The next chapter (Also cut in half… oh well, my chapters are hopelessly long)!

Chapter Seven 

I don’t know how long we waited. A couple of times the earth would start rumbling and it would feel like a mini earthquake was causing the whole world to shiver. Then the earth would calm and everything would be still again. I assumed that when things started to shake it meant that Ciel was getting angry.

I stayed by the brazier, watching the fire. It flickered in little tongues, giving off light and warmth that somehow never seemed to touch me. I reached out my hand once to feel the warmth more, but the flames seemed to shirk from my fingers, and the shadows on my hand got no lighter.

Caleb didn’t move after I left him. He stayed standing, just staring at the ground. I felt bad. But I knew it was to protect him.

Once again I was caught in the loop, needing comfort but knowing that everyone who would comfort me would be in huge danger.

Eventually, I got tired of waiting for the other Guardians. I stared at the dome of earth and scowled. It shouldn’t be taking this long.

“I wish I could be in there,” I whispered under my breath.

I stood up easily, but I had the strange feeling of being pulled from something. I looked down and almost screamed. I wasn’t solid. I was whispy white, transparent, like the ghosts I saw sometimes.

I whirled around and saw something even scarier. There, sitting on the ground, was me. My body. For a moment all I could think was, I must be dead. I must have died right there an now I’m a ghost.

Then I calmed myself, just enough. Hold on, Grey. Keep it together.

I looked down at myself again. My eyes were closed gently, and when I looked closer I saw my chest rising and falling. I was breathing. Good. I wasn’t dead.

Maybe this was another one of those weird powers that came with being a Guardian. I stared at myself, sitting by the base of the brazier.

Pale, angular face. Short. Thin. My hair was black and straight and hung down to my waist in a waterfall of smoothness.

I looked at myself for a little longer. Then I experimentally held out my hand to touch myself. As my finger got closer, I had the sense of being pulled into myself, being sucked back into my body. I resisted, trying to stay standing, and I yanked my finger back. The pulling stopped immediately.

Strange.

I turned to the brazier. I reached out a finger and this time there was no effect. Hesitantly, I brushed the brazier with my finger. Normal. But then I pushed on the brazier, and my hand melted through it. I couldn’t see my fingers, they were passing through the metal.

I gasped and pulled my hand back. So I could go through solid objects? I smiled.

I walked around the edge of the chamber, not wanting my friends to see me and ask any questions. When I reached the dome, I held out my hand and touched its surface. Another odd thing, I couldn’t feel anything under my hand. I couldn’t feel anything physical at all. Like a ghost. I couldn’t stop comparing myself to the dead. I called up the image of my body, breathing. I was alive. I couldn’t be a ghost!

I pushed against the earth dome and immediately fell through it like it was nothing. I found myself standing by the table. The Guardians were all seated in their thrones. They were talking quietly, but I could guess they were split in half. Earth and Air wanting to erase Chloé and Caleb’s memories, Water and Light wanting to let them keep their memories. 

For a second I wondered if I should just watch and listen. Then I thought it would be better to intervene, add another to the side that wanted to let them keep their memories. After all, I was a Guardian. Shouldn’t I be allowed to give input, too? I opened my mouth to speak, but then stopped. Could I even make noise in this weird ghost-ish state I was in?

“I think you’re missing someone,” I said, loudly.

The other Guardians stopped talking, and all heads turned to look at me.

Keanu gasped. Ciel looked shocked. Díaz’s face showed surprise and a little bit of smugness. Ayers looked happy and confused at the same time, if that was even possible.

Ciel pulled herself together quickly. “You… are transparent.” She said.

I could tell she was trying not to let her voice shake, and even with her best efforts, her tone wavered just a little as she finished speaking.

“Yes, I am,” I said, trying to sound like I knew what was going on.

Ayers stood up and walked over to me. “Fascinating…” He murmured.

He reached a hand out to me to touch me, and I jerked back. “Don’t touch me. Ever,”

He recoiled, a little surprised. “Yes… of course. I was just wondering if you were… solid.” He said.

“I’m not,” I reached out my hand and touched the table, pushing and showing him how my fingers passed through the dark, shining wood.

“Amazing! I haven’t seen anything like this… ever, actually.” Ayers smiled.

I noticed Díaz was looking at me, an expression of deep thought on his face.

“Anyway, I noticed that only four of the five Guardians were invited to this little conference,” I said. I tried to act confident and strode over to my throne. I sat down, desperately hoping that I wouldn’t fall through. At first, I felt myself sinking through the velvet, and I held my breath and silently thought to myself, Don’t fall, don’t fall,

I felt myself level out, stop sinking, and then spring back to the top of the cushion. I inwardly breathed a sigh of relief and looked around the table.

Everyone was staring at me. Díaz had returned to his seat next to Keanu, who he glared at. Ayers had also returned to his seat, giving Keanu a withering glare as he sat down. 

Ciel sighed. “We weren’t talking about your friends anymore, Mendoza,” She said, exasperated.

“You weren’t?” I said, all my confidence disappeared. Suddenly I felt small and unsure, sitting in this huge throne.

“No. We were already outvoted. Ayers and Díaz voted your friends be left alone, and we had to agree because we knew that you would be on their side, too. We always go by votes.” Keanu said.

“Good. What were you talking about, then? It sure was taking a while.” I asked. I was glad that the problem was so easily solved, but I was a little annoyed that they hadn’t wanted to get my vote in person. It was like they just thought of me as a little kid and not a real Guardian.

When I asked my question, all the other Guardian’s faces visibly darkened, and I got worried. 

“Does it concern me?” I said nervously.

“Very much,” Ayers said gravely.

“Oh,” I said, trying not to let my voice shake. “Should my friends be around right now?” 

“Oh, fine,” Ciel said. She closed her eyes and snapped her fingers.

The dome above me split from the wall, contracting back into the ground and making the loudest rumbling sound I’d ever heard. I looked out and saw all my friend’s heads turning. Caleb was still where I had left him, and I felt a pang of guilt. It was obvious Arivas and Chloé had been crying. I hoped they were okay.

“Um, Mendoza… would you mind… returning to your body? Perhaps?” Ayers asked a little awkwardly.

“Oh, uh, sure,” I said, realizing I didn’t quite know how to do that. 

I got up and quickly began to walk to where I had left my body. What an odd thing to think. Where on earth did I leave my body? I was sure I had it here somewhere…

As I passed Arivas she whispered to me, “How on earth did you get in there, and are you dead?” She added the last part after noticing my condition, and the shock and fear in her voice was clear.

