Shattered

Chapter 68: Help

Violet's POV: 

"If you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be." Maya Angelou

Being on the phone with someone I'd never met, spoken to, or knew anything about was a little weird. Not as weird as the fact I could see and feel things I couldn't before. There was an entire part of my mind I hadn't explored and that was new territory for me. I knew my brain very well.

At least, I thought I did.

"This sounds like comic book bullshit," I finally said. It wasn't that Alana wasn't nice, she was, but I was still trying to process whatever the fuck happened in my mind with that Max-like branch.

"Pardon?" Alana asked.

Huh. That might've been a little harsh. I was just overwhelmed.

"Sorry, I just mean it all sounds insane."

"Do you not believe me?"

Throwing my arms up in my empty car while I was on the phone with someone had to say something about my deteriorating mental state, but I couldn't help it. "I don't know what I believe."

"Well, perhaps testing out your abilities will make you more open to the idea."

Abilities. Yeah, I was definitely losing my mind evidence by the fact I was entertaining this. "And how do I do that?"

"Are you near people?"

I glanced out the window, seeing a gas station across the street. "Yes."

"If you focus, you can approach a person and feel their emotions, maybe even hear their thoughts. If that's not convincing enough, ask them for something. Something they'd normally probably say no to, then change their automatic emotional response to one of generosity or whatever feels right to you, and see what happens."

"That sounds... One, impossible. Two, manipulative if it works."

"Then give it back to them afterwards and leave them alone. No harm done, but it will make what I'm saying more believable."

Sighing, I glanced out the window again, watching people pull up to the pump, park and just go in, others stumbling out with bottles of alcohol with armfuls of snacks. I didn't like talking to people normally, how was I going to just go ask them for something that wasn't mine?

"Fine," I agreed. "I'll call back."

I hung up the phone and reluctantly got out of the car. Pulling my hood up, I looked around the empty, dark parking lot I was in before crossing the street. Once inside the gas station, I watched people walking around, grabbing various drinks and snacks then going to the register to check out. I don't even know where to begin.

I grabbed a bag of my and Kaden's favorite chips, my heart hammering at the memory of us meeting for the first time. Well, the first time I remembered at least. He was adorable, and sweet, but now I wondered how much I liked him because of him and how much was the bond. I was in love with him but it didn't change the fact I didn't want to be pushed into something without knowing what my real feelings were without it. I was afraid it was all fake.

Except loving the same chips wasn't fake. Loving the same movies, games, TV shows, having a similar sense of humor... None of those things were fake. That was just him, and me.

Focus. Snatching an energy drink from one of the coolers, I took it and the chips to the register just as the last pair of people walked out, leaving me alone with the clerk. He was skinny, pale, and bored. A blue cap over his long brown hair that hid most his eyes as he scanned my items. He was probably working the graveyard shift given the hour.