As Ashley dropped Irene off at school, she made her way toward the entrance and couldn't see any sign of Amelia or Tristan.
She moved across the schoolyard; the eyes of her fellow students followed her, but when she looked back at them, they quickly looked away. Irene took a deep breath, hoping her confidence could get her through the rest of the day in one piece.
Near the doors, Irene recognized Ava's boyfriend Kevin talking with some boys whom she assumed were from the same football team. They were talking loudly with a boy whose name she heard was Steve.
Steve looked over his shoulder at Irene and snickered, "Who, Irene? No way! Like Ava said… she's just a little whore."
Irene blinked as the words stung her ears.
But suddenly, someone's hand slapped Steve hard across the face. "One more word about Irene, and you're dead. Got it? I'll get you kicked out of school for bullying, understand? Do you know who my mother is?" Amelia said, glaring at Steve.
"Fine, jeez. I didn't do anything," Steve said, while Amelia scoffed before striding confidently away from him and then linking her arm through Irene's.
Steve, Kevin, and his friends glowered at them as they walked away.
"Wow, thanks, Amelia. I don't want you to get in trouble, though."
"Oh, don't worry. I won't. My mother would see to that," Amelia said dismissively.
"Er, who is your mother, again?" Irene asked, giving Amelia a sheepish smile.
"She's the president of the parents' board. Come on, Irene. I'm not going to let anything ruin your first day back," Amelia said as she escorted Irene, leading her from class to class.
They were in chemistry class now, and the chemistry teacher made a special announcement at the start of class, welcoming Irene back and asking her classmates to be especially helpful during her time of 'transition.'
"All of us were worried for you, Irene. We're so glad to have you back after so many thoughts and prayers for your safety," the chemistry teacher, Mr. Brown, said.
Every class had welcomed Irene in that manner, and she couldn't help but wonder if everyone in the school knew about her condition.
Irene whispered to Amelia, "Amelia, did everyone in the school get told about my memory issues?"
"Uh, yeah. The counselor made an intercom announcement about it yesterday," Amelia answered, and Irene sighed as she flipped through her notebook as the lecture started, surprised by the thorough notes taken for every lesson.
"I must have liked chemistry," Irene mumbled.
"Oh, yeah, it was your favorite class. That's why Mr. Brown is so happy to have you back," Amelia commented, while Irene nodded as she flipped to a new page and took notes on the experiment they were about to do.
It seemed she was the only one in class who was listening. When Irene and Amelia started setting up for the lab, Mr. Brown wandered over to her table.
"Now, Irene, don't be afraid to ask me for help until you get back on your feet. And Amelia here will look out for you. Though it used to be the other way around, right, Amelia?" Mr. Brown commented.
"Sure, Mr. Brown," Amelia nodded.
He continued, "This specific lab is a favorite among students. You were pretty excited for it back before, ah, the accident."
"I was?" Irene asked, and Amelia and Mr. Brown nodded their heads at her.
Soon, the class started, and despite losing her memory, Irene was still fascinated by the class and responded diligently to the questions being asked by Mr. Brown, impressing her teacher with her fast thinking and the ability to remember the core elements of the project they were working on.
"Bravo, Irene! I'm thrilled that chemistry is still your native language. I wonder if your classmates would pay more attention if I let YOU teach, hm?" said Mr. Brown.
"Haha… I don't know about that," Irene muttered, and Mr. Brown looked over at Amelia.
"Amelia, I guess you won't have to look after Irene after all. Oh, and, if you ladies could just keep an eye on Roman over there, I would sure appreciate that," Mr. Brown said as he left the class while Amelia and Irene nodded at him.
Irene's eyes caught someone standing in the hallway looking into the class. She realized he was looking at her.
'Who is that?' she mused as she stared back at him, a strange cold feeling welling up within her.
Irene turned to Amelia and nodded toward the door. "Amelia, who is that guy watching me? Do I know him?"
"Who? Where?" Amelia asked, but as they turned back to the window, the guy had vanished. "Come on, let's get to work," Amelia said, then suddenly, her eyes went to Roman's table.
Amelia's eyes widened as she yelled, "No, Roman, don't."
Irene flinched at the sound of shattering glass at the table next to hers.
Roman looked horrified down at his forearm, where clear liquid had splashed.
Before everyone's eyes, Roman's arm started to burn from the caustic chemical, and he started to scream out in pain.
"Get him to the safety shower!" Amelia shouted.
