Psychic Chapter Six: Egen In the point of view of William "William! Are you still asleep? It's almost ten!" I opened my eyes. My room was bright with the sun coming in the window, CJ was nowhere in sight, and my sister was knocking on my door. I sat up and groaned. I was still tired. "Okay, Lindsey! I'm awake now!" I called back. The knocking stopped. "I made breakfast. Come down and have some!" she said. Then she left. I stood up and stretched. I was sleepy, but I was still in a good mood. It seemed like nothing could damper my attitude today. I grinned and tried to make sense of my messy hair, but I finally gave up when my stomach growled. I was just about to go downstairs when I heard my cell phone viberate on my desk. I picked it up and looked at it. It read, 'One new message'. I flipped it open and looked at it. My insides jumped as I realized it was from April. "Hey, Will! We should hang out today!" It said. I looked at the time and realized she sent it to me an hour ago. I hurredly replied. "Oh! Yeah! I'd love to! Just let me clear it with my mom first, okay?" I clicked send. Then I went downstars to breakfast. Lindsey was standing in front of the stove making pancakes, and Mom was stirring something in a bowl. I sat down at the counter. My mom smiled at me. "Good morning, sleepy head!" she said. I grinned. "Good morning." I replied. Mom stopped stirring and leaned over the counter. She was still smiling. "So, how was the dance?" she asked. I remembered that I promised to tell her everything about the dance last night. I picked up a plate and started piling pankaces onto it. "It was nice. I had a good time. I think April really enjoyed it." I said simply as I began to eat. Lindsey giggled. "I think she enjoyed it too!" she said. Mom looked quizzically at her for a moment, then turned back to me. "Did you two dance?" she asked. I smiled. It was times like these when my mother behaved like a teenager. She got all excited when Lindsey proclaimed she and Chad were going out. "Yes. We danced." I answered. Lindsey looked over at me. "You did? I'm so proud of you! I hope you didn't embarrass yourself." she said. I rolled my eyes. "Actually, April said I danced very well." I said curtly. Lindsey looked surprised. Then she turned back to the stove. Mom smiled at me. "I'm glad you two had a good time. I liked April a lot. Such a sweet girl." she said. I was relieved to hear this. I assumed the conversation was over, but my mother continued to look up at me and smile. "How come it seems like there's more to the story?" she asked. Lindsey turned around and laughed. "Look, Mom! He's blushing!" she squeaked. "I am not!" I protested. Of course, that made my face turn red. Both my mother and Lindsey burst into peals of laughter. Lindsey finally spoke. "Can I tell Mother what happened if you're not going to?" she asked. "No!" I yelled without thinking. My mother looked at me and raised her eyebrows. I could almost feel the amusement radiating off of her. "What happened, Will?" she asked. Before I even had any time to breathe, Lindsey spoke. "William kissed her while they were dancing." she said simply. My face felt like it went up in flames. My mother was speechless for a moment. Then she smiled hugely. "Oh! How sweet! I wish I would've been able to take a picture! William's first dance! April is such a nice girl! My little William is in love!" She ran around the counter and gave me a hug. I didn't move. I just stared at Lindsey. She smiled at me, but not in a mean way. She seemed just as happy as Mother did. I decided this was as good a time to ask as ever. "Mom? April and I wanted to hang out today. Would that be okay?" I asked. My mother smiled at me and shrugged. "I don't see why not!" she said. I smiled. "But there are rules." she added. I expected this. Mom counted them off on her fingers. "You need to let me know where you are and what you're doing, no being in a room alone, and tell me if you decide to invite other people." I nodded. "I know, Mom." I said. My mother smiled and patted my cheeks. "You two have fun." she said. I finished my pancakes and went upstairs to my room. I opened my door when I heard Lindsey from across the hall in her room. "William?" she said. I turned. Her door was slightly open. I poked my head inside. "Yeah?" I asked. Lindsey was sitting in her bed, clothes all around her. I came to the conclusion she was trying to decide what to wear. She looked up at me. "You're not mad I told Mom you kissed April, are you?" she asked. This surprised me. She actually cared if I was mad? I shook my head. "Nah. I'm