Chapter 29
Stella
“W oah. This is kind of intimidating,” Layla murmurs next to me.
Jay snorts. “Talk for yourself.”
I laugh quietly as I analyze the next competition we’re doing. We managed to find a little corner below the cabins with the perfect spot to climb. Of course, Isabella and Jay chose it for our next race.
“Okay, everyone!” Isa calls, walking in front of all of us.
“This spot is incredible. We used to climb here at every opportunity back when we came here as teenagers. The rocks are incredibly strong and stable. We still have the safety gears necessary obviously so half of each team will race while the other stays below to look out for them.”
Her eyes land on Jay, laughter in them. “For this part of the race, the first person to the top will win for their team. And using our powers is off-limits, of course.”
Jay chuckles. “Obviously. You know I could just fly to the top.”
“Exactly. And we can’t allow a win to be accomplished by cheating, can we, Jay?”
Silence follows, most of us stifling our laughter.
“Well, let’s get started!” Adrian calls, breaking the silence as he heads toward the mountain.
We all follow him, grouping in pairs as we install the security gears and hooks. Hazel and Nate next to me are laughing as he helps her into the harness. Isabella grins at me and gestures at our harness.
“Come on, get in there, Stella. And we’ll win this.”
I smile back. Her eyes glimmer with hesitant trust. I step into the harness and she helps me tighten it.
I glance at our opposite team, finding Jay and Adrian paired up and Adrian already having the harness settled. Layla and Sam are both staring at each other. Layla laughs softly and puts on the harness, Sam grinning in response.
Isabella pats my shoulder and I know we’re all good to go. After checking mine and Hazel’s gears one last time, we approach the looming rock wall.
As Hazel and I get ready and grab the rocks, preparing to start, Layla and Adrian do the same next to us.
I feel Adrian’s eyes on me, his familiar gaze making me smile. When I look back at him, he grins warmly. My heart flutters in my chest.
“Three!” Isa starts, distracting me from the moment. “Two . . . One . . . Go! ”
All of us start climbing, as fast as we can. With a smile on my face, I climb and climb and climb.
A calmness settles in my heart. Confidence. Strength.
This makes me feel alive. Laughing without a care in the world under the sun. Friends who make daily life seem colorful and bright by being in it. Silly races for the sake of it.
I feel home.
Suddenly, something weird and wonderful happens. The rocks shift under my feet, turning into stairs. My heart stops. My body freezes. My eyes widen. My cheeks hurt and easy handholds to reach for form as I climb. My powers.
They’re coming back, they’re coming back! They are coming back to the way they were months ago! I could cry from joy.
It’s like my life is all falling into place, like puzzle pieces finally coming together. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Adrian
By the time I hauled myself over the last ledge, Stella was already there, standing tall, wind in her dark curls, eyes bright from joy. She won.
And somehow, watching her, steady and shining, made something quiet settle in me. Pride, definitely. And maybe something deeper, too—the quiet certainty that no matter what, a part of my heart is always with her.
As we head back to the cabins, all laughing and beaming, I can’t help but wonder . . . Maybe the reason we all underestimated Stella was because she’d underestimated herself.
And if that was the case . . . There’s no way in hell that it’s going to keep happening.
Not on my watch.
As we walk back to the camp, there’s a weird pressure in my fingertips. I try to ignore it as I walk to follow the others, but it gets more insistent, stronger, with every step I take.
When an incessant buzzing fills my ears, I mutter some kind of excuse to Jay as I walk away.
I walk through the forest, but with every step forward, the pinching against my skin and the buzz in my ears get stronger.
A voice I can’t recognize echoes behind me, but I can’t hear a word.
In the woods, the buzzing turns sharp. My magic’s trying to tell me something. I’ve felt this before—a storm forming. Thunder cracks inside my head, and panic floods me.
I’ve stopped storms before. Dozens of times. But it doesn’t matter how many times I’ve had to do it, the same panic always flares to life when I need to do it again.
My heart is beating so loudly, I hear it more than the next thunder echoing in my head. I can stop the storm from coming to life if I use my magic fast enough. I’ve done it dozens of times. Yet my heart is still trying to beat its way out of my chest.
My eyes are laser-focused on finding the best spot I can stand in to really focus and be able to stop it.
Or I try. Because, in my panic and hurry, I slip on the muddy, slippery ground and pain shoots through my leg.
I’m sure I’ve gone down with a scream, and I remain on the ground, like an idiot, closing my eyes and trying to catch my breath, when I hear a voice calling from far away.
I ignore it and focus again on the tingling from my magic.
An electric current makes its way up my arm, and I close my eyes.
I focus all my attention on that magic, that electricity, and start twisting it.
The buzzing starts to die down in my ears, and I use my magic to pull the storm away, to make it fade into oblivion.
When I’m confident the crisis is averted, I open my eyes again. The rain has dulled to a drizzle.
As my adrenaline starts to come down, the voice I heard a minute ago comes back. I recognize it’s Jay’s voice. I smile.
He crouches beside me. “A storm was about to strike, wasn’t it?”
I nod. “Yeah.”
He sighs. “We better get your foot taken care of. We’re lucky we brought Sam with us.”
“You’re right.” He helps pull me up, and I wince as my injured foot grazes the ground. “Hey, ummm,” I start hesitantly.
Jay grins. “Don’t worry. I won’t say a word about the storm. You were just running and slipped on a rock. That’s the story.”
I grin. “Are you sure you’re not a mind reader?”
“I’ve known you since we were kids, Adrian. I’m pretty sure I know how your brain works at this point.”
We both chuckle as he uses his magic to lift us from the ground and gently carry us back to the cabins. I try not to think too hard about what the others will say. Especially Stella.