Mind Reader

Chapter 2: Clearwater High

After another uplifting speech from my sister, I find myself exiting her car and treading the dewy grass of Clearwater campus with higher hopes.

Surprisingly, I found Leia's little last minute speech to be uplifting and reassuring.

She's always had a way with words.

I find peace in knowing that I just have to get through the day.

I can do this.

Feeling much better than this morning, I walk through the double doors of Clearwater High.

As usual, I keep my head down and try my best to blend in with the bustling crowd surrounding me.

I hate attention and try to avoid it at all costs, keeping mostly to myself.

I am just as much a loner as I am friendless.

Sigh.

I have been this way since I was little, after numerous failed attempts at making friends on the playground.

Disappointment after disappointment, kids would steer clear of me as if I had the plague.

It was as if I radiated a deterrent against people, like I was something to avoid at all costs.

I wish I knew why.

It was depressing for a while, never having anyone to confide in, to listen to, to interact with.

Someone to share thoughts with.

But somewhere along the way, I've actually gotten used to it.

I've grown to crave solitude and welcome the quiet. It is where I find my peace. Where I find myself.

I enjoy blending in with the background.

But even now, walking through the halls of my school, the deterrent seems to be working at full blast, parting the crowd of judgmental students like the red sea itself.

I keep my eyes glued to the floor and keep my head down, not wanting to meet the unwelcome, snooty gazes of my piers. Hushed whispers float through the air around me, loud enough for me to hear the tone but not the words.

A tease. I wonder what they are saying.

I continue my tread through the halls until I finally reach my destination.

Mr. Callaway's class.

My favorite class, my favorite subject, my favorite teacher.

Mr. Callaway is different from the other teachers here at Clearwater. The other teachers treat me in a similar way that the other students do, but not Mr. Callaway. He never acts as if I'm strange.

In fact, he regularly includes me in class discussions. It's refreshing.

He teaches the only survival class on campus.

We study the different gifts, how to use them in defense, and we learn about possible threats that roam through the forest.

Yes, the very same forest that skirts the edge of my family's property.

Clearwater is a small town, population 1,500, and mostly everyone lives in a cluster of suburban houses near the center of town.

Other than my family, of course.

We are the only family to stray this far from town, and this close to the forest.

When I was old enough to notice, I asked Dad why. All I remember after is that his response was vague.