Ciarán?" a voice queried from the side of the room. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdRbICfHXJM
The person in question, a boy currently in his teenage years, stares blankly at the John McLaughlin painting hanging on the wall in front of him. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJw5K30vOV6
It was the only splash of color that he could see in the otherwise pristine white walls or perhaps even in the whole sparsely decorated room. The settee provided for him to sit on was upholstered in soft white velvet. The smooth linoleum floors glistened like cold hard marble. The table in front of him, though made of stainless steel was topped with white-ash wood, tinted and glazed to an almost-white color, muting down any hint of warm hues from its natural state. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLupq1M1FXw
Ciarán lowers his gaze for a moment, watching how the meager rays of sun light floats into the room and hits the glass covering the painting. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnGgyPjpMGT
He frowns. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ8ghvnOhPf
Though the painting was a truly a classically modern work of art in its contemporary genre, he still felt the colors were too subdued.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx6JMDw3ul6
Too structured. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYdZNphHPBe
Too pale. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWRtOM6Uyjn
Too enforced to be in their respective place. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ002XvQ5e3G
For Ciarán, his preferences were more widely attuned with the abstract, where warm and cool colors collide while the viewers' eyes are captivated by the vibrantly wild and raw quality of the piece at hand, never truly sure of whether where it belongs or stay in one place. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU1KOfwMGHM
Even he would prefer a Noland. Though similar in style it at least had a vivid quality that would contrast well with the sterile whiteness of the room. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNqcVMMgtMe
Ciarán could see it now, images begin to swirl in his head.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3nD7NmK0rA
Colors all around him, hazy and blurred, they appear almost like sfumato except for a form that sharpens in the middle. Its shape resembles a silhouette, obscured by the bright light at its back yet Ciarán could still make out the details. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSGx66VYP7e
Closer and closer, he manages to focus his eyes to the silhouette.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtjhOnTmdu9
"Mr. Byrne." The voice calls again. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWWXA4gS3iC
This time, the tone laced in subdued impatience.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjoKK7tH2gx
And like a pin bursting through his bubble of thoughts, Ciarán snaps back to reality and to the white-clad room.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOR5TAZExIa
Slowly, he lowers his eyes further until they land on the stern-looking figure behind the table913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6WOBtGn1kN
His wayward gaze meets her cold calculating stare. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyG9kcU8J9u
The same stare she had gifted him the first time he met her a few weeks ago. The same stare that always made him feel like there's something more lurking from her albeit reserved appearance and charismatic smile. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3UcaL8Xems
It made him feel like she's waiting – waiting for something to happen. Only, he wasn't sure what it was. It was times like this that he always dreaded the past few weeks, having to attend sessions with her. Sitting on the same old chair and facing her as he pours out all his thoughts of delusion while she writes them down, each paragraph labeling him closer to being mentally insane. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhQmWEI0tZP
" Ciarán, are you with me?" She asks, a slight crinkle etched on her brow.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoI2yN864oS
"Yes?" He hesitantly replies, his voice a bit too husky for his age.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtYphMaLABp
"Do you know why you're here?" 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD3QzkcNErA
It was always the same question she asks to start their session. One that which Ciarán always fail to answer coherently.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1wCBac60Pu
"Uhh," he gulped, the sound almost audible in the room. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ1UPPwoApy
He looks around, his eyes darting from side to side, as if the whole room was closing in. He never was good at being asked on the spot. Or being the center of attention – be it in a crowd or with just another person. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlE44Qiadde
With a deep inhalation, he replies "No."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ03eT9NUGEd
He watches as she scribbles something on her notepad. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCxr89Kufy
He glances at the clock on the right side of the desk, listening as it ticks away by the second.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn87dKIUMXh
TICK! TOCK! TICK! TOCK!913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMAUohP7Qhd
" Ciarán, are you aware of the events that led you here?"913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAxUZZNNOxb
He gives her what he hopes to be a sheepish smile. "Honestly Doc, I don't really kn-"913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVRf5vCSUE8
TICK! TOCK! TICK! TOCK! 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNlTEMjaApo
The clock goes on. Louder and louder like an echo.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡntQL1K9qdt
Like being in the deepest depths of the sea, it drowns his ears until all that he could hear was the drumming sound of his own pulse.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgV8T8pEk69
" Ciarán?" The doctor asks again, her pen dangling a few centimeters from her notepad. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkW2XT6AUyW
Ciarán barely hears her, as if the very waves of sound were stuck, suspended on the surface as the waves they were. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvqp66NpDkY
Ciarán rubs his temple as a new sound begins to appear. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoJANAV1vM3
This time, it was a piercing sound, almost like a slow drumming of static before turning into a constant ringing. His childhood physician had jotted it down as a mild case of Tinnitus but he knew it wasn't the case. The ringing kept on occurring in sporadic rates throughout the years. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH0Hy18vvjv
He continues to rub his temple, shaking his head until it finally disappears. At least, for the meantime.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM5HEXUxlON
