Ciarán?" a voice queried from the side of the room. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUKiTDn6S7K
The person in question, a boy currently in his teenage years, stares blankly at the John McLaughlin painting hanging on the wall in front of him. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBFwjtfCPng
It was the only splash of color that he could see in the otherwise pristine white walls or perhaps even in the whole sparsely decorated room. The settee provided for him to sit on was upholstered in soft white velvet. The smooth linoleum floors glistened like cold hard marble. The table in front of him, though made of stainless steel was topped with white-ash wood, tinted and glazed to an almost-white color, muting down any hint of warm hues from its natural state. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh2RLFtnksG
Ciarán lowers his gaze for a moment, watching how the meager rays of sun light floats into the room and hits the glass covering the painting. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkg4A5t6Zwj
He frowns. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbhXPPpWCSl
Though the painting was a truly a classically modern work of art in its contemporary genre, he still felt the colors were too subdued.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRNoZBOrwlb
Too structured. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSaD1NiXp16
Too pale. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJNmUdaA6zf
Too enforced to be in their respective place. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZAaxnjEt0t
For Ciarán, his preferences were more widely attuned with the abstract, where warm and cool colors collide while the viewers' eyes are captivated by the vibrantly wild and raw quality of the piece at hand, never truly sure of whether where it belongs or stay in one place. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBi9YoLP3k3
Even he would prefer a Noland. Though similar in style it at least had a vivid quality that would contrast well with the sterile whiteness of the room. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡReUbw4rDy9
Ciarán could see it now, images begin to swirl in his head.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6h01nzDBCT
Colors all around him, hazy and blurred, they appear almost like sfumato except for a form that sharpens in the middle. Its shape resembles a silhouette, obscured by the bright light at its back yet Ciarán could still make out the details. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7hKDxx1g6M
Closer and closer, he manages to focus his eyes to the silhouette.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkcf4x9nRBo
"Mr. Byrne." The voice calls again. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfXqZXogn77
This time, the tone laced in subdued impatience.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVTPNsIrtW3
And like a pin bursting through his bubble of thoughts, Ciarán snaps back to reality and to the white-clad room.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQKoH0fxKr8
Slowly, he lowers his eyes further until they land on the stern-looking figure behind the table1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ80zCNHLgZI
His wayward gaze meets her cold calculating stare. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzWlx3T4Cvv
The same stare she had gifted him the first time he met her a few weeks ago. The same stare that always made him feel like there's something more lurking from her albeit reserved appearance and charismatic smile. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu29Y6zG7AS
It made him feel like she's waiting – waiting for something to happen. Only, he wasn't sure what it was. It was times like this that he always dreaded the past few weeks, having to attend sessions with her. Sitting on the same old chair and facing her as he pours out all his thoughts of delusion while she writes them down, each paragraph labeling him closer to being mentally insane. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKrRlY6MLNN
" Ciarán, are you with me?" She asks, a slight crinkle etched on her brow.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA7RlbEkO59
"Yes?" He hesitantly replies, his voice a bit too husky for his age.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGipBYdUkcC
"Do you know why you're here?" 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBWBM68BFo4
It was always the same question she asks to start their session. One that which Ciarán always fail to answer coherently.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBVqoCqemVP
"Uhh," he gulped, the sound almost audible in the room. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTtlLTAZ1yB
He looks around, his eyes darting from side to side, as if the whole room was closing in. He never was good at being asked on the spot. Or being the center of attention – be it in a crowd or with just another person. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8cGqwfwhL6
With a deep inhalation, he replies "No."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6fuTvr7SW9
He watches as she scribbles something on her notepad. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPeXyY6BamW
He glances at the clock on the right side of the desk, listening as it ticks away by the second.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaEZmzA4i3J
TICK! TOCK! TICK! TOCK!1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeQcy4aDa9R
" Ciarán, are you aware of the events that led you here?"1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7plenW4qtA
He gives her what he hopes to be a sheepish smile. "Honestly Doc, I don't really kn-"1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKOod3x6jTY
TICK! TOCK! TICK! TOCK! 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcPxOxF2x24
The clock goes on. Louder and louder like an echo.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOuqhNeDotZ
Like being in the deepest depths of the sea, it drowns his ears until all that he could hear was the drumming sound of his own pulse.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ41KGBP3ljQ
" Ciarán?" The doctor asks again, her pen dangling a few centimeters from her notepad. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlvRlHAZWcQ
Ciarán barely hears her, as if the very waves of sound were stuck, suspended on the surface as the waves they were. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf5hZXIwT5O
Ciarán rubs his temple as a new sound begins to appear. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡntMdvM8KZX
This time, it was a piercing sound, almost like a slow drumming of static before turning into a constant ringing. His childhood physician had jotted it down as a mild case of Tinnitus but he knew it wasn't the case. The ringing kept on occurring in sporadic rates throughout the years. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLQO4w37NPv
He continues to rub his temple, shaking his head until it finally disappears. At least, for the meantime.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ixxgknmX2
