Struck

~ Chapter 2 ~

The rest of the day went on brutally slow, to the point where I debated going home early and just saying fuck it. But I knew that my brothers would probably chew me a new one for not caring enough about my education and that was something I definitely didn't want to deal with.

So I pushed through it, despite the fact that the thunderstorm outside held more of my attention than any of my teachers did. 

When the last bell finally rang, I was up and out of that classroom like a bat out of hell. I speed walked down the hallways, practically growling at anybody who blocked the path to my locker. Upon reaching it, I spotted Chloe leaning against the locker next to mine, her bag slung over her shoulder already. She smiled as I approached and then laughed as she saw my narrowed eyes and thinned lips. 

"You look like you're about to murder somebody." She chuckled as I unlocked my locker and threw my stuff inside before grabbing my bag. 

"If one more person decides it's a good idea to just f*cking stop in the middle of a crowded hallway to chat with some 'friends', I might have to." I growled, slamming my locker closed and walking towards the exit; Chloe falling into step beside me. "Where's Avery?"

"She has a cow show tonight so she went home early so she could bath and brush it." She reminded me as we pushed open the school doors and stepped into the light rain. 

I chuckled, "Oh yes, how could I forget after the 7000 times she told us." We both laughed before saying our goodbyes and ducking off to our cars to get out of the rain. 

As I drove out of the parking lot rain started to pelt harder against my windshield, turning into an all out downpour. I turned my windshield wipers onto full speed, but it still wasn't fast enough to keep all the rain off. The highway blurred and then cleared at each swipe of the wipers, making it difficult to focus on the road. 

It wasn't until it was too late that I saw the bunny hop out in front of me. 

An audible thump was heard as my car made impact and I shrieked in surprise. Pulling over quickly, I threw open my door and stepped out into the rain. It was pouring so hard that my entire body seemed to be instantly soaked and I had to squint in order to see without rain entering my eyes. 

In the distance, I spotted the small bunny laying on the road. Tears built up in my eyes as I realized that I had likely killed it. I hated when animals were harmed, so being the cause of this ones death had me sniffling.

Just as I was about to turn back to my car to get out of the rain, seeing as the bunny had died and there was nothing I could do about it, a sharp crack sounded above me. 

Anxiety washed over me, my stomach clenching nervously as I looked towards the sky; towards the lightning that had crackled above me. All of the hairs on my body stood on end and a shiver raced down my spine. Another bolt streaked across the sky above me and struck a near by tree, the boom of thunder that followed rattling my bones. My mind screamed to get in my car and drive before something terrible happened, but my body wouldn't move. Couldn't move. All of my muscles clenched in anticipation, so tense that I felt like they had turned to stone.

I suddenly couldn't breathe.

As another flash of lightning hit the road beside me, I realized I didn't want to breathe if I couldn't taste the power that lightning held. The power to destroy everything it touched while still looking so beautiful, so enthralling, so. . . ethereal.

Those desires should have disturbed me, should have sent me running back to safety, but before I could attempt to salvage any of my sanity, a flash went through the sky.

Bright white light painted my vision, heat seeping down from my scalp to the tips of my fingers and toes. I could feel that power, that blinding energy in every part. . . no, every cell of my body and I wondered if this is what it truly felt like to live.

Another bolt struck me and I was lost. Lost to everything but this feeling of such power, such utter strength and control that I couldn't imagine my life before this. I clenched my hands, lifting them up in front of me and marvelled at the slight of them. Every vein near the surface of my skin was glowing white and when I fisted my hands, the power intensified; pulsing with each beat of my heart. 

Strike after strike hit me, not hurting but becoming me - embracing me. My heart pounded so hard that I could hear it in my ears, almost to the point that I couldn't even hear the constant rolling thunder from above. I was sure how long I stood there, embracing this feeling of dominance and strength before it finally began to hurt. 

My body started to ache, as if it had been overloaded and it didn't know how to cope with this much energy. I groaned as my heart, once drumming wildly in my chest, stopped for a few seconds before continuing. A sharp pain spread from my chest and over the rest of my limbs, making me cry out. Dropping to my knees, my hands, still white with energy, clawed at my chest and the burning that resided there. 

My heart faltered again as another flash of lightning swept through me; my toes and fingers clenching at the unpleasant feeling. I gasped for breath as my heart started back up again. Though it hurt, I still felt that power running through my body, still felt like if I wanted to, I could destroy everything.

When the next flash of lightning struck, my heart stopped completely. It hurt so bad that I couldn't move, couldn't think, couldn't breathe. Then, like an internal switch had been flipped, the pain was gone and I felt complete, as if all my life had been leading up to this one moment and I was finally me. 

Before I could contemplate any further, my eyes rolled back and my body went limp, hitting the pavement with a dull thud. 

I realized too late that power and strength came with a price, one that might very well kill me.