kinda glad you did." I replied. Lindsey's eyebrows shot up. "You are?" she asked. "Yeah." I answered. "I was kind of nervous she'd be upset. Plus, I don't think I would've been able to tell her." Lindsey smiled. "Good." she said. I turned and went into my own room. I pulled out my cell phone and texted April. "My mom said okay. What do you want to do?" I clicked send and set the phone on my desk as I got ready for the day. I was finally able to calm down my hair. I put on some jeans and a blue, striped collared shirt. Then my cell phone buzzed. I picked it up and read the text. "Great! My family is going to Egen Lake and we were wondering if you'd like to come with us!" Egen Lake? I had been there once when I was young, but I couldn't remember much. It wasn't very far away, but our family always went out of state during the summer. I looked out the window. It was sunny outside. There wasn't a cloud in sight. It definately looked warmer than yesterday. I replied to her text. "Do I need to bring anything?" I asked. "Just yourself. The lake really isn't deep enough to swim in." This confused me. Why was it called a lake if you could walk all the way across it? I shrugged and texted back. "Sure! When do you want me over?" A few seconds later, I got the reply. "Well, I first texted you about 9:00. We had just decided to go then. We're ready to leave now. Can you come now?" "Of course! I'll be there in ten minutes!" I flipped my phone shut and bounded down the stairs. Lindsey was down in the front room. She was facing a mirror, fiddling with her hair. "Going somewhere?" I asked. Lindsey smiled. "I'm going to the mall with my friends." she said. Her eyes flicked to me, her smile turned sly. "What are you going to be doing with April?" she asked. I smiled. "I'm going to Egen Lake with her family." I said. Lindsey nodded. "Fun!" she said. I nodded. "Tell Mom that's where I'm headed, okay?" I asked. "I kind of have to hurry." Lindsey nodded and I headed out the door. I heard a voice. CJ bounced up to me, a rubber bone in his mouth. I rubbed him on the head and walked out to my truck. "I'm going to spend some time with April and her family." I said. CJ grinned. "Lindsey told me you kissed April. I want all the details when you get back." he said. I nodded and got into my car. I drove to her house. I had the way memerized now. When I got there, there was a red van in front. I pulled my truck out of the way and parked it. April walked out of the house carrying a cooler in her arms. She had a towel over one shoulder. She had her hair up in a loose bun and sunglasses pushed up to the top of her head. She was wearing a light pink shirt and blue shorts. A little, sandy blonde haired boy followed her out. He had a finger in his mouth and his other hand was clutching a small stuffed bear. April was talking to him as they walked. "You'll like the lake, Caleb! There's lots of cool rocks and frogs. And the sand dunes are fun too!" She looked up are saw me. "Wow! You weren't kidding when you said you'd get here in ten minutes!" she said. I smiled. "Can I carry that for you?" I asked. She smiled. "Sure." she said, handing it to me. "It goes in the back of the van." She walked over to the back and opened it for me. I placed it inside. There was already a lot of things in the van. Lawn chairs, sunscreen, even a sun umbrella. I heard thoughts coming from inside the house. I recognised Kim. she thought. This made me smile. The little boy looked up at me curiously. April smiled. "Will, this is my little brother, Caleb!" She patted him on the head. He had remarkably green eyes. Just like Kim and Chad. I knealt down and smiled at him. "Hey threre, Buddy! I'm Wiliam!" "Can you say 'William'?" April asked. "Wiwi-um." Caleb mumbled, his finger still in his mouth. I smiled. He really was a cute kid. April gently grabbed his hand holding the bear and led him to the side of the van. "Go ahead and get in, Caleb. We'll be leaving soon!" She helped Caleb into the van. Just then, Nikki barked. I could hear her think. April waved her hand at the dog. "Come on, Nikki! Get in the van!" April called. Immediately, Nikki ran forward and leapt into the van. Suddenly, Bryson walked out of the house and called over his shoulder. "Alright, everyone! William's here! Let's hit the road!" He walked out to meet me. He slapped me on the back and grinned widely. "Good to see you again, Kiddo." he said. I smiled. I liked April's dad. Then I smiled at Sandy as she walked by. April skipped up to me then. "Will! You haven't met my grandma!" she said. She grabbed my hand and led me to the