FLAW: FORTY-FIVE

**MAICA POV**

We were on our way to school, riding Lola Vemine's car, with Sky as the driver. I was in the passenger seat since Alex was not around. I didn't know why or what happened to him, but Sky mentioned that he was not going to school today.

I'm really worried about him, and I had a hunch that it might be because of Trevor's revelation. The revelation yesterday was not a joke. It had a big impact on him, especially the part where he found out that he caused the phenomenal shift in the world that could bring harm to it.

Even I was affected. Knowing that my friend would face another fight while we just watched and couldn't do anything to help him. If only I could assist him in some way.

"How's your telepathy?" Sky asked, breaking the silence between us.

"Still nothing. I tried every night to call for Trisha, but all attempts failed."

"Just keep on trying."

"Thanks. But I'm still wondering how and why the heck I was able to do that."

"Maybe because of Trevor's theory."

"Maybe, but why only me?"

"I don't even know," Sky replied. No one knows.

My phone in my skirt's pocket vibrated, notifying me of an incoming call. I reached for it and saw Trisha's caller ID. I answered the call and placed it against my ear.

"Hel—"

"Meet me at the parking lot. ASAP!" Trisha ordered angrily on the phone, and she quickly ended the call. I looked at the phone to make sure it was indeed ended, and it was. The call was already over.

"What's with her?" I commented while squinting my eyes, trying to figure out what was wrong with Trisha.

"Who's that?" Sky asked, still looking at the road.

"Trisha."

"That was fast."

"Exactly! She just abruptly ended the call after saying we should meet at the parking lot, ASAP!" I replied, emphasizing the word ASAP. It didn't take long, and we reached the school's parking lot. Since it's already time, it's somewhat crowded, making it difficult for us to find a vacant spot. When we finally found one, we were surprised to see Trisha standing and waiting for us.

"How did she end up here?" I asked while removing my seatbelt. When Sky and I got out of the car, we approached her. "How did you know we'd park here?" I asked in amazement.

"This is the only vacant space left," she answered, glancing at the car we just got off probably looking for Alex.

"Alex's not going. Don't ask me for the reason," Sky suddenly said, noticing that Trisha seemed to be looking for Alex.

"What's the haste?" I asked her.

"This might sound unbelievable, but something just happened to me," she stated, giving us a serious look.

"What is it?"

"At first, I thought it was just my imagination. But then I realized it's actually happening."

"What is it? Stop with the suspense!" I complained.

"I can see people's aura."

******

We found ourselves skipping the first-period class after Trisha shared her newly discovered supernatural ability: Aura Reading. The ability to read people's aura, which comes in different colors, denoting different meanings.

We were at the canteen right, and it was quiet. Well, it was only seven-thirty in the morning, so it was expected that there weren't many people around. We bought some snacks as if we were about to listen to a very long and interesting story.

"I first noticed it when I was caught by the red light on my way here. There's this motorcycle guy on my right, and I happened to look at him."

"Is he handsome?" I interrupted.

"I don't know since he's wearing a helmet. But I have a feeling he looks good because of the way he dresses and the style of his motorcycle—" Sky cleared his throat, signaling us to go back to our main topic. "Sorry. At first, I thought I was just seeing things. But when I looked at his head again, I saw this halo floating around."

"What color?" Sky asked.

"As far as I can remember, I think it was red."

"Did you confirm it?" I asked as I twisted the lid of the bottled juice I bought.

"Yes, and that's when you came out of the car. You both had this blue halo, even until now," Trisha stated, looking towards our heads. I glanced at Sky, which was stupid because I couldn't really see it.

"Blue signifies sadness," Sky commented.

"If that's true, then it seems like my guess was right. You are sad because of Alex's absence," Trisha guessed, making me look at Sky, who was staring blankly at the snacks on the table.

"Hey, Sky? Honestly, what happened to Alex?" I asked, concerned but in a soft tone. Sky looked at me and then sat properly. After that, he began telling us about what Alex revealed to him.

It was about something shown to him by his alter, I didn't know what alter he was talking about, but I knew it was something only they knew. He mentioned a city terrorized by various monsters differing in size and shape.

We learned that it's supposed to happen in our world, and that's what worried Alex. He was too afraid that he might be the cause of many deaths, and we couldn't blame him. He had the right to be afraid. He's human after all.