He clears his throat. "I'm sorry, you were saying something?"1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxZ4MarZaNm
She sighs and walks around the table. She stops in front of him, leaning gracefully on the side of the table. Arms planted by her sides, she looks down and looks at him again in the eye. This time her expression lacks most of their icy reserve.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5subuMkt1o
"Ciarán, I know our last few sessions didn't exactly start on the right foot. I also know that you don't want to be here but please remember that I'm just trying to help you."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEXLsXZb4RV
Right, as if he hadn't heard that spiel before. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTM0R4LLtxo
"Well, I don't exactly recall myself asking for help." He mutters, unable to conceal the bitterness in his voice. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdWjlA7RSdZ
He turns his head away, not wanting to see her reaction. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzWkXLhlycX
When he did glance her briefly through his periphery, he adds, "So you might as well just write that down because that's all you're gonna get."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFCfKFDoZku
He didn't see her gaze softening but he did hear her sigh. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIe1Myc3B6G
"Unfortunately, I can't do that." 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZdLDt9O8nE
She reaches in the right pocket of her slacks and pulls out a small silvery object. When she raises it to his view, it got caught in the reflection of the light. The fleeting bounce of light was enough to catch his attention.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9JFyhIBJTx
"Ciarán, what do you see?" she asks, holding up the object closer to him.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA9KzsjHFP8
"A quarter?" he responds skeptically, not sure of where the sudden shift of subject would lead to.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdpp3Bn4TeB
"Now, that's where you're wrong. This," she gestures at the coin, "is more than just a quarter. It's a memorabilia passed down through generations and it holds a certain part of a past almost like a story." 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZWuSOWmjD5
She places the coin on the table by its rim where both sides can be seen. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8WpETAuU9h
Still not letting go of the coin, she adds, "In fact, on my grandfather's word and many of those before him, had sworn that they still see glimpses of the past and helps them remember. Now, I don't particularly believe in such phenomena that can't be logically explained and experienced in a non-vicarial manner. Shall we try to find out?"1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVRg1hvf2xT
Ciarán merely shrugs before the doctor spins the coin. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzxdUMnG8D9
Round and round, it goes, until all the naked eye could see was a flashing blur. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqAdpqldQqc
"Ciarán, if you may, I need you to look at the coin. I want you to focus on it and slowly, take a deep breath and let it out."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡobcYTskEkq
Eyes transfixed, he follows the instructions of her lulling voice. Breathing deeply, he exhales, letting go of the tensions that once knotted his shoulders.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6NBuCjbls
"Good. I want you to keep on doing that while I ask you some questions. You're gonna answer them, won't you Ciarán?"1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnJmaRUxc6Y
"Yes," he breathes out.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtjbxgSuJUo
"Very good. Now, let's start all over again. Why do you think you're here?"1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhWOBFl5aFx
"I," he licks his lips and gulps, a slight a hesitation in his voice. "I'm here because-because... I can move stuff with my mind."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ39QFtQMHhV
"What sort of stuff?"1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡunhBK7v0mS
Another gulp. The clock ticks twice before he answers. "Anything. I 'pushed' the end of a crane to crush Sam's dad. I-I swear I didn't," he breaks off, his chest shaking at the memory, "I didn't mean to... do it."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiMoguA2OfF
The doctor lays a comforting hand on his shoulder. Its warmth temperature brought a much-needed respite to calm the cold vicious nerves entangling his lungs. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn8MMzvFAGw
"Hush, relax, Ciarán. Nobody thinks that you did it on purpose."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpamfRH310w
"But they do." He mutters harshly, "you should've seen them. Sam... Mike... Mrs. Lopez...the other kids at school, even- even my sister. They've always looked at me like I'm some sort of a freak." 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsl2nW7lwfF
He bites out the last word, remembering the cruel words the others had called him. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrfwBhn2Nba
"But are you?"1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiOozluhUgX
"No!" He breaks his gaze from the coin, facing her squarely and shrugging her hand off his shoulder. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHzQbYAtryG
He looks her straight in the eyes before turning his head back towards the coin, "At least, I don't want to be. Maybe I am a freak, I wouldn't know if I were one."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYjlV9Vj4Rd
"I don't." 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfDLjWDGVD5
His eyes, while never leaving the coin, widen in surprise. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz3e5VDshX2
"How would you know?" He snorts incredulously. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa1IHfIBycZ
The doctor merely shrugs. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR8NzVBuU7z
"I don't know for sure. But what I can say is you're a special young man."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdEKkYBpFrX
"Come on, doc. You can't possibly think I would believe that nonsense. You're just saying this for my sake." 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzHguHP9RW6
She tilts her head to the side, a confused expression on her face. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYrEcGZeg6o
"You keep insisting that gift of yours is a curse, and here I am telling you otherwise. Yet, you still won't believe. What really eats you up from the inside? What else makes you think that you're a freak, besides the telekinesis?" 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEHkj6ICOlL
He shakes his head, his voice rough, "No, you just don't get it doc. It's not just the mind-moving-telekinesis-shit you're going on. I'm a freak!"
