Chapter 3: There's Something About Him
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"It only takes a moment—one second of contact—for the truth to begin unraveling."
— Amelia
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Everyone listened, eyes fixed on Luca as he gave his speech.
He spoke with confidence and wit, cracking jokes and clever puns that left the crowd laughing. When he finished, the gym erupted in cheers as he made his way out. Students immediately surged out the doors, chasing after him without waiting for the principal to dismiss them.
Soon the hallway was jam-packed—students crowding around Luca, who was signing autographs and taking pictures while his bodyguards struggled to hold the fans back.
Amelia, Sarah, and Martin stood a few feet away from the crowd.
Martin:
"Look at this crowd! Just for one guy." He turned to Sarah.
"I'm surprised you're not there."
Sarah:
"Hell nah, I might be one of Luca's biggest fans, but there's no way I'm getting choked up in that crowd. Most of those people won't even get close enough to touch him, let alone get his attention. Right, Lia?...Lia?"
They turned—Amelia was gone.
Their eyes darted to the crowd, where they spotted her pushing and squeezing her way through, determined.
Sarah:
"Amelia!" she called.
Amelia managed to raise her hand briefly to signal she'd be back. She kept pushing forward, using her surprising strength to break through the wall of people. Finally, she burst out into the open space around Luca, protected by his bodyguards.
She was directly behind him now.
She took one last gulp. She reached out to tap his back.
As soon as her palm touched him...
zap!
Everything around her changed.
Suddenly, she and Luca were standing on sand, completely surrounded by water—left, right, up, down. It was as if they were underwater... but she wasn't floating, and she could breathe perfectly fine. The sounds of the crowd had become distant and muffled, like echoes from above, drowned in an eerie liquid silence.
Before they could react—
zap!
They were back.
Amelia quickly pulled her hand away, eyes wide. She looked around in shock. Luca turned to face her, just as stunned. For a few seconds, they stood frozen, staring at each other, lost in a moment that felt... unreal.
Everything around them faded. Time slowed.
They weren't underwater anymore, but something was definitely different.
Luca tried to take a step closer, still looking at her, but his bodyguards pulled him back into motion. He was still trying to speak—trying to stay—but the crowd swept around them once again.
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After Luca left and the crowd paused at the guarded front doors, Sarah and Martin rushed over.
Martin:
"Amelia! Are you okay?"
Sarah:
"Lia, are you okay?! I wasn't expecting you to follow the crowd—literally!"
Amelia:
"I'm... I'm fine. I just wanted to talk to him more about his speech."
Sarah:
"Mmhmm. Yeah, right. You went through a stampede just to ask about his speech? "What's the real reason tough-hearted Amelia would go after a guy?"
Amelia:
sighs "Okay, okay. The thing is... he looked really familiar. From the moment he walked into the gym, I knew I'd seen him somewhere before—but I couldn't place it. Then he took off his glasses... and I knew. I was sure I'd seen those eyes before. And I was right."
Martin:
"Huh?"
Sarah:
"Wait, are you saying this is some love-at-first-sight stuff? Because honestly, I'd believe it. It IS Luca."
Amelia:
"No, no—it's not that. I know what I saw. Something happened when I touched him."
Sarah:
gasps "You touched Luca?!"
Amelia:
"Yeah... a little. But when I did, everything changed. You guys remember the dream I keep having? The one where I'm underwater, and I see people, strangers—and there's this woman standing across from me...?
"Well... once, I saw him. Or at least, I saw his eyes."
Martin:
"Well, Amelia, sometimes people dream about strangers and meet them later. Maybe it's just a coincidence—he's popular, after all."
Amelia:
"No, Martin. I remember those eyes. In the dream, the woman always stands between me and... him. I know I sound crazy, but it felt like me and him were literally in the dream when I touched him, I'm telling you—there's something about him."
Sarah:
"Well... maybe you're destined to meet him or something. Honestly, I'm just happy for you, Lia—"
RIIIIIIING!
The school bell interrupted everything.
Martin:
"Let's head to class. We'll talk more later."
They all started walking back, but Amelia was still stunned, still thinking, still trying to make sense of it all.
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To be continued...
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Chapter 4 Preview:
Mike's Convenience Store—Amelia's after-school job—gets attacked by armed robbers. In the chaos, Amelia uses the mysterious power she didn't know she had for the first time. She saves a life… but it comes at the cost of another.
Don't miss the turning point in: What Just Happened?