You seem to always be just what I need.
■•●•■
Sitting still on the same place and in the same position for the last 5 minutes— someone can easily misunderstand that I am a discarded statue or a fountain designed as a girl who will pour water from her mouth anytime soon.
"Why do city girls always have stupid things going on in their minds?"
I hear him sighing at the other end of the link and I really do want to protest to his retort but can't.
"Won't you breathe?"
Once that he mentions, I finally gain my control back and let out a shaky breathe— but soon gasp as my lungs fail to return back to their normal functioning. I close my eyes to calm my heart down— that I know it won't. It is nearly impossible to even think that someone else also has the same abnormality as you.
"You are referring me as an abnormal?"
The guy scoffs disapprovingly as I move my eyes back to his tall and slender figure. He is standing there with the same expression as before— seriousness pouring through his face.
Finally when I confirm that now I have gained my mental control too and now can reply without stuttering and making a fool of myself, I respond.
"Guess you didn't really hear my thoughts correctly."
But as soon as I let my thoughts flow, he turns his head towards his left side resulting in our eye contact to break as I frown in displeasure.
But he rather looks stunned and panicked, his whole demeanor changes in a second.
"I need to go."
With those words as a farewell, he turns his back but now its my turn to start panicking.
No, he can't leave this early. When I have finally found someone that has the same 'thing' as me, I can't let him go just like that— without even asking for his name and everything? No way!
"Don't go!"
I shout in my mind and I actually thought it won't work but this method indeed succeeds in stopping him between his tracks. Still he doesn't turn around.
"You can't order me around, you city girl."
I grit my teeth, it feels extremely offending whenever he calls me a 'city girl'. Not that I am denying it, I indeed am a city girl but being called one sounds quite weird and insulting.
"Can you visit here again?"
A glint of hope shines in my eyes as I bite my lips in anticipation.
Please say 'yes' as an answer.
Please.
"I can't promise anything."
■•●•■
"The cup is already full, Pepper!"
My mom shrieks as her footsteps resonates towards me. Her high pitched voice makes me tremble as I spill some more tea on the floor— some of it pouring on my foot, making a burn.
"Are you okay?" Dad exclaims as his first instinct is to grab the teapot from my hand and place it on the coffee table. "Can you walk, honey?" He bends down to look at my foot and checks the skin turning into a deeper shade of red but nonetheless, I nod.
"It's not that bad," I mutter while taking a close look at my foot. It is still burning like someone has literally rubbed chilli on a deep wound and it hurts more than a honeybee sting.
"Be careful, Pep," Dad says and pats my head lovingly— a habit of his whenever I do something horrendous.
"I have told you over a billion times to not lose your focus when you are doing something. It can be dangerous," Mom deadpans. She starts thanking god in her mind which I absolutely hate the mere mention of. She immediately stops when she catches my dad glaring at her and then her eyes falls on my dishevelled form— my breathe rate quickening by seconds.
It feels like I am being choked with an invisible force— a force that I can't help but feel helpless about as all that happens next is a torture for me. Already knowing the bunch of happenings that is going to appear in the next few seconds, I make a trembling sprint towards my room.
"Dear, I am seriously worried about Pepper. She keeps on dozing off in the middle of a conversation— I hope she isn't thinking of doing anything bad."
I hastily run upto my room and shut the door tightly behind me. Closing the curtains, I fall down on my bed while clutching my clothed chest tightly in my hands. My vision starts turning blurry— it feels like I am soon going to faint.
"Don't panic, I will handle it. She is our daughter after all, nothing will happen like that."
I hear my dad's almost inaudible reply when everything around me flips— I fall into a state of complete unconsciousness.
■•●•■
"Grandpa! See what I drew," I skip steps towards my grandfather and reveal him my colorful drawing book. He glances at me affectionately and smiles— placing his book on the dark brown side table, he takes my drawing book in his wrinkly hands.
"You drew a snake?" My grandfather asks, acting like he is terrified but clearly, he is not. I nod and turn my eyes towards my little piece of art.
"But why is his eyes red?" He asks, tracing the redness of my snake's eyes with his thumb. "Because I like red."
"Just because of that?"
I nod and gently take my book back from his hands.
"Then I have something for you," My eyes glistens as he bends down and takes out a wooden box from nowhere.
I frown in disappointment.
"Don't be so disappointed, darling. Wait and watch."
