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"Amazing what you can do, isn't it?" Victoria chuckles as she takes a seat on one of the couches.

I stare at her oddly, wondering the vein in my forehead is popping out.

"Pretty, intelligent, and powerful, yet you let them use you as a puppet on a string, why?" Victoria asks, crossing her legs as she gazes up and motions for me to sit.

"You first."

Her smile remains. "You're the most powerful person here on this campus. Do you know that? I can't imagine how deep your talents lay beyond what you're allowed to do."

"Hmm." I hum, lowering myself down to the couch across from her, not breaking my gaze. "Well, I was allowed to come to your boring forum and watch you get flamed." I give her a tight-lipped smile. "I just chose not to."

"Could've asked a question." She shrugs simply, taking another sip of her coffee.

"Mmm, right, right." I nod. "Like maybe, why does this school continue to fuck me over. Why does school choose to sweep sexual assault under the rug and celebrate the man who did it? Oh, or maybe why on God's goddamn green Earth is this school being ran by a non-supe who hates us and is EXPERIMENTING on us? Tried to experiment on me... but oh that's right, I'm just so fucking powerful. Experimented on my twin brother, and oh yeah! As if it couldn't possibly get anymore fucked, my dead brother is actually alive! And he's also being experimented on and tortured." Well, I'm sure there could have been a better way to drop that bomb.... buttt... "The reason I play dumb or do as they say was to keep my brother safe. To get him to The Seven. He could do it without me, but the reason he wouldn't have been able to is because of me. The reason they made me double major and send me away to film for a year? Is because they know just how powerful I can be."

"And they're scared." Victoria says seriously, sitting up straighter she leans forward.

"They're scared of everything about us." I tell her. "So they want to take us out. They're taking students down under the school. They call it The Woods. That's where they experimented on Luke. And Sam. They're making a virus that can kill Supes."

"A virus? Are you sure?" Victoria asks.

"Mhmm." I nod. "Dr. Cardosa is the one working down there." I bite on the inside of my lip. "I know I can't do anything. Not without being silenced. Or shut down. So..."

"I'll handle it." She says.

"Will you?" I lift my chin. "Handle it."

She looks me directly in the eye. "I will."

I hope she does. Because she's our last shot.

"You may think no one is on your side, Iliana." She leans in further. "I know what it's like to be the little girl who dreamed big and everyone watched in awe as they stood back at a distance. So you are not alone. And I will handle this for you."

I swallow as her words hit me harder than they should, like little bullets shattering my tough skin.

She stands and I quickly do the same. "Keep Marie close." She says.

"Marie?" My brows furrow. 

"Her powers are extraordinary, next to yours, and with both of your abilities on the same side?" She shakes her head. "God, I'd be scared to get in your way."

I chuckle. "Blood or sunlight?" I ask as she heads for the door.

"Hmm?"

"Which are you?" I click my tongue, knowing she has to be one or the other, and I'm leaning towards the latter.

"Blood. I thought I was the only one until Marie." She answers, glancing over her shoulder. "My best friend at Red River institute had powers like yours. I look forward to seeing what you do with them in the future. She never got the chance to explore the capabilities." Oh. I nod, slowly. "Stay in touch." And with that she leaves and I exhale louder than I probably ever have before.

God, I'd be scared to get in your way. Mmm. I hope everyone is.

My phone chimes snapping me back to reality before my mind wonders too far. I heave a sigh pulling it out of my pocket.

Bloody Marie:

Outside. We found Sam.

Um, what? I hurry down the stairs and practically fly out the door.

ᴍᴏᴍᴇɴᴛs ᴀɢᴏ...

"Jordan!" Emma yells, rushing up to them. "Have you seen Sam?" She asks as a line of shouting students with signs walks by.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Jordan bites out. "No. Where he?" They look around, already knowing Iliana will lose her shit.

"I don't know. I-I-" Emma stammers. "I mean..." She frantically twists her head to look around. "There's so much security here. What if they found him?" She panics.

"Then we're fucked, Emma." Jordan tells her. "And Iliana's going to kill you. He's the only proof we had that The Woods exist." Jordan stresses, the vein in their neck popping out. And the only reason Iliana hasn't completely lost her fucking shit. As if she hasn't enough already... Jordan shakes their head, everything from earlier unfortunately resurfacing in their mind at the completely wrong time.

