I am not a child.

My chest heaved as I struggled to catch my breath. I was bent over at the waist, my feet turned inwards and my arms dangling limply below me. I glanced up through my bangs at the ice wizard before me. "You... You're not bad..." I huffed with a smirk, sweat dripping down my face. I was starting to run low on magic energy, I had to finish this quickly.

Gray panted slightly, and wiped some of his own sweat off his forehead. "You seem tired. Your face looks like it was dunked in a toilet." He said with a small smile. I stood up straight, though my arms were still limp.

I am not a child.

"Ah, but you see; the more water I can get..." I cupped my hand and swiped it across my face, taking the salty liquid with it. With a flick of my wrist they formed daggers, floating in mid air to use at my disposal. "The worse off you're gonna be!" I said, and threw my hand forward, causing the daggers to fly at Gray. He slammed his fist against his palm. "Ice make: shield!" He cried, and a sheet of ice appeared before him. The daggers splattered against the surface with a sizzle. As he was focused on holding the shield I sprinted at him, bending my ring finger. The blue circle formed in front of me, and whatever beverage that was in the kegs at the bar filtered out of it. It surrounded my forearm, giving power to my punch. I hurled my fist at him, my eyes wide with rage. I had to beat him. Just once.

"I got you now!" I cried. Everything seemed to move slower, and my hand slowly inched towards his face. He stared at it like it was Death itself, coming to take him away.
Adrenaline pumped through my veins and a grin spread across my face. It hurt, thanks to my swollen cheek. But I couldn't help it.

I am not a child.

Then suddenly, through the slow-motion chaos, a hand suddenly appeared in between my beer-soaked hand and Gray's terrified face.

"Not today."

The next thing I knew I was flipped over and hitting the ground. Hard. The wind was knocked out of me, and I desperately gasped for breath. My eyes were squeezed shut, so I couldn't see who stood above me. But I could feel their presence.

"Maybe next time. I'm not losing to a kid like you just yet," Gray's voice rang through my mind, over the buzzing in my ears and the dead silence it caused as my brain struggled to start functioning again.

I am not a child.

I hacked and sputtered, but it wasn't doing much. It felt like something was blocking my throat, refusing to let me fit in a single gasp.

Maybe next time...

Next time...

A kid like you...

Not

Today.

The voices rang through my head. They mocked me, laughing at my flaws and shoving them in my face. I couldn't stand being what I was, a rookie who needed to practice. I had been practicing all my life, it was about time I could I actually do something.
Then, finally, I caught it. I inhaled deeply and gripped my shirt, the one Gray had lent me.

His shirt.

My shirt.

Same difference.

My nails dug into my chest, through the white cloth. I opened my eyes and bit my lip so hard it started bleeding.

I am not a child.

"Why... why am I so weak..." I muttered quietly, so no one else could hear. I wondered how many of them were staring at my now, pitying me. Whispering about how helpless and dumb I was. Either way I couldn't hear them, the ringing in my ears was far too loud.

I am not a child.

I whimpered slightly as my nails broke the skin. I lifted my head up just enough where I could catch a glimpse of the top half of my body. Blood began to leak out of the slit my nails had torn in my skin, staining the pure white shirt.

"Oh. That's too bad. I hope he doesn't need his shirt back."

Am I?