A few weeks passed.
Tom returned to school even though Nana begged him to stay home a little longer."Tom, you're not 100% yet," she warned.
But Tom couldn't sit still at home. The silence made the memories louder.
On his way to class, he ran into Daniel.
"Dan!" Tom called out.
Daniel turned… stared at him with cold, distant eyes…Then walked away without a single word.
That silence hurt worse than any punch.
The Locker Room
Gym period came next.
Tom headed into the boys' locker room — loud, sweaty, chaotic. Carter and the football boys were being their usual loud, obnoxious selves.
Tom kept his head down while changing, but then—
Buzz. Buzz. BUZZ.
His powers tingled sharply behind his eyes.The room blurred.The boys' bodies shifted — skin becoming transparent.
He could see their skeletons. Their heartbeats. Their phones glowing like little suns.
Then Carter's phone lit up.
And suddenly Tom saw everything inside it.
A video.THE video.Amy screaming.Amy crying.Pig masks.Hands holding her down.
And there — clear — Carter's voice. Carter's face. Carter laughing.
Tom froze, breath shaking, eyes wide.
That's when Carter noticed him.
"The hell you staring at me for?" Carter snapped.
Tom didn't answer. He couldn't.
Carter's face twisted."You got a problem, freak?"
Before Tom could react, Carter stormed toward him, grabbed him by the shirt—
—and SLAMMED him straight through a wooden desk.
The room erupted in laughter.
"Stay down, weirdo," Carter sneered, brushing dust off his hands.His boys echoed him:
"Yeah, go cry to your grandma!"
They walked away laughing — mocking — proud.
Tom lay there for a moment, vision swimming, blood roaring in his ears.
Flashbacks and Rage
The moment Carter left, Tom's mind snapped open —
Amy's faceAmy's voiceAmy's screamThe gunshotThe pig masksThe bloodThe night he died
All exploding like broken glass.
His hands clenched. His jaw locked.
Lights flickered overhead.Electricity crawled across the metal lockers.His heartbeat synced with the buzzing of every phone in the room.
Rage — cold and violent — surged through him.
Tom stood.
He wasn't staying silent anymore.
The Police Station
Minutes after school ended, Tom marched straight into the police station.He didn't knock.He didn't wait.
He slammed his palms onto the counter.
Officer Francis looked up, startled. "Tom? What—"
"Carter was one of them," Tom said sharply. "He was one of the pig-masked guys. I saw the video. It's on his phone."
Francis frowned. "How could you possibly know what's on his phone?"
Tom stepped closer, shaking with anger."It doesn't matter how I know. What matters is that he DID it. Check his phone. Check it, and you'll see everything."
Francis sighed heavily.
"Tom, we can't just seize someone's phone without evidence. That's not how—"
"I HAVE evidence!" Tom yelled."It's on his phone! If you don't get Carter now, he'll destroy it!"
Francis hesitated.He didn't believe Tom.But the desperation — the fury — the pain in Tom's eyes…
It made him pause.
Murphy walked over. "What's going on?"
Francis whispered, "We might need to look into this."
He turned back to Tom.
"Alright… alright. We'll reopen the case."
Tom exhaled sharply.
Francis continued, "Murphy, set up an arrest request for Carter Brown. We'll question him."
A spark of relief — and fear — flickered inside Tom.
This time… things were finally moving.
This time… he wasn't powerless.