If We Were Heroes | ONC2022

chapter six

chapter six: I am caught red handed

The first day of lessons was both everything and nothing like I'd thought it would be. I was expecting (though I was hoping I was wrong) them to have ordinary subjects, like math, and they did, in a sense.

While everything I had studied at my past school was on my timetable, the lessons seemed completely different.

The teachers were loud, bright, and shamelessly used their powers throughout the lesson. Heck, there was even one teacher who wrote on the board with a levitating board marker, never once even leaving his seat.

Everything, especially math seemed focused on more everyday problems, like currency, which I sucked at, and measurements, which I sucked at even more. But I had always I hated math.

Today, I didn't share any of my subjects with Sebastian, which meant hurrying around in a mess and staring at my timetable, wondering where to go. As much as Sebastian seemed to hate me, I'd rather have someone there I knew.

Being new meant, forced introductions, while everyone at the back of the class looked past me, blankly. They wouldn't remember my name anyway. I learnt that they didn't care if I wasn't Helios and even if I was Helios, they probably still wouldn't notice me.

English was still by far my favorite subject, even though our class was being covered by the weather teacher. Apparently, the English teacher had swallowed a bee, trying to reenact a poem.

On each of our timetables, there was a period called Control Studies, at different times with different teachers. I was surprised to see mine supervised by Holden St. Cartrion himself.

Sebastian had peered at it with raised eyebrows when I showed him. 'He thinks you're trouble,' he said. 'He wants to keep an eye on you.'

I began to dislike the principal even more, a sick feeling pooling up in the depths of my stomach when it was time for his class. I had dawdled outside for a few long seconds, but not enough to make me late.

'Sir?' I called, knocking on the door of the classroom. In most classrooms we could just go in, but with the principal I couldn't be too sure. I could never be too sure.

The door swung open, undoubtedly to unnerve me, which it did.

'Ah, Olive,' Holden said, his eyes twinkling. Had his beard gotten even whiter?

'Sir,' I said, sitting down in the seat opposite him, staring at my feet. I couldn't dare to look him in the eye.

He glanced up from his notes. 'So you transfer pain, isn't that right?'

'Yes sir.'

He hummed. 'That will be interesting. I can't wait to work with you, Ol.'

I pulled a face at the nickname 'Ol'. I hated it, but wouldn't correct him.

Without warning, Holden took out a ruler and whacked my hand with it. I barely had time to react to the shock of pain.

'Go on,' he said. 'Transfer the pain.'

I was too hot with rage to think straight, let alone transfer my pain. I stared down at the red welt spreading across my skin like an angry bee hive. I knew somehow there was probably some type of complaint system I could file in, but I couldn't remember what. And I got the gist that Holden would somehow manage to twist the blame on me.

This pain was different from Madame Lefevre's. Hers, while was still terrible, somehow felt gentler than this. I knew that Holden was an empath, and knew exactly how to hurt most.

It wouldn't be the first time he had done this, I was sure.

'Come on, Olly.'

I couldn't even remember what I had done to transfer my pain to Doug, but I knew I did want Holden to hurt. I wanted him to scream in agony, in all the pain he had caused to students. I wanted him writhing on the floor, like a snake.

And then it started.

A low buzz in my gut, light tingles at first until it tumbled out and spilt, red, red, red everywhere until Holden was on the floor, clutching his hand in pain. Screaming. And boy, was it good to see him suffer.

'You will pay for this boy.' A gutteral growl, making me step back in surprise, dropping my hand, the pain springing back, somehow even worse than before. I ran out of the classroom before he could whack me again, hoping he wouldn't catch me.

I was stupid to think I wouldn't get caught.

That night, it hurt to lie in bed because of the thousands of stripes against my back, clinging to my shirt. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to block it out, but nothing worked. Nothing worked at all.

After about the 239th turn on the cold blankets, Sebastian spoke up. 'Hey Olive?'

'Yeah?' I whispered back.

'You not sleeping okay?' he asked.

I didn't answer. Somehow I felt that if I said something, it would only make it worse. And this time, I didn't even have Happy to comfort me, like he always did.

'Why do you hate me?' I blurted out.

Sebastian seemed shocked. 'I don't hate you. I swear.'

I hummed.

'I said you wouldn't survive the week before,' he added. 'But you will, I promise.'

'Thanks,' I replied.

'We could be friends, right?' Sebastian asked, a sort of hesitant tone creeping into his voice. I got the feeling that he didn't have many of them.

'Yeah,' I said.

'We both have Chem tomorrow. We can partner up,' he told me, pulling his blankets further up his head.

'Thanks,' I said again, trying not to think of the way my shirt was clinging to the raw insides of my skin. The less I thought about it, the better.

'Goodnight Olive,' Sebastian announced, turning over to face the wall.

'Night.' I stared up at the blank ceiling,
suddenly missing Ethan with a sort of intensity that scared me.

I missed the planet set he had made me to go with the glow-in-the-dark stars in my room. I missed his comforting hug, the one he gave me when I had a bad day. I missed everything about him, even his slightly annoying voice. Especially his slightly annoying voice.

I'd phone home tomorrow, I promised myself. If they picked up.

If they didn't, it was their loss anyway, and I'd phone Ethan instead.

Ethan always picked up. No matter what.

date: 15th March 2022
word count: 1076
total words: 7592