know about us. Elementals. We’re supposed to be a secret. People get scared by our power and they think that we want to take over everything. So… we thought of a system. The Guardians, I mean. They… they somehow find out if anybody discovers about the elementals. I don’t know how. I’ve never really asked, and I don’t think I’m even allowed to know until I’m eighteen. But, the point is, once they find out, they go to whoever discovered elementals and they… they erase their memory.”

While I was talking, Chloé’s face got stiller and stiller, until she just had a blank expression on. The only thing that showed any emotion were her eyes, which faintly reflected worry and fear.

She was about to speak, but I wanted her to know everything I could tell her. “Your memory will come back. In… a couple years.” I felt bad, suddenly, telling her all this horrible news. I wished Arivas would do some talking too.

“How do they do it?” She choked out, her voice suddenly sounding like it hadn’t been used in a hundred years.

“I don’t know. Another thing I’ll learn when I’m eighteen.”

Wordlessly, Arivas wrapped her arm around Chloé’s shoulder and pulled her into a side hug.

“So, that means that… that I… that they’re coming for me?” She asked, looking at me, desperate I would say no. That I would say anything besides yes.

“Yes,” I said, looking down. I felt tears in my eyes. But I fought them down.

“How long?” She asked. I suppose that she had guessed that if there was any hope of changing her fate I would have told her already.

“Within three days,” I whispered. “I’m sorry,”

Chloé stayed still, tears slowly tracking their way down her cheeks. “Don’t be,” She said suddenly.

“What?” I asked.

“Don’t be sorry. There’s no point in… wasting our time.” She said.

“Do you want to go to bed? Rest?” Arivas asked gently, brushing a strand of hair from Chloé’s face.

“No. I don’t want this day to end. Can we stay up late?” She asked.

“Yes. Let’s stay up as late as we can.” Arivas said.

We grabbed all the blankets and pillows and made a pile on my bed, hiding underneath it. We all changed into pajamas and closed the curtains and switched out the lights, leaving just my bedside table light on. We talked, rambling on and on about the surprisingly few memories we had together. We had only known each other since the beginning of the school year. 

As we talked, conversation slowly turned to family, and I went silent as I always did. I wasn’t trying to make anyone ask me questions, because I wanted that night to be for Chloé, not me. But it was Chloé who asked me, so I had to answer.

“Do you want to talk about your family, Grey?” She asked me softly. 

Under the blankets, her hand inched closer to mine. Slowly, her fingers wrapped around my hand. Her grip was tight but not painful, and I could pull away at any time. But I didn’t.

“When I was six, my father and mother split up. My dad wasn’t a bad person, he was just scared of my mother. There had been an accident, and he had gotten hurt. She had been sorry, but he could never look at her the same. So he left. Mom was so devastated. Right after my eleventh birthday, she died of sadness. She missed my father. She really had loved him, a lot.

“My father remarried to a woman named Cadence. She had a daughter already from a previous marriage, named Sasha. My stepmother hated me, she thought I was dangerous. And I was. I almost killed her daughter once.” 

Arivas gasped a little. 

“Not like that,” I explained. “Sometimes… I lose control of my powers. What I showed you, Arivas, and what you saw, Chloé, that was nothing. I can do amazing things. Amazing and horrible things.”

My eyes unfocused, remembering all the things I had done. I shook myself.

“Then there was an accident. I’d rather not go into details,”

My voice stayed calm, but in my head, it was like a war was raging. My memory kept flashing back to that day and I kept fighting to keep myself controlled. I felt myself start to shake, my shoulders and stomach tight.

“When I was younger, my best friend was a girl named Mae. She wasn’t elemental, she didn’t know anything about them. She started asking me questions about my family.” I suddenly yanked my hand from Chloé’s and moved a few inches to the side. I didn’t want her touching me, because if I did lose control, she’d get a blast of my memories and be enveloped in shadow.

“I lost control. Mae got knocked over. She hit her head.” I started choking on the tears I was keeping down. “She died.”

Arivas sniffed. Chloé shifted. 

“Grey, has your father ever offered you a therapist?” She asked softly.

For a moment I was shocked. A therapist. Would that have helped? Maybe I did need one. But then my mind corrected itself. “No. And it wouldn’t be of any use. I can’t tell anyone about elementals without… without…”

“Memories,” Chloé whispered.

“Yes,” I said.

“Can I hug you?” Chloé asked.

“If I lose control of myself, then you could get hurt--” I begin to say, but Chloé interrupts.

“If that happens, just make sure you remember it was my choice.”

Her arms close around me and I go tight. But after a moment, Arivas joins the hug. I let myself relax, just a little. I still fight down the memories though. I’d already ruined enough lives.