Blythe Tatum expected her freshman year at university to be nerve-wracking, though nothing out of the ordinary. The beginning of her school year starts off as averagely as possible, though Blythe soon finds herself caught up in an unexpected and ine...
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"Retrocognition," Zach says as he rests a few textbooks atop the table, sliding them over to me as he takes a seat across from where I'm perched at a round table in the relatively empty library.
I take a quick glance at the books set in front of me before gazing up at Zach in confusion, studying him with a raised eyebrow; as if to ask what he's talking about without the words.
It seems the library has become our new place of meeting. It's not the worst place for us to gather, as it's almost always secluded and it's also the one building on campus I believe Jacob would never be caught dead in, which keeps my rendezvous with Zach private. I had texted Zach earlier in the day to let him know I would be studying here in the afternoon, though I hadn't actually expected him to show up.
"Retrocognition?" I repeat, the word leaving my lips in the form of a question. "What's that?" I don't know the exact definition of the word, though it does sound vaguely familiar to me.
"It's a term I learned in a psychology class a few years ago," Zach explains, leaning closer to me in order to keep his tone low so that our conversation stays between the two of us. "That's beside the point. Anyway, the term came to mind a little earlier today out of nowhere. So I started looking into it, studying to make sure I had all my facts straight. And I think I figured it out."
I only manage to grow more confused by the second. I set my pen down as I offer Zach my undivided attention, eyebrows furrowed as I question, "Figured what out?"
"Yesterday, you mentioned that we needed to try researching the visions you've been having," Zach clarifies. "So I started looking into it."
I lean back in my seat as I study Zach, his words finally starting to make sense to me. "So what did you find out, exactly?"
"Retrocognition is a term used to explain obtaining information you couldn't have possibly learned under any normal circumstances," Zach tells me. "In other words, it explains how an individual could be experiencing a past event as if it's still happening in the present. It's also pretty popular in the paranormal world. Apparently experiencing retrocognition can give someone the ability to psychically obtain information, even when they have nothing to do with the scenario or the person they're seeing. It's more or less the ability to live through the past."
I raise my eyebrows as I listen to Zach's brief explanation, startled to find that there is an actual term to explain the hallucinations I've recently endured. I feel a little relieved to know that I'm not entirely insane—that there are other cases similar to the visions I've been having.
"And you think that could explain why I've been having these visions?" I ask Zach, patiently awaiting his answer.
Zach nods. "I mean, I don't know what else could come close to explaining it. Plus, what you're experiencing sounds just like it. The more I've studied retrocognition, the more certain I am that it's what you're going through."
