Sherfield, Wisconsin
Nadea Corvenus woke up to the sound of mayhem. Her foster mother, Julia, was screaming her head off at Tobias, her biological son. "Toby! Get down here now!" Nadea sighed as she heard Julia stomp down the hallway and stop at her door. Her doorknob twisted and Julia came in. She hadn't even bothered to knock.
"Nadea, I know it's the first day of school but can you take the bus? Toby is being a handful this morning," the woman asked in a tired voice. Just then, eight-year-old Toby came running past the door in nothing but his favorite Superman underwear.
"If you head out now, you can make it in time for your therapy session," Julia said hurriedly before as she ran down the hall after Toby. With a sigh, the teenager went to the bathroom as she did every morning. She grabbed her large brush and began to tame her frizzy caramel-hued hair. A wince came from her when she attempted to brush a large tangle of curls. It was much easier when her mom did it. I really miss my mom, she thought to herself with a sigh. Sasha and Markus Corvinus, also known as Sash and Mark to most, had been wonderful parents to thirteen-year-old Nadea before they perished in a house fire three years ago.
She'd been at school when it happened. Their cottage was in the forest on the outskirts of town. Because of its seclusion from the rest of Sherfield, it was nearly an hour after the fire had started that people began to smell the smoke. Police arrived at her school that day and told her the news before handing her over to social services. She'd been to two other foster homes, but she didn't stay long because of either money problems or moving. Nadea's entire life was in Wisconsin, and she wasn't going to follow the Robinson's to Ohio. When Julia took her into her home a few months ago, Nadea was grateful. She wasn't happy, but at least she wasn't miserable. Julia took care of her, but Nadea couldn't help but hate her. It was like Julia kissed up to her, like she was trying to worm her way into Nadea's heart.
The thought of someone trying to take her parents' place filled her with anger. Her hand tightened around the handle of the brush and the other balled into a fist as she thought about Julia. The light bulb that illuminated the small bathroom overhead flickered before steadily growing brighter, a low hum emitting from it. The angrier Nadea got, the brighter the light bulb became. Suddenly it burst, sending thin glass shards flying. The scene caused her to jump, her anger forgotten. "What the…?" she said, looking up at the busted light.
"Must've been a faulty bulb," she murmured, although a small part of her knew that wasn't the case.
Leaving the bathroom, she quickly got dressed. Before she left her room though, she reached for her old wooden jewelry box that had once belonged to her mother. Inside it were crystals ranging from rose quartz to black tourmaline. Rummaging around, she sighed in relief when she found a crimson gem. "Blood stone to calm and angry heart," she murmured, repeating what her mother had once said. Slipping a chain through it, Nadea put it around her neck and ran downstairs.
On the table by the front door was a brown bag with Nadea's name scribbled messily in black Sharpie along with something that barely resembled a heart. Rolling her eyes, she snatched it up and headed out the door and right into the rain. "Shit." She said as her hair immediately began to frizz up.
Nadea had walked five blocks before she reached the bus stop. Not long after leaving the house, what was once a light drizzle became an angry downpour, and the ground shook with thunder.
"That's Wisconsin for you," Nadea muttered to herself. Her brown jacket wasn't the best quality and by the time she got on the bus, her shirt was soaked. It must've been a good sight to see because when she boarded the bus, there was a low whistle. Her eyes, resembling that of jasper gemstones, immediately rested on the culprit and she gave a bright, radiant smile. In the back of the bus was Dante, her best friend. He had beautiful skin that she'd once told him was as close to cosmic latte as one could get. He showed prominent Hispanic features with his glossy black hair and long, thick eyelashes. He had a buzzcut and his arms and neck were completely overrun with tattoos, each one with a meaning that was only known to him. Around Dante's neck was a gold chain, and connected to it, resting right against his chest, was a golden cross that had been given to him by his uncle. "What's up, mami? You don't usually take the bus," he said as she sat next to him.
Everyone else on the bus avoided Dante. His look sometimes made him appear intimidating, but Nadea knew the kind person who hid beneath those tattoos.
"Neither do you. What happened to your car?"
Dante shrugged. "Piece of shit stopped working. It's getting fixed today." Changing the subject, he nudged her shoulder. "That new foster mom isn't driving you to school anymore?"
