I Know What You're Thinking

Chapter 13

I jolt awake at my desk, the horrid musical composure of people's thoughts jabbing at my brain. "Cordelia Pike." A sharp voice snaps and laughter echoes around the room. I'm at school. Crap. I fell asleep. CRAP.

"Sorry miss. I didn't sleep much last night." I mutter a lame excuse and stare at the board, as the bratty thoughts of people around me flash through my head. It's times like this I really wish I couldn't hear everyone's thoughts.

It's all well and nice to tell yourself its only a figment of your imagination that those people are laughing at you. 

It's different when you know they are. 

The teacher moves on from staring at me and continues lecturing the class. I try my best not to fall asleep again and stare anxiously at the clock. I have other things to do, I do not want to listen to the teacher drone on about the same thing and deal with the thoughts and voices pilling up over the top of each other. I'm reaching my limit and no-one can tell. I start to tap my desk. 

10 minutes.

5 minutes.

2.

1. I slide my book of my desk and pick up my pens. The bell rings and I storm out of the classroom and weave my way through the hallways. All that these people are talking and thinking about is the bus yesterday. I walk faster. I am rounding the corner to my locker when Evelyn steps in front of me.

"Cordi hello I didn't see you this morning or at recess how are you did you hear about the bus incident yesterday I hope that bus driver gets arrested did you hear he almost drove the bus off a cliff and almost killed everyone inside but it he was high on weed someone laced a cookie with so it wasn't his fault?" Evelyn pauses to catch her breath, and I try to make sense of the way she talks without any form of punctuation.

"I was on that bus." I reply, my tone flat.

"WHAT?! You were? What happened? OH MY GOSH." Evelyn cries.

"Yes, I was and I have to go." I reach around her to get something from my locker.

"Where are you going? It's lunch-time." She frowns.

"I have to go to the library." I start to walk down the hallway, trying to stop the onslaught of legal terms in my brain, as it repeats Evelyn's speech. She's right. It wasn't the bus drivers fault - in all technicalities it was mine. You can go to jail for being guilty by association, right?

Yes you can. I could go to jail. I COULD GO TO JAIL.

My brain repeats that sentence over and over again, I turn another corner and barely hear Evelyn behind me "I don't like the library very much so I'm going outside goodbye Cordelia." She skips away. My vision starts to blur and I whirl-wind into the library, only stopping once I reach the very back table.

I stare at the books, trying to stop panicking. My heart is going fast and my breathing quickens. I try to slow it down but it's no use. I start to cry and curl up into a ball. Those people's deaths. They would have all been my fault. I shudder and distantly hear the library door open. My heat bursts at my chest and I can barely breathe - I feel I might die.

I feel like i'm somewhere else, watching my own body. All sounds, even my own breathing, sound so far away. I sink into my chair, all energy gone, my eyes blurry from panic and tears.

"Cordelia?" A soft voice asks. I barely move in response. "Cordelia. It's me - Luke. You aren't ok I can tell." He says. I remain unresponsive. I can hear him muttering to himself, nervously. "Cordelia listen to me. You're ok. You're safe. Nothing can get you in the school. Please just breathe." He puts his hand on my arm.

Slowly, with Luke's gentle voice, the thick fog in my brain clears and I can see again. The weight on my chest leaves and I can breathe normally again. My heart rate returns to a usual rhythm. "Thanks." I manage to say, my voice croaky.

"It's alright. Are you ok?" He crouches down and looks me in the eyes.

"Better now. What happened?" I ask, perplexed.

"I was walking the opposite way to you when you rushed past me in the hallway. I tried to talk to you but you didn't reply and your thoughts were racing so I followed you here. You had a panic attack." He says, softly. I nod.

"I don't want to find out what happens when that person realises I didn't die on the bus." I admit.

"Me neither, but we'll figure it out."

"Mum knows I'm hiding this big secret from her, she's really mad."

"I'm sorry. At least we know she couldn't have told anyone about your mind-reading if she doesn't know." Luke makes a good point.

"Yeah." I turn to face him and find him staring intently at me, his face close to mine. My breath hitches and we both go silent, and very still. My mind goes blank.

Ironically, a librarian is the one who breaks the silence as she calls "Cordelia Pike?" I stand up.

"Yes miss?"

"This just arrived for you. Got dropped off at the office." She hands me a small white envelope and walks away. I turn back to Luke, looking at the words on the front of the letter. Deliver this to Miss Cordelia Pike.

Taking a deep breath, I open the letter, to find a small notecard. On it reads.

Dear Cordelia,
Well, you made it off the bus.
I'm sure you found my little note on the dashboard. Heard the cops found it too.

This isn't over. I am not a man who deals well with not getting what he wants.
You dodged my first bullet Cordelia,

Now all thats left to say,
Is 'game on'.

I drop the letter and Luke picks it up, I see his eyes move as he reads it. I look up and meet his eyes.

"Now what?" I ask.

"Now." Luke holds up the note. "We play."

A/N

Thank you so much for reading!

Are you enjoying the story so far?

I noticed I had a couple of new readers. HI! There isn't that many of you but the fact that there are at least some of you is making me so happy, so thanks.

Have a good day!

- blue_budgie52