Page 20 of Firestorm
I groaned, my voice loud in the silence.
I’d been here for nearly an hour already, and I knew I needed to head back to my hotel before the representative lady realized I was gone. I should have spent this time visiting with my brother and saying a proper goodbye, but I needed this. I needed my mom.
I stared at the family headstone in front of me, trying to choose my words carefully. Some part of me did believe she could hear me while I was here speaking to her, and I never wanted to say something wrong.
“I don’t wanna do this,” I mumbled. “It’s like everything we fought so hard to avoid doesn’t matter anymore. Everything y’all taught me went right out the window the moment a storm happened. It’s embarrassing, actually.”
Silence greeted me, and I snorted to myself.
I knew it was normal for people to spend the night out in graveyards, as I’d done it myself many times when younger, but it almost felt silly now that I was an adult.
I didn’t like being an adult.
Things were so much easier when my parents were around.
“Zephyr’s been working so hard. He’s been letting off too much steam…” I paused, deciding not to tell my mother her son had turned into a man-whore since she’d been gone. “He tries to do everything but I know it’s weighing on him. And now that I have to go…”
I fought the urge to sob, choosing to weep quietly instead.
The words on the headstone seemed to glare at me, only amplifying how lonely I felt.
‘The night sky is forever dimmed with the loss of these stars.’
Only my poetic fucking brother could have come up with such a sentence. I wiped my eyes, then broke down once again as I glanced down the mountain toward our little seaside town, the streetlights glowing eerily in the fog. I imagined Zephyr, alone at home. All the café chores, all the work in the apartment, the utility room…all of it rested on his shoulders now.
My brother deserved better. He’d shouldered so much responsibility from a very young age, and I looked up to him for it. Our parents would be proud of the man he’d turned into. Me on the other hand…
After several minutes of quiet crying, I got to my feet, wincing at how sore my cold bones had gotten. I sent a sweep of air over the top of the stone to remove the dust. I pulled a few weeds from around the site, careful not to step on the top of my parents.
As I flicked the weeds over the cliff’s edge, I noticed two smooth quartz rocks mixed in with a row of river rocks. I used my affinity to pull the rocks to me, and I admired how they glittered even in the pale moonlight.
I sniffled as I made my way back over to the headstone and I placed the two rocks together at the center of the base. I smiled before smoothing my hair. The sky was slowly beginning to change, the sun just barely beginning to lighten the horizon. More than anything, I wanted to stay here and watch the sunrise with my parents, but I knew the representative would be coming to look for me, soon. I’d already been gone too long.
I took one last longing look down at my little town, glowing against the dark sea before I wiped away my tears and left as silently as I’d arrived.
Chapter 6
Skye
“How areyou feeling this morning? You must be so overwhelmed. This is definitely a lot to take in. Your roommate is looking forward to meeting you, though. Let’s take a look at your results.”
Eleanor was a mother-hen, I could tell just by watching her fuss behind her computer screen. She was a larger woman who looked like she gave great hugs.
I needed one of those hugs.
I carefully prodded at her mind, surprised when she didn’t react, as if she didn’t realize she was being poked at.
I almost smiled to myself. I’d been practicing how to silently enter a mind since I was a child. So far I’d almost been caught only once, and I’d still been a teenager then. I’d tried looking into a Royal guard’s mind while he was standing guard on a corner, and he’d whipped around immediately, searching for the source of the prod.
Of course, he’d walked right past me. No one ever suspected me. The ability to be underestimated should be an affinity in it of itself. It had certainly saved my ass more than once.
“I see we have water and air for you…and you’re more experienced with air.” Eleanor said, running a hand down her short blonde-gray ponytail. “Hmm, seems like your Link-testing had an issue, though, so that’s not in yet. Alright. I’ve got your classes set up. You’re older than the other students of course, but that shouldn’t cause any issues. Well, they might be little assholes about it, but you’ve got two good affinities. Soak their homework and teach them a lesson.”
I only offered a tight grin in response. I hadn’t spoken once since being in the office. I wondered how long it had been since Eleanor was in any type of school, especially if she thought soaking homework was the best way to deal with bullies.
Eleanor handed me my class schedule, information on my dorm and a map to the school.
I thanked her and left the counseling office with a sigh.
