Strange Magic (6 page)

          “Are you okay?” Duncan shouted. “Can you stand up?”

          I could barely see him as I squinted through the rain.  “How did you—“

          Duncan stood up and leaned down to put his arms around me.  “Hold onto me, Susannah.  I’ll help you up.”

          My legs easily held me.  Duncan kept his arm around my waist as we walked toward his car.  It was in the middle of the street with the driver door wide open.  He opened the passenger door, and I gratefully got in out of the rain.  The keys were still in the ignition with the engine running.  The driver’s side was wet from the rain.  Not that it mattered, because both Duncan and I were dripping wet.  Duncan’s black hair was plastered to his head, while mine hung heavy against my back.

          He began to drive.  The rain had lessened enough for the windshield wipers to be able to keep up with its steady rhythm.

          “How did you know that was going to happen?”  I had a sense of déjà vu as I asked that question.

          “I didn’t,” Duncan said.  “I just knew that I had to get to you.”

          “But how did you know where I was?”  I pushed my dripping hair off my forehead.

          “I don’t know.  I panicked and got in the car.  Then I just drove to where you were.  I was so concerned with getting to you in time that I didn’t even think about how to find you.  Somehow, I just did.”  He turned into a driveway and stopped the car.

          I noticed that we weren’t at my house.  “What are you doing?  I need to go home and change.”

          “You shouldn’t be alone right now.  You’ve had a shock.  I’m sure my mom will let you borrow something of hers.”

          I had no choice but to follow Duncan into his house.  His mom met us at the door.

          “Duncan!  I’ve been worried sick.  You took off in such a rush with no explanation.  My God, look at the two of you.  You’re soaking wet.”

          “I’m sorry, Mom.  There was no time.  This is Susannah.”

          “Well, of course it is.  She’s exactly as you described her.  Come now, Susannah.  Let’s find you something dry to put on.  Then I’ll make you some tea to warm you up.”

          She led me to her bedroom and found some clothes for me.  I had to use a belt to hold up the pants, but it was a relief to get out of my wet clothes.  Mrs. Mkkenna waited in the hallway until I was done.  She insisted on taking my wet clothes to throw in the dryer.

          “They should be dry by the time you’re done with your tea.”  She smiled at me.  Duncan had apparently inherited his eyes from her.  They were the exact same shade of palest blue.

          Duncan joined us in the kitchen.  He had changed into dry clothes, too.  I suddenly remembered that he had saved my life.

          “Thank you,” I told him silently.

          “None of that,” Mrs. Mkkenna said.  “There’s no need for secrets here.”

          I turned to her in surprise and spoke aloud.  “You could hear that?”

          “Strong emotions, Susannah.  You two are both overwhelmed with them.  I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop.”

          “Mom, Susannah just barely escaped being struck by lightning.”

           “You, too!”  It had suddenly dawned on me.  “Duncan, you could have been hit, too, when you were pushing me out of the way.”

          “Oh, my God!” Mrs. Mkkenna exclaimed, but Duncan and I were looking at each other.

          Duncan cleared his throat.  “That reminds me.  Why did you get off the bus?”

          I looked away.  “I just felt like walking.”

          “In a storm?”

          “I thought I could beat it home.”

          His mom intervened.  “You’ve both had a close call.  You need to try to calm down.  The tea will be done in a minute.”

          “Mom thinks tea cures everything,” Duncan teased.

          “It’s soothing, at least.  I’m in a state myself.  When I think about you being in danger!  Thank God you’re okay.”

          It was amazing how comfortable Duncan’s mom made me feel.  I could tell that she and Duncan were very close.  He was relaxed around her.  Within a short time, I felt all the tension of the day drain out of me as I drank tea with them.

          “So, you can read minds, too.”  This fascinated me.  I had thought that Duncan’s parents weren’t aware of his ability.  Mine wouldn’t believe such a thing was possible.

          “Yes,” Mrs. Mkkenna said.  “Duncan’s father could, too.”

          “Could?”  Maybe it would disappear as suddenly as it had appeared, I hoped.

          “Dad died four years ago,” Duncan explained.

          “Oh, I’m sorry.”  I felt terrible for Duncan.  I couldn’t imagine losing my dad.

          “Thank you,” Mrs. Mkkenna said.  “Duncan told me that you weren’t aware of your ability until recently.”

          “Yes.  I didn’t even know it was possible.  I couldn’t believe it at first.  You’re the only two people I’ve ever met who could do this.”

          Mrs. Mkkenna warmed to her subject.  “There is a theory that everyone has this ability.  Some of us are just more easily able to access it.  Our brains make the connections more readily.  It’s just like being good at math.  Those who are tend to show an aptitude at an early age.  Perhaps you just didn’t know that you were hearing other people’s thoughts.  Your parents might have made you believe that it was all in your imagination.”

