The Edge of Honour

Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

Gorran's POV:

It was finally the day when my parents would discover the truth about my powers. My emotions were mixed, but I knew that I had to go through with it. I was afraid of how they were going to react to the news, but I was aware that I needed to tell them the truth. Beginning a new chapter in my life with MI5 was an amazing opportunity and I wanted my parents to support me fully on it. To acquire that support from them, I would firstly need to explain the whole situation to them.

I was nervous of living away from home for the first time, but I also knew that MI5 could train me to be someone great. No longer would I be the boy who was ignored, the one who sat alone while others chatted at lunch, I would become a highly trained person with breathtaking powers.

Unsure of what time April would arrive to my house, I made sure to get up extra early. My parents opening the door to her before I could was not what I wanted to happen. I decided that I needed to make a good impression, so I wore my freshly ironed red and white checked shirt and a pair of dark black jeans with a plain pair of red canvas shoes.

Knowing that my mother would invite her unexpected guest into the living room, I did a quick tidy. First impressions were always important for me. I was afraid that April would back out before I could learn more about myself.

I browsed through the many television channels as I desperately tried to distract myself from what could inevitably happen.

“Gorran!” my mother called down the stairs.The anger in her voice was evident, but I was unsure of what I had done. Maybe, I had slept in too late and April had already informed them of what had happened. I was certain that they would have taken the news much better if I had been there to assure them that it was what I wanted.

“I'm in the living room,” I replied as she made her way down the staircase, swiftly followed by my father.

“Gorran Bennett." I knew that I was in major trouble as soon as she used my full name. "I was just on the phone with Spencer’s mother who informed me that he was at home all day yesterday,” she began. Her eyes roamed my face searching for the truth that she now knew I had hidden from them.

There had been a major flaw in my plan that I had not taken into account. I had forgotten that my mother and Spencer's mother were great friends in the excitement of the meeting. Of course, their weekly phone call took place this morning. I immediately knew that I had no plausible excuse for lying to them, at the same time I did not want to reveal the truth until April arrived. They would learn about it soon enough. For now, I needed to buy myself time.

“I… I went to London to…” I began, but stopped when the familiar chime of the doorbell echoed through the house. The sound was a huge relief to me.

“We are not finished this,” Mum said as she walked briskly towards the door. Dad stood still, staring at me and I could see the disappointment that he felt towards me shrouding his face. As far as my parents knew, this was the first lie that I had ever told them. In their opinion it was an act of betrayal. Lying had always been strongly discouraged in the house, it was something which we never got away with from a very young age.

I could hear my mother stepping out into our small front garden along with the visitor. Their voices were hushed and while I was unable to make out any of their words, I could hear the high-pitched anxiety in my mother’s voice.

“I guess you better come in then,” she said as she lead the visitor into the living room as I had predicted. I remained rooted to my chair, feeling much more nervous as the time for my explanation drew nearer. I wanted to delay the announcement that my parents were about to hear for as long as possible.