But when Sky told us this story, I could feel that he was hurting too. Not for himself but for Alex. It's like he could feel what Alex was feeling. I couldn't help but feel sad for both of them, but mostly for Alex. I'm sure he's feeling pressured about what's going to happen. I wanted to help him. I wanted him to know that he's not alone. But with what he did now, it seems like he wants to be alone. And I thought he really needed that.

Time to unwind.

Time to think of a better option.

And time to rebuild his shattered self.

Poor, Alex.

After Sky told us everything about yesterday, we decided to go back to class for our second-period class. Sky advised Trisha to have an aura color chart for reference. I'm kinda jealous, you know, about Trisha having this kind of unique ability. I envied her. But then, I have my ability too. But it seems like I need to train myself to master it.

Trisha is lucky. She doesn't need to concentrate on her ability to work. It's tiring to concentrate. I'm already struggling with just the "clear your mind" step.

How am I supposed to clear my mind with all my school commitments?

******

**ALEX POV**

I watched the clock turn seven. I couldn't sleep last night because every time I closed my eyes, I saw images of the monsters terrorizing the city I lived in. No matter what I did to avoid remembering what my alter showed me, nothing worked.

I watched YouTube videos, especially the funny ones, but they didn't make me laugh or smile. It was my first time experiencing this kind of feeling. The feeling as if you have lost the desire to live. I'm stuck in this phase of my life, and I don't know if I could get out of my current situation. I recalled the motivational words from my alter and Sky to gather some strength, but it failed. The emotions were too strong. It felt like I was the only one left alive in this world.

My phone rang, notifying me of a notification. I was a bit far from the phone, so I used telekinesis to reach it.

"Every time you use your abilities, you are slowly breaking the sheets..." I suddenly disabled my telekinesis, dropping my phone on the floor. I didn't know why, but it seemed like I developed a phobia of my abilities. I quickly picked up the phone and was disappointed to see a large crack on the side. However, nothing was damaged on the display, so it was still functional. It's just a crack.

A message notification appeared on the lock screen with the sender's name - Sky. I tapped on the notification and read it.

"Don't forget to eat. ILoveyou~"

I was about to type my response, but not a single word came to mind. I didn't know what to say, so I just locked the phone and let it go. I might be under a mental breakdown, but I'm not like those people who lose their appetite. I'm the total opposite. Whenever I feel sad, I eat. It's my stomach that makes me happy.

So, I got out of my bed without bothering to fix it since I would come back anyway. I grabbed my hoodie and headed to the kitchen. The sun was shining brightly, causing me to squint my eyes. Once I adjusted, I continued walking.

When I reached the table, I noticed one of the room doors opening. I knew it was Tita since she's the only one usually left here.

"Oh, Alex? Aren't you going to school?" she asked. I turned to her and forced a smile.

"I'm not feeling well, Tita."

"Really?" Tita asked, concerned, quickly approaching me. She placed her hand on my forehead to feel my body temperature.

"You're a bit warm. Have you taken any medicine?" she asked, and I shook my head. "Make sure you take some. And before taking the meds, you need to have something in your stomach."

"Yes. I was about to eat actually."

"Alright then. There's food in the pot."

"Thank you, Tita."

Tita left immediately and went to the sofa to watch TV. I continued to eat after which I took a glass and went to the fridge to get some medicine and water. I placed the glass on the table first, but unexpectedly, I knocked it over. I managed to stop the glass from falling using telekinesis. However, something flashed into my mind, and I remembered what my alter said.

Similar to what happened in my room earlier, I disabled my telekinesis, causing the glass to fall on the floor. The sound of shattering glass echoed throughout the house, catching the attention of the woman busy watching TV.

"Jesus, Alex! Are you okay?" Tita asked worriedly, quickly running to reach me. I found the glass pieces scattered around, and I was about to pick them up when Tita shouted, telling me not to touch any single one of them.

Tita left and came back with a broom and dustpan. I moved a bit away from where the glass fell to give Tita space to clean it. It didn't take long for her to finish cleaning it.

"I'm sorry, Tita," I apologized.

"It's okay, dear. It's just a glass. But I hope nothing bad happens," Tita said, leaving to dispose of the glass pieces. It was one of those superstitions that when something breaks, something bad will happen. That's why I was so anxious when I saw the broken glass.

I didn't let it bother me and just took another glass. This time, it was plastic. I filled it with water and drank it immediately. Of course, there was no medicine since I wasn't really sick.

Sorry, Tita, for lying.

I went back to my room and sat on the chair at my study table. I just stared into space while looking at a notebook. I was captivated by the notebook's design saying "Start while it's still early." Because of that, I came up with an idea.