Elements

Chapter 18

I dragged my feet as I walked through the hallway on my way to the music room. I had just finished my lesson with Ms. Wren, focusing on electricity. The effect had been quite shocking (excuse the corny pun... it was right there). I had caused a power outage in the training room and in the Boy's dorms. Ms. Wren had to leave me alone in the room to practice for a while so she could reset the fuses.

The point was, my powers were getting stronger by the day, and I was having more and more trouble containing them. They seemed to surge with my emotions, like the tides to the moon. When I was angry, things had a good chance of melting, bursting into flame, ect. When I was sad, the stretch of ocean around the island the school was on grew violent and unpredictable. Excitement triggered electricity, loneliness brought ice, and happiness had a tendency to make random flowers appear all over the place. I was beginning to dread going out in the rest of the school after my lessons- I was a time bomb just waiting to explode- or in this case blow my secret and wreck the school.

But that wasn't why I was moving slowly on my way to the music room. I knew that there would be people in there, one of which would be a brown haired boy who I had been shipped with twice (Stupid Anita and Cammie!), but who I had also screamed at: a boy who deserved an apology.

Despite my best effort to never make it to the music room, I eventually arrived. There was about fifteen teens in there: most people preferred to practice their powers in the gym or talk with their friends on the steps of the school. The room was about as large as the average classroom, with different instruments around the room. About ten guitars hung on the walls, tuned and ready to play. There was a piano in one corner, and a full drum set in another. Around the perimeter of the room were stands for just about every instrument I could name- violins, flutes, saxophones, clarinets, oboes, trumpets: the list went on and on. In my time at the Haven, I had proved that I could play them all at an advanced level.

The pride and joy of the room, however, wasn't the tons of instruments, but what appeared to be an ordinary supply closet in the back. However, other students would be surprised to find a recording booth. There, anyone could record their own music, whether it was a cover or an original song.

I waved to Anita, who was over by the piano, then looked around the room for Ben. If what he said was true, then he had known me for a year before my memory loss, and would be able to help me remember who I was. I found him outside the recording booth, gathered my courage, and walked over.

When he saw me, instead of walking away or looking down as I expected him to, he smiled at me. "Hey Elephant- Ella. Sorry, force of habit. I was just about to go looking for you." Elephant? He had called me Elephant and I hadn't roasted him? Wow. We must have been close.

"You were?" I asked, curious as to why he would still put up with me after my outburst. He nodded.

"I was wondering if you would play piano for a song I want to record. Do you remember how to play?" Now it was my turn to nod.

"Give me the music and a few minutes to practice, and I'll be ready. But look, about my outburst... I'm sorry." I took a deep breath and looked down before continuing. "Ever since... well, for as long as I can remember, I've been struggling to trust people. Then I find out that a super villain is out to get me, and you show up right after... I was- am- a little paranoid." When I looked back up, he was still smiling, only now it looked strained.

"He's still after you? I would've hoped he'd have given up by now." He asked, clearly trying to sound lighthearted. However, I recognized a hint of worry in his voice.

My first thought: Why should he be worried? He barely knows me! My second thought: He knows you, you just don't know him. You have to trust him Ella, even if he named you after a fat, wrinkly, gray animal. My third thought: What the heck? I like elephants!

Finally I spoke: "Ms. Wren said he was here... She even has a theory on who it might be, but she won't tell me until she's sure." I scrunched my eyebrows together, remembering the conversation Ms. Wren and I had. She had to be fairly sure in her suspicions to have taken a job to keep an eye on the suspect.

Ben pulled my from my thoughts when he handed me the music for the song. "It's a cover of the song A Drop in the Ocean, by Ron Pope. I used to sing it with you all the time, even though you had never heard the original before. This is the cover I taught you. Who knows? Maybe you'll remember it." He then walked away, over to the guitars and started playing an unfamiliar song. I took the opportunity to head to the piano to try the song in my hands.

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Hey guys!

Here's a longer chapter for you to make up for my lack of update last week. A few questions though, before I end the chapter:

Who knows the song A Drop in the Ocean?

On a more important note: I have a notebook where I draw diagrams and pictures of the places and people in my stories. Would you be interested in seeing them? Right now I have one of the school and one of Ella and Anita's dorm room, as well as the one attached to this chapter, the music room (I'm sorry if the writing is hard to read in the picture.).

This chapter is dedicated to jennifer_bahna . Make sure to check her out!

Please vote, comment, all that stuff. You guys are the best!

Karategirl124