"She's a monster!" Hands were pointed on a certain blonde girl drowning in embarrassment. She's covering her hand which is strangely blue, hiding it from the people taking an interest in it. "Patricia is a monster in disguise, I told you she is!"
The black-haired girl approaches her and harshly pulls her hand for people to see. The sight of a blue right hand that has a crystal-like surface and pointy fingers called the attention of all the people around them. It even reflects the light of the setting sun.
Patricia is almost breaking into tears with the harsh grip that she's under. Even her hand was as hard as a diamond, it was still a hand, she can feel the pain through it. She takes a deep breath and withdraws her hand away from the tight grip of her oppressor. The girl in front of her didn't like that. "Now you're trying to hide it, just like what you did before. That hand of yours made people think I am crazy, and I am just proving here that I am not!"
The two girls broke into a fight as the black-haired girl charged at Patricia. The latter was brave enough to fight back without hesitation. "Tell them! Tell them you monster-in-disguise!" Everyone was hesitating to stop the battle between them. No one dared to step in and pull the girls aside. Instead of putting an end to this mess, the audience chattered among themselves and some even cheered it on, as if this was some kind of a wrestling match.
Their chattering was stopped when a huge wave of wind brushes through them. It was enough to brush up sand on the eyes of Patricia's enemy and made a small drone that shifted the audience's attention. The small event gave Patricia a window of opportunity to flee the scene. She pushes the girl away from her and tries to flee among the crowd. The girl was fast enough to catch her arms again and pull her closer to her harshly. "You're not going anywhere!"
Patricia was overwhelmed with pain. It felt her arms almost detached from her whole body as she was pulled harshly. "Erin!" She pleads as she pushes her away. A sudden strength rushes to her body and it seems to remove the pain she's feeling in her arms. Although, it released a wave of weakness onto her as if she exerted a great force onto something.
She opens her squinted eye and saw the girl she called Erin on the ground injured with a blink. There were several shards of seemingly magenta glass around her and even some on her body. She can see it as well around her but floating. Everyone who witnessed it was shocked and speechless.
Patricia realizes the graveness of the situation as her heart sinks at the sight of Erin. Before anyone snaps back to reality, she started running away as fast as she can. "After her!" She can hear behind her back that motivated her more to boost her speed. Some people started chasing after her while others tended to the injured lady. She comes running towards her bike and runs off with it, outrunning her pursuers.
She started pedaling the fastest she can ever do and will ever do in her life. Her hands were gripped on the handlebars as if her life depends on them. She turns her head for a moment and saw some were still pursuing her with their bikes. She started to take routes she had never taken before to outrun and confuse them. She went through alleyways and turned right and left at every corner she manages to find.
After what seemed hours of pedaling, she finally found an alleyway where she finally lost her pursuers. They either lost her or gave up halfway through. Her bike comes to a halt as her heart almost did with the fatigue she's feeling. She catches a year's worth of her breath as she rests her trembling feet. She turns her head again, checking twice if there is still someone after her. She sighs in relief as she was in peace, alone with herself at last.
Patricia rests for a while before finally going home. She wraps her right hand with a handkerchief before setting off. After some minutes of calm pedaling, she approaches her house. The sight of the color of her house alone makes her feel at ease yet there's a lingering fear inside her. She enters their lawn and sets aside her bicycle. She stands there, staring at the house, hesitating to go inside.
She decided to stay outside for a while and calm herself down one more time. The events that happened earlier rush in her mind. It was an overwhelming amount. She looks at her crystal hand, slightly trembling at its sight. It was still the same as before but she didn't know it will do what happened earlier. She asks herself, "Did I do that?" She breathes heavily, "What have I done?" Her voice cracked as a tear rolled off her eye. "What's happening to me?" She said to herself, her feet were trembling in fear.
She looks at her house again, she feels fear to even step on the porch. She pulls herself together, "Just… don't look… bad." She fixes herself and slightly covers the bruises she got. She wipes the imminent tears on her eyes. Patricia takes a deep breath and approaches the door. She enters the house, looking around the place. No one seems to be present in the living room. She took the chance to slip past through and go to the stairs.
"What a miracle to witness. You're early today." Patricia froze in place as she heard the familiar stern voice that she was afraid of. She decided to insist on going upstairs, but the voice spoke once more before she could.