house. Inside, she walked me to the kitchen. Standing by the kitchen sink was a little old lady making sandwiches. April laughed. "Nana! Hurry up! Dad says it's time to go!" the old lady smiled. "Hold on. I'm almost finished. We don't want to be hungry while we're up at the lake!" She placed a piece of bread on top of her masterpiece and put it in a zip-lock bag. Then she looked up. Her eyes flicked to me and she smiled. "Why, hello there! Who's this?" she asked. April giggled. "Nana, this is William Duncan. He's coming with us to the lake today!" she said. Then she turned to me. "And this is my Grandma, Will! We all call her Nana." Nana smiled and shook my hand. "It's nice to meet you, William." she said. "Nice to meet you too!" I said. I noticed she had the same grey eyes as April. I liked that. Suddenly, something happened that shook me completely. Nana said to me telepathically. I was so surprised I couldn't reply. Nana was psychic? But how? As though nothing had even happened, Nana smiled and grabbed her bag of sandwiches. "Well, we best be on our way!" she said. April led me out of the house. I was still trying to make sence of everything as she sat me down in the seat next to her in the van. We pulled out of the driveway and started down the road. It was an eight seated van, which meant Bryson and Sandy were in the front. Nikki sat quietly on the floor in between them. Nana, Caleb, and Kim sat behind them, and April, Chad, and I were in the back. I tried to make sence of the mess in my head. I decided to double check. Maybe my mind was playing tricks on me. I sent Nana a telepathic message. I thought. Without turning around, she answered. she thought. I took a deep breath. She really was psychic. she replied. Just then, April grabbed my hand. She smiled up at me. I smiled back. Suddenly, a thought entered my mind. I asked. There was a long pause. This confused me. I asked. I saw a small smile appear on Nana's face. I swallowed. I asked. Nana sighed. I thought about that. I would have felt normal, but that was because I was raised to think that. I tried to imagine April's reaction if we told her. Would she be mad? Or excited? I had no clue. April gently squeezed my hand. "You're really quiet. Are you okay?" she asked. I looked at her. She was so beautiful. She looked up at me with those amazing grey eyes. I smiled. "I'm fine." I replied. I rubbed the back of her hand with my thumb. The car ride wasn't terribly long. Especially because I had a lot to think about. I just had to tell her. Something like this could turn out to be incredibly amazing. If April was psychic too, then I wouldn't have to pretend I was a normal human! I'd be able to tell her everything! I wouldn't have to keep a huge secret from her. She could be a part of it. I liked that. I smiled wider and looked at April. She gazed out the window. I wondered if I could talk to her telepathically. Would it even work if she hasn't learned how to use it yet? She and Nikki apparently never made contact like that. I asked again. She answered again. I asked. Nana was quiet for a while. she said. I said. I nodded. It was quiet for a while. Then I said, she asked. There was a long silence. she said. I said. Nana nodded. I said. Just then, Kim poked the window. "I see the lake!" she said excitedly. We all turned our heads. There was tall grass surrounding the lake. Little purple flowers dotted the ground. On the other side of the lake were huge hills of sand that seemed to go on forever. It really was amazing. Soon, the van was parked and everyone got out of the car. I helped Bryson and Chad unload the car and set up the picnic table. I looked over to the lake and saw April holding Caleb's hand as they walked through the water. She had a small bucket in her other hand. Every once in a while, she'd point at something in the water and Caleb would pick up a little rock and put it in the bucket. Soon, Caleb went off to play by himself. I stood up and walked over to the water's edge. April saw me and waved. "Come over here, Will! The water's really nice!" she called. I smiled and took off my shoes and socks and rolled up my pants to my knees. Then I walked through the water to her. She smiled and took my hand. Then she gasped and pointed at the water. "Wow! Tadpoles! Let's catch some!" she exclaimed. I laughed. April pulled a small jar out of her bucket and handed it to me. We both crouched down and examined the tiny swimming creatures. "Have you ever caught tadpoles before?" April asked me. I looked at her briefly and smiled. "Yeah. We have this little river that runs