          I shook my head.  “No, there was nothing like that.  I never even had an imaginary friend.  I’ve always been ordinary until now.”

          “You’re not ordinary, Susannah,” Duncan said.  Then he stood up abruptly and began to clear our empty cups from the table.  “I should get you home.  Your parents will be home soon.”

          Mrs. Mkkenna stood up, too.  “I’ll check if your clothes are dry.”

          I got up and walked over to where Duncan was standing by the sink.  “I want to thank you again for saving my life.”

          “I’m just glad that you’re okay,” he said.

          “I’m glad that you’re okay, too.”

          We both smiled.  It was nice to finally have this peaceful, easy feeling between us.  His mom returned my clothes.  They were dry, and I went back to her bedroom to put them on.

          The rain had stopped, but there were puddles everywhere.  I was seized with the childish urge to splash in them.  I resisted, since I didn’t want to add more water to the interior of Duncan’s car.  Everything seemed perfect now.  It was wonderful to be alive.

          “Hey, Suzy!”  Caitlin was avoiding the puddles as she made her way up the sidewalk toward us.  “Hi, Duncan.”

          “Hi, Caitlin.  I was just about to drive Susannah home.”

          “Actually, she’s going to have dinner at my house.  Mom will drive her home.”  Caitlin was beyond thrilled to find me at Duncan’s house.

          Even Duncan was wise to it.  “Yes, you girls have a lot to talk about.  Okay then, have a good night.”

          “You, too,” we both replied.

          I called Mom to let her know I was at Caitlin’s house.  Caitlin had the frustration of actually having to wait through dinner before she could find out how I had ended up at Duncan’s house.  She kept giving me hurry up looks as I was eating.  Then we went up to her room on the pretext of studying.  I had expected her to ask a million questions, but she only gasped and stared at me wide-eyed while I related the events of the afternoon.  After I was finished, she sat in stunned silence.

          I looked at the clock.  “I really should get going now.  Thanks for dinner.”

          Caitlin grabbed my arm.  “Suzy,” she said slowly.  “Why did you do that?”

          I looked at her blankly.  “Do what?”

          She was more agitated than I had ever seen her.  “Why did you go out in the storm when you knew what was going to happen?”

          “How could I know?  Duncan was the one who knew.”

          “No,” she continued stubbornly.  “You knew, too.”

          “Why do you think that?”

          “Because,” Caitlin burst out.  “You knew about me!”

          “Knew what about you?  Caitlin, you’re not making any sense.”

          “Look, Suzy, I know you don’t like to talk about it.  I’ve respected that all these years, but this is important.  Ignoring this thing almost got you killed today.”

          I stared at her.  “What are you talking about?  I’m completely lost here.”

          She stared back at me.  “Are you serious?  You really don’t know what I’m talking about?”

          “No,” I said helplessly.  “I really don’t.”

          “Wow.”  Caitlin began to pace back and forth.  “Okay.”  She stopped in front of me again.  “Do you remember how we became friends?”

          “Sure,” I said.  “You started talking to me in second grade.”

          “No,” Caitlin denied.  “You started talking to me first.  You came up to me on the playground one day out of the blue.  You grabbed my hand and told me not to go on the bus with my parents.”

          A chill went through me.  “I did?” I whispered.

          She went on with a nod.  “I’ll never forget it.  You were talking to me, but your eyes weren’t focused on me.  It seemed like you were looking somewhere far away.  You repeated it again—Don’t go on the bus with your mom and dad or you’ll die.  I was totally spooked.  You know the rest.”

          I did.  It was legend in Caitlin’s family.  Her parents had still been together back then.  They had planned a trip to visit her grandma in West Virginia.  That morning they couldn’t find Caitlin anywhere.  Frantic, they had called the police.  By the time they found her, they had missed the bus.  She had snuck out of the house early that morning and hid in a tree in the park.  She had refused to tell them why.

          I knew that the bus had tragically gone over a cliff.  There were no survivors.  Caitlin’s mom had often talked about how Caitlin had saved all their lives by hiding in that tree.  I didn’t remember the other part of it at all.

          “We never talked about it.  I figured you wanted to keep it a secret since you never said anything.  For a long time, I was convinced that you were my guardian angel.  I stuck close to you after that.  You made me feel safe.”

          I gaped at Caitlin.  “Are you making this up?”

          “Why would I make it up?  Are you telling me that you really don’t remember?  You saved my life and just forgot about it?”

          I had forgotten about it.  Caitlin’s astonishing revelation about my childhood prediction had not caused any long-buried memories to surface.  Surprisingly, the events of the day didn’t keep me awake that night.  I fell soundly asleep and woke up refreshed and happy.

          My parents, who were unaware that I had nearly been killed the day before, didn’t know what to make of my spontaneous hugs and I love yous.  They shared bemused smiles.

