GENEVIEVE
The sharp clang of metal echoed across the arena as several trainees sparred on the practice mats. In another corner, instructors barked orders while groups practiced controlling their abilities. It was noisy, familiar... almost comforting.
I sat on one of the benches with Elysia and Shai, absentmindedly rolling a bottle of water between my hands while they argued over whose turn it was to clean up the mess they'd made during training.
"I'm telling you, you froze my shoes to the floor first," Shai complained.
Elysia scoffed. "That was after you threw a fireball at me."
"It was a tiny fireball."
"It singed my hair!"
"It built character."
I couldn't help letting out a small laugh.
"You two are impossible."
Shai grinned triumphantly.
"See? Even Genevieve agrees I'm right."
"I absolutely did not say that."
The three of us laughed, and for a brief moment...
Everything almost felt normal again.
Almost.
Because no matter how hard I tried to focus on their voices...
I could feel it. A pair of eyes lingering on me.
I glanced across the room.
Ivan stood near the edge of the training floor with his arms folded, watching Ethan finish a set of practice drills.
Or at least...
That was what it looked like.
The moment our eyes met, he looked away, making me frown.
Maybe I was imagining things. I tried to ignore it.
Ethan eventually wandered over, wiping the sweat from his forehead with a towel before dropping onto the bench beside us.
"I'm exhausted," he groaned.
"You've been saying that for an hour," Shai replied.
"Because I've been exhausted for an hour."
Another laugh escaped me.
But as I reached for my water bottle...
I felt it again.
That same stare.
This time I looked up more carefully.
Ivan.
He wasn't pretending to watch the others anymore.
He was watching me.
His expression was impossible to read.
The uneasy feeling in my stomach returned.
I quickly looked away and unscrewed my water bottle, pretending to be interested in anything else.
Why is he looking at me like that?
I told myself I was overthinking.
Yet every few seconds, I could still feel his gaze.
It became harder to relax.
Harder to smile.
Harder to join the conversation.
Even Shai seemed to notice.
"You okay?" she asked.
I forced a smile.
"Yeah."
"You've barely said anything."
"I'm just tired."
The lie came easier than I wanted it to.
Silence settled over us for a few moments.
Then...
The bench shifted.
Ivan had walked over.
He stopped directly in front of me.
"Genevieve."
I looked up.
"...Yeah?"
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
"What do you think happened to Nicole?"
The question hit me like a punch.
My fingers tightened around the water bottle.
"I..."
I swallowed.
"I don't know."
It wasn't entirely a lie.
I truly didn't know what had happened after the core reached for her.
But I knew I had something to do with it.
And that knowledge was enough to make guilt twist painfully inside my chest.
Ivan didn't look convinced.
"You don't know?"
I shook my head.
"No."
He held my gaze.
"You were the last person connected to everything that happened."
"I know."
"You disappeared."
"...I know."
"You came back."
"...Yes."
His eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
"And Nicole never did."
My heartbeat quickened.
"I... I don't know why."
"What happened while you were gone?"
"I can't remember everything."
"What do you remember?"
I hesitated.
"Pieces."
"What pieces?"
"I..."
Every question made it harder to breathe.
"I don't know."
"You don't know..."
His voice remained steady.
"...or you won't tell us?"
I looked down at my hands.
I wanted to tell them. I want to tell them how the core made every part of Nicole's body disperse in that endless universe.
That Nicole had reached me.
If I told them...
If they looked at me the way I looked at myself...I wouldn't survive it.
"I really don't know," I whispered.
Ivan didn't move.
"If you're hiding something—"
"I'm not."
"Then look at me and say it."
Slowly...
I raised my head.
His eyes never left mine.
"I don't know what happened to Nicole."
The words left my mouth.
But they felt hollow.
Ivan continued watching me in silence.
As if he could see right through me.
As if he knew.
The pressure became unbearable.
My breathing grew uneven.
I could feel my vision beginning to blur.
Please...
Stop asking...
"Ivan."
Elysia's voice cut through the silence.
He didn't answer.
She stood up.
"That's enough."
"I'm only asking questions."
"And she's answered them."
He looked at Elysia.
"Has she?"
"Yes."
"I don't think she has."
"Ivan."
There was a warning in Elysia's voice now.
He finally looked back at me.
Only then did everyone notice.
Tears had begun slipping silently down my cheeks.
I hadn't even realized I was crying.
I quickly wiped at my face with the sleeve of my jacket.
"I'm..."
My voice broke.
"...I'm sorry."
Shai's expression immediately softened.
"Genevieve..."
Ethan looked between Ivan and me before quietly placing a hand on Ivan's shoulder.
"Dude."
Ivan's eyes widened slightly.
He hadn't meant...
He looked at the tears I was desperately trying to hide.
The guilt.
The fear.
The way my shoulders trembled despite my attempts to stay composed.
His expression softened.
"...I..."
He stopped.
"I'm sorry."
I couldn't answer.
I lowered my head, covering my eyes as another tear escaped despite every effort to hold it back.
Elysia walked over without saying a word and wrapped an arm gently around my shoulders.
"You don't have to answer any more questions," she said softly.
"We're here."
Her words only made me cry harder.
Because she was comforting me...
When I was the one carrying a truth I couldn't bear to tell.
And as everyone slowly let the conversation die, only one thought echoed relentlessly in the back of my mind.
If they ever learned what really happened to Nicole...
Would they still look at me the same way?