Chapter 5: I'm A Superhuman
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"The flames didn't burn me… they awakened me."
— Amelia
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Amelia walked home beneath flickering streetlights, her nerves still rattled. The streets were quiet, but the silence felt louder than usual, and the air had a strange chill.
The scenes from earlier kept talking behind her eyes.
The man getting shot.
The old woman being shoved.
The robber—flattened under a van.
And through it all, the haunting thought echoed:
"How did I do that?"
She rubbed her arms as if to wipe the memory away. But just as she passed a narrow alleyway—
A hand seized her from behind. An arm wrapped tightly around her shoulders. Another clamped over her mouth.
"Shhhh" a rough voice hissed in her ear. "Scream and I'll melt your pretty face right off." A flicker of light danced near her face. She turned her eyes and saw it—his other hand was lit with real flames.
"A Superhuman!"
Her heart pounded. Her muffled screams faded as terror took over. This wasn't just another mugger. This was worse.
"Hand over your purse. And everything else," he growled. "Do that, and I let you walk away."
Shaking, she obeyed.
The man snatched it, then sneered. "That all? Don't lie to me, or I'll start searching you with fire."
The flames flared for emphasis. Amelia gasped.
"Y-yes. That's everything. I swear." She trembled, but her voice held.
"Good girl. Now, here's what's gonna happen. I'll let you go. You'll close your eyes, stay still, and not make a sound. Because if you do... I'll burn you."
She nodded.
He backed away.
His footsteps echoed into the distance—but something snapped in her, she wasn't willing to loose the little money she worked for today.
Again?
Another robbery? The same damn day?
She thought about all the money she made today, her only plan was to use it to put food on the table for her family, she thought about her shift and all the effort she puts into her job. Just so her family can be okay.
Her blood boiled inside her.
"What a stupid power..." she muttered just loud enough for him to hear.
The man stopped.
He turned. "What'd you say?"
Amelia stood still. Then turned, slowly. "I said your power's pathetic. Flaming hands? What are you, a walking candle?"
His expression twisted with rage. "You got jokes now, huh? Thought I was doing you a favor? I'll burn that mouth off!"
He charged at her.
Amelia turned and bolted. "Somebody help!" she cried out into the dead streets.
Flames rushed past her, missing by inches. She dove into a side alley, scraping her knees. Before she could rise, the mugger caught up, towering over her with fire in both hands.
"Oh, now you're quiet?" he spat. "You got powers too? Is that what got you so confident?"
She cowered, her arms over her head.
"What was I thinking?
This isn't like the store... what if that was just luck?
I don't have powers... I'm just a stupid girl who got robbed twice in one day." She thinks
"I should burn you alive just for talking back!" The flames roared larger.
Amelia was about to give up and accept her fate when—
Past memories started flowing in her head.
Her father, who went to work and never came home.
Her brother and her mother, falling apart.
The weight of school, work, life.
The thoughts sent rage through her whole body.
That deep, red-core rage that she'd buried for so long—rose.
Her body buzzed. A pressure built in her chest. A hum filled her ears.
And as the fire poured toward her—
Amelia raised a single hand.
The fire stopped mid-air. Inches from her palm. Like it hit an invisible wall.
The mugger's eyes widened.
"Wh-what? What is this?! Why won't it burn you?!"
He pushed harder with more flames, but nothing.
Then, through the veil of fire, Amelia looked up.
Her eyes glowed.
With light and power.
Controlled. Cold. Dangerous.
The man stepped back instinctively.
Amelia deliberately rose—slowly.
The aura around her was silent, but heavy. It crushed the air. The man's fire extinguished on its own due to her immense pressure.
"You— You're different!" he stammered. "You're... You're one of the strong ones!"
He turned and bolted. Tripped on the sidewalk. Scrambled to his feet. Then disappeared into the darkness.
Amelia didn't move.
She stood there, breathing, her eyes dimming slowly.
Then turned to a puddle beside a cracked hydrant.
She saw her reflection.
The girl looking back at her had glowing eyes and a calm, terrifying energy. She didn't look like the old Amelia.
She stared at the water for a long moment. Before looking back at her scrapped knee that was no longer scrapped but had healed.
Then said, quietly—
"I'm a Superhuman."
A few minutes later after picking up her pause,
She walked the last few blocks home, her head swimming.
As she approached the front of her house, she froze.
There was a sleek black SUV parked in their lot—shiny, tinted, and definitely not from the neighborhood.
She sprinted to the front door and quietly stepped inside.
"Oh, Amelia! Welcome home, darling," her mother called from the dining room. "We have a guest for dinner. A friend of yours from school!"
Her heart stopped.
She turned slowly—
and there he was, sitting casually at the table like he belonged there.
Luca Vandoren.
Her younger brother beamed. "It's Luca Vandoren!"
Amelia's mouth hung open. Her legs locked in place.
What the hell was Luca Vandoren doing in her house?
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To be continued...
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Chapter 6 Preview:
Amelia faces the last person she ever expected to see in her home—Luca Vandoren. But he's not here for small talk. He has a proposal that could change everything.
Find out what he wants tomorrow, in: Proposal.