“Um, no. I’m not dead. I’ll tell you later. Can you bring Caleb and Chloé over there?” I said, jerking my transparent head in the direction of the table.

“Uh, sure,” Arivas said, but I was already over where I had left my body.

I looked down at my (hopefully) sleeping body. Then I reached out my finger like I had done before, wondering how on earth I was supposed to get back inside myself. I felt that strange pulling again, and this time I gave into it.

The next section! Is it weird that I cried while I wrote this? (I also cried while I wrote the next ten chapters)

Chapter Seven

I fell forward, pulled by that strange force, and gasped. I had a horrible feeling of being liquid and being pouring into a container. All my feeling disappeared for a second, and my vision went black, like a little blip in my existence.

Then everything came back. I blinked, flexed my fingers, and stood. I looked down at myself and smiled at the sight of my very intransparent body. Just to test, I touched the brazier again and pushed. This time, instead of going through it I almost knocked it over.

I caught it and sheepishly tried to make it look like nothing had happened. I turned and jogged back to the table, where Ciel had created earth chairs for my friends on the empty side of the table and everyone was already sitting.

I wanted to sit with my friends, but instead, I made, my way to my throne. I felt awkward sitting in a throne in front of my best friends, but I didn’t want to ask for Ciel to make another chair.

I sat down. “So, what did you say you were talking about?” I asked, feeling my heart begin to beat a little faster.

“I suppose Ayers should tell you since it actually happened to him,” Ciel said, gesturing to Ayers.

Ayers stood and began to wring his hands worriedly. “Well, it was just today, actually. My house was broken into.”

In the back of my head, something clicked and I remembered the words of the girls as they passed us in the hall.

“Some guy named Jake Ayers. The police said that whoever broke in didn’t steal anything. Ayers said that they came and talked to him, but he wouldn’t tell them what the burglar said.”

“Oh, yeah! I heard something about that in school. What happened?” I said suddenly.

Ayers looked at me worriedly and continued. “Well, it was kind of odd. I was in my living room. My wife and kids were out at a movie, so I was alone at the house with my dog, Pete.”

For a second, in my brain, I feel a little surprised to realize that Ayers was married and had a dog, named Pete for Pete’s sake! Sometimes to me they just seem like big powerful figures standing in misty fields and glowing with elemental ability. Really, they’re just average people. Average people with families and friends and dogs named Pete. It’s hard to believe sometimes.

“I was reading a book. Our house is a split level, so the living room is on the second level. I was just reading peacefully, with Pete sleeping next to me. I reached out a hand to pet him when I heard this crash. The sound of a window breaking. Of course, I was terrified. If you heard someone breaking into your house you’d be terrified, too. I heard someone walking around on the lower level. It was odd because their footsteps were so quiet I could hardly hear them. It was like… she was a shadow.”

I shivered.

“Pete woke up and started to growl. I stood up and I guess he sensed I was nervous. I got some water from the kitchen as quietly as I could and I was ready for anything to come around the corner as I walked silently down the hall. Pete realized what I was doing and he ran ahead of me. Just as he got to the corner, someone came around, too. She was tall and pale, with long black hair and wild, electric blue eyes. She was wearing ripped up jeans that looked like they’d been run over multiple times by a truck. 

“She looked down and saw Pete, who was barking at her now. I could tell, somehow, that she was an elemental. I don’t know how, but I knew. I told her not to come a step nearer, and to leave my house at once. She looked up at me.

“Pete sensed I was scared and he snapped at her ankles. He drew blood, but she didn’t move, she didn’t even hesitate or try to get away in the slightest. Then she raised her hand, and her fingers curled in a way that reminded me of a raven’s talons. Her fingernails were so long…”

He shuddered, probably thinking back to that image. Then he took a deep breath and continued. “Suddenly, Pete stopped barking and he stood straight up, stiff as… as… he looked like he had been stuffed. Then the woman did some kind of… movement with her fingers. She flexed them, I guess. And then Pete turned around as quick as flash and suddenly he was at my throat, literally.”

He reached up his hand and touched some teeth marks on his neck I hadn’t noticed before. “I fell onto the ground, and Pete had his jaws around my throat. He could have killed me. He wasn’t growling and his hair wasn’t up, but he was so stiff. He didn’t seem like the Pete I knew. Then the woman took a step forward and looked down on me. ‘Are you Ayers?’ she asked. I nodded, too scared to say anything. Then she leaned down and got right in my face. ‘Tell death I am coming. Tell death my name, and let him feel fear. My name, Jivanta.’ Then she turned and walked away. As soon as I heard another smash of glass, Pete let go of my neck and shook his head like he was trying to get something out of his ear. Then he saw me lying there, terrified of him, and he started to lick my face.”

I felt a chill go down my spine. Someone who could control living things? That was horrifying.

“I believe that by death, the woman, Jivanta, was referring to… to you, Grey. You are the Guardian of Darkness, the element of death.” Ayers raised his eyes to meet mine, and I froze.

What? Someone was looking for me? Why? Someone who could control living things?

“I… What?” I said, whispering.

“We believe that Jivanta is ‘out to get you’, so to speak. This has happened before. Certain Guardians being stalked and threatened by elementals.” Díaz said, standing up as Ayers sunk into his chair. “Elementals who don’t like a choice we made, elementals who think they should get rid of the whole Guardian sequence and have everyone be ‘equals’… they target one of us. Of course, since we’re Guardians, they don’t really have much of a chance of ever actually harming us. We usually just change our names for a while and go to live at some close friend’s house until we stop receiving death threats.”

My eyes locked on Díaz’s. His were sparkling blue with little tiny flashing bits of yellow and gold. He continued, gravely. “Unfortunately, we cannot do that this time.”

“Why not?” Caleb asked. I had almost forgotten he was there. I subconsciously noted he had picked the chair on my right so he was sitting next to me.

“Because this time, the person who’s giving out threats is actually dangerous. Jivanta can, somehow, control living things. Ayers saw this when Pete bit him. Someone like that is amazingly dangerous. And, since you have no children at this young age, thankfully, if you die, then the Guardian cycle will be broken and there will be no Guardian of Darkness. The last time that happened, we had world war I to deal with. Of course, I wasn’t alive then, but my Great-Great-Great-Something-or-other was.”

I sat back in my chair. Why was this someone out to get me? What had I ever done to them?

Ciel stood up, and Díaz slowly sat, his penetrating gaze staying trained on me. Ciel spoke. “Another reason we can’t let you just switch names and houses is that you aren’t very powerful. You haven’t learned to get the most out of your power yet, and if you can’t defend yourself–”

I shot up in my chair. “Defend myself?” I said loudly. “You think I can’t defend myself?”

