Power

It's gonna be okay

TW: PTSD, flashbacks

"Mo-orning" I yawn, sitting next to my friends, throwing my backpack on the dirty classroom's floor.

"No coffee today, huh?" asked MJ.

"I didn't have time to drink it...I'm so tired" I say, dropping my head onto my bench.

"Guess what?" asked Ned, excited.

I lifted my head and looked up at him.

"Hm?"

"I built this really cool device in science class yesterday."

He caught my attention.

"Cool! So I'm guessing you didn't dissect the frog like the rest of us?" I asked.

"...No."

"Lucky bastard" huffed MJ.

"Anyway, I had to be really careful not to get caught, but...ta daaa!" he pulled out something that looked like a disc with string wrapped around it. 

"This is the Ultimate Charger-o 2.0!"

"The what now?" I asked, puzzled.

"It's a device that can charge your phone wirelessly".

Peter seemed excited.

"It works on the principle of Electromagnetic Induction. It's really cool" he added.

"Huh. And what was the name again?" I asked.

"The-uh...the Ultimate Charger-o 2.0"

"I beg you to change it" said MJ.

"Well, if you're so smart, why don't you come up with a name?" said Ned, mildly offended.

"Um...how about just "Ultimate Charger". Without the Cheerio nonsense..." I suggested.

"Cheeri-what? No, CHARGER-O, not Cheerio" protested Ned.

                                                                                         ****

I walked next to MJ on the school corridor, Ned and Peter behind us. We were heading to the cafeteria for lunch. 

Suddenly, the girls appear from behind a corner. I have been avoiding them for so long, usually hiding in the bathroom or behind walls when I saw them coming, and now I had to face them for the first time since the incident. My heart started racing and I quickly turned around, but it was too late.

"Well, well, well...look who it is!" said Scarlett. I stopped, heart pounding in my ears.

 MJ immediately took a step forward.

"Shove off, you cheap Barbie" she said.

"Oooww, aren't you cute, protecting your little friend? Isn't she cute, girls?" asked Scarlett, turning towards the others, who nodded and laughed.

I felt my stomach clench, even though I knew I was safe. Their laughter pierced my ears and scratched my brain, and I started getting flashbacks of that horrible day. My knees felt weak.

"Screw you! Let's go, guys" I said, turning desperately towards my friends.

"Wait a second" said Claire, blocking my way. "How come you left us? We really missed you, Hannah" 

"Why did she sound so honest? " No, she was messing with my mind.

"I bet you did. Now get out of our way" said MJ, getting more irritated.

"Hannah, can we...talk?" asked Claire. She had tears in her eyes.

I looked at my friends. MJ shook her head decisively, Peter frowned and Ned's face said "I don't think it's a good idea".

"Um...I don't know, Claire..."

"Please?"

I sighed. 

"You can talk to me here" I said. I was scared of going anywhere with her.

"Fine. Girls, could you give us a second?" she asked, and the others left, chattering as usual.

"That day, I-I tried to...to stop them" she said. "What they did was horrifying" she said.

I felt Peter, Ned and MJ frowning behind me.

I wanted to believe her. She seemed sorry. Maybe-no. If she thought what happened was horrible, she wouldn't have hung out with the girls anymore. I realized this like a click in my head. Even before, when I thought she was nice, it was the same cruel prank. She couldn't trick me anymore.

"Give me a break" I said, walking right past her shocked face.

                                                                                                     **** 

"You were awesome!" said Peter.

"Yeah, you were great" added Ned. MJ just smiled proudly.

The rest day went off as usual, except something felt awfully wrong and I couldn't tell what.

                                                                                                   ****

Every step I took on the way home, I felt sadder and sadder. Tears were pricking my eyes, and I didn't know why. That made me angry. Everything was perfect. I defeated the girls, had fun with my friends... Still, seeing them reminded me of that horrible time in my life where I was living with them, and panic was rising in my chest along with the flashbacks.

"Pig!" Laughter. Bang! Pain. Bruises. The cut on my forehead. Swollen lip. Laughter. Bang! Pain. "Idiot!" God, the laughter. More pain. Scissors. Pieces of my hair dropping on the floor. Dizziness. I missed my lunch. Locked in my room. Bang! Head against the sink. Trembling. Blood. Panting. Dying inside.

I didn't even realize when I got to the Avengers Tower. I just ran straight to my room, unable to keep the waves of tears from leaving my eyes. 

I realized I was about to start sobbing, my heart racing, hands shaking. 

No, not today. I won't cry anymore about them, that's over. I took a deep breath to relax. I was safe now. They couldn't hurt me anymore and I also had the Avengers by my side. It was all gonna be okay.

I didn't even have to fake a lot of smiles during dinner. Some of them were actually real.