The Valiant (The Seventh Avenger)

Chapter 46

I'm almost at Michelle's house, I see her parents sitting at the table having dinner through the window. The tears won't stop flowing down my cheeks and the weight in my chest won't go away. I take a deep breath before making my way up to the door and knocking.

"Grace?" Mrs. Jones says once she opens the door, "What's wrong?"

My eyes must be red and blotchy from the crying. A lump forms in my throat before I can speak and I almost collapse to the floor. She comes up to me and wraps her arms around me, holding my body up. Mr. Jones goes back in and returns with his phone.

"No!" I shout at him, "Please this is already hard enough, please don't call anyone."

"Grace, what do you..." Before he could finish, I reach out and slow down time. My mind slips into his and plucks myself out of existence, or should I say his existence. I fill his head with lies of always seeing me sit by myself after school instead of seeing the four of us hang out, of seeing his daughter have a group of friends. I can't believe I'm doing this to her. I can't believe I won't stop doing this, but I have to do this, this is the only way. I reach out to Mrs. Jones' mind and do the same, commanding her to delete all photos and videos of us, to forget that I ever existed.

I step back and look at them, seeing the calmness on their eyes almost sent me over the edge of tears. My gaze travels down as I walk away from them one last time. Returning the clock to its original state.

My mind entangles into Mr. and Mrs. Leeds, plucking out myself and replacing it. Making them delete every image and burn myself out of their lives, more tears stream down my face as I face the last two challenges of my mission.

May answered the door before I even knocked. She just pulls me into a hug, rubbing my back gently.

"I know what you're here to do," she says and I almost jump out of her arms but her grasp tightens. I almost collapse again but she holds me up, kissing the top of my head. "I don't agree with it, but I know why you're doing it. To protect us."

My head nods against her chest and tears stain her shirt but she doesn't seem to care.

"I'm- I'm sorry," I sob into her chest, but she just gently shushes me as she caresses my head. "I don't want to-to do this, but I have to, for you."

"That's the reason I've always admired you, Grace, you did things for others and not for yourself," she says. "Peter and Ned will be home in ten minutes, so we better do it."

"I promise it won't hurt," I say and she just nods her head and closes her eyes. My lip quivers as I raise my hand, a flame slowly spiraling down my forearm, connecting itself to her mind. Yellow glows on her forehead as I command her to forget me, to burn and delete the last memories my friends will ever have, the last memories of the past three years of my life.

I've never run so hard. When her eyes opened, she looked like she recognized me but before she could say anything I was running out the door. She called after me and a lump formed in my throat when she didn't say my name.

I can't stop running, nothing seems like it will stop me. I eventually find myself in Central Park and I plop myself down on a park bench and cry and cry and cry. Nothing will stop this, this pain that continuously crushes my chest, the hole that will forever be there. I lift my hands and see the makeup has smeared onto them from the light of the lamp.

My gaze slowly glides up to the giant clock and I see that it's almost ten at night. I've been here for an hour, crying my heart out and feeling the aftermath of this matter I had and have to face alone. No one will ever know what it is like to have someone you love so dearly not even remember your name or your face.