Chapter Four
Cracks in the Normal
Amelia thought school might distract her.
It didn't.
From the second she walked into Cresthill High, everything felt off. The halls were too loud, the lights too bright, and every voice felt like it was echoing inside her skull.
It was like someone had turned the world's volume up to 100.
She slid into her seat in the back row of science class, hoodie up, headphones in—even though they weren't playing music. Just pretending. Just trying to breathe.
"Hey, Amelia."
She jumped. It was Kayla, her lab partner, all shiny braids and bright eyes. "You good? You look like you saw a ghost."
I did, Amelia wanted to say. In my bathtub.
Instead, she muttered, "Didn't sleep."
Kayla raised a brow but didn't push. Bless her for that.
Mr. Lawson rolled in five minutes late, holding a coffee and his usual stack of barely-graded papers. "Today we're dissecting squid," he announced cheerfully. "Put on gloves. Try not to faint."
A chorus of groans filled the room.
Amelia pulled on gloves with trembling fingers. Her heart was pounding again, but she didn't know why. It wasn't the squid. It was the water. The reflection. The diary burning a hole in her backpack.
She picked up the scalpel.
The second she touched the squid, something happened.
The lights flickered.
The ceiling fan spun wildly, then stopped.
And the water inside the glass jar on their table began to bubble—like it was boiling from the inside out.
Everyone stopped. Silence.
Then Kayla whispered, "Uh... what the heck?"
Amelia dropped the scalpel. The bubbling stopped instantly.
Mr. Lawson turned around. "Who did that?"
"Did what?" someone asked. "The water thing?"
"Y-yeah," Kayla said. "It was like... it boiled."
Mr. Lawson walked over. "Could be a reaction. Could be faulty jars. Let's swap them." He didn't sound convinced.
Amelia didn't say a word.
But inside, she knew.
That wasn't a reaction.
It was her.
⸻
Back in the bathroom between periods, she locked herself in a stall, pulled her sleeves up. Her fingertips still tingled. Her eyes felt warm.
She leaned over the sink, breathing hard.
And for a split second—just one—her reflection didn't match her.
It smiled.
She didn't.
Amelia stumbled back from the sink, her chest heaving.
"Nope," she muttered, shaking her head. "Nope, nope, nope."
She turned away, squeezing her eyes shut, trying to ground herself. Breathe in. Breathe out. But the pressure in her skull was rising again—the same one from the night everything started.
When she opened her eyes again, her reflection was normal.
Still, she didn't trust it.
She splashed cold water on her face, gripping the sink to keep her hands from trembling. Just then, the bathroom door creaked open.
Someone else was here.
Amelia stepped out of the stall slowly, cautiously. She half expected it to be Kayla or some other student... but the girl standing at the sinks was a stranger.
Tall. Pale. Dressed in a dark blue hoodie with water droplets clinging to her sleeves like she'd walked through rain—even though it hadn't rained all day.
She looked up.
Her eyes... were glowing.
Just for a moment. A flicker. Blue like the lake.
"You're not ready," the girl said quietly.
Amelia froze. "Excuse me?"
"You touched the water too soon." The girl didn't smile. She looked Amelia over like someone checking for damage. "It's waking up inside you. Faster than it should."
"Who are you?" Amelia asked, voice a little too loud for the echoing room.
The girl turned to leave.
"Wait!" Amelia stepped forward. "Do you know what's happening to me? What I am?"
The girl paused at the door.
"When you're ready to remember," she said, "look for the one who never forgot."
Then she was gone.
⸻
Amelia stood there, stunned. Every inch of her skin was buzzing.
"Look for the one who never forgot"...?
Was it about her mom? Her dad?
Or someone else entirely?
Her heart was racing. Her head hurt. But one thing was clear—
She wasn't alone in this.
And someone out there knew exactly what she was becoming.