"As usual, Julia can't handle Toby," she said with an eye-roll before taking out her phone. It was the newest android and she had to save up for six months to get it and had even paid her phone bill five months in advance.
"Hey, she's trying," Dante said in an attempt to cheer her up.
"Yeah, trying to take my parents' place."
He put his hand on her shoulder. "Mark and Apolline were good people. No one could ever take their place, and I don't think Julia is trying to," he said. Nadea gave an exasperated sigh. Sometimes she just wanted to be angry, but that was impossible when she had Dante around. He put his hand on his own thigh, palm up. He always did this when Nadea was in a funk and she looked at it before putting her hand in his, their fingers locking together. She smiled.
"You always make me feel better," she said with a sigh. Glancing up at him, she noticed that Dante's face was unusually pale. "You look a little off. Are you feeling okay? You usually get a tan in the summer." Nadea said bluntly. He turned to look out of the window and nodded.
"My mom took me to Puerto Rico for the last two weeks of summer to see mi tío y mis primos, but I got sick on the way back." he said, accidentally slipping into Spanish. "Oh yeah. How was the trip?" Nadea asked, only able to understand what he said because she was taking Spanish classes, and they'd grown up together.
"It was good."
"That's nice," she said, her tone unintentionally short and flat. Sometimes she felt a twinge of jealousy whenever Dante mentioned his mother. It always brought back memories of her own parents, and it made her grow quiet. As the silence dragged on, she felt herself getting sleepy. This wasn't surprising since she'd been up watching TV last night instead of getting sleep. "It's going to be a long ride. School is on the other side of town." Dante said. But Nadea was asleep before he finished talking.
When Nadea woke up, Dante laughed. "You shouldn't sleep on the bus. You could get robbed or miss your stop," he said. She rolled her eyes.
"Not everyone lives on the wrong side of town, and I don't have to worry because I have you with me. Besides, this is our stop right here," she said with a yawn before getting off the bus, Dante following closely behind.
Because they'd arrived at school an hour early, not many students were there. Nadea had chosen to take have her therapy appointments at this time for that exact reason. The only person at school who knew about it was Dante. "I'm heading to my appointment," she said.
"Okay I'll see you after. I have to go to this damn math class," he muttered. Last year Dante had almost failed junior year, and instead of being held back, the principal had agreed to have him take an extra morning class to get the necessary credits for this year's graduation. Dante also chose to take his class in the morning to avoid humiliation.
Making her way to the counselor's office, she stopped when she was met with a new face. Instead of Mr. Jones, she was met with a stranger. "Good morning. You must be Nadea," the stranger extended a hand.
Nadea shook the woman's hand, eyeing her suspiciously. This woman didn't look like any of the teachers here. She wore a black pants suit, followed by red pumps. She was younger than the other teachers, no older than thirty.
"I'm Chanel, and I'll be your new counselor or therapist, whichever you'd prefer."
"Isn't that the same thing?"
Chanel thought to herself for a moment. "I suppose so. Let's go to my office."
~
As they entered through the doors of Sherfield High, people nodded at and greeted the pair.
"What's up, Nadea?" said a boy standing by his friends.
"Hey Nadea!" said a girl at her locker.
Dante hung his arm loosely on her shoulders as they walked to class, catching the eyes of passing students. Although they weren't in an intimate relationship, the school wanted them to be. Dante and Nadea would often have their conversations interrupted by someone who wanted to know if they were together. The two walked to class together and sat down. Surprisingly though, they did not sit together. Their teacher, Mrs. Barkley, had given the class assigned seats and because there was an odd number of students, Nadea sat alone.
"Ahem. Good morning class. Before we get started with today's lesson, I would like to introduce our new student from Blackpool, Wisconsin, Luca Hayes." When Mrs. Barkley mentioned Blackpool, the students grew quiet. Blackpool was the closest town to Sherfield, but it was also the worst town in the state. People disappeared every night there, and crime had recently skyrocketed. The only thing that Blackpool was good for was the dance clubs and bars.
"Hello everyone. My name is Luca."
Nadea hadn't been paying attention until she heard his voice. She couldn't place it but it felt familiar to her, a little like home. However, she quickly shook it off and began to doodle on her desk.