through my backyard and there's a pond not far away from it. I used to go down there as a kid and catch tadpoles and frogs to freak my sister out with." April giggled and handed me the jar. "Are you any good at catching them?" she asked. "Yeah." I said, shrugging. I leaned over the swarm of tadpoles and gently lowered the jar into the water. Then all at once, I scooped up the jar and screwed the lid on it. Then I handed the jar to April. She gasped in amazement. "Wow! There's hundreds in there!" she said, holding up the jar. I heard a sloshing from behind. I recognised Chad's voice. "What are you two up to?" he asked. We turned around. Chad was still wearing his sneakers and didn't bother to roll up his pants. I also noticed he was wearing a black sweater. I wondered why. The weather was really nice today. "We caught some tadpoles!" April piped. "Do you want to see them?" She held out the jar of water to him. Inside could be seen tiny little squirming tadpoles. Chad leaned over to look at them. Then he straightened. "Nice." he said. Then he sloshed off to help Caleb look for rocks. I turned back to April. "I never noticed this before, but I've never seen Chad wear a short sleeve shirt." I said. April shrugged. "Honestly, Chad hates the sun. He almost never goes outside. And when he does, he always wears a swater or jacket. I don't know why." She rolled her eyes like it was ridiculous. I decided to drop the subject. After walking around in the water for a while with our jar of tadpoles, April turned to me with a huge grin on her face. "Want to go sledding?" she asked. I gave her a confused look. "Sledding? How?" I asked. April smiled. "I'll show you! Come on, lets go put this stuff down!" she took my hand and led me to where Nana, Bryson, and Sandy were sitting and talking. Nikki was lying at Nana's feet. She smiled at us as we walked toward them. Bryson leaned back in his chair. "Hey, you two! Whatcha got there?" he asked. April held up the jar of tadpoles and showed it to her father. Bryson chuckled. "You should show that to Caleb. He'd be thrilled." Sandy said. April smiled. "Actually, I was wondering if I could get the sled. Will and I want to go sledding!" She set the bucket and jar down on the ground and picked up her flip-flops. I grabbed my shoes and socks and followed her to the car. She opened up the car and pulled out a blue sled. I had one similar to it. I used it as a kid for sledding at Smith Park. April held the sled with one hand and held my hand with the other one. We walked across the lake to the sand dunes on the other side. Once we reached the opposite shore, April stopped. "The sand is going to be really hot, so put on your shoes, okay?" I nodded. My socks were a little hard to get on because my feet were wet, but I managed. Then we started up the dune. It was kind of steep, and I noticed April's flip-flops weren't nearly enough covering from the hot sand. "Here, April. Take the sled. I'm going to help you." April put on a confused look but took the sled. "What do you mean?" she asked. I held out my arms to her. "I'm going to carry you." I said. Without waiting for a reply, I scooped her up effortlessly. She weighed almost nothing. "You don't have to-" she started to say. I smiled and shrugged my shoulders. "I already am." I said. It was silent for a while as I walked up the dune. I stole a glance at April. She had a smile spread across her face. She was just as happy about this as I was. I smiled too. Soon, we were at the top of the dune. I set April down on her feet. She smiled and set the sled down on the ground. "Since this is your first time, you get to sit in the front!" she said. I smiled. "Why is that?" I asked. "So that you can see what's going on! It's so fun!" she replied. I got into the little two-person plastic sled and April got in behind me. I felt her put her arms around my middle as she said, "Hang on tight!" Then we both leaned forward and began sliding down the hill. My grip tightened as we gained speed. As we skimmed across the sand down the side of the hill, We both yelled. I hadn't had this much fun in a long time. We finally slowed to a stop. We were both laughing and panting. "Let's do it again!" April gasped. A half hour later, April's mom called to us from the other side of the lake. "April! William! Lunch time!" she said. We held hands as I carried the sled and walked back accross the shallow lake to April's family. Chad was throwing a frisbee for Nikki to catch, and Caleb was waiting at the picnic table for lunch. Lunch consisted of the sandwiches that Nana made, and other snack