“Thank you for sharing,” Loren said to the man on my right. She turned to me. “Callie, we’re so glad you’re back again this week. What’s been going on with you?”
I offered Loren a small smile. It had been two days since I discovered my new talent and Leo found his. I’d also called Dr. Goodwin later in the day and all but accepted a job. He’d insisted over the phone that I don’t give him a final answer just yet, but take the time to really think it through and sleep on it. Tomorrow, there’d be paperwork ready and waiting for me for two different positions, and I could pick which I wanted then. Once I made a decision, I wouldn’t be able to change my mind. Dr. Goodwin said he didn’t want me regretting my choice, and he could easily wait one more day for me to be sure.
I’d already decided which of the jobs I would take. While being able to work from home whenever I wanted or needed had great appeal, going out and interviewing other LaShoul’s patients after an episode could provide me with invaluable information that I could share with Leo. It was surely illegal to share confidential information, but if I just asked an extra few questions off the record there was little chance that I would be caught. Finding out if anyone else was experiencing these changes could make a significant difference. Since I wasn’t as science-minded as Leo, leaning to a more creative streak instead, this could be a way for me to contribute to our joint cause.
“A lot,” I answered, leaning forward in my chair and bracing my hands on my knees, my shoulders up near my ears. The jeans under my fingers were soft and comforting. They were perfect for wiping off the sweat from my palms at being the center of attention, suddenly a bit self-conscious.
“I had an episode the day after our last meeting two weeks ago. I ended up in the hospital for days, and wasn’t cleared for another week after that. It was…rough.” I took a deep breath, bracing myself for the next part. “Since I am a part of the clinical trials for the bio-screens for Farley, they were able to see in more detail what happened. They compared it to the data they have. It, um…”
I hadn’t let myself really dwell on what I’d been told. But having to recount it again, realizing that another two weeks had passed, putting me two weeks closer to my next attack…It was very possible it could be the one to take my life.
I struggled to find the words I wanted, but eventually they came. “They said things didn’t look great. And, well, long story short, the one other person who had the same pattern of symptoms that I had didn’t make it through their next episode. The doctors are keeping a closer eye on me, and everything had been fine so far, but…” I trailed off with a shrug. I stared down at my shoes. “And maybe it’s too late, but I’m getting a new job tomorrow. Well, I’m signing the paperwork, really, and then I’ll start sometime after that. Which I’m excited about. And I feel bad that I might not be in this job for long, but I’m hoping to prove all these doctors and scientists wrong. I keep telling myself that one person’s experience isn’t statistically significant, and my chances are exactly the same now as they were before this all happened.
“Either way, there’s no way to know exactly what will happen or when. I may walk out of here, trip over my shoelaces, and crack my head against the ground and that’d be it for me. Sorry, I know that’s a bit morbid, but it’s what’s getting me through all this. Nothing’s promised to anyone. But I’m not going to stop living my life and doing what I want, so I’m taking that job.”
“That’s a really good way to look at things, Callie,” Loren commented. “Definitely some radical acceptance.”
“Thanks,” I said quietly, finally looking up. “The only thing that’s really bothering me now is that ever since that attack, my palms get this weird tingly, stinging feeling now and then. I don’t know what to do about it, or know if it’s even related.”
There. I put it out there. It had been bugging me, though I still hadn’t brought it up to Leo. Ever since my phone call with Dr. Goodwin, I realized I was trying to avoid him. Maybe it was the idea of working for his competitor that was making me nervous, worried about his reaction. Perhaps someone here also had the same experience and could help me out, or at least let me know that I wasn’t alone in this.
“I’m sure your doctors will do their best to help you,” Loren concluded with confidence. I schooled my expression into neutrality, knowing first-hand that wasn’t always the case.
Alex sat to my left, and he casually nudged his shoe against mine as he began his turn. He’d nearly been late to the meeting because he was swamped at work, and we hadn’t had time to talk today before the meeting started.
“Loren, I really liked last meeting’s homework.”
“I’m glad; that was my hope. Do you want to share with the entire group?” At the beginning of the meeting, we’d been organized into small groups to share and discuss what we’d done for Loren’s homework.