He clears his throat. "I'm sorry, you were saying something?"913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEFPo8VS21C
She sighs and walks around the table. She stops in front of him, leaning gracefully on the side of the table. Arms planted by her sides, she looks down and looks at him again in the eye. This time her expression lacks most of their icy reserve.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY3qSeNqTYn
"Ciarán, I know our last few sessions didn't exactly start on the right foot. I also know that you don't want to be here but please remember that I'm just trying to help you."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfUsKogD6bX
Right, as if he hadn't heard that spiel before. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvXQripNC8f
"Well, I don't exactly recall myself asking for help." He mutters, unable to conceal the bitterness in his voice. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUem7gavSYM
He turns his head away, not wanting to see her reaction. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPuVnljUD4k
When he did glance her briefly through his periphery, he adds, "So you might as well just write that down because that's all you're gonna get."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHsF6389E90
He didn't see her gaze softening but he did hear her sigh. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHnRyrxN8eN
"Unfortunately, I can't do that." 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlVOjwfoh77
She reaches in the right pocket of her slacks and pulls out a small silvery object. When she raises it to his view, it got caught in the reflection of the light. The fleeting bounce of light was enough to catch his attention.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIVBVq2BuKL
"Ciarán, what do you see?" she asks, holding up the object closer to him.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpXQqqycLVz
"A quarter?" he responds skeptically, not sure of where the sudden shift of subject would lead to.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz8fwJKMnHf
"Now, that's where you're wrong. This," she gestures at the coin, "is more than just a quarter. It's a memorabilia passed down through generations and it holds a certain part of a past almost like a story." 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3sRkTGASVN
She places the coin on the table by its rim where both sides can be seen. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDCBMD7NeLh
Still not letting go of the coin, she adds, "In fact, on my grandfather's word and many of those before him, had sworn that they still see glimpses of the past and helps them remember. Now, I don't particularly believe in such phenomena that can't be logically explained and experienced in a non-vicarial manner. Shall we try to find out?"913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF1X2JEW4T3
Ciarán merely shrugs before the doctor spins the coin. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1m14OZpcmX
Round and round, it goes, until all the naked eye could see was a flashing blur. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdcK7eEXuZP
"Ciarán, if you may, I need you to look at the coin. I want you to focus on it and slowly, take a deep breath and let it out."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhXNfJp7CTp
Eyes transfixed, he follows the instructions of her lulling voice. Breathing deeply, he exhales, letting go of the tensions that once knotted his shoulders.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpVkO03PeMo
"Good. I want you to keep on doing that while I ask you some questions. You're gonna answer them, won't you Ciarán?"913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOuAofFvEW6
"Yes," he breathes out.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡybRlfVJNV8
"Very good. Now, let's start all over again. Why do you think you're here?"913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4bCkgu1m8j
"I," he licks his lips and gulps, a slight a hesitation in his voice. "I'm here because-because... I can move stuff with my mind."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVQawj2VbXj
"What sort of stuff?"913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhCd7tl4Fcy
Another gulp. The clock ticks twice before he answers. "Anything. I 'pushed' the end of a crane to crush Sam's dad. I-I swear I didn't," he breaks off, his chest shaking at the memory, "I didn't mean to... do it."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvRmv3qqt7p
The doctor lays a comforting hand on his shoulder. Its warmth temperature brought a much-needed respite to calm the cold vicious nerves entangling his lungs. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCh0J2twAKD
"Hush, relax, Ciarán. Nobody thinks that you did it on purpose."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡApC1vVrUbG
"But they do." He mutters harshly, "you should've seen them. Sam... Mike... Mrs. Lopez...the other kids at school, even- even my sister. They've always looked at me like I'm some sort of a freak." 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLk7B3FX6l0
He bites out the last word, remembering the cruel words the others had called him. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPo9OgdIfJu
"But are you?"913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc7DUEOzja3
"No!" He breaks his gaze from the coin, facing her squarely and shrugging her hand off his shoulder. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCdTwyfgeEK
He looks her straight in the eyes before turning his head back towards the coin, "At least, I don't want to be. Maybe I am a freak, I wouldn't know if I were one."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlrlg4EyPCU
"I don't." 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUDdo6m681h
His eyes, while never leaving the coin, widen in surprise. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ezRTawl2q
"How would you know?" He snorts incredulously. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUT4n7YKXb6
The doctor merely shrugs. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgpeQY81oEJ
"I don't know for sure. But what I can say is you're a special young man."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFORG8U78la
"Come on, doc. You can't possibly think I would believe that nonsense. You're just saying this for my sake." 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVjQvIRgdcA
She tilts her head to the side, a confused expression on her face. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNQhn5Vo6UE
"You keep insisting that gift of yours is a curse, and here I am telling you otherwise. Yet, you still won't believe. What really eats you up from the inside? What else makes you think that you're a freak, besides the telekinesis?" 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1snVqaawQz
He shakes his head, his voice rough, "No, you just don't get it doc. It's not just the mind-moving-telekinesis-shit you're going on. I'm a freak!"
