Ranked

Different

Eight steps forward, turn, eight steps back.

"I should have helped him."

Eight steps forward, turn, eight steps back.

My dad sighs, "You did Kell. If you hadn't found him, he would have died."

I shake my head, continuing to pace, "No, I should have stopped him! I should have known that this was going to happen."

My mom reaches out and grabs my arm, bringing me to a halt. I look at her and she points at my chair, clearly telling me to sit.

Grumbling, I follow her orders. The pacing is starting to make me dizzy anyway.

The cushions on the chair blows a sudden burst of air and I cringe at the smell.

I've always hated hospitals. The smell of antiseptic and sickness permeates everything. When I leave I can usually still smell it on my clothes.

The waiting rooms are even worse than the individual rooms. There are people everywhere, some sick, others waiting on loved ones, one praying that their loved one will make it through the night. Waiting. Always waiting. Never finding anything out. There's nothing do to except pace.

A nurse walks in the waiting room door and I jerk up, hoping for good news. "Mr. Finsen?" She asks the older man sitting beside me.

"Yes?" The man jumps up wringing his hands, eyes bright with anticipation.

"Congratulations. You are the grandfather to a beautiful baby boy."

I sit back down in my chair as Mr. Finsen practically bounces out of the room after the nurse. How can he be so happy? This waiting room is full of misery. How can anyone justify forcing another person into a world full of death and evil?

My dad reaches across my mom and pats my knee. "Come on, Kell. There's no way that you could have known. None of us knew that this was going to happen. You can't blame yourself."

He's wrong. I did know. I didn't know exactly what was going to happen, but I knew that something was wrong. I should have seen it coming. All the signs were there, literally screaming in my head! Now it's all my fault. If he dies, there will be no one to blame but me.

Right after I figured it all out too. I've had this ability for years, and when I finally understand it, I just sat back and watched.