After Lou posted about the soulmate documents, Amelie quickly shares it to her Instagram. She doesn’t have many followers but everyone agreed to do the same.

Every little bit helps.

The air shifts soon after it. Beeps and buzzes and phone alerts go off with varying urgency. She is in English when it comes to a head. Bell is next to her, and with one glance, Amelie can sense the shared uneasiness.

They all discussed the potential outcomes. Chaos is inevitable. But it doesn’t make her look forward to it any more.

Mrs. Britol’s voice shakes as she tries to get everyone’s attention to the board. Amelie can’t tell if Mrs. Britol knows what’s going on or if she is truly clueless.

A boy in the class, Hans, slams his fist on his desk, causing Amelie to jump. “You’ve got to be shitting me. I’m not staying here!”

His chair screeches as the legs drag against the linoleum. Hans does this with so much force that the it topples over and he pushes open the door and leaves.

Her heart is racing. She had hoped for no violence but the grim reality is hitting her.

“Ok everyone, let’s calm down,” the teacher begins, but another student, Christy, this time also makes a ruckus leaving the classroom.

Amelie leans over, closer to Bell. “Do you think that’ll be the worst of it?”

Of course it isn’t.

Just as she finishes her question, the door is ripped off its hinges. Mrs. Britol has to literally hit the floor to dodge the door that is thrown in her direction.

Kim, an already physically strong girl, enters the room. She has super strength without the cuffs, and a quick look at her bare wrist shows that she must have broken hers off.

“I will not be a prisoner!”

Amelie can hear the chaos in the hallway. People are stomping past, shouting and making noise.

Her whole body is shaking. She doesn’t even realize it until Bell sets her hand on top of her trembling arm. “Amelie!”

“What?” She asks.

Waving her other arm, the one with the metal bracelet, Bell says, “My cuff, it just turned off.”

“What?!” There’s no colored light. It’s as someone hit a switch. Maybe someone did.

Her eyes sweep around and all the lights on the cuffs are powering down.

She’s never felt so vulnerable then in that moment.

She is a powerless girl in a school of rageful power-ridden students.

Bell grabs her hand and drags her out. Her friend wards off dangerous bouts of powers with her own weather abilities.

She hadn’t even noticed that everyone was evacuating the room.

In the hall, it is a mess. With no restraints, students are utilizing their abilities to express their outrage.

A fire blast comes towards them and Bell creates a rain shield. Someone with enhanced agility comes near them. Bell waves her hand and a lightning strike scares the person off.

“We should try to find everyone,” Amelie suggests, hoping to catch Ria and make sure she’s ok.

Even with Ria’s colored hair, she can’t locate her in the chaos.

It seems like most people’s goals are to cause the most destruction and havoc that they can. Amelie doesn’t understand how this help since this almost proves the government and the school’s point. But she can’t dwell on it now.

As they make it outside, the protesting somehow gets louder, even with the expansive outdoors. Bell suddenly stops pulling Amelie when they read the front yawn of the school. She actually lets go of her hand entirely. “Amelie, I feel weird,” her voice strains.

“Bell?”

She staggers, clutching her head as if she had the biggest headache known to man.

Amelie’s heart races. She has no idea what to do for Bell. She can’t do anything.

Bell closes her eyes, and when they reopen, Amelie’s racing heart turns cold. They’re red. Her friend’s normally brown eyes, the ones that made her feel at ease before they were even nice to one another, are blood red. It’s like a demon possessed her. In a stiff motion, she straightens and comes towards Amelie.

If she thought people were being aggressive inside, it’s even worse outside. Amelie has to back away from Bell whilst dodging other attacks.

Even this amount of rage surprises Amelie. She is a pretty pessimistic person, or at least she used to be before getting friends, so she had kinda expected the worst. Though this is worse than anything she could have cooked up.

“Bell, I don’t know what’s happening but you can break through.” It’s as if her friend doesn’t hear her. Doesn’t hear a thing actually. Like she has a one track mind. And that thought in her head is looking pretty scary to Amelie.

It’s as if darkness sank into her veins, some kind of evil taking over.

Backing into someone, Amelie scrambles away, but they catch her by the shoulder. It’s Cross, who thankfully looks completely normal. Albeit a little concerned.

He steps in front of her and points to a guy that looks vaguely familiar. “It’s Steve. His soulmate ability spreads his own emotions to others around him. He’s angry if you couldn’t tell.”

Steve doesn’t appear to recognize his effect on the people around him. His anger is palpable. Glowing red eyes. Heaving breaths. Steam practically comes out of his ears.

“So Bell is being affected by him,” she says, eyes redirected to her friend.

