Startled, I looked around, my heart pounding in my chest. I was floating in mid-air, suspended a good fifty feet in the air by some unknown force. In front of me was a futuristic-looking bike, its metallic surface gleaming in the city lights. On it were two figures. I recognized them instantly.

Ikki, with an expression stricken with sheer panic, taking deep breaths, and Carrie. Carrie, the girl I had loved and hated in equal measures, the girl who had once been my best friend. She was levitating me with a desperate concentration etched on her face. I was struck by the stark vulnerability in her eyes. This was the first time in three years I'd seen any semblance of emotion in her cold, cruel purple eyes. It was as if the shield of disdain she had meticulously built around herself had been stripped away.

 

"Natasha!" Ikki shouted over the deafening roar of the wind and rain. "H-hold on!"

 

Hold on? To what? To a life that had brought me nothing but pain? To a world that had seen me as a monster? To a former friend who had wished for my disappearance?

I looked at Carrie, her eyes filled with a rare fear that I had never seen before. Her hands were trembling, glowing with an intense magical energy that was keeping me suspended.

 

"Why?!" I screamed at her, my voice raw with the torrent of emotions coursing through me. "Why are you stopping me, Carrie?"

 

Never in my wildest dreams did I expect Carrie to save me, to actually show me any form of compassion. I was prepared for the cold, unending darkness that awaited me, but I wasn't prepared for this. I wasn't prepared to see the hurt and desperation in her eyes, the raw vulnerability in her voice.

 

"I—" Carrie started, her voice choking. She faltered, her eyes flitting away from mine. The usual cold, composed Carrie seemed lost for words, her icy facade crumbling before my eyes.

 

"You hate me," I spat, the words bitter on my tongue. The wind was howling around us, the rain a relentless torrent against our bodies. "You want me gone, remember? Want me to disappear! Why would you save me, Carrie?! You said you wished I would disappear!"

 

I could see her wince at my words, her hands shaking as she struggled to maintain the magic that was keeping me alive. Her mouth opened and closed a few times as if she wanted to say something, but no words came out. Instead, she just stared at me, her eyes filled with a torrent of emotions. Pain. Regret. Guilt.

 

"I was wrong!" she finally admitted, her voice barely audible over the wind. "I was angry, Natasha. But I don't want you dead!"

 

Tears were streaming down her face, mixing with the raindrops. It was the first time I had seen Carrie cry in years, the first time I had seen her show any kind of emotion other than resentment or anger. It was a stark reminder of the friend I once had, the girl I grew up with.

 

"I'm sorry," she finally whispered, her voice barely audible over the roar of the rain. "I'm so, so sorry, Natasha."

"Why, Carrie... Why now?" I asked, my voice breaking.

There was a moment of silence, then Carrie took a deep breath, her face hardened with determination.

"Because I was wrong," she said, her voice strong despite the tears in her eyes. "Because... because I care, Natasha! I always have. I just didn't know how to handle my feelings. And I took it out on you."

I was speechless, a lump forming in my throat.

"I never meant for it to go this far," Carrie continued, her voice shaking. "I... I couldn't protect Jinny. I couldn’t save mom. I was helpless. I hate being weak. Hated that you were so talented. That you were so powerful and couldn’t save them. I blamed you because it was easier than blaming myself. "

Her confession hung in the air between us, the gravity of her words sinking in. She had been dealing with her own demons, her own guilt and pain. And like me, she had been struggling to keep her head above the water.

The raw confession hit me harder than any physical blow could have. Carrie, the girl who had scorned and belittled me for the past three years, was apologizing. Her tears felt like a vindication of my pain. It was surreal, like I was caught in a twisted dream, one that was both painful and cathartic.

For a moment, I was taken aback, my anger dissolving in the rain and the shock of her words. But then, a bitter laugh escaped my lips, a choked and broken sound that felt alien to me.

 

"Sorry?!" I spat, the word tasting sour on my tongue. "You're sorry? It's a bit too late for that, isn't it?!"

 

Carrie flinched at my words, her expression filled with anguish. I expected her to snap back, to revert to her usual icy demeanor. But instead, she simply continued to gaze at me with sorrowful eyes, the raindrops tracing paths down her cheeks. Her hands, still glowing, maintained their shaky hold on me.

 

"I... I know," she said, her voice nearly lost amidst the thundering rain. "I know it doesn't make up for anything... But, Natasha, I... I need you to understand. I was wrong. I was so, so wrong for everything I’ve done to you."

 

I looked at her, my own tears blending with the rain, but my expression was one of disbelief and confusion. I wanted to yell at her, to scream until my lungs ached, to reject her apologies and to hate her. But there was something about her expression, the earnest regret and grief etched into her face, that held my fury at bay.

"Natasha..." Her voice cracked, as if she was on the brink of breaking. "I blamed you for everything because it was easier than blaming myself, or to admit there was nothing you could have done. I was... I was a coward."

Her words hung heavy in the rainy afternoon, their sincerity surprising me. I could see the pain in her eyes, the raw hurt that mirrored my own. And in that moment, I realized that she too was just a girl burdened with grief and guilt. A girl who had lost her family and turned her pain into hatred because it was easier.