"Don't run away. Are you hiding something?" Someone approaches her from behind and grabs her arms. Patricia looks shocked as she looks at her father observing the bruise she got on her arms. She immediately withdraws her arms away from his hand. "What are these bruises!?" Her father looks at him, rather disappointed with a hint of concern. He peered to the hand that was covered with a handkerchief. "Tsk," tutted an exasperated father.
"Did they catch wind of your hand finally?" Patricia sighs in annoyance, "So, what? I don't even feel you care even the slightest." Her father sighs, "I've always told you to not hang around with those people. It's evident in their faces that they just want to snitch with you if they discovered something. Tell me, it's Erin, right?"
Patricia rolls her eyes and decided to turn her back on her father and insisted on going upstairs. "We aren't done talking yet, Miss Prudent." She turns her head, "If you're just going to rub on me that you are always right, I already know it. I don't need to hear that again while I am in so much pain."
"I am not rubbing anything on you, I am just telling you that you should have listened to me. Those people are no good for you." Patricia turns around, "Everyone who's befriending me always ends up on your bad side."
"Because they are bad people, do I need to list them all? Eurydice in your elementary school when she knew about your hand, she told her mother. Ending up for your grandmother to bribe her to not tell anyone. Belle in your middle school, she ends up snitching you for everyone to bully you."
Patricia is increasingly getting annoyed, "Yes, they are all bad. I admit that." His father was satisfied with this, "See? Even with all of that, you're still not listening to me."
Patricia clenches her fist, taking deep breaths to calm herself. However, something inside her is pushing her to reason herself. A lot of her regrets before rushed to her mind, overwhelming her to speak up.
"Because you never pointed me in the right direction!" She blurted out, quite loud to echo through the rooms of the house. Her father was stunned by the sudden rise of her voice. "I am just telling you how many times I warned you about your friends then you're telling me I never pointed you in the right direction? You're just making up an excuse to shift the idea that I am wrong here."
"You are never wrong, but you're never right either." Patricia's eyes started tearing up again. "You always told me what's wrong but you never told me what's right. You tell me that this friend is not good for me but ask yourself, have you ever told me someone is good for me? You always told me that I am not good to get an arts degree, but did you ever suggest something else? You always told me to not do this, not do that, but you were never specific on me on what's right."
"Pointing out what's wrong will lead you to the right path." Patricia chuckles bitterly while the tears on her eyes roll off her cheeks. "Father, life is not a 2-way path. Pointing me in the wrong direction won't lead me to the right path. It will make me confused and unsure about myself. Now, look what you did to me!"
"Look what I did to you!? You're the only one who molded yourself like this. Don't say that I didn't point you to the right path because I did and it shows." Patricia was astounded with his reasoning, "What shows what? Look at me now, I don't have any genuine friends even if I wanted to. I don't have any genuine dreams because I always question myself."
"Just shut up, okay!? This conversation doesn't have a point." Patricia clenches her fists, "When I came into reasonable reasoning, you will stop it? You are always like this father." She watches her father walk away, something inside her pushes her to insist on this more. "Now you're the one who's turning your back to me. We're still not done!"
"Are you mocking me?" He sternly said as he slowly turns his head to her. "I am not." Patricia chuckles, "When it's me, I am disrespectful, but when it's you, I am still the disrespectful one? We still have a lot to talk about, if you want to settle this. I have more questions for you."
Patricia looks at him, "I almost killed someone with this hand." Her father slightly turned to her. "Crystals appeared and stabbed her in the body. Can you explain this to me father? Did I do that? Did this hand do that? Tell me the truth."
Her father was speechless as if something went so wrong. "Tell me of this curse father, right now. I am so sick of this. You have been hiding something from me for all of these years, tell me now. End my suffering."
"It's still not the time." Patricia looks at him with a glare, "It's never a time for you. Tell me, tell me about how the heavens cursed you with a cursed child. Just stop lying to me! I am so sick of this, tell me what's happening to me."
Her father didn't respond. "Tell me! I almost killed someone from my ignorance. Can you shed any light on your daughter!? Are you this heartless!?" Her father glares at her, "You don't know my reasons." "Because you are not telling me it!"
He suddenly bolted to her and grips her shoulder, "Don't dictate to me what to do or what to not do. You don't know the reason and you will never understand." He shouted in her face as he squeezes her shoulder.
The grip overwhelms Patricia, screaming in agony. "Father!" She screamed as she pushes him away harshly, feeling the wave of weakness through her body once more. She was pushed as well on the wall. As she opens her eyes, she saw her father in the same situation as Erin earlier. He's laying on the ground, full of crystal shards and bleeding.
"Father!"