I glared into her eyes. “You’d be surprised what I can do,” I said, hoping it was true.

She glared right back. “You haven’t had any training, like most of the Guardians did, you haven’t had any way to practice your abilities, for all we know the most amazing thing you can do is that little shadow ball and turning into some kind of ghost!”

“Ask them! Ask Caleb! Ask him what he saw at the library!” I said, gesturing to him angrily.

Everyone else at the table had been watching this exchange warily, as if not sure whether it would end with smiles and friendship or a duel to the death. Once they saw that I was having other people be my witnesses, they all kind of sunk deeper into their chairs, trying to disappear so they wouldn’t be called on.

Caleb cleared his throat nervously. “Well, I don’t think Grey is helpless. I think you’re kind of maybe underestimating her.”

“Tell her what you saw at the library!” I demanded.

Caleb shivered. “That was the scariest thing I’d ever seen. Grey started to cry, and then–”

“Actually, just leave it at the fact that it was scary!” I said quickly.

Ciel sniggered. “You were crying?” She asked.

“Well–Yes, but there was a reason!” I said, trying not to sound foolish.

“Yes, there was!” Chloé stood up suddenly, coming to my defense. “Grey is more powerful than any of you. Her abilities are affected by her emotions. It’s not my liberty to say why she was crying, except that maybe it’s my fault. Sorry.” She glanced over at me.

I shrugged. Pretty much everything she had said had been the truth, even if it hurt. A lot.

Chloé continued. “Anyway, because she was feeling so upset, she… actually, I don’t really know how to describe it. A big ball of shadow formed around her, and her tears turned black, and this big wind picked up, and neither Arivas or I could stand or get close to her… All the shadow was coming from her Stone.” 

All eyes were locked on Chloé as she finished saying this. Díaz’s gaze was the first to break away and land on me. Then all the other pairs of eyes followed. 

“It’s true,” I said meekly.

Chloé sat down. 

“I knew it,” Díaz whispered suddenly. “I knew you were special.” He said, a little more loudly.

“What?” I said.

“I haven’t heard of power like this since Sophie,” He said.

A horrible jolt went through me when Díaz said my mother’s name. 

Díaz seemed to realize what he had said, and he looked at me worriedly. “I’m sorry, I won’t mention her anymore.”

“It’s fine,” I said stiffly. 

When was the last time I had spoken that name? Spoken to the owner of that name, called her my mother? My mind went searching back to the last time I spoke to her, and the scene I had tried to forget for years reappeared in my memory.

I tried to block it out, but it was insistent.

I began to shake. A small sound escaped my throat against my will, and my knees started to weaken.

Then Caleb put his arm around me in a half hug.

“Mom, don’t leave,” I whispered.

“I can’t control this, honey. I can’t stop death.” She whispered back, her one beautiful voice reduced to a hoarse whisper from all the crying.

“You’re the Guardian of Darkness, the death element! Can’t you stop it?” I said desperately.

“No, honey. I can’t.” She said back.

The whole world felt like it had shrunk so it was just her and me. I wasn’t aware of the nurses and doctors standing behind me, ready to usher me out as soon as they knew my mother was dead. I wasn’t aware of all the medical equipment standing around me, giving off quiet beeping sounds.

“Why are you dying?” I asked. “The doctors said they didn’t know. Don’t go.”

“The doctors don’t know anything. Nothing can cure me. I’m sorry, Grey.” She whispered. “I don’t have much time. Tell them to leave.” 

I turned around to face the doctors and nurses assembled there. 

“Privacy?” I asked hoarsely.

There was a moment of debate, but then they all filed out of the room. I turned back to face my mother.

She slipped her hand just below her neckline and closed it around what I knew was the Stone. “I, Sophie Mendoza, Guardian of Darkness, remove myself from the position of Guardian and pass down my Stone to Grey Mendoza. My daughter.”

There was a flash of black light, if light could be black, and then she held the stone in her hand. She held it out and placed it two inches above my heart on top of my shirt. There was another flash and then I could feel it on my skin, cold, like a broken heart.

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

Then she went out like a light. Like a candle that someone had just pinched out, extinguished with tears.

I wrapped my arms around her lifeless body and tried to hold her near me for a little longer. Just a little longer.

why no  coca cola!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!????????????

okay I  have to admit this is an awesome story Stupendo! Professional!

Here's the next part!!!

Chapter Eight 

When the memory ended, for a moment Caleb and I were both frozen, completely still. Then I felt myself tighten. 

“I’m sorry,” Caleb whispered, nearly silent.

The first tear tracked its way down my cheek. It wasn’t Díaz saying my mother’s name, but the memory it triggered afterward. It is unbelievably horribly hard to relive something like that. I felt so stunned and helpless. A moment ago everything was fine, and then the reality of my mother’s death thrust itself upon me. 

I didn’t know what I was doing. I wasn’t thinking, I was too surprised by how suddenly everything went wrong. I let myself cry without trying to stuff it down. I turned to face Caleb, the nearest comfort I could see, and his other arm enveloped me, and we were really hugging. He shut the whole world out and I just leaned into his chest and let tears roll down my cheek.

I didn’t hear anything from outside the hug, and I didn’t want to. Caleb rested his chin on my head, and for a moment I thought that his lips brushed my hair for a fraction of a second, though I could have imagined it.

It was strange. I didn’t have that horrible twisted feeling I usually had when I cried. I didn’t feel anxious or scared, and I didn’t feel frantic. I felt unbelievably sad, devastatingly sad, but also at peace. I didn’t feel alone.

Caleb’s arms around me gave me a warmth I hadn’t felt in a long time.

My crying began to slow. I looked up at Caleb, who hadn’t moved this whole time. 

“You okay now?” He asked, still barely audible.

“Yeah, I think so,” I said. I straightened up, removing myself from Caleb’s embrace, and wiped away my tears.

Everyone around the table immediately removed their gaze from where they had been looking — me. 

“Are you okay?” Arivas asked me quietly. “I didn’t think that hearing your mom’s name would upset you so much,”

“It wasn’t that,” I said. “It made me remember something. Something I’ve been trying to forget. Caleb saw.” I tried my best not to start crying again.

It had been so horrible to relive that day, that moment. When I had cried into my mother’s lifeless shoulder and wished I could go back to a happier time. 

I had to stay focused. I couldn’t let my emotions get in the way. 

“Should… should we continue?” Díaz asked anxiously.

“Yes,” I said, trying to make up for suddenly breaking down by being strong and level-headed during the conversation. “You were talking about… my mother. And her power,” I said, hesitating just before I said it. 

