Merely Human

Chapter 1

    I was fairly used to strange occurrences happening to me, which is ironic I suppose since I grew up in Salem. When I was ten years old I encountered a girl jump into a lake and never resurface, however when I screamed for help from a camp counselor there was no drowning girl to be found. 

It got so that I had a reputation as the little girl who cried wolf in my town and when I was in elementary school Jessica Dalton dubbed me "Creepy Andy", a nickname that stuck with me throughout high school, because my allegations tended to freak my classmates out. In high school I learned to ignore any of my observations, however being ultra perceptive did tend to give me good things to gossip about. Had I been so inclined, I could have probably blackmailed every student and teacher in my small high school.

But I had been a good girl and kept my mouth shut. My observations were for my mind only and I only volunteered the tip of the iceberg of scandals to my close friends to keep their voracious appetites sated. They loved me for it, not even realizing the juicier gossipy scandals I kept closely guarded.

By the time college came around not much had changed except my friends. I was never close to any of my high school friends and had as easy a time replacing them as they probably did replacing me. I had decided to major in journalism and had quickly found a roommate whose interests were similar to mine, so surprisingly she and I became closer then I ever expected. Her close group of friends welcomed me into their midst with open arms and we developed almost a family type group, always spending Friday nights over at our apartment.

Any more strange occurrences were met with tightly shut lips and an attempt to turn a blind eye. I had learned long ago that my perceptive brain never led to a good outcome for me.

_______________________________________

"Trish, where is the-"

"Freezer, top right corner."

My mouth dropped open in shock when I opened the freezer and found the tub of ice cream I was looking for.

"How in God's name did you know that was what I was looking for?" I asked in awe.

Trish gave me a flat look from where she sat on the couch.

"You're studying for midterms. You always eat ice cream when you study for midterms."

I sighed dreamily as I grabbed a spoon before heading over to plop next to Trish on the couch, my notes splayed in front of me on our coffee table.

"Good ol' Ben and Jerry. They know what a girl wants."    

        Trish rolled her eyes at me but refrained from commenting as she flipped the page of the trashy celebrity magazine she was reading. I gently nudged her feet off of my giant text book and propped it up against my knees so that I could hold my meticulously inscribed notes in my hand. We sat like that in compatible silence for a while until Trish groaned and threw down her magazine. I smirked slightly as I knew what was coming.

"It really sucks having you as a roommate sometimes." She muttered, getting off the couch so she could grab her school bag from where it sat propped against the wall.

"I can't help it if my study habits make you feel guilty." I shrugged.

"Yes you can. You could help me by learning the best ways to apply cracked nail polish, not by studying freaking biology."

"Yes, because that applies so well to getting a job." I told her sarcastically, flicking the page in my book.

"Oh shush. I'm lazy and I know it, but as my only girl friend I was hoping you'd be a little more sympathetic."