BEL AND THE FOUR OF HEARTS

Seven

I sighed deeply as I looked at myself in the mirror. It had only been 5 hours into the school day, and I was already exhausted by everyone and everything. This wasn't how I imagined school being; I imagined it to be quite bad but in reality, it was worse than bad.

I ran my hand through my short red hair, trying to will some energy back into my body. But the truth was, I was just passing time in the bathroom, trying to gather my thoughts and muster up the energy to make it through the rest of the day.

I turned on the faucet, not bothering to wash my hands. I just needed the sound of water to clear my head. The water danced and sprayed around in the sink, creating a soothing sound that drowned my thoughts. I watched it for a while, trying to relax my mind and focus on something else.

As the water continued to flow, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, inhaling the steamy air around me. The sound of the water droplets hitting the sink echoed in my ears, creating a sort of melody that helped me forget about everything else. For a moment, it was just me and the

The sound of the water droplets hitting the sink echoed in my ears, creating a sort of melody that helped me forget about everything else.

For a moment, it was just me and the water, lost in a trance.

I opened my eyes and leaned in, almost letting the water splash onto my face, but I quickly changed my mind and turned it off.

The silence resumed, but I could still hear the muffled voices of students and footsteps of all sorts in the hallway.

Home.

I impatiently looked forward to clocking out of school. Going home. Maybe even taking a nap. Then giving a reasonable explanation to dad for coming back to the school…that too, without his permission.

I sighed again, noticing how my short red hair was ruffled and messy. It was not naturally straight, but I had that officially made it so with a straightener, so the way my hair had already gotten ruffled wasn't surprising. I raised my hand and brushed it through, trying to smooth it out. It was still a bit tangled, so I brushed it more forcefully, hoping to untangle it.

I adjusted my skirt too— for no particular reason.

I absentmindedly reached for the necklace that was tucked inside my tank top. The pendant was smooth to the touch, like a small bead or stone, and I didn't recognize what it was made of. It was a gift from my late mother, and I only had a faint memory of her putting it around my neck when I was young.

I lost my mother to a fire when I was just five years old, and I don't have many memories of her. But I always kept the necklace with me, tucked into my dress.

Don't worry, I won't be so cliché to say I was doing it to feel close to her or something. I don't even remember much about her in the first place to feel that way. It just happened that I had gotten used to having it around my neck so much that I didn't feel okay if it was not there. I never even took it off these days.

I sighed and tucked the necklace back into my shirt, briefly catching a whiff of the scent of ink in the air, as I swung my head in the direction the air seemed to have nestled the smell from, noticing Pauline walk in.

I felt stiff in my throat as I turned my face back to the mirror. We exchanged cold glares through the reflection in the mirror, and I could feel the tension rising between us. She scoffed as she quickly made her way into one of the stalls.

I rolled my eyes and continued to brush my hair, still feeling annoyed.t he sound of a toilet flushing broke through the silence. I looked up to see Pauline walking out of the stall and walking over to the sink to wash her hands. She turned on the faucet and let the water run over her hands, scrubbing them together with soap. I rolled my eyes and pretended to ignore her, not wanting to give her the satisfaction of knowing her mere invasion of the little space I had was getting to me.

She kept glancing at me in the mirror, a smug smirk on her face.

I adjusted my posture and straightened my ruffled uniform one last time, making my way out of the bathroom. This was when I felt a sudden splash of water hit me. My eyes widened in surprise and anger as I looked down to see the wet spot on my shirt.

"What the hell?" I exclaimed, turning to face Pauline and feeling the cold water soaking through my uniform. Pauline just laughed and tried to help me dry off, but I could see the malicious glint in her eyes.

“Oh my bad,” she chuckled, as she tried to help me wipe off the drenched part of my uniform. I knew it was all an act, and that she had deliberately splashed water on me.

In a flash, as she touched the wet part of my uniform, pretending to try to help, I felt a jolt of electricity in my stomach.

I let out a loud shriek of pain.

"Oww!" I cried out, feeling the pain shoot through me as I held my hand over my side.

The sensation was so sharp and sudden that it nearly took my breath away. It felt like a jolt of lightning had just passed through me. The same way one gets electrocution when they touch bare wires.

She had slapped me in the face the second time with her Voltinari move.

Standing there with wet clothes, and my veins still buzzing from her touch; my annoyance was quickly turning into anger; the tension was rising in the pit of my stomach, and I just wanted to scream.

Pauline's little display of power wasn't just painful, it was infuriating. But as much as I wanted to retaliate, I knew that using my own powers would only result in more trouble…the only power I could channel was from just a common wand—that everyone f*****g has! The rules and regulations governing wand-magic use were strict, and I knew that any use of it to harm someone else would result in severe consequences.

The only powers you don't really get punished for using were natural powers that every human is born with. Everyone except, of course, me!

For a moment, I hated myself.

I envied those who could control the elements, read minds, or even fly. I wished I could do something to make Pauline pay for her cruelty, but I knew deep down that it wasn't worth the risk.

I walked away from the bathroom, holding my burning stomach, still hearing Pauline's mocking laughter echoing in my head.

It was barely my first day back for crying out loud!