          “Someone got up on the right side of the bed today,” Dad said.  “Remember which side it is and get up on that side every day.”

          “I hate to break it to you,” Mom said, “but this kind of sunny mood usually involves a boy.”

          “Why do you have to spoil it?” Dad wailed.  “Why can’t you let me live in blissful ignorance?”

          “Mom!  Not everything is about boys.  Can’t I just be in a good mood?”

          “I’m sorry, Suzy.  From now on I will bask in your good cheer without questioning the source.”

          As I watched them laugh and joke, I thought for a fleeting moment how different the scene would be now if I had never made it home yesterday.  My mind refused to linger there, because it was impossible to imagine myself really not being here.  Of course I was having breakfast with my parents like I always did.  Of course I was getting ready for school like usual.  I was even happy to go to school.

          Caitlin had gotten her car back from the shop after school yesterday, so she picked me up.  Her dad had bought her the car for her sixteenth birthday.  I had been impressed by such an expensive present, but Caitlin had shrugged it off as guilt money.  Her dad was a workaholic who didn’t see his kids very often.  Caitlin’s attitude was that she might as well take advantage of the situation, but I knew it bothered her.

          “Feels good to be alive, doesn’t it?”  Caitlin acknowledged my great mood.

          A look of understanding passed between us.  Then we were back to lighthearted chatter.  Brad spotted me in the hallway at school and came bounding up to me.  Caitlin rolled her eyes at me and took off.

          “Hey, babe.”  Brad leaned in for a kiss.

          I kissed him back briefly.  Public displays still made me uncomfortable.  Brad’s popularity ensured that people noticed and gossiped about these things.

          “You know, babe.  The girls like you.  You don’t have to hang out with that weird girl anymore.”  Brad had a look of distaste when he said this last part.

          Annoyance marred my good mood.  “She is not weird!  Her name is Caitlin, and she’s my best friend.”  The warning bell cut my tirade short.

          “Later, babe.”  Brad walked off without a backward glance.

          “My name isn’t babe, either,” I muttered.  Deciding not to dwell on it, I made my way to class.  My good spirits quickly returned.

          English class made my day even better, because Duncan’s warm attitude toward me had not abated.  It was wonderful to see his open smile instead of the guarded gaze that had so often greeted me.

          “How are you today, Susannah?”

          “Alive,” I said with simple gratitude.

          We fell into a comfortable silence.  I didn’t try to read his thoughts, but his presence beside me was hard to ignore.  He seemed to be suffused with a radiant energy.

          After awhile, I broke my own rule and spoke to him with my thoughts.  “Happy much?”

          Though I wasn’t looking at him, I could practically feel his smile.  “You started it.  I barely had time to open my eyes this morning before I was overwhelmed with your wave of happiness.”

          “Are you serious?  You could sense my good mood all the way at your house?”  I sneaked a peek at his face to see if he was kidding.

          Duncan’s gaze was clear and steady.  “It’s more than a good mood, Susannah.  You were feeling joy, and that’s an emotion I haven’t experienced in a long time.  Thanks for giving me that.”

          I had to look away suddenly.  “I didn’t do anything.  I didn’t even know that you could sense how I was feeling.”

          “I know,” he said.  “Ever since I found out about your abilities, I thought that you were projecting false emotions to manipulate me.  I couldn’t believe that you were really as sweet as you seemed to be.  I’ve been terrible to you, and I want to apologize for that.”

          “Well,” I joked.  “Since you saved my life, I guess I’ll forgive you.  Maybe.”

          “I’m serious,” Duncan said.  “I’ve been such a jerk to you when you didn’t deserve that.  I’m sorry.”

          I looked into his pale blue eyes.  “I’m serious too, Duncan.  You’re forgiven.”

          His smile reappeared.  “Good.”

          My smile was just as wide.  “Good.”

          That’s how our relationship changed to a real friendship.  That afternoon, Duncan found me in the park and fell into step beside me.

          “I thought you might be here.  You never told me how Caitlin took the news about what happened yesterday.”

          I told him the whole story, including Caitlin’s chilling disclosure about my foray into child fortune telling, of which I had no memory.

          “Mom was right,” Duncan mused.  “Your abilities manifested early.  They must have been dormant all this time.  It’s amazing how strong they are with no practice at developing them and no one to explain to you how to use them.  I’ve never met anyone else like you.”

          His compliments embarrassed me.  I changed the focus to him.  “So your parents taught you how to read minds?”

          “No,” Duncan corrected.  “You can’t teach someone how to actually do it, only explain how to focus the ability.  The mental barrier is the most important part, as you found out yesterday.  You don’t want to let just anybody’s thoughts through.”  The last was said with a bitterness that made me glance at him sharply.  “Anyway,” he continued in a normal tone.  “It takes practice and concentration.  Except you somehow were able to skip that part.”