“I do. So, for you long-timers here like me, you might remember that I’ve mentioned how I stopped dating. Too many times I’d go on a first date, and after telling the girl about the LaShoul’s, she’d go on maybe another date or two with me before making excuses as to why we wouldn’t work out together. Eventually, I stopped trying altogether and just gave up.”
A few people around the circle nodded, including Loren. I wrapped one arm around my middle and propped my other elbow on it, holding a loose fist to my lower face. He was going to talk about me. The blush immediately started racing up my neck and into my cheeks. I tried not to move a muscle, lest it bring attention to me and my flaming face.
Alex continued, “After last meeting, I decided to try again. I’d just met this really pretty girl and decided why not? The worst she could do was say no, which I really thought she would.”
“But she said yes?” one of the members across the circle, a young woman named Liana, interrupted excitedly.
Alex smiled, and it brightened his entire face. “She did. So we went out for ice cream and got talking, and we meshed really well together. At least, I think we do because now she’s my girlfriend. It’s still really early, of course, but I’m really happy. I like talking to her. She suggests books for me to read, and I hate to admit they’re more interesting than the movie recommendations I give her. I just…” He trailed off, lifting one shoulder in a shrug. “She makes me feel like anyone else. And I hope I get to keep her for a good long while.”
Thankfully I’d already had my turn, because my throat was suddenly thick with emotion and a tinge of embarrassment. He couldn’t be serious, could he? His words seemed in earnest, but this was still so new. We’d gone on a handful of dates and messaged back and forth most days, sure, but there hadn’t been more than that. Yet, at least. Could a person really feel so strongly about someone else in less than a month? Though he hadn’t professed his undying love for me or anything equally ridiculous, so maybe it was just me reading more into it than was really there. Maybe. Hopefully.
“That’s so romantic,” Liana sighed, a dreamy look on her face.
“Liana,” Loren gently scolded.
“Sorry,” she mouthed, holding her hands up.
Alex wrapped up his turn with a small vent session about work and how busy things were. There’d often be times like that, he explained, so it wasn’t unexpected and he enjoyed keeping busy. At the end of the day, though, he was exhausted and didn’t have much energy for anything else.
Jade sat on Alex’s other side, and it was nice to see her again. She was wearing the jewelry I’d helped her pick out when she came to the place I worked at a few weeks ago. She had sent me thank-you flowers with a note that had told me about this group, since she must have noticed my bio-screen and what it meant. The gold necklace still looked great against her flawless mocha skin tone and was a perfect thickness to be a bold statement piece without looking like it was weighing down her delicate neck.
She gushed about how well her floral business was doing, and took a moment to point out her new jewelry she’d treated herself to. She gave me a little shout-out and a wave for helping her pick it out, and I blushed at the praise.
After Jade, the remaining three people shared with the group. I looked around, realizing that Meg wasn’t here this week. While I really didn’t know her at all, her story about being fired and worrying about her son had really pulled on my heartstrings. I hoped she was okay, maybe working a new job, and just couldn’t make this meeting because of a scheduling conflict.
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Once the meeting was concluded, I purposefully ignored Alex’s eyes on me and made a beeline up to Loren.
“Hey, Loren,” I greeted before anyone else had a chance. “I have a question.”
“I’m all ears.” She gave me her undivided attention, matching my intensity.
“I know that I don’t really know the majority of people here,” I began, “but I noticed Meg isn’t here today. And, well, I know it’s none of my business. I just worry about her and her son?” I wasn’t sure exactly how to phrase how I was feeling, and it came out sounding like a question.
Loren nodded, understanding. “She messaged me earlier. She wasn’t able to get someone to watch her son this week.”
I let out a relieved breath. “Okay. That’s good. No, I mean, not good that she couldn’t find childcare, I mean good in that—” I cut myself off, deciding it was probably best to just shut up.
Loren laughed, a clear, bright sound. “No need to get flustered, I know what you mean,” she assured me. “It’s good that it was a simple reason, you mean.” I nodded emphatically.
“It also has me wondering…” I trailed off, thinking through my words a bit more carefully this time. “I don’t know if there’d be any interest or even a need, but is there a well-check system of some sort?”
She furrowed her brow at my question. “How do you mean?”
