My heart drops as soon as I hear those words "Get another Examiner, I think this kid has an Element!!!" the words just ring in my head being repeated over and over again.
Element…
Element.. I have an Element. The words bounce around in my head over and over again. My stomach does flips and turns and I feel as though sinking into the chair I'm sitting in and be trapped for the rest of my life is better than living right now. I wish I hadn't come that is the one thought that comes into my head after I finally stop thinking about how the worst moment of my life has just happened. The moment I have stressed and worried about my whole life had just happened every moment I've spent worrying. Every moment I've wished for my friends and family to not achieve their dreams for my own selfish reasons. Every moment led to this moment and everything went wrong. Wait she said she's gonna get another Examiner to double check so maybe she's wrong!! I know that I'm just grasping at straws but those straws are all I have right now so I grab on to them as if my life depended on it. Please PLEASE let her be wrong are the final thoughts I can squeak out before the other examiner comes in since the white tarp room is still all around me but I can hear loud footsteps rapidly approaching and then finally stop as a man ask the nice lady if she's sure about what she saw which she quickly responded saying she was pretty sure but she's never actually seen a kid with an Element during the examination and so the man tells her "I'll take a look." after he says that they both go quiet and I hear footsteps going across the room approaching the computer on the teachers desk. After a few more seconds of silence all I hear is "Holy shit" escape the man's mouth before for the second time my heart drops out of my chest and straight onto the floor cause now I know that it's true I have an Element I wish it wasn't true I wish I didn't have one I wish so many different things right now in the midst of my daydreaming about a better timeline then the one I'm living in the white tarp room opens and the nice lady and a man I haven't seen yet with grey hair the goes down to about his shoulders a beard and glasses step in the room with huge smiles on both of their faces. My wishing immediately stops since I know what's gonna happen now. "Congratulations son It seems as though you are one of the lucky few who have an Element!!" the man starts speaking instead of the nice lady he pauses after his first sentence expecting me to react in some way but I don't think I can speak to him so I just stare up at him instead seeing me not giving any give to speak he continues "We need to do more testing to find out what specific Element you have but you'll going through that at the academy. For right now you're basically done. You'll be getting mail in a few days telling you when your enrollment in the academy needs to be decided by but obviously you'll go." He pauses again, seemingly wanting confirmation from me. I'm still not in the mood to talk at all but after a few painfully long seconds I am able to squeeze out a soft "yes" "Perfect!" He says as his smile grows even wider than before his smile seems fake like a doll but after saying that he mumbles something to the Lady and leaves "Okay Rien we're going to go to your family now and tell them the good news!" The lady seems a lot more genuine than the man. Her smile makes it seem like I should be actually happy about this even though I'm not.
After I get up we head down the hallway to my family and probably the guys too since mine took longer since I actually got an Element. After about a minute long walk we reach the lobby and I see my family all standing there when me and the lady walk up to everyone and the lady starts to tell my family about how I got an Element and all the things there going to have to deal with since I got one and how to prepare for the academy. I hate this I hate that I'm being forced to leave everyone behind I hate that I don't have a choice I hate the pressure coming in from all sides I hate that I'll have to leave my friends wait what if they got Elements too then I won't have to leave them behind, then we can all stay together, then my life will still have some semblance. After coming to the realization that maybe I can still have something in my life stay the same I quickly glance around and now for the final time I lost all hope. Kim's Mom and Dad were consoling him while he looked at the floor clearly upset. Elijah's Mom is trying to talk to him and comfort him but he seemingly realizing that I got an Element just looks at me not with jealousy are anger at the fact that I get to live out his dream but with pity knowing that everything that is happening right now is something I have always had nightmares about. After just looking at Elijah for a few more seconds I remember ART!! I look around for Art and his family so fast the I hurt my Neck by turning it so hard and when I finally find him I finally start crying not because no one besides me has an Element, Not because I would have to go to the Academy all alone but because I'm living my best friends dream and I'm not even happy about it this isn't even something I want this isn't something that I deserve this should be him. But it's my life. Art is being held tightly by his parents as he clearly sobs having not got an Element having not being able to live his dream. Everything sucks. I want to go home. I want to scream and cry. I want to be invisible. I don't want to be with anyone. I don't want to have to walk home with everyone. I don't want to feel guilty anymore. I don't want to feel. My Dad hugging me breaks my spiraling then my Brother joins in and finally my Mom too. "Ahaha You did it!! You're going to be an Elemental!! I'm so proud of you!!" my Dad immediately starts singing my praise ecstatic for me and the fact that all the training had paid off for us. "We're so proud of you my Mom." my Mom follows up correcting my Dad "Oh uh Yeah All of us are I meant!!" My Dad says still wearing a ginormous smile on his face and then the tears start again, not just one but multiple I can't stop them I can't stop crying I can't stop feeling guilty. I can't deal with all of it now. "It's okay honey I know this is stressful and overwhelming and so much is happening right now but everything is okay" my Mom says while looking me in the eyes hearing this hearing those words breaks me completely I sob louder and harder than I was before and just stand there being surrounded feeling suffocated.