Irene stood there, frozen but not powerless. The scene before her seemed to move as if in slow motion. She saw the agony on Roman's face, and she felt it within her. She felt the power bubbling inside her, as if she could change what had happened.
Irene closed her eyes. The noise around her blurred to a stop, then rose again, nearly loud enough to make her want to plug her ears.
Then, all of a sudden, it stopped. "Amelia, I guess you won't have to look after Irene after all. Oh, and if you ladies could just keep an eye on Roman over here, I would sure appreciate that," Mr. Brown said as he left the class, while Amelia and Irene nodded at him.
'Huh? Did I rewind time? What's happening?' Irene mused, as she watched Mr. Brown walk away from the class again. Then she glanced back at the doorway and saw the guy from before again. 'No time to think about that. Roman is about to be in big trouble.'
Roman was balancing a beaker above the Bunsen burner. Irene watched in horror as he accidentally jostled the stand.
He reached forward, trying to catch the beaker, and before Irene could stop herself, she was reaching across the table, grabbing his shoulder and yanking him back. The beaker shattered, but the clear liquid inside landed all on the lab table instead of on Roman's skin.
"Roman, are you okay?" Amelia asked as she rushed to their side.
"That was sodium hydroxide. It's really caustic. You could have been seriously hurt," Irene said, while Roman looked into her eyes as if he were seeing her for the first time.
Irene's hand was still on his shoulder. When she finally let him go, they both noticed that she was trembling.
"Are you okay?" Roman asked with concern. At that moment, Irene's eyes glanced around the room, and she realized that the entire class was silent, looking at her.
She shifted awkwardly, not knowing what to say. Mr. Brown came back to the class, and they told him what had happened. He thanked Irene for her quick reflexes, then helped Roman clean up his lab station while Amelia spoke softly to Irene as she carefully set up her own lab.
"Irene… Are you okay? How did you know that was going to happen?" Amelia asked, while Irene's heart raced as she thought, 'I can't tell her what I really did, and what I THINK I really, really did. She'll think I'm crazy.'
"I don't know. I can't explain it. I just saw it happening and acted fast," Irene answered.
"Well, I'm glad. Roman could have been in some serious pain," Amelia said as they focused on the class.
Later, just before the bell rang, Amelia and Irene looked at one another and let out a sigh. "Chemistry isn't usually this eventful. Maybe we should take a walk before next period to cool off, huh?" Amelia suggested.
"Sounds good to me," Irene said, and as they walked outside, they met Tristan, who looked inquisitively at Amelia.
"You didn't tell me that Irene was going to be at school today," Tristan accused, shooting a glare at Amelia.
"Well, what kind of friend are you if you didn't even know yourself?" Amelia retorted.
"I see… I'm the third wheel," Tristan said, then turned to Irene with a smile. "Irene, I would have walked to school with you."
"We can walk tomorrow. I was busy with my aunt this morning anyway. That reminds me, Aunt Ashley mentioned someone to me this morning. Do either of you know who Rick is?"
"Rick… like Rick?" Amelia said, and Irene raised her eyebrows.
"Is there more than one Rick? I guess it's a pretty common name," Irene asked.
"Seriously though, what do you need from Rick?" Tristan asked, scowling.
Irene shrugged and answered, "Nothing. I was just wondering who he is."
"Whatever! Amelia can tell you. I'm going to class," Tristan said, while Amelia chuckled as she looked at him with knowing eyes.
"What class? We have twenty minutes until the next period," Amelia said, while Tristan scowled and didn't leave after all.
Irene turned to Amelia, but she was suddenly looking at someone else who was approaching Irene from behind.
"Oh my God! Roman's coming over here… Be cool," Amelia squealed like a fangirl.
Roman gave a greeting nod to Tristan and Amelia, but he only had eyes for Irene. "Hey! You ran out of class before I could thank you for saving me."
"I'm glad I could help."
"I heard about what happened to you. I mean, I guess everyone did. I just want to say, I don't believe any of the stuff that some people are saying about you," Roman said, looking at Irene's face.
"Oh, so you're listening to gossip about her, huh?" Tristan butted in, while Roman suddenly looked embarrassed.
"Sorry, that's not what I meant. Can I start over?" Roman said, and when Irene nodded at him, he continued, "You're kind of different now, aren't you? I mean, from before they found you at the Silver Tower. They said you lost your memory, but it's not just that. You just seem different."