Before I continued, I felt a warm presence come up behind me and rest a hand on my lower back for just a moment before sliding away. Turning my head slightly, I saw Alex looking down at me with a grin.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d be worried you were ignoring me,” he teased.
“Shush, you,” I jokingly scolded before turning back to Loren. “I mean, for me at least, I have a very small social circle. I’m sure others are in the same boat. My last attack could have been so much worse if I hadn’t been able to get a hold of my roommate or if he didn’t find me until he got home from work that evening. But for people who maybe live alone, is there a sort of check-in system to keep tabs on them in case they have a sudden episode? That doesn’t sound quite right, but, like, if they don’t have anyone to help them, no one at home to miss them if they have an episode, it could be…really bad.” I didn’t want to say it, but I knew we both were thinking it; it could be a death sentence.
“That could definitely be something we look into.” Loren nodded thoughtfully, mulling it over for a handful of moments before continuing, “Yes, I think setting something up would be a good idea. You make some good points. Would you be heading that, Callie?”
I paused. I hadn’t considered taking charge of something like this and getting it organized. Being so new to the group, I wasn’t sure how I would even go about asking who would want to be put on the list. Some people preferred to keep to themselves; typically, I was one of them.
She saw my hesitation and added, “It seems important to you. And from my experience, the people it’s most important to are often the ones who get the best results. Honestly, I’m a bit disappointed in myself for not thinking of it first. I’d be happy to help you get it up off the ground and coordinate with the group, if that’s why you’re hesitating.”
Ooh, she was good. Whether it was my body language, my hesitation, or something else, she got right to the heart of it.
Be brave, I told myself. To Loren, I said, “Yes. That sounds perfect.”
She beamed at me. “Wonderful! Let’s exchange numbers, and we’ll plan to meet sometime to get things started?”
I agreed, and immediately after numbers were exchanged she was called away to a small group of people who seemed to be having a lively debate about something. Finally, I turned to give Alex my undivided attention.
“Sorry. I didn’t want her to get sucked into another conversation before and lose my change to talk to her.”
“No apologies needed. I actually wanted to apologize to you.” He looked down for a moment before elaborating, his voice pitched low so only I could hear. “I wasn’t sure until it was your turn if you would be okay with me sharing that we were dating, since you didn’t say anything at all. Which is absolutely fine, I figured you just wanted to keep it private. So if I hurt you at all, I am so sorry. I wasn’t sure what I should say, so I tried to play it safe.”
“Alex, it’s totally okay,” I said, grabbing his hand and giving it a quick squeeze. “It didn’t bother me at all. Honestly, I wouldn’t have minded either way. I’ve just had a lot on my mind lately with the job offer that’s taking up all my mental bandwidth. Getting it off my chest helps. I’m comfortable with what you and I have right now, so it’s just not something that I feel the need to get other opinions on, you know?”
“I get it. But hey, that idea you have? Brilliant. You can totally count me in on it.”
“Yeah?”
“I think a lot of people could benefit from it. Maybe once we get it up and running here, we can work on extending it to the city as a whole.”
That was…a huge undertaking. Probably. I wasn’t sure that I would be able to handle something like that on such a large scale. Before I could even think about going there, I’d start small with the idea I pitched to Loren. After that, we’d have to wait and see how things progressed before making the decision to expand it further.
Maybe…just maybe this was something I could do to help others.
“None of that is why I came over here,” Alex confessed. I looked up at him, swimming back to the surface from the depths of my thoughts, expecting him to ask me to go out for dinner or dessert or something date-like. What I was not expecting was for him to say, “About the tingling in your hands. I think I know what’s going on with that. Can we go somewhere else to talk?”
“Oh. You do?”
“I think so,” he hedged. “But I don’t want to worry anyone here.”
“So it’s bad.” I had thought so, even though I hoped to be wrong. My shoulders slumped and I pressed my lips together and stared up at the ceiling to help fight the tears suddenly gathering in my eyes.
“Not if I’m right with what it is.” My eyes snapped to his. “Let’s just...”
He glanced around at the still-crowded room before grabbing my hand. He began tugging me along behind him, weaving in and out between people. Even after reaching the hallway he continued holding my hand in his firm grip as our quick steps echoed slightly. Halfway down the hall he stopped, turning to open a door that apparently wasn’t locked. Pulling me inside after him, he turned to close and lock the door before flicking on the overhead lights.
