STATIC; JR [2]

1.4

Sam made it extremely clear that he wanted to go first, and he jumped at the chance to use his magic. Since the boy was the Air element, we decided to test his ability to move light objects. He'd been experimenting for five minutes, and we'd been watching his unsuccessful attempts for longer. It just wasn't working, it looked like he was trying too hard. With his eyes squeezed shut, he pointed directly at the can, hoping to do anything magical. "Well, this is fun." Jake countered, rolling his eyes at the boy's antics. It was kind of funny to see Sam struggle in this way, but I wasn't about to laugh at him. The frustrated teen dropped his arm, letting it slap harshly against his thigh. He glared at his blond friend, sending him invisible daggers. Sam had always been one to hide his embarrassment with anger, and nothing's changed.

He directed his attention to Felix, now ignoring Jake's teasing. The Goth only returned his anticipation with an expectant glance, he almost looked irritated. "Maybe I need to sneeze?" Sam suggested, his voice slightly pleading for any sort of assistance. Felix perked up at his proposal, visibly intrigued at the possible clue.

"There could be a physical trigger." He noted, offering his discontented friend a weak, one-shouldered shrug. Andy also seemed to like this idea, as he nodded along with Felix's words. Sam took in a deep breath, repositioning himself. I found it hard to believe that somebody could just sneeze on cue, but Sam managed it well enough. He was always exceeding my expectations, there was never a dull moment with him. Although the sneeze was well performed, it didn't do the job. The rusted, empty can sat still, basically taunting us from metres away.

"There must be a process, every action has a reaction." Andy mentioned, suddenly aiming all his words at Felix. "Tell us how you do it." Said boy rolled his eyes at Andy's request, crossing his arms over his chest in the process. While they two were conversing, Jake and Sam swapped places.

"I don't know how I do it." Felix mumbled, a little aggressively. He then looked at Jake, who couldn't care less about their incessant arguing. "How do you catch a football?" Felix asked him, causing Jake to quirk an eyebrow. The action seemed so simple, and I think that's what Felix was getting at. He didn't understand why or how he could produce a fireball over the palm of his hand, he just did it.

Jake's eyes left Felix's intense gaze so he could look at me, and he searched my face for any answer to Felix's obvious question. I shrugged, gesturing for him to give the Goth his desired reply. "I hold my arms out and I catch." The blond stated, still appearing a little dumbfounded.

"I tried that once." Andy said, a grimace on his face. "It didn't work." Sam laughed, the scoff very quiet as Andy scuffled toward the can. "If magic is like science, then it can be learnt." He paused, his eyes on Jake. "How did you make the ground shake?" He asked him, his eyebrows furrowed in question.

"I don't know..." He mumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose. We could all practically see the wheels turning in his mind, and when he finally came up with an answer, he clicked his fingers. "I saw Bates with my Mum, and that freaked me out." He concluded, announcing the information in a slightly shaky voice.

"Okay, try and remember that feeling. You have to harness it." Felix ordered, leaning toward his friend in interest. Jake looked at the can, suddenly unsure of himself. I read the expression on his face, and it showed he was worried. There was no clear anger written in his features, just a little anxiety. I had previously realised that the thought of our science teacher dating Jake's mother made him more apprehensive than angry, so this was no surprise to me.

Sam spoke up, his words once again unannounced. "If picturing Bates with your Mum isn't enough to piss you off, try thinking about me kissing your girlfriend." This verbal outburst had caused Jake's head to snap to the side, watching Sam with hard eyes. It was clear to each of us that any thought of Bates and Sarah was erased from his mind, and when Sam snaked an arm around my waist, Jake confirmed our notions. Sam pulled me closer to him, making childish kissing sounds in my ear. Jake said nothing, he didn't even look at us as he clenched both his fists and his jaw. I squirmed, squealed and blushed all at once.