With those words said, he takes out a beautiful stone from the box. My lips turn into a 'o' after looking at the over expensive thing in his hands.
"And, this is yours, here."
"Thanks grandpa. I love you," I kiss his forehead ever so gently and lovingly as he grins.
"I really want to touch a snake someday," I mumble my heart's desire as his displays a tint of shock and confusion but he shrugs it off like how he normally does.
Nowadays, this expression is being commonly expressed by him.
"Why?" He asks carefully, with his demeanor changing in a minute. I shrug, I don't even know the reason myself. It is something I have always wanted to do.
"Do you know where I can find a snake, grandpa?"
"You know what, better poke his eyes which will make him angry and then he will eat this tasty little girl," He jokes and pokes my sides, making me wiggle around. He stands up with his shaking legs— this gives me enough time to run way from his approach.
But guess I didn't notice how far I am from his reach that I fall inside a dark, black hole.
"No..!"
■•●•■
Cold sweat covers my forehead as I twist and twirl in my bed.
Grandpa?
But I have never met my grandpa before— I heard he died soon after I was born. Then why did he appear in my dream?
Laying down on my bed, I fiddle with the silk fabric of the bedsheets and yes, I had a panic attack before.
But my mind is still thinking of how worried my mom was because of my habit of dozing off— I shoudn't do that, I know.
Though no matter what happens in my life, I won't ever think of ending it like that.
I agree that I did try once when I was 12— it was when I really got annoyed by the useless sounds that was entering my head without my permission. I was comparatively a lot immature than my present self so it became unbearable for me. But my dad, out of nowhere, entered my room and talked to me which calmed me down.
In the end when he kissed my forehead and said that he and mom will always be there for me— I surrendered.
That stupid deed can't be repeated again. I won't let myself do that.
Also now, when I have finally found someone else who bears the same ability as mine, it strangely sets my mind at peace. I know it is bad of me to think like that but guess it's just a human propensity right?
I close my eyes and let myself fall in the inaudibleness which I love everytime.
And in no time I am back at school, my eyes wanders around the same spot where the unknown boy was standing yesterday.
I facepalm, I don't even know his name yet I am attracted to him. Actually, I don't even know if he will come or not. By the way his last words sounded, it looks somewhat impossible to me.
He comes from the forest, he can be dangerous, he can be a clever person who can fool me yet I don't care.
During the first half of the school, I sigh continuously— the time is passing by way too slowly.
Finally hearing the bell, I just run towards the ground— not even bothering to take my lunch box. I huff and pat my chest to stop my frantic heart.
"Guess you are really eager to meet me."
I grin as the voice echoes inside my head and in an instant, I raise my face to look at the boy. Today, he doesn't have his usual expressions on— they are neutral and I can feel his voice is much happier and less stressed than yesterday.
"Are you going to say something or—"
"Hello! I am Pepper."
I exclaim, successfully making a fool of myself. He chuckles out of a sudden as my lips form a smile when I notice that small, angelic sound.
"Nice to meet you, Pepper. But let me tell you one thing, don't tell anyone about me. It will cause numerous problems and I don't want anything happen to both of us."
He instructs as my insides melt. The way he is telling me to keep it a secret actually makes me feel the thrill.
"I promise."
We talk like that for days and weeks- he is very punctual in arriving on time but sadly, I am not. Sometimes my teachers asks me to do tasks and tempted me that they will raise my grades— a very wrong thing that is being practiced by them so I can't say no to that. As a result, he always taunts me for being a late pig.
And after all those talks of irritating each other, I finally get to realise that I don't even know his name yet. He never told me, and I never asked too.
It feels like now I have finally found someone of my own level— like I have got something I wanted since the start.
I wait for that particular time when he comes out of the forest and talks to me and every time a wide smile in my face welcomes him, warmly. Thankfully we are not able to see each other's face otherwise he would have taken it in the wrong way.
He tells me about a lot of things— there are a number of tribal people, distributed in different areas of the forest. Just like how two countries fight with each other, the tribe's do too.
The way he describes the forest— it sounds so beautiful that I literally lost control and readied myself to jump over the fence and run inside. But he scolded me, saying it will be considered as a suicide attempt because the people inside consider us 'monsters'.
I tried convincing him that we are not but he just sighed and I stopped trying.
That indeed was true, but also a misconception for people like me.
I love the forest, as well as the people residing in there.