Lost In Your Light || P. Parker

03| Swimming

Like the many nights before, the once chaotic city was now silent.

Something wasn't sitting right with Lelia as she creeped between the shadows, her senses tingling, searching far and wide for a desperate soul.

But there was one problem.

She couldn't find anything. Not even a pigeon with a broken wing.

The telepathy link was cold.

She sighed breathlessly, stopping in her tracks. She had been running for at least 20 minutes, and she hadn't seen a single soul. Should she turn back now and try to get some sleep?

Yeah. That was a good idea. She was tired and had school in the morning.

But as Lelia turned around to head back home, her hands burst into a bright, golden light. It was so powerful, that the heat surging through her veins stung. Lelia winced forcefully, trying to locate the signal.

Where was it coming from? She could almost hear the screams of pain in her ears, the agony almost becoming too much to bear. It's like she could feel their souls connecting, the mending soon becoming the most satisfying one she's ever felt.

The power brought her new life, she was ready to share it with the person or animal in need. Lelia held her hands in the air, her arms shaking from the intensity.

She started to panic.

Where are you? She called out desperately. Tell me!

The answer never came.

The light glowing across her skin started to fade. The heat radiating off her body cooled.

Just as fast as it had come, the healing touch was gone. And that meant whatever had called out to her was dead.

Her heart felt cold. Almost as frozen as the air.

She had failed.

Lelia hung her head low, clenching and unclenching her fists, as if doing so would ignite the capability resting in her atoms.

Tears pricked along her eyelids. She hadn't cried since her mom died.

The memory of her mother made her feel empty and hallow.

Senses alert and eyes focused, Lelia bolted down the street. Tears streamed down her face, but she kept running. She needed to feel that power again. Whatever had happened was an unexplainable experience. She had to know more. Where did it come from?

Lelia kept running as fast as her legs allowed her. She passed multiple scraggly lots and run down houses. Not a single light shown through the abandoned buildings.

She kept running until the lights of Queens were a silhouette in the fog. The cement beneath her feet started to erode. Wider cracks criss-crossed through the pavement. She dodged potholes left and right.

Once she couldn't see in front of her, Lelia came to a stop. Her skin crawled.

Where was she? The girl blinked in confusion. She couldn't recall the past five minutes. It seemed like a blur. Did she really just run 2 miles out of town?

Fearful, Lelia stopped breathing. She tried to focus on the sounds around her.

It was complete silence. Not even the crickets were chirping. Her stomach wrenched. She was in the most dangerous part of town.