The Eyes That Watch

Chapter 4: The Eyes That Watch

I could feel them watching me.

It wasn't new. The staff had always been there, always just beyond our reach, their faces cold and indifferent. They were like shadows, present in every room, marking down every movement we made—every stumble, every glance. But now… now it felt different. Their eyes lingered on me longer than they had before, like they were waiting for something.

Maybe it was because I had started paying attention. Maybe I was too curious.

At first, I didn't think it mattered. I stayed quiet, kept to myself, followed the unspoken rules that governed the facility. I watched, listened, and waited, just like I always had. But something was changing. The other children moved with more purpose now. Their powers had begun to surge forward, growing stronger while I remained… incomplete.

The lights above flickered again, as they always did when one of the older children passed by. I could feel the shift in the air, the way their power pressed against the world, bending it ever so slightly. It rippled around them, unseen but unmistakable, like they had an influence over things I couldn't yet comprehend.

But I wasn't like them.

And the staff noticed. They had to. I knew they were watching, though they hadn't acted on it—until today.

One of them approached me. He was tall, his features sharp and angular, his eyes cold and calculating. His gaze pierced through me, like he could see past everything I was hiding. His steps were slow, deliberate, and as he neared, the room seemed to grow colder, the air thickening with a tension that made my chest tight.

"You've been watching them." His voice was low and calm, but there was something lurking beneath the surface—something dark and edged. "You're curious."

I swallowed hard, but the lump in my throat wouldn't budge. I didn't answer. I couldn't.

He stepped closer, circling me like a predator assessing its prey, his gaze scanning every inch of me. "You're different," he said, his words slow, deliberate. "Do you know why?"

I shook my head. But the question struck something inside me. I had started to wonder, even though I didn't want to admit it to myself. The other children were changing, growing stronger with every passing day, their abilities becoming more defined. And I… I was still waiting. Still reaching for something I couldn't quite touch.

The man's eyes narrowed as if he could see the thoughts swirling inside me. "There's a reason you haven't unlocked it yet. You're not ready."

The words hit like a stone sinking in my chest. Not ready. That's what they thought of me.

I clenched my fists, trying to keep the frustration from bubbling to the surface, but it was there—burning, simmering beneath my skin.

"You'll understand soon enough," he continued, his tone cooling even further. "The fragments of power aren't for everyone."

Fragments. That word again.

I opened my mouth, desperate to ask him what it meant, what any of it meant, but the words never came. Before I could find my voice, he turned and walked away, his back to me, leaving the questions and the weight of his words hanging in the air.

My fists stayed clenched at my sides, trembling slightly with the effort to keep myself calm. I could feel the other children's eyes on me now, but they didn't say anything. They didn't need to. The silence between us was louder than any words could have been.

I wasn't ready.

That's what they believed.

But I knew something they didn't. I couldn't wait forever. The others were already moving ahead, growing stronger every day, reaching for something that I hadn't even begun to touch. I could feel it inside me—frustration, a quiet fury boiling beneath the surface. It was building, rising, waiting for the moment when it could finally break free.

They couldn't stop me from knowing. They couldn't keep the truth hidden forever.

I would learn what the fragments were. I would unlock whatever was buried inside me.

Even if I wasn't ready.