“Yes. Well, I was just saying that what Chloé described here does not seem like the average abilities of one as young as you.” Though his voice showed a hint of admiration, his eyes kept their steely gaze on me the whole time, and I could have sworn he never blinked once. “I am convinced you could be able to protect yourself from Jivanta… with a little training.”

When he said ‘I’ for a fraction of a second his eyes flicked to Ciel, who pretended not to care. 

“I’m not,” Ciel said, standing up. “Show me,” She glared at me with her sharp eyes that missed nothing.

“I… I can’t,” I said, trying to be strong and imposing but probably failing horribly.

“Why not? If you can do it, then you can do it now. Prove it.” Ciel insisted, and I could tell she was getting angry.

“I can’t because, because… I…” I tried to shrink into my chair but I couldn’t.

“Because it’s not a stable situation!” Arivas jumped in, saving me. “If Grey was to use all her abilities now, we’d have no way of protecting ourselves. I honestly think she needs zero protection and zero training, even from a crazy lady who can manipulate living things with her fingers.”

I smiled slightly, trying not to think too much about the ‘manipulating living things with her fingers’ part.

“Fine,” Ciel growled, and I stopped wondering why everyone said that her first name, Fox, matched her.

But she wasn’t done. “If we want to keep you safe from Jivanta, then we’ll need more than just a hope that you can protect yourself if she shows up. First of all, whether you like it or not, you’re going into hiding.”

“What?” I said.

“You’re going to go live with one of my aunts until all this Jivanta business dies down. It won’t be long, and you can go back to your school as soon as it’s safe.” Ciel said calmly.

“No! No, I can’t leave school!” I said, standing up. “I can’t leave my friends!”

“I’m sorry, Mendoza. You won’t be missing much, though. And you’ll be back before you know it.” Ciel said.

Sure, I hated school before I went. And I hated it at the beginning. But once I made friends with Arivas and Chloé, I loved it. For some reason, now that I was such good friends with them, I couldn’t imagine being without them. 

“Don’t make her leave!” Chloé broke in. “Please?” She added, a little more quietly.

“Yeah! Why can’t she just stay at school?” Arivas asked.

“Because she has no extra protection there. She’s is exposed, and it would be very easy for Jivanta to find her location.” Ciel said, scowling.

Ayers broke in. “Well… Ciel, consider this… what if we made a set of rules for Grey that she had to follow? No going out alone, no staying up late, lock your door at night, stuff like that. If she doesn’t follow the rules we can take her to your aunts’, but if everything does according to plan, she can stay at school with her friends.” He smiled at me, and I smiled back gratefully.

“I still… ugh, fine. But you have to follow these rules like your life depends on it, which it actually might. Get into your dorm with the door locked by 9:30 every night. No going out of school grounds unaccompanied, and even if you’re accompanied, never at night. If anyone… odd… comes around asking for a Grey Mendoza, pretend you don’t speak English or something, just don’t engage. And remember that I’ll know if you break a rule.” Ciel said, counting off the rules on her fingers.

I wanted to protest to the rules, but I thought it would be better to leave well enough alone. “Fine. I won’t break any of those rules.” I said, a little huffily. 

“Good,” Ciel said. “Meeting adjourned. Ayers, you can escort these four home. Mendoza, watch your step.” When she spoke to me, our eyes met and I saw an angry glint in them.

I stood up along with my friends and the other Guardians, and Ayers ushered us over to the cavern exit. We were just about to start making our way back up the cave when his hand grabbed my shoulder and he spun me to face him.

“Grey,” He said hurriedly in a quiet, under-toned voice.

“Yeah?” I said, and when I spoke my tone was average.

Ayers thrust his finger to my lips. “Sh! Keep it down.” He glanced around nervously.

“Yeah?” I repeated, this time whispering.

“First of all, Ciel is not someone whose bad side you want to be on. You offended her when you broke the rules by letting your friends go, and you made her embarrassed when Díaz said you were more powerful than anything he’d ever seen. That immediately puts you on her bad side.”

“Great,” I mumbled, looking down. Now I had to worry about bossy rule-following rock-chucking women who hated me.

“There’s more,” Ayers continued, and I groaned. “No, seriously. Grey, I know this whole Jivanta thing doesn’t seem crazy. Ciel is acting like it’s some normal event. But Grey, do not underestimate this woman. Do not ever think she won’t do something, because she will. She will do whatever it takes to get rid of you.”

“How do you know all this?” I asked, my mouth going dry.

“I don’t know. I just do. I just know that when I looked into her eyes, she did not look like someone to be messed with.” 

Ayers looked so grave, all I could do was nod.

“Good. Follow the rules. I am serious when I say your life might depend on it.” Ayers gave me a reassuring pat that did absolutely nothing to reassure me and began to lead me and my friends through the cave in front of us.

I swallowed. Jivanta, whoever she was, obviously had scared Ayers. I didn’t know if that meant I should be scared too. I resolved to follow all the rules if I could, and that I’d try to take Jivanta seriously.

But honestly, I thought to myself. What could she do?

I looked ahead and saw Chloé, Arivas, and Caleb. The three people in the world I cared most about. I felt my fear grow larger as I realized just what she could do.

Having to take someone’s life would not slow Jivanta. As I slowly began to follow my friends, I no longer feared for my life. I feared for theirs.

Here's the next chapter, cut in half, as always. 😉

Chapter Nine

“Sooo… I’m guessing that I get to keep my memories,” Chloé said to me, giggling a little.

“Yeah,” I said, trying not to sound too depressed.

“I was afraid to ask during that meeting. I was hoping they would forget if I didn’t ask.” Chloé said, skipping a little. 

“Yeah, we voted. Three against two.” I said.

We were still walking through the cave. Somehow, it seemed longer than when we were coming through it the first time. Chloé smiled wide and swung her arms. I could tell she was happy. So happy she was blinded to my misery and fear. At least, I thought she was blind to it.

“You okay?” She asked suddenly, slowing her pace to match my stiff gait.

“Yes,” I said immediately.

“Uh, no you’re not. If you were okay you wouldn’t have said that you would have shrugged or said something depressing.”

I looked up at her. “Is that actually true?”

“No. Well, kind of. Mostly I just said it so you would look up and I could see your eyes.” She studied them closely. “I can always tell how you’re feeling by your eyes,”

I blinked and looked down. “I guess… No, I’m really fine.”

“I don’t believe you for a second. But I know when people need space. You know where to find me.” She gave me a warm smile and moved over to walk next to Caleb and Arivas.

