STATIC; JR [2]

2.6

I awoke to rapid shaking of my torso, shouting, and cold hands on my face. "Edith? Can you hear me?" It was Jake's voice I was hearing, and it was Jake's hands on my face. I could still feel the violent jerking across my stomach, and with that, I opened my eyes. "Sam, stop!" I winced at the volume of my boyfriend's order and brought a trembling hand to my face.

"What happened?" I asked, recreating the moment that occurred and reoccurred in most dramatic films. I locked eyes with Jake and tried to stare at him through the fog that rested across my pupils. Each of the boys returned my gaze with solemn expressions, but Jake's was the most extreme. "What?" I repeated, exasperated.

Jake brushed the hair off my forehead, searching my face for any pain. "You fainted." I was relieved to hear that was the worst thing that had happened to me. I had to admit, I expected more.

I guessed that Felix could tell I wanted some explanation as to why I collapsed, and so he crouched down, moving closer to me and nudging Sam out of the way. "What's the last thing you remember?" I met his eyes as he spoke, but my gaze fell as I studied my latest memories.

I remembered the spell we were trying to cast, and I remembered the bubbles. I remembered how much it hurt and how it felt inside my brain. I remembered falling down.

I brought my attention back to Felix. "I remember everything." I told him, tears clouding my already disoriented vision. He was silent, but his expression pressed me for more information. "It hurt so much, Felix."

Jake sat me up a little, but then allowed me to rest against his chest. I let out a small sob, crying for reasons I couldn't quite understand just yet. "Where did it hurt?" Jake asked, concern sprayed over his features.

"It hurt in my head." I mumbled, nuzzling into the blond boy's shirt. I suddenly felt cold on the grass, and now noticed the uncomfortable dampness of the soil.

Felix stared at me, deep in thought, as Sam questioned why it was me that fell down. Why not anyone else? We all waited for the Goth boy to come up with a response, each of us feeling the anxiety creeping in. "I don't know why it was you, Edith, but I have to suggest that it's because of the magic you wield."

I took his words on board, but Sam just looked confused. "What does that mean?" He asked, his eyebrows knitting together in utter confusion. "You said she has more power than us?"

Felix shook his head. "It's not about the extent of her power. I am saying it could be because she is, in the purest human form, electricity."

I watched as Jake nodded his head in understanding. "Electricity doesn't mix well with water." He noted.

"No, it doesn't." Felix added. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Andy was my closest friend; my oldest friend, and now Felix was telling me that I couldn't be around him for too long, for he might take away my energy?

"I don't understand." I said, really meaning it. Felix crept in closer, almost reaching out to touch the top of my head. It was like he was intrigued by what had happened to me; I was something he never thought he might encounter, and now I was giving him too much to process.

"Dude, what do you mean she is electricity?" Sam asked, an uneasy tone to his usually light voice. His question was one I had yet to think of, and the answer to it worried me deeply.

Felix cocked his head to the side and squinted his eyes at the boy, and then suddenly, he jerked back, and all momentary silence disappeared. "How did it feel inside your head before you fainted?"

"It kind of felt like bubbles, I guess. Like my brain was popping." It was the closest explanation I could come up with, but it seemed to give him a well enough understanding, because his eyes widened in a confused shock.

Without missing a beat, he asked another question. "What does it feel like when you use magic, Edith?" He asked, his voice raised in anticipation.

I came up with the answer right away, although I had never thought about it before. I looked him in the eyes as I said it, thinking I might be able to show him how it felt if I studied his face hard enough. "Static." I said. "It feels like static in my veins."

Felix sat back on his knees, his shoulders slumping. Somehow, by the expression on his face, I knew I had given him the exact answer he had been looking for.