“Why are we here?” I asked a bit nervously. Not that I was exactly opposed to being locked in a storage room filled with a random variety of discarded things with a really attractive guy. So romantic. But he was being evasive, and I wasn’t sure where this was going or how it related to the issue with my hands.
“Needed privacy,” he answered cryptically.
“You’re not going to tell me you’re a serial killer and cut me up into a hundred little bloody pieces while I’m still alive, are you?”
He barked out a laugh, sudden and loud. “No, Callie. Shit. Is that what you think of me?”
“You can’t tell me you’re not being suspicious right now,” I argued, crossing my arms and raising my eyebrows at him. “It’s not my fault that’s what comes to mind.”
He sighed, shaking his head while simultaneously rubbing his forehead. “Just be patient for a moment, okay? This should make sense in a second.”
“Fine, fine.” My tone was light, and I waved a hand at him. “Go on, then, Mr. Mysterious.”
He gave me a look that conveyed his lack of amusement, and I giggled into my hands. It wasn’t my problem if Alex didn’t appreciate my sense of humor.
My giggles quickly faded into nothing when he grabbed the bottom of a nearby stack of empty pallets covered in a thick layer of dust. Suddenly, he was holding them in the air with one hand.
Alex looked at me, his eyes searching mine.
There was no way that any normal person would be able to do that. Just like a normal person shouldn’t be able to use telekinesis or be able to summon objects like Leo and I somehow did.
Alex gingerly set them back down, careful not to drop them or make much of a noise. He approached me, not saying a word. Waiting. Watching.
Could I trust him? I could feign ignorance, be impressed with what he’d just shown me. That wouldn’t be hard, at least. It was pretty fucking impressive. But he’d clearly taken the leap of faith first. Surely I could reciprocate.
I turned and scanned the room for something small. There would be a time that I’d try objects that wouldn’t fit in my hands, but so far I had only practiced on a wooden kitchen spoon, my phone, and my hairbrush.
“That one.” I pointed to a discarded can of some sort that was smaller than a soda. I checked to make sure Alex was watching. Focusing on the item, I mentally tugged on it until it appeared in my hand. I held it up, identifying it as a small can of wood stain, and offered it to Alex. He took it from me, inspecting it.
I broke the silence first. “How long?”
Alex knew what I meant. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his tan work uniform and shrugged. “Not sure. Almost two years now, I think? Did this all start recently for you? With the tingly hands?”
“Is that a common thing for you, too?”
“It used to be, at the beginning. Not so much anymore, just on rare occasions.”
That was a bit of a relief. Actually, him showing me what he could do was a huge relief. Leo and I weren’t some freaks of nature. Well, at least we weren’t the only freaks, apparently.
Realizing I hadn’t answered Alex’s question, I refocused. “Sorry, you’d asked me a question. Yeah, this is recent. Like, last week, I think? It started with me accidentally breaking things that I shouldn’t have been able to, and then I figured out how to do the summoning thing. And the tingling started then, too.”
“And you already have that much control?” He looked impressed. Was that impressive? I wasn’t sure. This wasn’t exactly a normal situation.
“Obviously, I practiced,” I explained. “But only with small things that fit in my hand. At first, I could only summon a wooden spoon.”
“A spoon?”
I chuckled, remembering, and quickly explain what happened. Then I sighed, staring at Alex. He stared back.
“I have so many questions,” I finally said.
“I wish I could give you the answers. But the one thing I can tell you is that ever since I started using this power regularly, I haven’t had a LaShoul’s episode.”
I stared at him in shock. “No?”
“I don’t know why. But I’m not complaining. Though if I don’t use it enough, then I start getting the symptoms again. And if I use it too much, I wear myself down, like if I ran a marathon or something.”
“Do you think it’s all connected?” I mused.
“It has to be, don’t you think?”
“That’s what my gut says. But we need actual answers.” Whether he knew it or not, Alex was now part of the we that included Leo and me.
Alex crossed his arms, leaning against the stack of pallets he’d lifted. “What do you plan to do about it?”
I huffed out a breath and put my hands on my hips. “No fucking clue.”