Elementally Chosen

3 - Get Out Of My House

Hearing Shelly breaks my chain of thoughts and when I look in the mirror, my eyes are glowing a vibrant blue, the same as my hands. I stare at it, all nonplussed. This makes my whole face look different and freaky. It breaks my controlled concentration and my power winks out. My eyes take on its usual grey hue and I sigh in relief. That almost gave me a heart attack. I notice that my usual stick - straight jet black hair with brown streaks is in a disarray (thanks to a certain principal) and my clothes are slightly rumpled. Aside from that, nothing is out of the ordinary. Thank god!

"That was so cool! Wow, what I wouldn't do to have such powers." Shelly says exuberantly. "You can feel free to have them." I say while shaking my head at her bubbly character. I pull her out of the restroom when the bell rings. I want to get out of here as fast as I can and enroll in some other school. We maneuver through the crowd of dispersing students; me dragging a protesting Shelly behind me. "Lea, stop! I have to go bring my bag", she whines. Her pleas are falling to deaf ears. I just want to get the hell out of here and am scared to go alone. She has no other choice than to come with me.

"You can collect your bag tomm......" I stop mid sentence when we round a corner and land face to face with none other than Mrs Quinn. I feel like banging my head at the walls at my bad luck. Why couldn't it be someone else? She has a look of pure malice as if she would kill me right here if not for the rushing by students. The hag is back to her usual self- not the creepy one- thank god!

I am frozen as she walks forward, stops next to me, then bends and whispers into my ear, "Be ready little flower. I will be back soon". With that she walks away. After I regain my composure, I laugh at her cliché villain dialogue and her vain attempt to scare me (ok, let's be truthful, I am very scared). But I vow to myself that next time I will be prepared- I will not the be the weak person that she thought I was.

Shelly drops me home. She is still a little pissed at me for dragging her unceremoniously. Now she will be punished at school tomorrow because she can't do her homework- because of me. I feel a little guilty at my actions; but if it repeated, I wouldn't change anything. The threat (though I like to think of it as empty) has made me jittery.

After Shelly drives away, I enter the house apprehensively, not sure of what mood my aunt is in. When she is in a bad mood, I become the target for removing all her frustration. She either keeos me hungry and makes me clean the whole house till it shines or beats me sometimes with little or no reason. If she is in a good mood, then I have to clean less and get to eat leftovers. I am treated like a servant here, but can't do anything about it because I have no money or place where I could go to. I am not living here willingly. Mom and dad, why did you leave me? You should have taken me with you. I miss them the most during my worst days at house.

Just as I am about dash up the stairs, a hand slaps my face, jeering my face the other way due to it's force and surely leaving behind huge, red fingerprints. I try to suppress my anger and hatred at this witch- yes, witch. Not an aunt. She has list that title long ago. I hold my hand to my cheek and wait for her to give an explanation for that. There is always some kind of silly reason behind it or no reason at all.

"How dare you spoil my family's name!" she spits out. "I got a call from school saying you destroyed the PRINCIPAL'S office and KNOCKED HER UNCONSCIOUS!" she thunders and I flinch at the high octave of my second 'unfavourite' voice. The nest sentence shocks me." Get out of my house, you are no longer staying at my house." I don't move, I am so shell-shocked. "I SAID GET OUT". My step sister Kennedy just smiles mockingly at me. I give her a cold glare and she runs away like a mouse.

I dash up the stairs and pack my bag in daze; still not believing she is doing this. She has done worse things before, but this crosses the line. Even I think I can't handle it anymore. I stuff all my shoes and clothes (there are very few because she hardly gives me a penny to spend), necessities and my priced possessions- my mom an dad's wedding photo frame (which I had to hide otherwise the witch would have sold it), a pink glittery clip from Shelly and my grandfather's honoured calligraphy pen. I grab all my saved cash, my secret stash of candies, my hairbrush and makeup, my second best friend- my diary and, as an afterthought, I tiptoe into the kitchen and steal some canned food. I don't own any jewellery except for my mother's sapphire ring.

Pocketing my cell phone an taking a deep breath, I ignore the blatant stare of the witch and her real daughter and open the door. Oddly, I don't even feel anything remote to sadness as I step out of the house I lived in for 13 years. As the wind blows and rustles the leaves, I step out and gaze at the setting sun. The sky is a reddish- orange with thin clouds stretching across like translucent white patches. Walking through the pathway, I wonder where destiny will bring me.