"Okay, he could be in real fucking trouble, Jordan." Emma snaps. "We got to find him before..." She turns, breathing heavily. "Um..." Jordan can't even begin to imagine what Iliana will do if she comes back out to find out Sam's missing. "Sam." Emma whispers, spotting him, and hurries into his arms. "Sam."

"Emma." Sam's lets out gleefully. "I missed you."

Marie jogs over to them, clutching her chest as she lets out a breath. "Oh, thank God."

"Marie, what the hell?" Jordan turns to her.

Her eyes widen. "What?! Emma said she had it handled, I thought they were going to have sex, so I went to clear my head for a bit!" Marie found herself outside in a quiet spot needing a moment to breathe, and check her powers before Emma called her panicking that Sam wasn't in their room anymore. To which Marie was appalled at her that she left him alone in their room?!

"You're supposed to be hiding." Emma tells Sam as they pull away. "I was shitting myself worried."

"I was waiting for you." Sam tells her. Marie's brows furrow as she tries to remain calm that they found him. She was frantically pushing her way through the crowd looking for him. She texts Iliana back that he was found. "Emma, I-I drank beer. There was this, there was this ice slide. I wish you'd seen it." Sam tells her in awe. "And all of these superheroes using their powers. It-it was, it was the best."

"I mean, some of the people here are a bag of dicks." Emma leans into him to tell him.

"I guess, but, come it's awesome. Being with people like us, just having fun. I can't wait to tell Illie." He says.

"Nooo, no, let's not tell your sister." Emma quickly shakes her head.

"Have you heard from Iliana since she went inside?" Marie asks Jordan.

"No." They shake their head. "Okay, look, we need to get him out of here now." Jordan snaps.

"Okay, Sam, Sam, we got to hide you." Emma grabs his hand. "It's okay. We just got to hide you."

"Oh, man."

"Wait, here for Iliana." Jordan tells Marie as he goes with Emma and Sam, not trusting Emma anymore.

Iliana storms through the crowd, not even bothering to think of all the people that could see her when she spots Marie.

"What the hell is this?!" She shakes her phone, referring to Marie's text as she approaches her.

"Hey." Marie tries to smile as she looks at Iliana cautiously. "It's all good, it's all good. False alarm." She quickly tries to difuse the blonde.

"False alarm?!" Iliana looks down at her. "What the hell do you mean fal-" Both girls phones go off before she can finish her sentence. "I'm gonna melt this thing." She fumes.

"You may want to read this." Marie tells her gently, showing Iliana her phone.

Marie can feel the heat radiating off of Iliana's scorching hand as she takes the phone from her. It was to her, Marie, Emma, and Jordan... from Cate.

Come to Shetty's.

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𝟶ʙᴜᴛᴛᴇʀʙɪsᴄᴜɪᴛ𝟽 sᴘᴇᴀᴋs!

Hey, heyyy!!! Welcome back to the second Golden Facade update of the yearrr!!

This chapterrr got messyyyy, but AH I love it!! I had to give Victoria a sunlight bestie bc blood & sunlight gorlsss 4L!!! I'm honestly living for Iliana & Marie's friendship more than I ever thought I would!!

Alsooo, can we talk about Jordan being the overproctive them-in-lawww (themfriend haha) & caring about what Iliana would think about Sam missingggg>>>>

I hope y'all enjoy this chapterrr!! It's lowkey stressing me out not to edit these when I finish writing them, but I had to give that up over the summer & know that I'll just go through the whole book once I finish writing it lololol. (So if y'all be coming across mistakes just mind ya businesss hahaha)

Until next timeee!! OH AND WE HIT 25 FREAKING K READS TODAY?!!! STFUUUU!! Seriously, y'all blow my mind every damn time & I cannot thank y'all enough for sticking with me through this book & Iliana's story <3333 It truly means the world!!

(OKAY LAST THING BUT VICTORIA ACKNOWLEDGING JUST HOW FCKING POWERFUL ILIANA ISSS>>>> Y'ALL HAVEN'T SEEN NOTHINGGG YET HEHE...) Okay that's allll, byeee ;)