I looked down and kept walking. Should I tell them what I was worried about? It was like telling them about losing their memories. But worse. 

We reached the top part of the cave and I looked out into the forest. I wondered where we were in the world. It looked like nowhere I had seen before. I was going to ask Ayers, but he spoke before I could.

“Okay, everyone, gather round. This is something Guardians learn once their eighteen, so, Grey, you don't know how this works.” Ayers called out from the opening of the cave.

My friends and I drew closer, forming a kind of circle.

Ayers smiled at all of us. “This is called teleportation. It’s… well, it’s what it sounds like. I believe Keanu used this method to bring you here.”

Ayers closed his eyes and raised his hands.

I closed mine, too, slowly, gently. I raised my head and felt the sun from outside the cave hit my cheek. Then I heard a sound like a waterfall, and the feeling of sunlight gave way to a soft, nudging, waving unclear sensation.

I opened my eyes and would've gasped, but I couldn’t. We were inside a huge orb of water. Light bounced and reflected off of everything, flashing in my eyes in all colors imaginable. Bubbles floated from my laughing mouth.

I looked at my friends and Ayers. Ayers still had his eyes closed, but a huge, peaceful smile had spread across his face. Caleb looked shocked and amazed, staring back at me with his eyes flashing happiness. Chloé looked like she might collapse in a heap of joy and laughter, and she kept turning around to look out of the orb. Arivas was staring upwards, an expression of quiet amazement on her face. Her hair was floating up around her, and I wondered how it felt for her to be a water Elemental in the presence of this amazing power.

I looked back at Caleb. His expression had stilled, and he was still looking at me. I saw his lips moving, and bubbles floated up around him, reflecting light into his blond hair and blue eyes, making him glow. His lips formed the words, “beautiful,’.

At the moment I thought he was talking about the water, but later I found out he wasn’t. I smiled at him and closed my eyes, feeling the gentle currents tip me slowly from side to side.

Then, suddenly, there was a huge popping sound and I opened my eyes. Water was raining down around us, the water from our orb. It had popped, and as I looked around I saw we were in the library again. I was a few inches from the ground, floating. But then whatever was holding me disappeared and I fell onto the ground.

I collapsed onto my knees, my wet hair falling around my shoulders in a black soaking sheen. I burst out laughing, and Chloé joined in.

When I could breathe properly again, I looked up and saw Ayers was gone. The library was just as we had left it. Nothing was wet, and my clothes and hair were already drying. Caleb was standing, and I had the odd feeling he had just been looking at me but had turned his gaze at the last moment. Arivas was smiling at me and Chloé.

“What now? How long have we been gone?” I said once I stopped laughing. I don’t know why I was suddenly so happy. Something about being inside that bubble of water. Maybe Water heals more than wounds.

“I don’t know,” Arivas said, standing. She scanned the room until she found a clock on the wall.

“Guys, it’s time for lunch! They’ll be in the eating hall now,” Arivas said, turning around.

“Really? At least it’s Saturday, so we’re not missing any classes.” I said, feeling my hair. It had dried completely, and so had my clothes. Everyone else was dry, too.

Caleb ran a hand through his hair. “Gosh, this is so strange. This morning I had no idea there even were Elementals, and now I’m friends with… now I personally know the Guardian of Darkness.”

When he hesitated, I was worried about what else he might say. Would he have declared us friends? I certainly considered us friends after what just happened. Would he have said he had a crush on me? 

“Well… Caleb, we are friends. As long as you stop hanging out with your jerk friends,” I said, smiling.

“Even if you don’t know karate, I still wouldn’t want to be on your bad side,” Chloé said.

Caleb laughed, and I smiled at him.

The last section of chapter nine! This is really weird for me, because I've already written to chapter 23 in google docs, and as I copy and paste this in I keep finding mistakes!

Chapter Nine 

That night, we never went out to dinner as we had planned. Instead, we ended up still in the library. Caleb brought all his homework over, and we helped each other study for tests. I found out that science was Caleb’s least favorite class, Geography his second favorite, and Writing and Composition his ultimate favorite. 

Arivas finally got around to answering those letters, and she read each one of them aloud to us. Most were from random boys around the school who wanted her to date them, and sounded something like this,

My Dearest, Arivas,

Will you go to prom with me? I love the way your hair looked when it was dyed pink, and I still love it now, too! Your eyes sparkled like the sun! You are my sun, my everything!

Love,

Jake Myers

Some of them were badly composed poems, some of them were wonderfully composed poems, some of them were messages from people who just assumed that she knew who they were and so they didn’t sign.

As Arivas finished reading one of the good poems aloud, Caleb looked up from his math book, in which I was helping him with Geometry. “All these boys like you so much, how come you don’t have a boyfriend?” 

“Well, first of all, I’m not going to date until I’m fifteen, just like Grey. I think boys should be mature before they go around asking for girls. And secondly…” Arivas looked upwards, her eyes focusing on nothing and her face taking on a dreamy expression. “Secondly… there’s already a boy I love.”

I looked up from Caleb’s math book. “Really? I didn’t know this.” 

Chloé raised her head from her Geography book and scooted a little closer to Arivas, smiling.

“His name is Logan White, and he––”

“Logan?” Caleb broke in. “I’m good friends with him,”

Arivas sprung from her chair, spilling pink and white letters everywhere. “Really? Do you know if he likes me?” She asked eagerly.

“Um, actually, he, uh, he does,” Caleb said hesitating a little at every word, probably wondering if it was rude of him to betray his friend. “He’s always staring over at your table, anyway,”

“Really? Oh my gosh! Yes!!” Arivas sprung up and danced in a circle, then pounced on Caleb again. “What’s he like up close? I’ve only ever really seen him at baseball practice,”

“Uh, he’s nice. Super nice, I think he’s the nicest boy in the school, actually. He’s funny, he’s smart, he has a little brother that he’s always looking out for.”

Arivas smiled. “Can I meet him?”

“Uh, yes, but why do you even need to ask?” Caleb said.

“Because I want you to introduce me!” Arivas said.

“What? Why?”

“I could never walk up to him on my own! If you introduce me, then I’ll be able to talk to him!”

“Um… Sure, I guess I could do that… sometime. Maybe.” Caleb said uncertainly.

The rest of the day was mostly uneventful, luckily. I don’t think I could have handled anything else happening. I was relieved when Chloé glanced up at the clock and said that we should be getting to bed. She and Arivas left quickly, saying they had to mail a letter and they’d meet me back at our room.

I was left alone with Caleb.