~
Luca had felt something different when he entered the classroom. It was a feeling deep within him. Instinct. It was similar to when he was in Safe Haven, around other Extraordinaries like himself. Someone here had a Gift, and he was determined to found out who. To Luca it was like sensing television static, a tingling sensation coursing through his head, his body, his entire being. He wondered if this person could sense him, too.
When Mrs. Barkley finished introducing him he said, "Hello everyone. My name is Luca."
His curly mass of hair was shaggy and unkempt, but it was clear from the love-stricken stares that he was still considered attractive. He wore a black long-sleeved shirt and dark jeans, followed by black combat boots. A thin backpack was slung over his shoulder. As he briefly looked over the class, he found that all his female peers glanced at him with obvious interest; except one. His dark orbs locked onto her brown ones and he grinned. He'd found an Extraordinary, and oh, was she powerful. Her static was loud, and it made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end and goosebumps form on his arms. She had a crown of curls like a lion's mane and doe-like eyes that were staring at him with both confusion and curiosity.
"You can sit down now, Mr. Hayes," the teacher said, but he wasn't listening one bit. Luca quickly changed his expression to one of disinterest as he took a seat next to her.
~
Nadea watched as the new boy -Luca- grinned at her before walking down the rows of joined desks and sitting at her side. She would've rolled her eyes at his cockiness had she not been shocked by what she saw. When she looked him in the eye, they were no longer their dark obsidian. His eyes were yellow with black, void-like slits resembling that of a wolf or cat. "Y-your eyes-" she started, but was cut off by her new partner.
"I know. They're pretty." he said sarcastically. There were a few giggles and some of the male students groaned. Luca's yellow eyes lingered on hers for a moment before he blinked and his irises became their usual dark selves. "But…" she tried again and he shook his head slightly.
"Not now," he whispered so quietly that Nadea nearly missed the message. "Nadea? Nadea Corvenus!" Mrs. Barkley yelled in an attempt to get her attention.
"Pay attention. You can stare at the new student after my class." A few classmates chuckled and Sam glared at Luca.
Sensing the extra set of eyes on him, Luca turned his head and stared boldly at Dante. Although most would think his expression was one of arrogance, he was actually assessing him. He couldn't be an Extraordinary, he concluded. Although there was something… different.
~
While Mrs. Barkley taught about the alikeness of identical twins, Nadea thought about what she'd seen at the start of class. Had she actually seen Luca's eyes change?
No, of course not. That's impossible, she thought to herself, her brows furrowed. Sneakily, she glanced sideways at him. His skin was a shade or two lighter than hers and his raven-colored hair looked so soft that she wanted to touch it. He appeared to have some Native American in him with his strong, crooked nose. He was only a few inches taller than her, but he still seemed intimidating.
As the class went on, Luca leaned toward her and spoke without looking up from his notebook. "What subject are we in?" he asked.
"Introduction to social sciences," Nadea replied, eying him warily. He nodded slowly and, listening intently to Mrs. Barkley's lessons, raised his hand.
"Yes, Luca?" Everyone looked at him.
"Although it is understandable that most identical twins have quite a few similarities, do you think that it is possible for siblings that are not twins to have as many similarities?" Mrs. Barkley nodded. "I believe so." The teacher was about to continue when Luca spoke up once more.
"I've heard of twins being separated at birth and still having quite a lot in common. Do you think it would be the same if siblings who were, hmm… Let's say five years apart. So if normal siblings who were about five years apart had never met, do you think they would have anything in common? And if they were reunited, what do you think would happen? Would they hate each other? Or would they form a close bond?"
The class was silent. "That was definitely something." Mrs. Barkley said in astonishment. "To answer your question, I would have to say that I don't know. Since they aren't genetically identical, I have no idea as to how they would react to one another." Luca nodded and stared down at his notebook, deep in thought.
"Who did he think he was? Was he trying to sound smart or something?" Dante asked no one in particular as the bell rang and they left social sciences class.
"Why does it matter?" Nadea responded. She wasn't thinking about how smart he sounded. Instead, she was trying to find an explanation for his eyes. Nadea thought of telling Dante, but with him ranting on like this, bringing up Luca again would make things worse.
"It matters because he has a thing for you. He looks like a fuck boy. He'll break your heart if you let him." he said, his face already getting red.
"Okay…That was random as hell," Nadea said in reply to his weird behavior. "I'm gonna go to art class." She turned and walked swiftly through the halls, missing the two dark figures who stared at her intently.