“Which is why you believed me when I said I wasn’t manipulating you. Mhm.” Summer tilted her head, raising one eyebrow skeptically. “There’s trust, and then there’s trust.” She sighed. “It’s enough.” Stepping away, she wandered over to look at the pictures, the evidence of a life still scattered about the house. “Is it okay to ask why you left here?”
“I didn’t believe you, I just granted momentary credibility to your words,” Isaac corrected her. “But even if you were manipulating me, there wouldn’t be a single thing I could do about it, right?” he asked with a cocked eyebrow. “I’m just trying to be a nice guy, but I’m usually not, so don’t push it,” he warned her with an eloquent look. When she asked why he’d left the house, he pursed his lips, thinking of how to phrase it. “Too many bad memories, I guess. Me and my dad didn’t get along.”
She frowned, picking up one of the photos and trying to parse the undertones of his comment. “But you decided to go to school here in town anyway?” She dismissed his commentary about not being a nice guy; whatever he thought about himself, a genuinely not-nice person would not have let her in the house at all. She’d met a few of those, in her time; people who were so selfish and self-centred that no one else was quite real to them.
She glanced back over to him, putting the picture down. “I’m sorry. Just because you’re protecting me doesn’t mean I have the right to be nosy.”
“But — !” She closed her mouth sharply. She’d survived the last few months of gradually increasing pressure; she could manage another few days. “Please don’t take too long,” she said instead, gaze steady on his face. “I — I’m sorry. Thank you for helping me.” She put a hand lightly on his arm and rose on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “Thank you for trusting me.”
Isaac arched an eyebrow when she started protesting, but he was glad she stopped. “Don’t worry, I’ll text him now, I’m sure he’ll get back to me as soon as he can,” he said, and did as he’d said, quickly typing a message to Deaton, telling him an Empath girl was asking to meet him and if it was alright for him to bring her over to the animal shelter. He was surprised when she kissed his cheek, but accepted it with a smile. “I don’t mind helping you, but I’m not the trusting type. Nothing to do with you, I just got kicked in the nuts too many times.”
“Which is why you believed me when I said I wasn’t manipulating you. Mhm.” Summer tilted her head, raising one eyebrow skeptically. “There’s trust, and then there’s trust.” She sighed. “It’s enough.” Stepping away, she wandered over to look at the pictures, the evidence of a life still scattered about the house. “Is it okay to ask why you left here?”
Summer’s head snapped around, as she stared at Isaac. “A druid,” she repeated. Something in her tone implied, not quite disbelief, but more surprise. “Take me to him. Please. As soon as possible.”
Isaac frowned at the evident surprise in the girl’s expression, and took a deep breath. “Alright, I will. But first I’ve gotta talk to him and make sure he’s okay with it,” he added, nodding slowly.
“But — !” She closed her mouth sharply. She’d survived the last few months of gradually increasing pressure; she could manage another few days. “Please don’t take too long,” she said instead, gaze steady on his face. “I — I’m sorry. Thank you for helping me.” She put a hand lightly on his arm and rose on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “Thank you for trusting me.”
“Nothing,” she replied miserably. “But I can’t just … lock myself up. And I don’t know any of my neighbors.” Carefully, she made her way to her feet, brushing needlessly at her clothes. “I’ll just — have to be more careful.”
“Well, do what you think is right,” Isaac said, nodding. It was a particular situation that she found herself in, and an idea popped into his head. “If you want, I can introduce you to a friend. He’s a druid, maybe he’s got a way to keep that guy away?” he proposed, shrugging lightly.
Summer’s head snapped around, as she stared at Isaac. “A druid,” she repeated. Something in her tone implied, not quite disbelief, but more surprise. “Take me to him. Please. As soon as possible.”
Summer said wearily, “I can’t hide out here for long. My cat — I’ll have to go home and feed him, take care of him.” She rubbed at her head, wishing her power worked on herself. It would be a circular kind of weirdness. Glancing back up at him, she asked, “Where do you live, then, if not here?”
“And won’t he find you when you go out again?” Isaac asked, frowning at her words. “I mean, if he knows where you live, what’s stopping him from grabbing you when you’re headed there?” he added. “Can’t you let a neighbor know the cat needs food?” At her question, he shrugged, looking around. “I live with a friend. This was my dad’s house.”
“Nothing,” she replied miserably. “But I can’t just … lock myself up. And I don’t know any of my neighbors.” Carefully, she made her way to her feet, brushing needlessly at her clothes. “I’ll just — have to be more careful.”
“It’s the price I pay for my gift,” she said simply. “Nothing is free. Think of it … as conservation of energy. People aren’t designed to handle emotions that … aren’t their own.”
“Yeah, that makes sense,” Isaac agreed, arching an eyebrow, and finally allowed himself to relax a bit. “Well, as I said, you can hide out here for as long as you want to, no one lives here anymore, but most furniture is still here, so it’s kinda functional.”