I stood there awkwardly for a moment but then spoke. “Thanks for… hugging me, I guess.”

“Yeah,” Caleb said.

There was silence.

“We should get to bed. It’s 9:00, and I need to be back there at 9:30. I haven’t had someone deciding my bedtime since I was five.” I said.

I swung my backpack onto my back, making sure that I had all my books inside. Caleb did the same, and we both exited.

We walked down the mostly empty halls together. As we passed windows, I saw it was raining again outside. California winters––rain, then bright sun, then rain again. 

When we came to the place where Caleb turned off to go to the boy’s dorms, he looked back over his shoulder.

“Grey, if you… If you ever need someone to talk to, you can talk to me.” Then he turned and walked away, his head down.

I stood there for a moment, looking after him. I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

As Caleb turned another corner and disappeared from my sight, I sighed and began to walk to my dorm. 

Here's chapter ten. This one will be cut a lot because it's 11 pages. 

Chapter Ten

“Fun fact of the day!” Chloé called out from under her bedside table, where she was looking for a pen. “Today’s the winter solstice, longest night and shortest day of the year. We only get about nine and a half hours of daylight today.”

Chloé slid out from under the bedside table, brandishing her pen. “Found it!”

“Mmmh-hmm gmm- mm-hmm hrm-hrmy?” Arivas said from under the blankets she was wrapped in, to ward off the cold.

“What? We can’t understand you through the blanket,” I said.

Arivas stuck her head out from the folds of her voluminous blue comforter and repeated her question. “Does that mean we get to go to bed early? I need a nap,”

“Well, we can’t exactly stay up very late due to the new curfew,” I sighed, slumping in my bed, where I was reading my history textbook.

Arivas and Chloé exchanged a look, and then Chloé made her way over to me. She plopped down onto the bed next to me. “You wanna talk?” 

“Not really.” I sighed.

“You sure? Because there’s definitely something wrong.”

Arivas picked up her blanket and walked over, trailing the end of the comforter on the floor. She sat down next to me. “Please tell us. I feel so sad when you don’t let us close to you.”

I looked down. “I’m a little worried about Jivanta,”

“Of course you are!” Arivas said. “If you weren’t, I’d be worried about your mental health.”

I smiled a little but the expression quickly evaporated. “I’m not worried about myself,” I explained. “I’m… I’m worried about you.”

“Why?” Chloé said, surprised. 

“Because… what if Jivanta finds me? And then I have to, I don’t know, shoot shadows at her or something. And then what if you guys are there and you get hurt? What if Jivanta hurts you? You’ve already gotten into so much trouble because of me. I’d feel horrible if you were hurt.”

Arivas wrapped a large part of the blanket around me and Chloé. “Grey, we know being your friends has its risks. We’re perfectly aware of that. But we’re still going to be your friends. We’re not going to leave you all alone just because there’s a little risk.”

Chloé’s hand found mine under the blanket. “Yeah. And if we were seriously worried about our safety, we wouldn’t be here now, we’d already be gone.”

“Thanks, guys,” I said. 

But I still felt scared. What if they weren’t just hurt? What if one of them actually died? I could never forgive myself. I heard the whispers of ghosts creeping into my mind again.

“I kind of want to go to bed,” I said. 

Arivas and Chloé went back to their beds, and I flopped onto my back. After a minute of staring at the ceiling, I rolled out of bed and changed into my pajamas. 

I glanced at my clock. 10:04.

I sighed and closed my curtains, pulling back the sheets and flopping into my bed. I yanked the thick comforter over my head and heard either Arivas or Chloé switch off the light with a sharp yet quiet click.

Almost immediately, I drifted off, the voices of ghosts filling my mind and blocking out any other sound.

I shot straight up in bed, my eyes flashing around the pitch black room. I was cold, freezing cold, despite being under the huge comforter. A shaft of moonlight shone from the window lighting up a rectangle on the floor with bright pale moonlight.

What woke me up?

I felt very awake, very alert, and very energized as if I had just slept for years. Arivas and Chloé were breathing heavily, and I knew they weren’t going to wake up any time soon. They might as well have been knocked out.

I slid out of bed, my bare feet touching the soft carpet gently and silently. I scanned the room again, looking for whatever made me wake.

And I saw her, standing by the mirror on the wall.

She was tall, with long silvery hair and bright, shining white eyes. She was wearing a flowing white dress, and her long fingers seemed to twinkle with the light of the stars. Her skin was so pale it was white, and a soft glow emanated from her.

She wasn’t looking at me. She was looking into the mirror, and her hand was reached out to touch it. I stared. She had no reflection.

“A ghost,” I whispered, inaudible except to me.

The girl was a ghost, but different from all the others I had seen. She had more form. She was more solid. She looked more real. All the other ghosts I had seen were sort of hazy and unclear, without any firm shape.

The girl turned from the mirror and face me, smiling. She spoke, but I couldn’t understand her words, except that her voice was high and silvery, like bells on ice.

I looked at her, confused, and she laughed and shook out her hair. Then she turned and stepped through the door, through the actual wood of the door, and I cried out softly.

“Wait!” I whisper-screamed after her. I needed to follow her. I didn’t know why, but I needed to.

I followed after her, swinging open the door and running down the hall, barefoot. The door almost closed, leaving just a crack open. 

I raced after the ghost girl, who was as fast as the wind. She leaped down the hall, her hair flying out behind her and her laughter echoing down the hall. As we ran past windows, the moon winked in and watched, his worried eye wider than I’d ever seen.

I flew down halls, chasing after the girl. I never stopped to think where I was going, or why I was going there. We tore around corners and I threw open a heavy door and suddenly I was outside. In the cold, winter night, with the moon watching from above.

The ghost girl was standing far away, under a tree. The only light was her’s and the moon’s. My feet were cold and numb as I walked through the freezing cold grass. The cold night air bit at my ankles and wrists, which were exposed.

I walked now, aware of the open space at my back and the dark, looming trees nearby. A shiver went through me, and I wrapped my arms around myself. As I approached the ghost, she began to walk away, toward the black trees.

I did not want to go into those trees. I stopped where I was and watched. But as her silvery light faded behind the black branches, I changed my mind. I broke into a run and got to the trees just as the ghost girl made it through. I ended up right beside her, and she stopped to look at me.

Then she spoke, and again, I couldn’t understand her. She reached out and took my hand in hers. For a second I thought maybe her fingers would pass through mine, but when they met she felt as solid as anyone else. Though her fingers didn’t have the texture skin has, instead, they felt made of water, somehow. Cool, wavering, strong.