The weather is turning dark. Ominous clouds gather above their school, sending chills up her spine. A low rumble of thunder shakes the ground.

Her eyes are still crimson with a matching intimidating snarl on her lips. Thrusting out her arm, a gust of wind follows her motion, hurdling towards them.

Cross lifts his hand and redirects Bell’s wind with his telekinesis. Amelie can feel the heavy force that Bell sent their way. It pushes Cross back into her.

“The anger is making her powers more forceful. We need to stop Steve or something,” Cross says through gritted teeth. “Her abilities could be one of the more destructive ones if given the time.”

Having the power of the weather in the palm of her hand, Amelie can see why Bell is dangerous. Well…could be dangerous. If not for the anger inducing Steve, she would never turn her powers against her and Cross.

Another blast, this time of ice and hail, is shot at them. Cross shields them again, though Amelie can see the sweat gathering on his forehead and his muscles straining against Bell.

“Bell couldn’t hear me before. But maybe your soulmate connection can break his effect on her,” Amelie suggests.

His gaze turns to Bell, his concern evident.

With all that Bell has gone through with her mom and Arlo, she has been mad, but she hasn’t outwardly shown it like this. Amelie knows that it’s Steve’s powers, but part of her wonders if her bubbling anger only needed a little push to erupt.

Bell is usually so calm and collected. Not pushed to outburst very easily.

The person in front of her trying to hurt them is not her friend.

“Bell, it’s me. It’s Cross,” he begins, gently approaching her step by step. His hand cautiously out in case he needs to deflect a show of power.

She shows no sign of recognizing him. Though at least she isn’t moving, staying planted in the same place.

“How long does this effect usually last?” Amelie questions.

They duck as someone’s wayward energy blast almost hits them. Her parents will hate this when they hear about what happened. She’s surprised parents haven’t already lined up outside the school to get their kids out.

Cross shrugs, unhelpfully. “I never asked. I have no idea if it’s a time thing or distance away from him.”

That would’ve been good info to have on Steve.

Amelie likes to work with all the facts. She likes to be prepared. Never in her life did she ever think she would need to prepare for this.

“I’m gonna do something Amelie, but I need you to not worry about me,” Cross says. That sure makes her feel better. That’s basically saying ‘no need to worry’ in a very need-to-worry situation.

“That’s not concerning at all,” she mumbles. But she gestures to go ahead with his plan because she wouldn’t be able to stop him anyway. If anyone can get through to Bell, it would be Cross. “But I trust you.”

He gives her a grateful nod before turning his attention to Bell.

Amelie watches as Cross closes the distance between him and his girlfriend very slowly. Bell’s eyes shine crimson like two bloody pools staring at them. “Hey Bell.”

His voice is softer. It’s noticeable different than when he talks to anyone else. It’s kinder. Like there’s a secret only they share.

“The storm is a little scary. Do you think you could make it snow?”

Even in her haze of anger, Bell’s head tilts up to the dark clouds she created. It’s not necessarily recognition she sees in Bell but maybe a flicker of confusion.

Cross must take it as encouragement because he gets a bit closer.

When he’s about ten steps away, her eyes glare back at his figure and a lightning crackles in her palms. But she doesn’t fire it at him.

So progress.

He continues on, “Remember snow days? Before our powers? We would have to wait for actual snow to get a snow day. Remember?”

Snow must be some kind of significance to them because the blinding light in her grasp lessens until it is squashed between her hands.

“Remember Bobby? Our snowman that we made. We named him after Iceman. That was even before I got the courage to tell you I liked you. How I’ve always liked you.”

Cross reached out and managed to grab her hand. Bell doesn’t attack him, so it must be working. Amelie sighs in relief, her whole body sagging.

“That I love you.” With that declaration, Amelie sees as Bell’s eyes shine in Cross’ direction, the red hue melting into her normal brown color. Her blinks a few times, like she needs a few moments to adjust.

Before her body was rigid and her movements jagged, like she was being puppeteered. As she comes back to her own feelings, her body loosens up. More natural.

Her arms fling around Cross as she sobs apologies to both him and Amelie.

Amelie waves it off. Cross mumbles words to Bell, but Amelie couldn’t hear it. Probably for the best. It feels like almost an invasion of privacy to even be watching them.

“Amelie!” Whipping her head around, Ria is bounding up to her, her blue highlights bouncing along with her, messily in her face. “Thank goodness I found you!”

She could say the same.

Ria makes her feel safe. In any situation, but especially in this one where everyone is running mad.

When she gets within arms distance, Amelie wraps her in a hug. Being with Ria in this moment is like being in the eye of a storm. A calm within the chaos.

Things are at a still, for the time being.

But the thing about being in the eye is that the storm is still ahead.