After I calm down and stop crying we get taken to the back for paper work and further instructions on what to do knowing that I have an Element before we go in. My parents tell the rest of the group to go on ahead of us since this could be a while. Since none of the guys really wanted to stay, especially Art at least that's what it seemed like since he hasn't even looked at me still, even while I was saying bye. After I got a Congrats from everyone besides Art and Elijah they all turned to leave but before they were gone Elijah turned around and gave me a look that said "I'm sorry" which just made everything hurt more. After that me and my family finally stepped into the back where the old man from my room was waiting for us "Hi the Imana's right?" the man asked, making sure he has our family name right. "Ah Yes that's us" My Dad answers enthusiastically, still very much happy and excited about me getting an Element. "Ah, perfect! Please all of you sit, sit!" He says and so all of us sit in the chairs in front of his desk. And so we all sit down seeing that there's three chairs my brother just sits on my Mom's lap and I get to see his face for the first time and something seems off with him like he's thinking about something not being able to push it in the situation were in though I turn my attention back to the man. "Ahem, so as you know your son has been bestowed an Element by the gods and so there's going to be a lot of big changes coming soon in all of your lives!" He says excitedly he quickly types on his keyboard before continuing "Ok so since your son got an Element and assuming he's going to Elemental Academy you guys will be getting conformation mail coming soon; with the mail it will ask you all of Rien's personal info and if he will be attending the Academy after you fill it out and send it back to the Academy they will tell you exactly when his arrival date is and which train he should take to get there. Since all the new Elementals get there on the same train and the same day, he'll be able to meet his classmates on the train and make some friends early before classes start." he finally stops after dropping a lot of info on us but my Mom apparently comprehending everything just nods and so he continues "The Elemental Academy will be completely free obviously but the travel fees will also be waived when he gets there he'll figure out his Element and they'll teach him how to be an Elemental. Right now what I need the parents to do is sign a few documents so he's eligible to attend the Academy and then you guys will all be free to go. After that he goes into the drawers of his desk and rummages around and then finally pulls out a few papers in which my parents take and start reading making sure they know what they're signing. "Um" my Mom starts clearly about to ask something about the papers "Why does it says that he will be hurt at the Academy" "Ah yes that's a really common questions parents ask while signing them up, the Academy puts them not only in real life training with Elemental beast but also with peer battle so injuries aren't uncommon but very rarely in the schools history has anyone been seriously injured." he responds like he's just reading something off a paper but hearing that my Mom finishes reading and signs the paper and then a few moments later my dad signs his too.
And with that we were free to go "It's been an honor Mr and Mrs. Imana I can't wait to see your son become a warrior for the country and I can't wait to have this same talk when this one grows up. He says while patting my brother's head. After that we were escorted out of the school and we walk home and finally the worst moments of my life are over.