We continued, through a huge field that spread out after the trees. Down a slight slope, we walked, hand in hand. I wondered where she was taking me. For some reason, I trusted her.

We got to the middle of the field. The shadows looming all around us made me feel like we were being watched. 

The ghost turned to me, and for the first time, I understood her as she spoke.

“Be careful,” 

Her voice faded as she spoke, and so did she. Her form faded, and her light faded until she was like all the other ghosts I had seen. Formless, shapeless, like mist. And then she was gone.

I was left standing in the middle of the pitch black field. The moon seemed to be absent from this part of the sky.

Be careful of what?

I had barely thought this when I heard her voice.

“You’re just a girl,” Her voice was hoarse, cold, unused, and menacing.

I whirled around, but I saw no one. “Who are you? Come out!” I shouted.

A small laugh issued from the shadows to my right, and I whirled to face her as she emerged from the darkness. “Your voice is shaking,” She whispered.

I stepped back. The woman was tall, and her mass of tangled black hair hung around her like a spider’s knotted web. She raised her head just a little, and I stared into her electric blue eyes.

Ohh! I just read your last two chapters! Is the attacker who I think she is? But wait, doesn't the main antagonist have violet eyes? I forget….

Here's the next section. Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I just finished writing the story on docs, so I was a little distracted. It's a total of 60,152 words!

Chapter Ten 

“Jivanta,” I whispered.

“So you got my message. Good. I was worried it might lose its way.” She began to walk slowly around me in circles, so I had to keep turning so I was always facing her. “Tell me––are you scared?”

“No,” I lied, my voice shaking so much that anyone could have known I was lying.

“Oh, you are scared. You should be.” She looked like a hag, something wild and wicked, untamed. She looked like she wouldn’t be out of place on the streets of some old town. She walked with a limp, and her back was hunched.

“What are you?” I whispered, barely audible. She didn’t look human. She couldn’t be human, somehow. As I looked at her, there was just no possibility that we belonged to the same race.

Jivanta cackled, and her eyes seemed to spark. “What am I? You should ask what I was,”

“Fine,” I said, nervously, “What were you?”

“I was a water Elemental, and a great one at that. I was more powerful than anything anyone had ever seen, maybe more powerful than that stupid Ayers Guardian.” She looked at me, her head slightly tilted to the left. Her face was dirty, her lips cracked and bleeding. “But water is the Element of life, is it not? And so I took the step that made me more powerful than any other Elemental. I learned to control life itself.”

I took a step back, my heart beating so hard I felt it would fall out of my chest. My legs were growing weak, and I was seized by an instinct to run. But the braver part of me said that running would make her chase me, and then she’d never let me go.

“How?” I said quietly.

“How?” Jivanta repeated. “How is a hard question to answer. What gives bodies life?” She said suddenly.

“Our souls,” She whispered, answering her own question. “Water is the Element of life, and so, as our souls being the main provider of life, I was able to wrest control of them. After many years of toil and work and pain, I found I could control animals because they have weaker souls. Then I found I could control humans. And I became the most powerful person to walk the earth!” She let out a long, screeching laugh, like fingernails on a chalkboard.

“Why?” I said once she was done laughing. “Why did you want so much power?”

“Well, at first, it was just for the power. But then, something changed.” She stopped walking around me, and her face took on an expression of sadness and fear, but mostly, hate. She continued, her voice carrying the sound of hate as well, “My husband and daughter died, both on the same day. It broke me.” Her voice was bitter, and she almost spat as she spoke.

She looked up at me. “Death stole them away from me. The only two people I cared for at all, stolen from me by death. Many more have been tortured by death, as well. Your friend, Caleb, has. Your stepmother has. Your friend Mae’s father has. And thousands more. It is rare to find a single human who has not felt the pain of death.

“So I am healing the world. In my opinion…” She trailed off, and when she next spoke her voice was so loud and screeching it made my ears ring. “Better one death than many!”

She leaped on me, pinning me down onto the grass, and I screamed. She covered my mouth with her hand and leaned in close to me. “Shhh… We don’t want your friends to come running, do we? I want only one death tonight, but if there has to be more, so be it.”

I was crying now, tears running from my eyes and into the grass.

She lifted her hand from my mouth but kept me pinned to the ground. 

I spoke desperately, shouting. “You can’t! If I die, there won’t be another Guardian to take my place! There won’t be an Element of Darkness anymore! It could destroy the world!”

“Ah, but there’s your problem. Once death has died, there can be no more death. So the world cannot end. The world shall live forever, happily, with me as queen!”

Jivanta reached a hand behind her back, and when it came back she was wielding a knife. It was long and twisted, and the sharp tip glittered in the moonlight.

She let out a screech, and as she raised the knife into the air, readying it for the blow that would end me, end the world, something knocked into her and she tumbled from me onto the ground, screaming.

I sat up and looked. She was now pinned on the ground, with Caleb on top, trying to wrestle the knife from her grip.

“Caleb!” I shouted.

“Help me!” He called back, and I ran over.

I grabbed Jivanta’s knife and began to try to pull the blade from her fingers. Her grip was like iron, but I got the knife from her hand. She screamed with anguish and reached her now empty knife hand up to claw Clabe across the face. Her long fingernails made deep cuts along his face, and he let out a cry.

“Caleb! Are you okay?!” I said, grabbing his shoulders to steady him. 

He nodded, though I could tell he was in a lot of pain. Her fingers had raked across his eye and cheek, and he was bleeding in a steady stream.

Jivanta smiled wickedly up at me. “I will be back, Death!” She said, and suddenly she was gone. Her laugh continued to echo through my skull, even after a moment of silence.

She was gone. Just gone. Caleb looked up at me, blood still coming from the cuts on his face.

“You’re hurt,” I said.

“I noticed,” He reached his hand up and wiped away some of the blood, but more quickly replaced it.

“It’s bad,” I said, moving closer. I ripped the end of my sleeve off and handed it to him. 

He held the fabric over his eye and watched me. “Why were you out here?”

“I followed a ghost. I wasn’t thinking. Jivanta came out of nowhere.” I hugged myself, trying to ward off the cold that had inserted itself in my heart.

Caleb reached out his hand and it found mine.

“I’m scared,” I said, shivering.

“It’s okay. I’ve got you,” Caleb wrapped his arm around me and pulled me into a half hug.

“How did you know I was out here?” I whispered.

“I woke up in the middle of the night and saw a light from out the window, and somehow, I knew it was you. I heard screams, and I came as fast as I could.”

We stayed like that for a moment, hugging. Tears began to track their way down my cheeks again.

“Grey!” I heard Arivas calling out from somewhere nearby.

