11

The ice in both Portia's and Kofi's bodies was successfully thawed and they were healed of their injuries, but Kofi wanted to go back to Jack, yet he wasn't allowed.

"What do you mean it's dangerous?! He's my best friend!"Kofi yelled.

"Don't you remember all your ' best friend ' did? He may hurt not only you, but a lot of other innocent people, you have to let him be handled by the authorities."One of the healers said.

"But he'd never do something like that on his own, I know something is wrong."Kofi pleaded.

"We're sorry, but..."

"... I'm going with him."Skylar said.

The nurse looked at them both and frowned before saying,"Don't say I didn't warn you, if anything happens, my hands are clean."

Kofi almost did something so Skylar had to stop him and suggested they left.

Reaching the place where he was left, Jack was gone.

"I left him right here!"Kofi said.

"Maybe you mistook a turn?"Skylar suggested.

"No I didn't, I don't forget things that easily... someone has taken him."

"But who? And why?"

"I have no idea, but they're going to pay..."

Portia went to school the next week as the damages had to be restored.

She went to chemistry class after Plane Geometry where they were revising crystal lattices of Sodium, Diamond and some other relatively common substances when something hit her...

"Manfred said I control Space and Time...and these lattices are all in three dimensional space, what if I could manipulate that?"

She tried to maintain her focus with her fingers shivering violently over it...

Skylar waited for Portia at their usual spot, catching the eyes of all the girls when an angel appeared...

She had everyone mesmerized, even the girls, as she walked... modelled towards him then lined his dropped chin as she passed by, was that his girlfriend?

She looked so different, in the best way.

Her short hair was now done in a short afro with curls that shimmered in the sun's and two visible moons' light.

The uniform blouse she wore shone brighter white with a tinge of turquoise green, and her bowtie was perfectly done.

Her plaid skirt was now done with a box pleat and flowed like silk as her knees moved below it and the white petticoat she wore highlighted all her naturally perfect features, tying everything together.

Skylar was still in shock when she asked,"Are you coming or not?"

Then she took the the skies.

He smiled then flew after her and at that moment, Portia came out with great news as she held the pencil made of solidified water and charcoal with a core of pure diamond, she had learned to use her void crystal to manipulate matter, but her boyfriend was nowhere to be found.

She looked in the direction everyone was looking only to see him, flying around with some bimbo.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she ran away from the scene where she saw him kiss that witch upside down.

Portia had cried the rest of the day at school and when she reached Skylar's house, she packed all her few belongings, ready to leave when she heard the flapping of huge wings behind her but didn't bother to look.

Aeric walked to her and asked where she was going, in such a hurry...covered in tears.

She couldn't look at him, being angry at Skylar, she didn't want to see the innocent reflection of him and say something she'd regret so she just said,"Skylar and I are through."

He didn't give up though, he then asked the reason but she didn't want to speak, so he kept prompting her till she blurted out,"He cheated on me! I saw him fly into the sky with some other girl and kiss her! But it doesn't matter anyway, they looked happy together and I hope they get more joy."

She tried leaving but he held her back and she saw the grey and silver shimmer in his eyes and wings as he said,"My brother would never do that, I believe something is wrong."

"Like what? Puberty?"She asked, angrily.

"Portia, at least give him a chance to explain himself, please."He said.

Portia looked into his eyes, then burst into tears as he gently covered her with his wings and hugged her, telling her it would be okay.

She realized he lifted his head from atop her's and looked to see the problem and saw Skylar, fuming at the door.

Aeric stood up and walked to him but Skylar punched him across the face and yelled,"How could you do something like this to me?!"

Aeric remained silent as though he was the one to blame then Portia stepped in and slapped Skylar across the face and said,"You really have some nerve doing something like this, to your older brother, he has been here at least three decades longer than your mother thought of you and you are jumping to conclusions meanwhile you are the playboy who has torn my heart to pieces!"

"What?"He asked.

"Goodbye, Skylar."She said.

She was leaving when he held her wrist and said,"I don't know what you're talking about."

