The Freaks

chapter eleven

The Freak slowly rises from the floor, wiping the dust from his clothes with the same crazed look in his eyes. I do the same, my legs shaking under me.

"You could have killed me," I say under my breath, but the silence in the room makes my voice echo for a long time, loud enough for everyone to hear it.

The boy doesn't say anything for a moment, just brushes his floppy dark hair out of his eyes and gives a smile. "Oh yes," he drawls, "I could have." His eyes shift to the wall, then to me again. "But you moved out of the way. What a shame."

I don't know what comes over me first—everything seems to happen all at once. I feel fire coursing through my veins and the anger behind my eyes and in my head and before I know it, I have the Freak pinned against the wall opposite me, a wild look in his face. His eyes widen as I lift him up from the ground, using everything I have inside of me to push him harder against the wall.

And then I realize a second too late what I'm doing.

I let him drop quickly.

Trying to ignore the shocked looks on the faces around me, and the even shocked and scared look on the face of the Freak I just slammed against the wall, I stammer out, "Payback," with a slight jump to my voice to hide away the anger.

The Freak's features contours in rage so quickly I swear it might split his face in half. His dark, strange eyes burn into mine and his hands shake with the need to do that same thing to me again. I almost think he will, but he storms out of the room, the floor literally shaking in tune with his footsteps, using some of his anger to slam the door shut behind him, the sound reverberating around the room, around my head.

The remaining Freaks' heads are turned to look at the door, but Serena's eyes are on mine, a look of shock and worry evident in her features. The one look sends my heart straight into the ground, and I'm not even sure if I'll be able to get it back again.

I look down at the floor and then my hands, unclenching my fists and swallowing the anger still coursing through my veins.

* * *

I'm on my way back to my room when I feel her presence behind me.

"I can help you," Serena says as she sidles up next to me, nudging my arm playfully with her own.

"With what?" I turn my face to look at her, confusion on my face, though I have a feeling I know what she's going to say.

She smiles and looks down at the ground as she continues to walk beside me, biting her lower lip. "I saw you struggling while we were moving those objects around in training," she says quietly, turning her gaze to me and keeping it there. "I can help you train with the power, if you'd like."

I think about this for a moment. It would be good to have someone help me become stronger with this ability. I know I won't be able to do this by myself. I probably could, if I tried hard enough with enough patience, but I don't have that time now.

I need all the help I can get.

It's Serena's hopeful expression that forces my voice to speak. "That would be great," I say.

Now we are in my bedroom together, Serena beside me as I face the mattress, staring intently at the box of medical supplies. I raise my hand towards it, palm out, trying to remember what Serena did not even two minutes ago.

"Keep the box in the centre of your vision," she whispers, pressing slightly closer to me so she can speak into my ear. She looks over my shoulder at the object, seeing if it is in the centre of my vision, I'm guessing. I try to focus, but her proximity is making my head spin. She continues, saying, "Now, this is going to sound cliché as hell, but it truly works..."