Ezra had never liked mornings. But ever since he'd awakened whatever power simmered beneath his skin, mornings had become a strange ritual of soreness, adrenaline, and coffee.
He sat quietly in the school cafeteria, staring at his tray of eggs and toast like they might offer advice on how to survive the rest of the week. His mind was still reeling from yesterday's training with Jace and Aria. He had tapped into something—something terrifying and amazing—but he still had no idea what it meant.
Was he a superhero now? A weapon? A freak?
"Hey, space cadet."
Ezra looked up. Leo, his oldest friend, dropped into the seat across from him. His hair was messy as always, his hoodie halfway zipped up, a permanent smirk on his face.
"You look like you fought a trash compactor and lost."
Ezra gave a tired smile. "Feels about right."
"Late-night gaming marathon again?"
Ezra paused. He hadn't told Leo—or anyone—about his powers or the training. It wasn't that he didn't trust him. He just didn't know how to explain it.
"Something like that," Ezra muttered.
"Ugh," groaned Mira, pushing her glasses up her nose. "Pop quiz in Chem. I swear that teacher's out for blood."
Mira was the practical one—sharp, intense, and way too smart for her own good. She looked at Ezra with a mix of concern and suspicion.
"You alright, Ez? You're limping."
Ezra looked down at his leg. He hadn't even noticed. "Just a rough night."
She narrowed her eyes. "You've been having a lot of those lately."
Leo leaned in conspiratorially. "Bet it's a girl. That or he's joined an underground fight club."
Ezra snorted. "If I had, I'd be losing badly."
"Still better than my love life," Leo said, shrugging.
Mira rolled her eyes. "Both of you are hopeless."
Despite everything going on, Ezra felt something warm in his chest. This—this moment with his friends—was normal. And right now, normal felt like a lifeline.
He wasn't ready to tell them yet. But maybe… someday.
---
Lunch came and went. Classes blurred by.
By the time the last bell rang, Ezra's body ached again. It wasn't just muscle fatigue anymore—it was something deeper. Like his very core was stretching, adapting to the pressure of bending time.
As he stepped outside, the air shifted.
"Hey."
Ezra turned. Jace stood by the gate, black hoodie pulled over his head. No one else seemed to notice him.
"Come on. You're not done for the day."
Ezra sighed. "Do I get time to breathe?"
"You'll breathe when you stop freezing it," Jace said dryly.
They walked together to a hidden section of the sports field—an old maintenance shed long forgotten by students. Inside, Aria waited, arms folded.
"Today," she said, "we're going deeper."
Ezra hesitated. "Deeper how?"
"We're going inside," Aria said.
He blinked. "Inside what?"
"Inside you," she clarified. "Into the time-space you create when you activate your power."
Ezra raised an eyebrow. "I can go in there?"
"You don't just move faster," Jace explained. "You create a field around yourself where time bends. If you learn to feel it, you can expand it. Even manipulate what happens inside it."
Ezra tried to process that. "So… what? I can build a bubble of slow motion?"
"That's the goal," Aria said. "But it takes focus. Control. And most of all… awareness."
They made him sit on the dusty floor. Aria instructed him to close his eyes, breathe deeply, and think back to the moments he had triggered his power.
"At first, don't try to force it. Just feel it. The pressure. The stillness. Find that clock ticking inside you."
Ezra did as she said. For several minutes, there was nothing but the sound of the wind outside the shed and his own heartbeat.
Then… something shifted.
He wasn't sure how to explain it, but he felt like he had sunk into himself. Like he was standing in a silent room inside his own chest, and at the center of that room ticked a massive, ancient clock.
He reached for it—mentally—and time slowed.
When he opened his eyes, the world had changed again. Everything was golden, like sunlight frozen in amber. Jace and Aria were statues.
Ezra stood.
But instead of moving around, he focused inward.
What else could he do in this space?
He held out his hand and tried to expand the bubble. It pushed—barely. The edge of the field rippled, but it resisted.
Still, he had felt it.
The power wasn't just a switch. It was a muscle.
Ezra pushed harder.
The strain hit him like a truck. His nose bled. His vision blurred. He collapsed.
And time resumed.
Jace caught him before he hit the ground.
"Damn," Ezra gasped, blood dripping from his nose. "That sucked."
Jace gave a rare, approving nod. "You found it."
Aria knelt beside him, dabbing the blood away with a cloth. "You're pushing too fast. But the fact that you can push… that's huge."
Ezra wiped his mouth and gave a tired, crooked grin. "Does this mean I get a gold star?"
"No," Jace said. "It means you're officially on the clock."
Ezra groaned at the pun. "I already regret this friendship."