Shuffled: When the Cards Talk You Must Listen

Chapter 26 Tea

My mind was still fuzzy. My world was still narrow, like I had tunnel vision. I could feel myself shaking deep in my bones. The very core of my personage was quaking. When panic hits me like that I feel shaky for a long time, and quite often I just end up passing out for the rest of the afternoon. Although my medication was beginning to wrap my emotions in a warm fog of drugs, my mind was exhausted. My head was still woozy from my panic attack but my emotions felt gently muffled. I could tell that my anxiety medication had begun to kick in and I was glad.

Anxiety SUCKS! This was not supposed to be even remotely real. This was all supposed to be one big figment of my imagination. And when I looked at those drawings and then the birch bark by my tub. It just flashed too real.

The girls settled me down at the kitchen island as MeiLei put the kettle on and pulled out some tea she had bought at some tea store at the mall.

"The lady at the shop told me that this is a calming tea," MeiLei said as she read the back of the box of loose leaf tea. "So do you have a 'proper' tea pot or are we just doing this in the one on the stove?"

With my head buried in my arms on the counter top I mumbled something about it being over by the cups.

"UM honey, I don't see any teapots over here. Actually I don't see any cups. It's all pots and pans."

I heard more and more cupboards opening and closing. I slowly lifted my head up and stared quizzically at my friends. This was not helping my mental fog. Carefully I stood up and moved around my island.

"I don't get it. I just unpacked these things. I KNOW where I put them."

Now I started frantically opening and closing my cupboard doors. Everything was all mixed up. I know that a few things had been mixed up before but never this badly. I was so confused. Nothing was making any sense today. Finally I found the cups and tea pots under the sink. Ya know where everyone puts them. NOT!

Suddenly I felt the need to completely rearrange my whole kitchen. It was almost manic energy crackling in my veins, and I started ripping out the things that were in the wrong places and making room for them in the correct places. Apparently the girls understood to some extent so they just started helping as MeiLei worked on the tea since I'd given her the teapot right off the start.

Slowly my frantic rearranging of my kitchen slowed down, and I collapsed on one of the island's stools.

"I don't understand."

I put my head back down on the counter top.

"I don't understand how I'm drawing things and not remembering them. I don't understand how I brought back a stack of birch bark from a DREAM! I don't understand how things in my house keep getting moved when no one is home. I don't understand what happened at the Starbucks with you and the wonder blonds, and that lightning.....I... I... I just don't understand! There are so many things I don't understand that I've made a freaking list!"

My voice started out low, and quivering, but as I got further along in my speech I got louder and louder until I was screaming the last sentence.

"Really, I just don't understand." I said once again, almost lamely.

Kelli crossed the kitchen and pulled me into a hug.

"Honey, I can't answer all these questions but I can answer the stuff about what happened at Starbucks." She raised herself up onto the stool next to me and took a deep breath.

"Hun there are some things about this town that you really need to know about. Honestly I'm surprised that your mom or aunt didn't tell you sooner."