Out of nowhere, the painting hanging on wall dropped on the floor in a loud thud. The glasses on the wall vibrating in a moderate hum, cracks threatening to break the surface. The forgotten glass of water on the table bubbles, slowly tipping off the rim of the glass.
Ciaràn leans in, his eyes clouded with an eery gleam. The coin spins faster than ever, losing its own shape in its motion and appearing like a blur.
He grits,"I'm a freak because whenever I sleep inside my room, I always wake up in who-knows-where. The recent one was in my neighbor's house. In bed. With his daughter. I'm a freak because wherever I go, I see her while no else does– and she distracts me like hell!"
CRACK!
The glass from the windows finally breaks, the water spills upward.
He can feel it now. The power he had been keeping at bay flows through this veins in an electric rush. He clenches his fist to reel it back in. He barely succeeds.
The water stops in midair, the splashes like rain drops floating above them. It suspends on an invisible force.
He motions his head to her and asks bitterly, "So you tell me, doc, do you still deny that I'm a freak? An insane freak?"
"Yes." She simply replies.He grunts and takes a deep breath. Slowly the water falls back down to the glass. The cracks on the window recedes.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡge2gvzLrCC
Ciaràn grits his teeth, his gaze unblinking and still focused on the coin. As if by looking away, he would lose grip over his sanity and temperance.
"From what you've just told me, I don't think you're special,"
Ciaràn scoffs.
"Rather, you are a very special young man who had been through so much pain and enmity and in need to relax." 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAeqN3yo6rj
She places her hand again on his shoulder, applying a bit of pressure this time. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhoKJAOTAFe
"Breathe."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC5OeLmn4fs
He defiantly does so. Again and again he breathes until the flow of air comes easier into his lungs.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOrrQTaXA88
"Better," she remarks. "Now, about the girl. Can you tell me more about her?"913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrfpyuPkAiv
"What about her?" he asks, unsure at the turn of their conversation.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9rrMQodl2t
"Anything. Any thing you can think or remember about her."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFyg9MA5s5r
"I don't-" he tilts his head to the side, "I don't know what to say."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9mkowET5KE
Ciaràn thinks back to the blurred form earlier, to the silhouette who had her back against the bright light. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9FWsLpQqMY
Slowly, he can see her clearly now. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHu8AWNhiIS
The haze disappears, showing the fine details of her face kissed by the warm sunlight. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSWHhrukBPU
Threading across a field towards him, floating like a nymph. Hair as dark as grey ash whipping wildly against her ethereally stunning visage. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3PHaMnUsSe
He blinks, and all of a sudden he finds himself mere inches from her. She slowly turns her back to him, silently urging him to follow her. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk33YZN6iwf
He respires as he watches as her movement in the wind causes the silk strands to lightly caress a pair of wide sensuous lips. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3lMdS6dwou
Her eyes. Christ, her eyes! 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR2wuRN6KXr
Like the misty sky from the mountains tops after a cold wintry night and speckled with light silver-grey specks, captivates his senses. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdjbg1xOnVO
And when she smiles sensuously, when those beautifully curved lips meet, a merest hint of a dimple appears and he finds his jaw slacks.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiHIphSGWWy
He really was insane. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyb8IBXz9nd
He had to be. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWCPOAKqQRl
No one could be that beautiful as her and still be real.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD66fFsFUjL
"It's alright, take your time. Just think and say something about her like a"-913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGJkOslobmk
"Like a story?" he inquires, the side of his mouth quirking as if amused at the idea.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsq7EjhqmEE
"Yes. Exactly. Like a story," she nods encouragingly.913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbdwGTP7Nj4
Ciaràn lets out a shaky laugh to himself. 913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfnK6yTZJ5i
"I don't even know where to begin."913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMoOR7eaM93
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Copyright © 2018 by Andrea Cassandra Lei Meñosa913Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzUZZO27KOO
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