Summer said wearily, “I can’t hide out here for long. My cat — I’ll have to go home and feed him, take care of him.” She rubbed at her head, wishing her power worked on herself. It would be a circular kind of weirdness. Glancing back up at him, she asked, “Where do you live, then, if not here?”
“He’s hunting me. I don’t know why, not really. He’s been following me for weeks, and he’s tried to kidnap me twice now. But he doesn’t seem to want to do it in front of a lot of other people, and he doesn’t come into my apartment.” Summer glanced up at him quickly, then away again. “Thank you.”
“Well, kidnappers tend to avoid witnesses,” Isaac commented, arching an eyebrow; though the apartment thing was odd. “What’s up with the seizure thingy?” he asked a moment later, frowning. He was still confused, but at least now she was talking. When she thanked him, he accepted her gratitude with a nod, and kept his eyes on her.
“It’s the price I pay for my gift,” she said simply. “Nothing is free. Think of it … as conservation of energy. People aren’t designed to handle emotions that … aren’t their own.”
It took all Summer’s concentration to keep from gasping in air and hyperventilating; there was none left to answer him. All she could do was hold on and ride it out, and every time she thought it was finally over it gripped her again. /Please, don’t let me start crying./ She had no idea how much time had passed when she finally had control back over her own body. Every muscle ached from the tension of it.
She laid flat on the floor, breathing rasping. “I’m sorry. God, I’m so sorry.” She closed her eyes, not wanting to see his face, afraid of what might be there, every wall in her mind shaped of rock. “That’s the cost.”
Isaac waited for her crisis to finish, not knowing what he could do to help, so ultimately deciding to do nothing and just wait. It wasn’t like this happened to him on a daily basis. Once she stilled, and spoke again, he sighed, relieved that she seemed to still be alive.
“Care to explain what the hell is going on?” he asked, and despite his words, his tone was calmer than he’d expected. He was confused, and he didn’t like feeling confused, especially when he still didn’t know who or what that girl was.
“He’s hunting me. I don’t know why, not really. He’s been following me for weeks, and he’s tried to kidnap me twice now. But he doesn’t seem to want to do it in front of a lot of other people, and he doesn’t come into my apartment.” Summer glanced up at him quickly, then away again. “Thank you.”
“H-he never tr-tries to bother me at h-h-home,” she said, desperately trying and failing to suppress the trembling. “I d-d-d-don’t know wh-why.” She had to clench her jaw to keep her teeth from clicking together painfully. Almost all the major muscles in her body were jumping, nerves firing randomly with the overload of emotional energy. “I’ll be fine in just a minute,” she forced out through gritted teeth, and then made the mistake of looking him in the eye. Her spine bowed sharply as the convulsion took hold.
“Who is this guy?” Isaac was confused and he was starting to be concerned about her behavior. “D’you want me to call a doctor or something?” he asked, but then he saw her look up at him and she started convulsing. He found himself at a loss; was he going to make it worse, if he tried to help her? What was wrong with her? He decided to step in and try to calm her, but he could barely put his hands on her shoulders, for how strong she was shaking. “Hey, what’s going on? How do I help?”
It took all Summer’s concentration to keep from gasping in air and hyperventilating; there was none left to answer him. All she could do was hold on and ride it out, and every time she thought it was finally over it gripped her again. /Please, don’t let me start crying./ She had no idea how much time had passed when she finally had control back over her own body. Every muscle ached from the tension of it.
She laid flat on the floor, breathing rasping. “I’m sorry. God, I’m so sorry.” She closed her eyes, not wanting to see his face, afraid of what might be there, every wall in her mind shaped of rock. “That’s the cost.”
Summer wavered, putting a hand on the wall, then sank back down to curl up in a little ball. Maybe it was the stress of trying to escape, or the uncertainty of what she was running from. Or just the clarity and strength of Isaac’s emotions. Holding a hand out, she watched it tremble. “I’m not hungry anyway. I w-won’t be in your way much longer.” The muscles in her legs jumped, and she curled up tighter, hoping to hide the tremors.
Isaac watched her, concerned she might just fall on the ground; she didn’t look steady. “Are you okay?” he asked, approaching her again. Part of him was happy about the distraction from the house – he really didn’t like being there – but another was worried he might be doing a mistake. He decided to pull a McCall and try and be the kind person. “You can stay as long as you want,” he told her. “This place could burn to the ground for all I care, so it’s not like I’m going to kick you out.”
“H-he never tr-tries to bother me at h-h-home,” she said, desperately trying and failing to suppress the trembling. “I d-d-d-don’t know wh-why.” She had to clench her jaw to keep her teeth from clicking together painfully. Almost all the major muscles in her body were jumping, nerves firing randomly with the overload of emotional energy. “I’ll be fine in just a minute,” she forced out through gritted teeth, and then made the mistake of looking him in the eye. Her spine bowed sharply as the convulsion took hold.