Chapter 34

Chapter 34
I hummed a little song that I couldn't seem to get out of my head , it was in my dreams and now I kept humming it. It made me feel peace.Even the morning felt… normal. Peaceful it almost felt like an illusion. 

Not normal like perfect. Normal like quiet. Like the kind of silence that doesn’t press against your chest. The kind that just exists. It was kind of crazy that I was starting to get used to the drama , the mystery and action in sherfield . It made me feel like there was something seriously wrong with me for kind of liking it.

Sunlight slipped through my curtains in thin gold lines, dust floating in the air like tiny stars. For once, I didn’t wake up with whispers in my ears or images burned into my mind. No visions. No shadows. No dread.

Just me.

I lay there for a while, staring at the ceiling, letting myself breathe.

It felt strange how quickly chaos becomes routine. A few weeks ago, I was just the new girl in Sherfield. The quiet one. The weird one. Now I had friends. Real friends. People who knew my secrets and didn’t run. People who stayed.

That still felt unreal.

Downstairs, I heard the low murmur of my dad’s voice and the soft clink of cups. Gran must’ve been awake. The house smelled like tea and toast — comfort smells. Safe smells.

I pulled on a hoodie and padded downstairs.

Gran sat at the table with a blanket around her shoulders, her brown eyes warm and tired. Dad stood by the counter, making tea like it was a sacred ritual.

“There’s my girl,” Gran smiled. “You sleep?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Actually… yeah.”

Dad turned and smiled. “Miracles do happen.”

I sat down beside Gran, resting my head against her shoulder. She kissed the top of my head softly.

“You’ve been carrying a lot,” she murmured. “Even when you don’t say it.”

That lump formed in my throat again — the one that always showed up when someone saw me too clearly. It made me a little curious as to whether there was a deeper meaning behind what grandma said. I shook my head , I needed to stop this whole Nancy Drew behavior . It was making me question every single thing in my life . I couldn’t stop analyzing everything , it was like an itch now .

“I’m okay,” I said quietly. And this time, it wasn’t a lie.

School felt different too.

Not because the building changed — Sherfield High was still loud, chaotic, and slightly cursed — but because I didn’t feel like I was walking through it alone anymore.

Nick was waiting by my locker like usual, leaning against it like he owned the place. I smiled at myself funny how I had made friends with one of the coolest people at school like me-wow. 

“You’re late,” he said dramatically.

“It’s literally two minutes,” I replied.

“Two minutes in hot-boy time is tragic,” he said, handing me my coffee. “I remembered your order. No sugar. Extra milk.”

I froze for half a second. “You remembered?”

He shrugged. “Warlock memory perks.”

I laughed, shaking my head. “Liar.”

Brandon showed up a moment later, backpack slung over one shoulder, blue eyes calm and unreadable like always.

“Morning,” he said quietly.

There was something different in his voice lately. Softer. Careful. Like he was afraid of stepping too close.

“Morning,” I replied, suddenly aware of how close he was standing.

The three of us walked to class together, and for a moment it felt so painfully normal it almost hurt.

At lunch, the group sat together — Sam laughing loudly about something chaotic that happened in PE, Lisa listening more than speaking like always, Nick pretending he didn’t care, Brandon pretending he wasn’t watching me.

“So,” Sam said, grinning, “are we gonna talk about how we almost got dragged into a lake by ancient magic and now we’re just… back to algebra?”

Lisa pushed her glasses up. “Trauma normalization is very human.”

Nick smirked. “That’s the most Lisa sentence ever.”

I smiled, watching them. This strange, broken, magical little family we’d formed. It felt like home , like I belonged here . 

“Do you guys ever think,” I said slowly, “that maybe Sherfield has always been like this? And we just never saw it before?”

Lisa nodded. “Cities like this attract energy. Ley lines. Old magic. Ancient seals. It’s like a spiritual crossroads.”

Sam frowned. “So basically, we moved into a supernatural hotspot?”

“Basically,” Lisa said.

Nick leaned back. “Figures.”

Brandon looked at me. “You okay with that?”

I hesitated. Then nodded. “I think… I don’t really have a choice. But I’m not scared anymore.”

That part surprised even me.

After school, we didn’t chase mysteries. We didn’t research legends. We didn’t investigate anything.

We just existed.

We went for milkshakes. Walked through town. Sat on the old football bleachers and watched the sky change colors. Sam splashed water at Nick and started a full war. Lisa laughed so hard she had to sit down. Brandon bought fries for everyone even though no one asked.

It felt like being teenagers.

Real teenagers.

At sunset, they walked me home.

Nick stopped at the gate. “Text me when you’re inside.”

“Why?” I teased.

“Because I like knowing you’re safe.”

Brandon didn’t say anything — he just gave me a small nod and a quiet smile that felt heavier than words.

Inside, the house was calm. Dad was on the couch reading. Gran was knitting. The world felt still.

I went to my room and sat on my bed, letting the quiet wrap around me.

For the first time in a long time, I wasn’t waiting for something to happen.

But the thing about calm…

is that it always feels temporary.

Outside my window, the wind shifted.

Not violently.

Not loudly.

Just enough to move the trees.

And somewhere deep in my chest, that familiar pull stirred — not fear, not pain — just awareness.

Like the universe holding its breath.

I didn’t see anything.

I didn’t hear anything.

But I felt it.

Something was waking up.

Not tonight.

Not yet.

But soon.

And for the first time, I didn’t feel like running.

I felt ready.