by HK Savage
Ch. 3
Stephen suggested the bagel place just a few blocks up the street from campus. It was a quiet walk with Stephen striding confidently ahead of me, his arms swinging freely, appearing completely at ease. Hadn’t he just been terrified as Tara berated him only five minutes before? And now he was showing absolutely no traces of that fear. Was I missing something?
While we walked, I looked over and it struck me again how little this guy was. He seemed so young. I was 5’2” and he couldn’t have been more than a few inches taller than me. Plus his wide face, freckles and large eyes made him seem like he was barely past puberty.
“I’m Claire Martin, I’m a freshman.” My voice was loud in the midmorning quiet.
“Hi Claire.” He looked over again through his shaggy mop of hair and gave me an easy smile. He didn’t seem old enough to be at college. He was so small and childlike; it was hard to think of him as my peer or even my superior. Maybe that was why I had felt compelled to try to protect him earlier; it was maternal or something.
We continued on without speaking for about five more minutes before reaching our destination and upon arriving, ordered our drinks. I felt like something soothing, so got a Tazo mint tea and Stephen ordered black coffee. After getting our drinks, we took our seats below the front windows. I unwrapped my tea bag and began to dunk it rapidly in my apprehensiveness, letting the scent rising to my nostrils work its magic and slowly unwind my nerves while waiting for him to talk.
Stephen took his time. He seemed unconcerned with the whole strange scenario and settled into his chair with a slight slouch over his cup before looking back from the window and meeting my eyes.
I looked down at my tea again and noticed that I could feel the murmurings of the others in the store, I couldn’t feel anything coming from my companion. I was equal parts intrigued and frightened as to what was different about Stephen than anyone else I’d ever known.
He took a sip of his coffee and examining the side of his mug asked casually, “Have you ever been to the basement of the library?”
Uncertain where he was going, I tried to follow. “I just got here yesterday so I haven’t had a chance yet. Why, should I?”
“There is a book there I think you would find very interesting. This author, Roger Jenkins, he wrote a book about the paranormal and ESP and stuff. It might be something someone like you would find interesting.” He continued to study his mug.
Considering the fact that I had tried my entire known existence to keep my curse a secret for fear I would either be committed or experimented on, I was more than startled that Stephen would have me pegged so quickly. I had to swallow to make my voice sound remotely normal. “I don’t know what you mean. I don’t buy into that sort of goofy stuff. See,” I said leaning back and waving a hand over my scant makeup and orange shirt for his examination. “See, not goth. I don’t buy into that sixth sense stuff.” I added with a laugh that was too high to my ears.
With a hint of a smile, Stephen looked at me and ran his finger around the lip of his steaming coffee mug. “Are you sure you wouldn’t be interested to find out how to shield yourself a little better? I mean, doesn’t all the noise get to you?”
It was all I could manage to keep my jaw from falling into my teacup. “How…?”
“Well, for one, you just about blasted me when you touched me.” He was watching my face, only the unblinking intensity of his hazel eyes belied his otherwise casual demeanor.
“Blasted?” I had no idea what he was talking about, my astonishment plain on my face. My curse was receiving. It had never occurred to me that I too might be projecting something.
“Yeah, energy is just flying off of you. You’re like one of those static orbs in a science lab.” For such a crazy conversation, Stephen was maintaining an enviable mien of near boredom. I was tempted to look around for a camera crew; was I being punked? Or any minute were the orderlies, who were certainly not far behind, coming to pick me up and throw me in the looney bin.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about with all of this hocus pocus stuff but I’m not interested. I should probably get back to my dorm anyway. I promised my Dad I’d call after class. Checking in and all, I have to do it a lot. My parents are very overprotective and keep a close watch on me. They’ll worry if they don’t hear from me soon.” Let this guy think I have people who would miss me right away if he kidnapped me and put me in his trunk. He just seemed so creepily calm and it spooked me that I couldn’t feel him in the slightest, I couldn’t gauge his sincerity and it had me panicked.
“You’d better get going then.” Stephen looked down at his cup and back out the window. “Check the book out though. It’s the real deal, not hokey like a lot of those books can be.”
I got up to leave before this could get any more surreal.
“Nice meeting you Claire,” he said quietly, watching me stand and turn away.
“Umm, yeah, you too,” I mumbled as I grabbed my bag off the back of my chair and walked out the door too quickly. It was a strange walk back and I looked over my shoulder several times as I hurried back to my dorm, arguing with the voice in my head telling me to run. I was shaken to my core by Stephen’s words. He’d seemed so unassuming discussing the curse I’d disguised with relative success the majority of my life. Yet, he had me pegged within five minutes of meeting me. And he was so cool about it, like he knew something the rest of the world didn’t. Plus, factor in the slight detail that was throwing me for a loop. I couldn’t feel him even when I tried. I resolved to go the other way if I saw him again.