          He was back to me again.  I asked him questions about his childhood, and he in turn wanted to know about mine.  I usually looked forward to my solo walks, but now I didn’t mind the company.  When we parted ways, I continued to think about everything I had learned about him during our conversation.

          As the days and weeks passed, our bond grew stronger.  Brad and Mandy had football and cheerleading practice respectively.  Caitlin was rehearsing for the school play.  She had gotten the part she wanted to the surprise of no one.  Duncan often joined me on my walks in the park.  We talked about everything and anything including our favorite music, books, and movies.  He made me laugh with his stories of his surfing mishaps in California.  I now knew that his mother was an artist who worked at home.  By unspoken agreement, we didn’t bring up our dating lives.

          I was still going out with Brad, but I had started to wonder why.  Duncan knew me much better than my boyfriend did.  During our conversations, I was the one who asked most of the questions and tried to think up topics to talk about.  Brad didn’t seem too interested in finding out much about me.  I hadn’t even told him that my birthday was coming up soon.  We did the normal things on our dates like going out to dinner and the movies.  We had even gone bowling and played mini golf.  The date of the party we had been invited to was fast approaching.  Brad had stayed true to his word about keeping his hands to himself, but he was now increasingly trying to talk me into further than I wanted to.

          “C’mon, babe.  How long are you gonna make me wait?” he had breathed in my ear.

          Duncan interrupted my thoughts.  “Mom’s looking forward to seeing you again.”

          “I’m looking forward to seeing her, too,” I said sincerely.  I had agreed to go home with Duncan after school, because his mom had invited me over for tea.  Later on I was going out to dinner with my parents and Caitlin.

          Mrs. Mkkenna gave me a hug when she opened the door.  “Happy birthday, Susannah.”

          “Happy birthday,” Duncan said.

          “How did you,” I began.  “Oh, why am I even surprised?”

          “September twenty-first,” Duncan said.  “Remember, I found out the day you wore that pink dress to school.”

          Mrs. Mkkenna laughed.  “You sure made an impression on him in that dress, Susannah.  Apparently, you were a vision in pink.”

          “It’s Pretty in Pink, Mom.”

          “Ha! Ha!” I added in.  “Very clever, Duncan.”

          There was a chocolate cake on the table.  Duncan was a very good listener, because he remembered that chocolate was my favorite.  He put one candle in the middle and lit it.  “Make a wish, Susannah.”

          “You shouldn’t have gone through all this trouble.”

          “It was no trouble,” Mrs. Mkkenna said.  “Go ahead and make your wish.”

          At that moment, I was at a loss as to what to wish for.  I leaned over the cake to blow out the candle and decided to wish that things would stay as perfect as they were right now.  Duncan got the plates out while his mom began to cut each of us a piece of cake.  She also poured tea for all of us.  I complimented her on the cake, which made Duncan laugh.

          “It came from the store,” she said with a mock glare at her son.  “I’m afraid I’m not much of a baker.”

          “Thank you for doing this.  It was so thoughtful.  You’ve been so kind to me.”

          “You are a sweet girl, Susannah.  I’m glad that Duncan has made a good friend here.”

          After we were done with our cake and tea, Duncan excused himself.  He returned shortly with a present.  “This is from both of us.”  He tried to hand it to me.

          “Oh,” I protested.  “This is too much!  The cake was more than enough.”

          “Take it, Susannah,” Mrs. Mkkenna insisted.  “We want you to have it.”

          I took the little box from Duncan and opened it.  Inside was a gold necklace with a gold lightning bolt pendant.  I was so touched that I could barely speak.  How could they know?  At first I had thought about it as the day I was almost killed.  Now when I thought about that day, it was with a sense of wonder at my survival.  It was also a reminder of my special bond with Duncan.

          “Are you upset?”  His voice was filled with concern.  “If it upsets you, if you don’t like it—“

          “I love it!”  I had found my voice.  “But I can’t accept this.  It’s too much.”

          “Nonsense,” Mrs. Mkkenna cut in.  “It’s your birthday, and you should enjoy it.”

          “I don’t know what to say.  Again, thank you so much.”

          “I should get you home,” Duncan said.  “You don’t want to be late for your own birthday dinner.”

          “Duncan, come with us,” I said impulsively.  I turned to Mrs. Mkkenna.  “May Duncan go to dinner with us?”

          “Of course, Susannah.  It’s your day to celebrate.”

          Duncan looked unsure.  “Are you sure your parents won’t mind?”

          “They said that I could invite any friends that I wanted to.  I didn’t tell you, because I didn’t want you to make a big deal out of it.  Now it’s too late for that.  Besides, my parents would love to meet you.”

          “Susannah,” Duncan said.  “Don’t you get it?  Your birthday is a big deal, especially this one.  You’re alive to see it.  Yes, I’ll celebrate it with you!”