The savior of the fantasy world

Unspoken truth

I sat slumped over on the desk, my head resting on my arms, the chaos from earlier playing over in my mind. The whole situation had been overwhelming, especially in front of Stefan. Molly had left to get me something to drink, and when she returned, it was with a glass of warm milk.

"Thank you so much, Molly. I don't know what I would've done without you," I said, my voice still shaky.

She squeezed my hand, giving me a reassuring smile. "What are friends for?"

I smiled back, grateful. I squeezed her palm lightly, but a sigh escaped me as I continued, "I'm going to miss you tomorrow."

She raised an eyebrow, looking at me with a thoughtful expression. "It’s not like you're leaving the country, Ellie. We're still in the same school." She paused, then added, "But I’m worried about Jackson. I don’t think he’ll take it well."

"Yeah, I remember. He got sent to detention because of you." I laughed softly, trying to ease the tension, but there was a touch of sadness in my voice. "I know. He was so stubborn. At least we’ve had some peace since he left."

Molly nodded, but her face shifted. "And now, you're going to join him there. What do you think he’ll think?"

I sighed. "I don’t know…"

"We should probably find out what would happen if you end up in detention," Molly suggested thoughtfully.

"I'm afraid," I confessed, the thought of spending time with people I didn’t want to associate with, especially in such a confined space, weighing heavily on me.

"Ellie..." Molly’s voice pulled me from my thoughts. She was looking toward the door with a concerned expression.

I followed her gaze, my heart skipping a beat. "Yeah?"

"Wendy’s here," she said quietly.

I blinked in confusion. "Who's Wendy?"

Before I could process, my eyes landed on her—Stefan's girlfriend—standing by the door.

The sight of her made my stomach tighten. Her hair was a wild mess, her dress torn below the knee. She looked like a madwoman, someone I almost didn’t recognize. The beautiful girl I once admired seemed like a completely different person. And the way she was glaring at me sent chills down my spine. What had happened to her?

She started walking toward us, and I instinctively stepped in front of Molly, trying to shield her. My heart pounded in my chest. There was something off about Wendy. I noticed her eyes—bright red for a split second, before they shifted back to normal.

Before I could say anything, Wendy grabbed me by the collar, pulling me toward her with surprising strength.

"You caused this!" she spat, her words sharp and venomous.

I was too stunned to speak. What was she talking about? But before I could ask, she shoved me forcefully onto the desks.

A sharp pain shot through my back as I hit the hard surface. I could’ve sworn I heard a c***k. I groaned, trying to catch my breath as Wendy stalked toward me.

"Hey, b***h. Leave her alone!" Molly shouted, but the moment she spoke, I knew she had just made the biggest mistake of her life.

"Molly, run! Now!" I screamed, panic rising in my chest.

"I can’t leave you!" she protested, but her words were cut off by my agonized gasp. "Aargh!" My back felt like it was on fire. I couldn’t heal myself in time.

"Run! Call Stefan! No, call Jake!" I screamed, the pain intensifying.

Molly started running, but Wendy stretched her hand out toward her. In an instant, a cloud of dust formed around Molly as she struggled, trapped by an unseen force.

"What the hell is this?" I murmured, too confused to make sense of what was happening, but all I cared about was Molly’s safety.

I slowly got up, pain still shooting through my body, and as my powers began to heal me, my eyes flashed gold.

The force holding Molly stopped, and she fell to the floor with a heavy thud. Wendy, too, crumpled to the ground, the energy surrounding her gone.

But the power wasn’t mine. It wasn’t me who had stopped it. Someone, or something, more powerful had intervened. I turned my head slowly and saw a shadow slinking across the wall. It moved quickly, vanishing behind the window, leaving me with more questions than answers.

I rushed to Molly, finding her unconscious on the floor, her body limp and still. Panic surged within me, but I was relieved when I saw Stefan rush into the room.

He knelt next to Wendy first, his fingers pressing to her wrist. After a moment, he looked up at me, his expression calm despite the chaos. "She’s fine. Let’s get them to the hospital," he said, lifting Wendy with ease before turning back to me.

