My name is Katie and I can speak to the wind.
That sounds strange, doesn't it? The idea that anyone can speak to a pure element is so ridiculous sounding, I almost shove it aside.
Yet here I am, sitting in this stagnant classroom once again, practically begging the air to give me some relief from this sweltering heat and reek of sweat from the kid in front of me.
It won't, of course. It never does when people are around. There is too much risk involved, it says. I understand, but I don't like it.611Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbopwJYyFWM
"What's the good of having these powers if I can't use them?" I mutter under my breath, vainly trying to rationalize its stubbornness.
It ignores me, and I'm trapped waiting for the bell to ring so I can escape into the cool autumn breeze that awaits me outside.
After what seems like an eternity, the bell mercifully cries out, and I hurriedly gather my things and jump up out of my chair. Walking fast, I push my way through the hall, dodging the students milling about. I'm the first out the large double doors, walking into the gentle freedom of the cool wind on my face.
Others rush past me as I linger at the school's entrance, trapped in my own euphoria. This rush that I get every time I feel a breeze is intoxicating. I pull at the cool air slightly, and it rewards me by blowing through my long curls, sending a tingle down to my toes.
"Katie!"
The call of a familiar voice startles me, and I manage to compose myself as an old friend reaches my side.
"Hey, Clara," I say with a shy smile.
"Hey, you wanna go out with us today? Irene, Sophie and I were going to check out that new department store in town."611Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCjysNzJtd
I shake my head. "No thanks."611Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKrVwaReGgT
"You never hang out with us anymore. What's up?" she asks with a frown, one hand supportively on my shoulder.611Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbYN1496PSa
I brush it off. "Nothing! I'm fine!"611Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwY05MxWwcq
She examines me critically for a moment, and I avert my eyes. "I'll see you later, okay?" I say as I start walking away.
"Katie!" She calls out, but I ignore her.
I don't stop walking until I am far away from school, from Clara, far away from anyone who doesn't understand the burden I now bear.
Why didn't you go with them? I hear a voice inside my head clearly, as though it were external.611Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKDoVeVQAIX
"I don't deserve to, wind." I answer. Sensing the confusion from the entity, I continue. "I am not like them anymore. I'm not normal. They will go about their daily lives carefree and happy. They can go shopping, and go to the beach, and live as a human should. Me? I'm not human. Not anymore."
And that stops you from being happy?611Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT61PnuZXw4
"I am happy with you. I can do things people can't even dream of." Tears well in my eyes. "But I will never be one of them. I can't..." I kneel on the grass, unable to stop the tears from falling.
I remain there in silence for a short time before I finally get my breathing under control and raise my head. A maple leaf falls from a nearby tree, spiraling down gently, carried on the air like a precious fragile work of art. Almost on instinct, I reach into my mind and move the air around the leaf, manipulating its movements and causing it to dance around me. I cannot help but crack a smile as I make the leaf spin and swirl, looping around in the air and moving to land with similar leaves in a pile someone had raked.
The wind gingerly blows around me, embracing me. My hair whips into my face, but I do not care. I close my eyes and welcome the sensation.
You don't need to be one of them, the voice says. You need to be yourself.611Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡApL5oIdqqR
I open my eyes, smiling weakly, and my voice comes out like a choked whisper.
"Thank you."
Let's go, it says, pushing me from behind like an impatient child. I nod and stand up, wiping the tears from my eyes as I start to head home.611Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWVLEi7bONq
