The Elementals

Chapter 2

The clinic was rather packed by the time the trio arrived. Betty had managed to calm down and was now chatting away with Jarrod. Haylee  watched,  bemused as Betty giggled girlishly at his weak attempts at humour. She had also perfected the hair curl. Haylee could almost be jealous.
The three had been friends for years,  but with age came a change. Haylee completely expected this, their obvious crush on each other the frequent topic of girly gossip sessions with Betty denying in a cliche manner. Her blushing didn't exactly prove her case either.

Jarrod had no reason to pursue anything other then friendship with Haylee either. For one,  she posed no competition with her plain features. She wasn't ugly,  but neither was she stand out. Hair; your usual brown, long and semi-wavy. Skin;  your usual cream. Height;  not small and cute or tall and graceful,  just average and boring. She didn't have freckles or any other irregular quirk that could make her unique. Even her eyes were brown. She was your classic example of a 'plain Jane', and the fact that she was more tomboyish and sporty only put her in the category of 'one of the guys' then 'girlfriend material' to the boys at her school.
Personally,  she wasn't really interested in that stuff,  but that didn't stop her from feeling slightly sad that she was going to lose not one,  but both of her friends. After all,  who wants to third wheel a couple of gooey eyed lovebirds, who were undoubtedly going to make out most of the time anyways? A pass.

As the line slowly crept closer to the doors,  Haylee took this time to admire her humble town surroundings. Oakhart was pretty much a bunch of old western buildings nestled in the middle of a pine forest. Only about five hours from the nearest city, and yet it still felt like a slightly more populated version of the middle of nowhere. It was just dawning on winter,  so a subtle mist clung to the air. A light breeze sent a small chill up her spine,  but she was dumb and forgot a jacket today so she wasn't getting rid of that easily. Sigh.

Sooner or later (later. Definitely later)  Haylee was finally through the doors. From there,  it didn't take too long to get the blood test done,  and since she was first in she decided to wait around for Mr and Missus Denial to flirt out. Not like she had anywhere better to go anyways, but least the view was nice. Being one of the only new buildings in town the clinic had glass walls that beautifully captured the surrounding greenery, as well as provide a decent view of the main road. Perfect for people watching.

"huh. That's an unusual sight." Haylee muttered,  noting the standout sleek black fancy pants vehicle sliding in to an open car park. Even an idiot would recognise it as government. Maybe they were here to collect the blood tests?  Although she was sure they were checked on premises. Men in black approaching,  am I right?  She joked to herself,  watching as four stern faced men stood out of the car and began walking towards the front door. Ugh,  do these guys ever smile?  She honestly doubted it. Her eyes followed their path to the doors,   through the doors and into reception. One of them took out something - wait was that a picture?  - and then the desk lady stood and pointed.

Pointed at Haylee.

No. No this can't be right!  What's happening?  Confusion froze her for a second, but only a second because the second man was pulling out a gun. Wait no they all were and one man's lips were moving but she didn't hear because next thing she knew she was running. Haylee was up from her seat and fleing for her life through the chairs, past shocked faces and out the back door. On the street but she wasn't safe yet,  male yells following her. Her first thought was the forest in front of her - good cover,  but too predictable. The cars! She only had seconds before they would see her,  so she had to act quickly. Ducking her head and sprinting left she dodged,  crouched and rolled,  right underneath their car. Holding her breath,  she waited. Waited for them to follow,  reach underneath the car and grab her.

Seconds ticked by, then minutes and still nothing happened. She was safe,  at least for now. Scooting out,  she paused to glance around before running off. Why?  Why are they coming for me?  There was no point asking. She already knew the answer, for there was only one explanation. She was an elemental.

And they were coming to kill her.