~

The waiting room was quiet, the atmosphere thick with anxiety. Molly’s mother had gone in earlier to check on her, but I hadn’t heard anything since. I understood—she was probably angry, worried, and I had a lot to explain.

I stole a glance at Stefan, who was unusually quiet. I cleared my throat, the silence between us hanging heavy.

Before I could speak, Stefan cut in. "Look, I know you have a ton of questions, but—"

"I wanted to ask if you're okay," I interrupted him, unsure why I cared, but the words spilled out anyway.

His brow furrowed. "You don't care about Wendy?"

I sighed, turning away slightly. "Why would I care about someone who tried to hurt us?"

"Elena..." He said my name, and it felt like he was trying to get me to understand something I couldn’t.

I shook my head. "I don’t want to talk about it." I turned back to him, my thoughts swirling. "Right now, I need to figure out what’s going on between us."

"Between us?" He looked completely baffled, and my heart sank. This was it. I was certain now—he didn’t feel the same way about me. I was about to make a fool of myself.

Just as I was about to speak, Mrs. McGuire walked out of the examination room, calling my name.

"I know you're worried about Molly," she said, her voice soft. "But she's fine. She fainted because she hadn’t eaten. I told her to warm up the pasta in the fridge, but she didn’t."

I exhaled, relieved that Molly was okay and that it had been something as simple as her missing a meal.

"What about the other girl?" Stefan asked, looking concerned as he glanced at me.

"She’ll be fine. She just needs rest, and you can take her home tomorrow," Mrs. McGuire assured us.

I glanced at her. "Can I stay and watch over her?" I asked.

"No," Mrs. McGuire said firmly. "You need rest too." She gave me a pointed look before walking away.

I turned to Stefan, who glanced at me with a grin. "You look like crap," he said, and I couldn’t help but glare at him.

He raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, I’m sorry. But can I drop you off?"

"No," I muttered, shaking my head. "I’ll take a cab home."

He raised an eyebrow. "I’ll drop you off, my car’s parked outside the hospital."

I hesitated, then nodded, unable to argue with his persistence.

---

The ride in his car felt endless, the cool air from the air conditioning doing little to ease the tension in my body. I couldn’t stop thinking about how my mom had driven off earlier, angry and upset. My nerves were a mess, but I tried to focus on other thoughts to calm myself down.

"What are you thinking about?" Stefan asked, breaking the silence.

"My mom," I said quietly, my voice betraying my unease. "She was really angry when she left earlier today."

"You’re right. You’ve got a lot to sort out," Stefan said, his tone surprisingly understanding.

I scoffed. "Yeah. But I still need to ask you about Wendy."

Stefan chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.

As the car sped through the streets, my mind kept going back to Molly. I felt like such a bad friend. I had dragged her into my troubles and now she had nearly paid the price for it. "I’m a horrible friend," I muttered under my breath.

"Why do you say that?" Stefan asked, his voice gentle but firm.

"I never took care of Molly like I should’ve," I said, my voice thick with guilt. "I kept adding my problems onto hers, and she almost got killed because of me."

The car suddenly screeched to a halt, and Stefan turned to me, his eyes soft but serious.

"Hey, don’t think that way," he said, his voice unwavering. "You two care about each other a lot, okay?"

He moved closer, his grey eyes locking with mine. "You’re beautiful," he added, and I felt my heart skip a beat. His words, so simple yet so intense, made me blush, and I couldn’t tear my gaze away from his. He was… breathtaking.

A snap of his fingers brought me back to reality. I blinked, feeling the heat in my cheeks, and glanced away, nervous as a cat.

He unbuckled my seatbelt, his touch lingering on my skin as he said, "We’re home."

I blinked, not even realizing where we were. "Thanks for the ride," I muttered, stepping out of the car.

"Should I pick you up tomorrow?" he asked.

"No," I replied quickly, giving him a small wave. "I’ll be fine on my own."

He nodded and started the engine, the sound of it fading as he drove off, leaving me standing in the still night, my heart racing.