Gifted

Chapter Four

I rinsed the debris from my bleeding palms, watching the pink water swirl down the drain. I carefully dried them and applied the bandages I found in the kitchen. My knees weren't bad at all, aside from the tear in my favorite pair of jeans; they were untouched. The palms of my hands were throbbing slightly under the bandages.

I looked for the bottle of water I grabbed from the fridge in the community kitchen, but didn't see it anywhere. Then I remembered setting it on the counter to rummage for the bandages. Having a second set of bandages wouldn't be a bad idea either. I resolved to go back for the bottle of water and fresh bandages for the morning.

My back was to the door; head practically inside the cabinet searching for more white gauze. Someone cleared their throat behind me. I craned my head around to see who had joined me in the kitchen while I tried to keep my balance on the counter. I held myself steady by clinging to the wood shelf with one hand. Iris stood shyly just inside the doorway.

"Oh, hi." To say I was surprised to see her standing there was a glaring understatement.

She blew a section of her hair out of her eyes and fidgeted with her hands. "I just wanted to say thank you." When she saw the confusion on my face, she went on, "For the invitation."

"Oh." I tried to brush it off without throwing off my balance. "You don't have to thank me; I was serious. If you ever want to talk, or just hang out...I could use a friend."

I could see her cheeks grow pink, and she nodded in response. I gave up searching for bandages and swung my leg back to dismount the counter top. "Um I have to get to some homework..." she trailed off pointing upstairs.

"Actually I'm headed up there too, so I'll walk with you." I remembered to grab my water bottle this time and followed along with Iris across the lobby where there seemed to be a game of cards taking place. Girls were chattering excitedly and bursting out in laughter. I watched them, jealousy creeping into my veins like ice water. I hated to feel jealous about what I did not have, but sometimes it couldn't be helped. I felt a part of my childhood had been robbed from me. Another reason I hated these powers. Is that what they were? Truth was I had no idea what kind of powers I actually possessed or the extent of them. They seemed to appear/disappear of their own accord.

I lifted my chin toward the girls and their game. I already knew the answer to my question, but I wanted to take a crack at opening Iris up. "You ever hang out down here?"

"What?" She hadn't even noticed the giggling girls. When her eyes landed on them she simply said, "No."

"Not really my scene either," I admitted, and we shared a quick laugh of our own. The rest of the trip to our floor was silent, but once we reached my door; Iris gave a quick wave before heading to her own room. The gesture wasn't much, but it was far more than I had received that first day.

That night I dreamt of my dream guy again.

This time he had been waiting for me in the courtyard. I instantly quickened my pace at the sight of him and launched myself into his arms. I heard him give a low chuckle as he pulled me into his lap. I snuggled against his chest and felt his breath in my hair. It was doing funny things to my stomach. We stayed like that for a moment without saying a word. Once we finally did start talking it was much of the same cryptic banter from the previous dream.

I eventually pulled myself from his lap and curled up next to him on the bench, my legs tucked under me; head resting on his shoulder. I couldn't seem to keep from touching him; it was like a magnet pulling me. I wouldn't have been able to separate myself from him if I tried. His head jerked up, and his forehead wrinkled in concentration. I may not have been able to make out the full details of his face, but his eyes were clear; the bright amber irises, like a gemstone shimmering in daylight. They were like prisms reflecting the tiniest hint of sparkle from sunlight. As he focused on whatever was troubling him his eyes clouded over with worry; his body went rigid.