"Carrie..." I whispered, my voice shaky. My heart ached at her confession. I was angry, yes, but I was also tired. Tired of fighting, tired of hating, tired of blaming.

The wind was howling around us, the rain relentlessly pounding onto us, and Ikki’s vehicle was hovering unsteadily in the air. But for that moment, it was as if the world had come to a standstill. It was just the two of us, suspended in the cold, stormy afternoon, our past catching up to us.

Carrie swallowed visibly, her eyes desperately seeking mine, her hands glowing ever brighter in the dim light. "I... I don't expect you to forgive me, Natasha. I wouldn't. But... I want you to know that I regret it. Every word, every action."

Her voice was quiet, barely a whisper above the cacophony of the storm. But her words cut through the noise, ringing in my ears and gripping my heart. I stared at her, speechless. Was this the Carrie I used to know? The girl who used to hold my hand when I was scared, the girl who stood by me when I felt alone?

 

"No, Carrie. You don't get to decide that!" I shot back, my voice breaking. The pain in my chest was unbearable, a relentless pressure that threatened to consume me. "You don't get to decide when to apologize or when to feel guilty about all that you've put me through. You always make everything about you! It's not. About. You!"

 

Her eyes filled with fresh tears, the bright purple of her irises standing out starkly against the dull backdrop of the stormy sky. "I know, Natasha... I know," she admitted, her voice trembling.

"But," she continued, a new determination replacing the guilt in her eyes, "I can decide to try and make things right. Even if it's too late. Even if you don't accept it."

With that, she steeled herself, her hands steadying as she kept me levitating and pulled me closer, the magic in her palms flaring up with renewed vigor. In her eyes, I saw something I hadn't seen in a long time: the Carrie I used to know, the girl who was my best friend. The girl who wasn't just resentment and anger, but also kindness and determination.

"I'm not doing this for forgiveness, Natasha," she stated, her voice steady despite the howling wind around us. "I'm doing this because it's the right thing to do. Because I want to save you."

Her words washed over me, the sincerity in her voice piercing the shell I'd built around myself. I wanted to reject them, to keep my shield up, to stay angry. But the look in her eyes, the determination, the vulnerability... It made me pause.

I stared at her, my heart pounding in my chest, a whirlwind of emotions threatening to engulf me. But amid the storm within me, I felt a flicker of something I hadn't felt in a long time: hope.

I didn't know what to say. I didn't know how to respond to this sudden change, to this unexpected display of sincerity. All I could do was stare at Carrie, my lips trembling and my heart aching.

The silence hung between us, heavy and poignant, as the rain continued to pour around us, the wind howling in our ears. But despite the chaos of the storm, at that moment, it was as if we were the only two people in the world.

With a sigh, I closed my eyes, the rush of the wind and the roar of the rain blending into a deafening white noise. And in the chaos, I found a strange sense of peace.

I opened my eyes and looked at Carrie, a ghost of a smile tugging at my lips. "Carrie..." I started, my voice barely above a whisper. "I don't know if I can forgive you. I don't know if I can forget.”

Carrie sighed, her shoulders sagging slightly, the strain evident in her voice. "I don't expect you to forgive me, Natasha. I don't deserve it. But I had to say it... I had to apologize. I owe you that at least."

A bitter smile played on my lips. "And what now, Carrie? Do we just... go back to how things were? Pretend nothing happened?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper against the raging storm.

"No, Natasha. I... I don't think we can ever go back. Too much has happened," she admitted, her eyes holding a deep regret. "But..."

 

"But..." I repeated, my heart pounding against my chest, "Maybe we can start by trying to understand each other. Trying to make sense of what went wrong. Because..."

 

I swallowed, my throat tight. I cast a look at the storm surrounding us, at the magic emanating from Carrie's hands.

Carrie stayed silent, her hands still aglow. The rain had plastered strands of her hair to her forehead, and her face was pale under the ethereal light of her magic. But when she spoke, her voice was soft, yet firm.

 

"Because I think we've both been lost for a long time, haven't we?", she answered, "And I think... I think it's about time we found our way back, don't you think?"

 

In the midst of the raging storm, amidst the chaos and the uncertainty, I felt a sense of quiet determination settle in my heart. It wasn't going to be easy; there were years of hurt and misunderstanding between us. But maybe, just maybe, we could start bridging the chasm that had formed.

"Okay... Carrie," I said, meeting her gaze squarely with resignation. "You’ve got me. For now. Let's… let’s just start at the beginning."

The wind howled around us as Ikki turned his vehicle in a loop, and yanked me directly into a hug in his arms.

"Natasha... oh god, Natasha, please don't ever do that to me again..." he sobbed into my shoulder as the rain drenched us to the bone.

It took my mind directly back to the time I heard his cries for help as he was locked in a backroom closet as I was practicing in the park.

"Ikki..."

I returned the hug, crying into him as Carrie finally broke down behind Ikki, crying herself.

For the first time in a long time, amidst the tumult, I felt a glimmer of hope. And as I looked into Carrie's eyes, I realized she felt it too.

We were lost souls, adrift in a storm of our own making.

But maybe, just maybe, we could find our way back home.