Glowing Sky: Book One

Chapter Nine - Lucas

The afternoon was warm at Pike Market Place. The setting sun bounced off the wet sidewalk, casting an orange glow over the shops. The smell of fish and coffee filled the air around us as Adelaide and I walked passed a group of men tossing fish wrapped in newspaper back and forth. I normally avoided places like this, but Adelaide suggested I try to stretch a little. 

I didn't want to be afraid to be around large groups of people because the amount of emotions involved when in the middle of a crowd was overwhelming. It sucked up every piece of emotional energy I had until I had nothing left to give. But it was hard to avoid people and I didn't want to live in fear of it.

So the goal of this visit was to focus on a few emotions at a time and try to tune the others out.  Adelaide believed that my ability was a muscle. The more I used it, the better I would get. I really hoped she was right.

If I couldn't do that, then we could leave. So far it hadn't been too bad. Adelaide pointed to a couple twenty feet away. They stood close to a table with hand made journals. I nodded and focused on them. The emotions I picked up washed over me. Uncertainty, love, guilt, joy, anxiety. I took in a deep breath, pushing the emotions away so I could think. "I think they are dating. He is feeling restless. Most likely trying to find a way to break up. She has no idea and is very much in love with him."

"Oh," Adelaide said, her emotions mirroring my own heartbreak for the girl. "And her?" Adelaide pointed to an old woman feeding bread to a group of birds on a bench on the sidewalk. 

I pulled out my best impersonation of an old lady, "Stupid ungrateful birds! Aren't you hungry? Pay attention to me!"

Adelaide's face brightened, her eyes light as she laughed. The sound was musical, making my heart do a strange summersault. Chill heart. Don't short circuit. I looked away, trying to keep my face from turning bright red. 

"Can you sense animals emotions, because now I want to know what is going on with those birds!" Adalaide was close to bouncing with amusement and curiosity. She loved coming up with questions and strategies on abilities. She was quite the power nerd. 

I laughed at the idea of hearing a choir of birds in my head. "I have never been so thankful that I can't do that. That would be crazy exhausting. I already have my hands full with people. Add a bunch of animals into the mix and I think I would lose my mind."

Adelaide grew serious. "You have the capacity to connect with people in a way that no one else can." She looked sheepish as she continued, shy. "You see them in their raw, unfiltered form. It's beautiful." 

I felt touched and turned to look at her. "I had never thought about it that way. You make it sound great."

"It is." She looked up at me with a smile. "It's impressive."

We walked to a railing outside and looked out at the water. Adelaide adjusted her gloves. "Can you turn off your ability?"

I shook my head. "I wish. Maybe I will be able to down the line. I can tune it out a little with music, or reading, writing, drawing. Basically distracting myself means I can't feel others. It because a quiet buzz in the back of my mind."

"Have you ever thought about what kind of job you want? I mean with your ability, you could do a lot." She gazed out at the water, eyes distant. Her strawberry blond hair glistening in the afternoon light, a glowing mane of blond fire. "A police officer maybe. You basically have a built in lie detector."

I laughed. It had never really crossed my mind to use my ability in a future career. Adelaide's perspective on what I could do, who I could be, made me feel invincible. Like I could make a difference in ways I never thought possible. I ran my hand through my hair selfcontiously. "Well I don't know. I know what I want to do, but my abilities don't really play a part in it."

She looked up at me, her honey brown eyes filled with surprise. "You know what you want to do? Wow! I wish I had a clue. What is it?"

"I want to be a writer," I said. It felt freeing to say it out loud. I had never verbalized it before. I had talked about writing, but never in a way that felt decided. It had been my dream for a long time. Saying it made it feel official. 

Adelaide looked at me for a long moment, studying me, as if she were imagining what that would look like. "What would you write?" Her face was serious. She looked undecided on my potential life path.

"Fiction. Novels."

She nodded. "I can see that. Lucas, famous author." She waved her hand in the air dramatically like she was reading it on a neon sign. "I like that. Have you written anything yet?"

I could feel my heart racing. I wasn't sure how she would feel about what I wrote or the fact that she was a large part of it. "Yes. A very rough draft of a novel."

She raised an eyebrow, impressed. "What? Why didn't you tell me! That's amazing. What's it about?" She continued looking at me, waiting. I had wanted to tell her about the book and now was my chance.

"It's about you actually. Well, parts of it are."

Her eyes went wide. A flash of fear crossed her expression. I sensed her emotions leap into chaos. Fear, shock and confusion all filled her so strongly that it was hard to breath as I soaked them in. Practicing my ability with Adelaide had made me better at it, but in that moment, I wished I hadn't practiced. I wish I didn't know what she felt because no matter what words came out of her mouth, I knew she was unhappy with my choice in book subject. She was afraid, and I didn't know why.