Free The Broken Curse by Taylor Lavati

we exit the room, explaining why we're running. "We'll do a run, then grab breakfast, and then strength train in the gym. After that I'll let you leave, because tomorrow, we do it all over again."
    "I can't believe I'm letting you do this to me," she mutters, which makes me smile.  
    Luckily, she came prepared with her iPhone, an armband, and headphones. She gets all set up as we stumble down the stairs and leave our dormitory. I swear she's like a blind bat because she walks into walls and trips on nothing at all the entire way down.
    "Just follow me," I tell her. She plugs into whatever world she's listening to, and I quietly begin to jog ahead of her. I haven't used my iPhone to listen to music while I run in a while. I prefer the quiet to the chaos.  
    I like the peace now. My mind is silent when I get into a cardio zone. I love and crave it almost like a drug. Without my daily runs, I may have gone insane by now. Actually, I definitely would have.  
    We round a corner for mile three when two large men jump out from behind the bend. I never even see them until it's too late. Immediately, I lunge forward in attack mode, but Kara is slower. One of the guys knocks her to the side, completely blind siding her, and she falls over like a rag doll.
    I ignore my instincts to attack the man in front of me and rush to Kara's side. I get there before the man can punch her and intervene. I kick him right in the middle of his chest. With my powerful strength, I can feel his ribs bend and crack beneath my foot. He leans forward and clutches his chest with both hands.
    The other man comes at me from behind, trying to grab me around the waist, but I refuse to let him. I jump into the air, pushing myself off the ground, and slam the man behind me in the face with a fast jab to the jaw.
    He recoils, blood trickling down his face and onto his yellow short-sleeved shirt. Knowing they're on the losing end, the two share a nervous glance and then sprint into the woods. Once again, I ignore the need to chase them and check on Kara, who's sitting on the ground.
    She has a sad look on her face, one of defeat and frustration. I sit beside her and wait for her to speak, knowing that I don't want to make this worse. But when it's apparent she won't, I make the first move.
    "You ready to keep going?" I ask her, nudging her shoulder with mine. Her cheek is a little red, but she's not bloody, which is a very good sign. She doesn't look to be hurt, only saddened.
    "It hurts how weak I am."
    "What happened?" I ask, touching various parts of her body to make sure that she's not broken. "Where did they get you? Are you okay?"
    "I mean weak like I'm barely even above a human in strength and speed. I suck at this Nephilim thing."
    "No, you don't." I rub her back softly, nurturing movements up and down.
    "You're literally the worst liar on the face of the planet." She cuts a glare at me, and I can't even rebut that.
    "You just haven't gotten your powers yet. They'll come, I know it." I give her a hug, one of the few I've genuinely cared about in the past few months. "Let's get back to our run. It'll make you feel better," I promise.
    I jump up from the grassy ground and reach my hand down for her to take. She looks up at me and takes my hand, letting me drag her up.

    "That actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be," Kara says as we round the corner to the student center. We both slow to a walk and catch our breath, panting and huffing and puffing through the warm air.
    "I told you. It's completely relaxing, and now we get to eat a yummy meal. Make sure to load up on protein and drink like three glasses of water," I tell her, wanting to make sure that she feels okay. "The last thing we want is you getting dehydrated."
    Kara grabs the doors for me, and I enter the dining hall first. It's nice and quiet, only a few people lingering around, most of whom I don't know. I'm sure in the next few weeks more and more people will start to fill it, but for now,