"But you do know the girl you switched spit with a kilometre in the air today."

She pulled her wrist from his hold and flew out the window then Skylar looked at his brother, who actually had a trace of a frown on his face, but it didn't seem to come from the punch as they always did that to each other...it was something else...

Skylar followed Portia and asked what she meant but she didn't want to talk, till he said,"I don't get why you're so stubborn and hotheaded! You always jump to conclusions and never even listen to my opinion before yelling all your anger out."

She looked at him, hurt, then angrily, then said,"Let me tell you something Mr Prince of the Skies, you may be the most attractive and wanted guy in school and possibly the entire district on the outside, but on the inside...you disgust me."

She then flew off as he yelled,"Fine! Be that way! I don't know what I ever saw in you!"

Actually, neither did she.

She couldn't go back to the orphanage, so she just went to sit down on the street, looking around for, anything to keep herself distracted from the early mosquitoes around her.

A roof formed above her head from the atoms around her, but it was made of only cardboard as it was simple, repetitive and used only a few types of atoms which were readily available in the surrounding atmosphere.

She made a cloth over herself and lay down to sleep when it began to rain, she knew she was doomed, till she saw two feet arrive before her.

She looked up to see a handsome young man looking at her with his head tilted, she then asked,"Kofi, what are you doing here?"

He sat beside her and said,"I just came to have a little nostalgia, our group isn't the same without Jack, what are you doing here?"

"~Sigh~I broke up with Skylar."

"Figured."

"Why?"

"Because I saw him kissing someone else, with you crying."

She felt self conscious and retracted into her knees as he turned over and said,"It's okay to cry, I used to all the time."

She looked at him, confused, then asked,"What?"

"My father, he went for a peace keeping mission when I was young and before that, we were the best of friends, I cried every night, wondering when I'd see him again or if I'd see him at all."

"What happened?"

"He came back..."

She smiled a little, but didn't feel much better for some reason as he continued,"...I thought, he was a whole different person, he began drinking, using drugs and nicotine became his new wife, because my mother, was just a maid used for his pleasure, he beat and raped her at any day he wanted, but I was no exception, I almost died, several times at his hands, when my extended family tried to interfere, he threatened to kill us both, and then I got my symbiote, I made up my mind to become stronger than he was so I'd be able to get my mother freedom..."

"And?"

"...my mother died."He said, with angry and sorrowful tears welling up in his eyes.

She gasped then said,"I'm so sorry."

"I was just too slow, too weak, too much of a coward to stand up to him."

"Where is he now?"

"Stripped of all his titles, he's been placed in life imprisonment."

Portia wanted to ask again but felt she should just let it slide as he stood up and stretched his arm for her to take it.

She barely could move, she didn't remember the last day she had eaten for the lack of an appetite, and being freezing cold because of the rain, she was immobilised.

After waiting a few seconds, he picked her up between his arms and carried her himself.

She still felt scared about hurting him the first day she used her ability though he didn't remember and it technically didn't happen as she had reversed time, but she still felt the guilt, but, was this the same block headed, sizeist, heartless bully she once knew?

He was being so tender, emotional and...human, symbiote and all.

He charged the water molecules around him so they were repelled by each other and the two were safe from the rain, ironically caused by the mist around them.

He walked her the entire way to his house...it was a chamber and hall, a compound house which she didn't think his family owned.

She looked at him and asked,"Do you live here..."

"Alone? Mostly, but my family come from time to time to take care of my basic needs."

She had totally forgotten how it felt to be like that...an orphan, unloved, poor, she didn't like it, but she felt it only made you stronger.

He led her into his cramped room then apologized for the mess...which was actually everything in order, but she didn't feel disgusted at all, she rather felt, at home.

He gave her a place to sit then went to get her something to eat.

She couldn't have just assembled atoms together to make any food she wanted, she wasn't that good yet, at the moment, she could only make mineral salts, metals, nonmetals and a few carbohydrates.

She also couldn't just teleport food from someone's kitchen because that would be stealing and would be considered rude.

She just sat down in wait...