An Outsider's Call

14

UNKNOWN - EMILY

I switch the button on the audioscope once again to activate the beep in her ear, and she raises her hand once again.

"Good job," I mutter. I switch it to four hundred hertz. She doesn't raise her hand. I activate five hundred hertz, and she doesn't raise her hand. I take the audioscope out of her ear, smiling brightly at my patient. "All right, I'm gonna come right back with Dad, and we'll be back with you in a minute."

My patient's dad happily gets up as he heads back with me in my office.

"Her hearing looks good in the right ear. There is a bit of a difference in the left ear, she heard all of them but four hundred and five hundred hertz." I say.

"Okay." he says.

"This condition is typically self treatable, and that's staying off her enhanced hearing." I say, with a smirk. He giggles.

"I know, I keep telling her to stop, but she's just so determined to find out if the rumors are true." he says. I shrug.

"Kids in Freemind these days," I say. He snickers. "You do have an option of her taking an antibiotic to treat the swelling if it will drive her nuts."

He shakes his head and says, "Eh, she's a tough cookie."

"All right. The swelling should go away in a week or two. Give me a call if there's no difference, getting worse. I'll have my phone on me." I say.

"Okay," he says. I nod, getting the paper out.

"Just sign here." I say. He grabs the pen and does so.

"She's quite an exhaustion if you think about it." he says. I giggle.

"Hm, oh I wonder." I say.

"Do you have kids?" he asks. I hesitate, but answer.

"I don't." I claim.

"Oh well you have no idea..." he says. I giggle again as he finishes his signature.

"All right, you're free to go. Make sure she stays off that ear." I say.

"Sure thing," he says with a giggle. He walks out the door. "Take care."

"Hm, bye." I say. Once he walks out, I sigh in relief, resting my mouth from smiling. I like my job, but I don't like smiling. I'm tired of the same case over and over again of Children over using their powers to see if the rumors of Sawyer Harble are true.

Finally some quiet time...

A knock then comes from the door. Oh my God, seriously?

I go up to the door and open it, and Reed enters again. I sigh, and say, "Oh, hey Reed."

"Hey, Em. Just thought I'd stop by on break." he says, walking it. He rests against the bright countertop.

"Hey um, about last week..." he begins.

"I, I know you're looking for an answer, Reed... but I thought about it, and we've been friends for four years now, and thought I'd just be honest," I say. "Reed... I don't feel that way about you, I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner but... I don't have feelings..."

He looks at me, like he doesn't even know what to say.

"Oh well, it's not that I have feelings it's that you've just been pretty distant lately." he says. Oh... well now I'm the one that feels stupid.

"Oh... Oh, sorry well, you said dinner. So I thought that meant a date. Well tons of patients have been coming in and I've just been busy." I say. He nods, his cheeks flushing red.

"Yeah, yeah figured." mutters Reed.

Well this got really awkward. I should change the subject.

"So I heard Children of 42 entered Freemind and broke the barrier." I say.

"I know! They need to back up the barrier soon, or people will know we're here." says Reed.

"I don't think we need to worry about that. Children of 42, or, Freemind, always do crazy things to protect their people." I say.

"Do you think it's Sawyer Harble?" asks Reed. I shrug with a smile.

"Who else would it be? More of her friends are gonna come. Even though... the Children of 42 are gonna try to make peace with Freemind... who knows if they'll start another battle." I say.

The Children of Freemind and Children of 42 are two very different clans. They'll either bond... or choose a different place...