“Over here!” Caleb shouted back.

I leaned onto his strong shoulder and felt his arm tighten protectively around me.

“Grey! Oh my gosh!” Arivas raced up to us from the trees, Chloé following closely behind.

“What happened?” Chloé said.

“Jivanta happened,” Caleb said, still holding me.

Arivas and Chloé’s faces darkened.

“You’re bleeding,” Arivas said, kneeling next to Caleb.

“Yeah, I knew that,” Caleb said, waving away Arivas' hand. “I’m fine.”

“You okay?” Chloé said, sitting down next to me.

I nodded slightly, but more tears came. I was just so shaken up. So terrified. I buried my face in Caleb’s shoulder, the nearest comfort I could see.

“We need to get inside,” Arivas said. “You guys can walk?”

Caleb nodded but I wasn’t sure. I felt like my legs would turn to jelly as soon as I tried to put any weight on them. Caleb sensed my worry and helped me stand. “Come on. I’ll help,”

I put my weight on his shoulder, and Chloé came to my other side to carry some of my weight too. Arivas led, glancing over her shoulder every now and then.

Jivanta’s laugh still echoed in my mind, and the vision of her blue eyes kept penetrating into my thoughts. I was shaky and grateful for Caleb and Chloé’s support.

When we reached the school, we went up to Arivas, Chloé, and I’s dorm. Caleb hesitated before entering the girl’s dorm area because he knew it wasn’t allowed.

“It’s fine,” Arivas said. “No one else is awake. Just try to be quiet.”

We got to our dorm quickly and sat down on my bed.

“Caleb, you need to clean that up,” I said, looking at the blood on his face. “The bathroom’s right by here.”

“That’s the girl’s bathroom,” Caleb said. “I’m fine. It’s just a cut. I’ll wait until I can go back to the boy’s dorm.”

“Okay, but don’t let yourself lose too much blood.” I nuzzled closer to him, and his arm wrapped around my shoulder.

“You okay?” He asked me.

“No.” I said, not bothering to lie.

Then I told them everything that had happened, every little detail. Arivas sat on my other side and Chloé next to Caleb. They all listened, silent.

“How do you feel?” Arivas asked once I was done telling them what had happened.

“Terrified.” I said.

“It’ll be okay. We should probably find some way to tell the other Guardians about this.” Arivas said.

“What time is it?” I asked quietly.

“2:00,” Chloé responded.

“Oh,” I let my head drop onto Caleb’s shoulder. He was so strong and steady. He wasn’t saying anything, he wasn’t trying to comfort me. He was just there for me to lean on. And I did. I let myself sink into him. He wrapped both arms around me and held me tightly.

My eyes closed, and I fell asleep in his arms.

Hello everyone! Wow, I totally forgot about this thing. Sorry for being absent for so long! But I'm back!

I guess I'll start posting the chapters again! And thanks to everyone who was reading this, it made me so happy to see all your encouragements and suggestions.

Here we go!

Chapter Eleven 

I couldn’t relax the next day. I felt tense, worried, and jumpy. Every time I heard a noise, I jumped. Anytime someone touched me, I jerked away. Except for Caleb. When Caleb lay a hand on my shoulder at breakfast, I didn’t wrench myself away. Instead, I leaned into his touch. His steady, strong, touch. 

He sat with us at breakfast, even though all his jerk friends were pooling at his usual table. Arivas had healed the cuts on his face, but somehow, he still had white lines across his face where Jivanta had clawed him.

I wasn’t sure how I was feeling about Caleb. I didn’t want him to think I had a crush on him. I didn’t have a crush on him. I just liked him a lot. I felt safe with him around. His touch was steady and safe, not shaky and risky. He didn’t try to convince me everything would be fine, not once. He stayed silent, but always there, and always ready to hold my hand or sit just a little closer to me.

Of course, we got teased. His jerk friends, mostly. I noticed that Maggie was nowhere to be seen when people noticed that Caleb’s shoulder was touching mine at lunch. I was a little relieved, but also a little worried that maybe she had told somebody I punched her in the jaw. I wondered if she was sustaining any permanent damage, and secretly hoped she was.

The day passed in a confusing blur of being late for class, forgetting books and feeling distracted. Multiple times a day, I stopped, not quite sure if that girl over there had been watching me and had electric blue eyes.

I noticed that whenever we were walking through halls, my friends formed a kind of circle around me subconsciously, with Caleb at my right, Chloé in the front, and Arivas in the rear. I don’t think they noticed they were doing it, but they definitely were. I couldn’t decide whether this made me feel better or worse.

I never had time to think very hard about anything, we were going through the day so fast. Every time I started to think hard about anything besides school and not being late, something would call my attention away from my thoughts and I’d have to save my thoughts for later.

At the end of the day, after dinner, we ended up outside. Even though it was wet, we found a tree that kept us relatively dry and all sat down. I lay on my back with my head sticking out from under the tree so the rain would hit it. Caleb sat by my feet with his back to the trunk of the tree and his math homework in his lap. Arivas opened her science textbook and Chloé climbed a few branches up into the tree.

I closed my eyes and let the rain fall onto my face, letting my hair get wet and drops of water to be sprinkled through my eyelashes.

I sighed and rolled over, feeling restless. I sat up and moved to be next to Caleb. I glanced over his shoulder. “You’re getting that problem wrong,” I commented.

“What? Really? But I double checked it,” Caleb said, lifting up his paper and staring at what he had written there as if that would make it right.

“It’s still wrong,” I leaned back against the tree, closing my eyes.

Caleb looked at me, then down to his math, squinting, then up at me again. “You wore your hair down today,” He said suddenly.

I opened my eyes and smiled at him. “So?”

“So… you usually hide it under your beanie,” He said, blushing just a little.

“I honestly don’t care about my hair. I always tuck it into my hat because if I don’t it gets in my way. I was just a little slow this morning, so I only had time to comb it.”

“There’s a stick in it,” Caleb reached out and began to untangle the hair around the tiny stick that had somehow knotted itself into my hair.

“It’s fine, Caleb, you don’t need to do that,” I said, hitting his hand away.

“Okay, okay… Will you tell me what I’m doing wrong with this problem?” He held up his book to me.

“Fine,” I said and took the book from him. “See, you keep multiplying––”

I never got to finish telling Caleb what he was doing wrong because at that exact moment a huge flash of light blinded me and I screamed.

—

Cut in half, as always. Could someone who's been here longer than me tell me how long a good post should be? This chapter is 1876 words long but cut in half its 761. Does anyone think it was unnecessary for me to cut it?