Viti

Chapter eleven

"It's not telekinesis," Grace announced to Beth the next day. She followed Beth up the concrete steps to Beth's townhouse and stepped out of her shoes in the foyer.

Beth seemed disappointed with the announcement. She walked across the brightly coloured runner, edged with black patterns, and down the hall into the lounge. "Really? I thought it was."

"Me too. But now I think it's something else." Grace hesitated as she glanced up the stairs, but she couldn't make out any noise from upstairs.

"Relax." Beth rook off her coat, draped it across the back of the sofa and went into the kitchen. "Mum and dad went to the markets. We're alone." She opened the microwave and pulled out a box of pizza. She took the left-over pizza into an adjoining room and sat at the massive wooden table.

Grace stared at the pile of books and loose papers on the table. "A bit of light reading, Beth?"

Beth took a bite out of a slice of cold pizza. "Just a bit."

Grace took a slice of pepperoni pizza and sat opposite Beth. She started to flick through some of the loose papers. They looked like print-outs from the internet. They all seemed to be similarly themed.

Power of the mind.

Telekinesis at it's finest.

A guide to psychic energy.

Beth definitely seemed to have high hopes with telekinesis. She was never much for extra credit work, but then again, if one of her teachers manifested supernatural abilities, Beth might be more inclined to focus on her schoolwork.

Beth looked thoughtful as she finished her slice of pizza. "Are you sure it's not telekinesis? I mean, what else could it be? You're moving things through the air, including yourself."

"Pretty sure. I don't know much about telekinesis, but something happened yesterday. I broke my phone."

"Crap," Beth exclaimed. "No wonder you didn't respond to any of my texts last night. How'd that happen?"

"I kinda dropped it."

"Been there, done that."

Grace shook her head. "Not like this you haven't, Beth." Beth was famous for breaking her phone or iPad. It was usual for her. She either broke it or lost it. It was never a problem for Beth, her parents would just buy a new one. Unlike Grace, who would have to go without a phone until she saved up enough money. That means no more street food.

Grace reached into her backpack and pulled out a small, soft ball she had swiped from Nina's room this morning. Her fingers sank into the squashy material. It was more of a stress ball than anything else, but Nina seemed obsessed with them. She claimed they helped her focus.

Grace held the ball in the air. "Watch this. I've been practicing." She focused on the soft, multi-coloured ball. Energy churned her stomach, but at least now she didn't get lightheaded from it. Maybe she was adapting to it or something. Her body was getting use to it.

Either way, thanks to the countless hours she spent last night practicing, when she released the ball, it didn't drop to the table. It remained floating in the air.

"Cool." Beth leaned forward and poked at the squashy ball. It was probably one of the first attempts she had seen when Grace intentionally used her powers. "But that looks like the same old thing." Floating objects was so last week. She needed to see more before she became impressed again.

Grace rolled her eyes. "Just watch." She focused on the ball again, and the sinking feeling in her stomach grew. The rainbow-coloured ball grew heavy, until it wasn't able to be held up anymore. It dropped to the table, and despite the lightweight it was, it caused quite a splat when it dropped.