Playing with Fire

Prologue

Rainy days were my favorite. They reflected how I felt. Cold. I sat in the coffee shop by the window. The melancholy music played in my ear as I looked out the window to the gray dreary day. The clouds emptied themselves on to this dry wasteland. This city never got rain making everything shine in a different light. It reminded me of being in Seattle. Always raining, unlike here in California where it’s always sunny. Even as the sky poured itself, the people here still wore shorts and sandals expecting it to be sunny again in a few hours. And honestly it might. This city had unpredictable weather.

I sipped at my coffee enjoying the semblance of home. Ever since I moved here a year ago I could never feel at home in this giant dry bowl of a town. The people were rude and disassociated with the world. They  could only see the street beyond their eyes. Their perfect green grass and their fancy cars and their starbucks. It wasn’t my decision to move to California but I nevertheless here I am.

My parents dragged me along on their mid-life crisis in my last year of high school so I had no say in the matter. Now that I was done with highschool and about to move to college I resided to my solitude.

I was accepted into the local college program for writing. I was apprehensive because that just meant more people to be around but I didn’t have many options because of my GPA and test scores. If I kept my head down and stuck to myself I’d make it through the next couple of years.

The small robin outside the window was cleaning her wings from the rain. The small bird was such a fragile creature, fluttering around like a leaf in the wind. How free that bird is yet how limited. How sometimes I wish I could be that little robin. Flying around without a conscience thought of danger. How blissful it must be to be clueless and innocent like an animal. To be human is so tiring somedays. Having responsibilities, having things to do. I wish I could sit here all day everyday. Or fly away and be someone else, be something different.

But that’s not entirely true. I was different but kept it to myself. No one knew what I could do or what I’ve already done.

Even in this small coffee shop in the bustle of lunch hour. I glanced down at my hands that began to heat up. No one around noticed, that was the point. The heat pulsed through my body and settled into my hands. I spread my hands open to revel in the power I had. When they began to glow red, I clasped them close to diffuse the fire the was sparking.  I look around the room making sure no one noticed. No one ever does.

Sighing, I stood up to leave the coffee shop behind. It was becoming stuffy in there and needed air. The air outside was cool and refreshing. A breath of fresh air. The wind played at my hair. My body was still coursing with fire making the rain that landed on my skin turn to steam.