foods. I kept glancing up and catching Nana looking at me with a smile on her face. I wondered what it must have been like for her to be the only psychic she was aware of for most of her life. How lonely. I was sure it must have been reassuring for her to know that there really were other psychics out there. I smiled back at her once or twice. After lunch, April decided that we better let the tadpoles go. I stood over her as she knelt down and opened the jar and dumped the contents out into the water. Then she stood back up with a smile. "So, what do you want to do now?" She asked me. I thought for a moment. "How about we go on a walk?" I suggested. April agreed. We walked along the edge of the water together. I was silent until I finally decided what to say. "April?" I asked. April looked up at me and smiled. "Yes, Will?" She replied. I took a deep breath. "There's... there's something about me that you should know." I said. "What is it? Are you okay?" April asked. "I don't want you to think I'm crazy..." I muttered. "I won't think that!" April protested. I gave a small smile. "Alright, then. April... I'm psychic." I said. April's smile faltered. After a short pause, she said, "What, like, you can read minds and stuff?" She asked. "Yes." I answered. Another long silence. "Um, okay..." April said. "Then what am I thinking right now?" she asked. "Well, that's just it. I can't read your mind." I said. "Oh really?" April said. I could tell by the tone in her voice that she didn't believe me. "And why is that?" I said telepathically. April gasped. "Did... did you say that out loud?" she asked slowly. I answered. April stood with her mouth half open for a few seconds. Finally, she said, "And... and I'm one of those too?" I nodded. I put a hand on her cheek and gently stroked my thumb across her cheekbone. "Are you okay?" I asked. April blinked. She looked fixedly into my eyes. "Will you teach me how to do that?" She asked. I smiled. "Just think to me." I answered. "Say something in your mind, and aim it at me." I said. April closed her eyes and took a deep breath. she said telepathically. I answered. This excited her. She looked up and me and smiled. "How did you know I was psychic too?" she asked out loud. I thought to her slowly. I understood that this was a lot for her to take in at once, and I needed her to understand. I finished. "How do you know all this?" April asked. I answered. April blinked slowly and took a deep breath. I put my other hand on her face and looked into her eyes. "Are you okay?" I asked out loud. "Yeah." She answered. "It's just a lot to take in." I pulled her into a hug. April buried her face in my chest and fell silent. I just held her. She needed time to think things through. After a while, she said, "What else can I do?" I smiled. "You can hear normal people's thoughts." I said. She blinked at me. "I can?" She asked a little louder. "Yeah, but it takes time to get the hang of it. The reason I was homeschooled was because my mother kept me home until I mastered my psychic powers before I was allowed to live normally again." I said. "Why?" She asked. "Well, learning to be psychic literally changes your brain. Your brain will be able to sense the presence of normal human brains and hear what they're thinking. Because of that, it would've been really hard for me to be in school while my brain was going through those changes. I would've failed everything. Becoming psychic was a little harder for me to get the hang of than most psychics." "Why?" April asked. "I don't know." I replied. I wish I knew. Lindsey had the hang of it easily. So did both of my parents. Why had it been so hard for me? We walked back to where everyone else was just as April's father decided it was time to go home. "Well! Who's ready to head back?" he grunted as he stood up. Everyone agreed. We all packed up the car and piled in. As we drove, Nana, without turning around in her seat, asked me telepathically, Before I could respond, April piped up. she answered to Nana. So Nana had aimed her thoughts at both of us this time. Suddenly, an explosion of words and feelings emitted from April. She was trying to project more than one word at a time. She immediately clapped her hand over her mouth as if that would help. Her projections finally quieted down. I chuckled quietly. Nana instructed. April smiled happily. I was glad she was enthusiastic about this turn of events. I was afraid she wouldn't understand. How silly of me to think that April would get upset. She was the kindest and most wonderful girl in the world. And she was holding my hand.