Out of nowhere, the painting hanging on wall dropped on the floor in a loud thud. The glasses on the wall vibrating in a moderate hum, cracks threatening to break the surface. The forgotten glass of water on the table bubbles, slowly tipping off the rim of the glass.
Ciaràn leans in, his eyes clouded with an eery gleam. The coin spins faster than ever, losing its own shape in its motion and appearing like a blur.
He grits,"I'm a freak because whenever I sleep inside my room, I always wake up in who-knows-where. The recent one was in my neighbor's house. In bed. With his daughter. I'm a freak because wherever I go, I see her while no else does– and she distracts me like hell!"
CRACK!
The glass from the windows finally breaks, the water spills upward.
He can feel it now. The power he had been keeping at bay flows through this veins in an electric rush. He clenches his fist to reel it back in. He barely succeeds.
The water stops in midair, the splashes like rain drops floating above them. It suspends on an invisible force.
He motions his head to her and asks bitterly, "So you tell me, doc, do you still deny that I'm a freak? An insane freak?"
"Yes." She simply replies.He grunts and takes a deep breath. Slowly the water falls back down to the glass. The cracks on the window recedes.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2DIatXGIzo
Ciaràn grits his teeth, his gaze unblinking and still focused on the coin. As if by looking away, he would lose grip over his sanity and temperance.
"From what you've just told me, I don't think you're special,"
Ciaràn scoffs.
"Rather, you are a very special young man who had been through so much pain and enmity and in need to relax." 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnyHzKeE28g
She places her hand again on his shoulder, applying a bit of pressure this time. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbaQWjLoHBT
"Breathe."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMuht88mAWX
He defiantly does so. Again and again he breathes until the flow of air comes easier into his lungs.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrE9ymMGXU3
"Better," she remarks. "Now, about the girl. Can you tell me more about her?"1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJZB8pHqvBu
"What about her?" he asks, unsure at the turn of their conversation.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj41TyXYmnv
"Anything. Any thing you can think or remember about her."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkJP9jVrcbw
"I don't-" he tilts his head to the side, "I don't know what to say."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEBLK4Q7Dt0
Ciaràn thinks back to the blurred form earlier, to the silhouette who had her back against the bright light. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFyTKqJA1ch
Slowly, he can see her clearly now. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT33F6yS6zu
The haze disappears, showing the fine details of her face kissed by the warm sunlight. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkhUmDfecS5
Threading across a field towards him, floating like a nymph. Hair as dark as grey ash whipping wildly against her ethereally stunning visage. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXrUEUOJ2v6
He blinks, and all of a sudden he finds himself mere inches from her. She slowly turns her back to him, silently urging him to follow her. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUGkgxYQjvW
He respires as he watches as her movement in the wind causes the silk strands to lightly caress a pair of wide sensuous lips. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvYuvnt2g5y
Her eyes. Christ, her eyes! 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlBzmQlnPq3
Like the misty sky from the mountains tops after a cold wintry night and speckled with light silver-grey specks, captivates his senses. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡec6MP4M2pT
And when she smiles sensuously, when those beautifully curved lips meet, a merest hint of a dimple appears and he finds his jaw slacks.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXjURGKhfuI
He really was insane. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCVJBKVkKqz
He had to be. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡauqJH6PoC4
No one could be that beautiful as her and still be real.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2MC3j6nAWR
"It's alright, take your time. Just think and say something about her like a"-1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3EGiJoUu6W
"Like a story?" he inquires, the side of his mouth quirking as if amused at the idea.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSNoOyGw7oh
"Yes. Exactly. Like a story," she nods encouragingly.1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeOG0cOJRNG
Ciaràn lets out a shaky laugh to himself. 1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZzY53DVj3k
"I don't even know where to begin."1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqcw6WDj2Rl
1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡotmo9hC4wF
1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNii5UariP
1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn0qkWUibRP
1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKeocH4zZ4t
1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjzgkEc8QrP
1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv0746Lbv3n
1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4sZgOPnv2V
1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEa63AofDqG
1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7RiNyN2IQB
Copyright © 2018 by Andrea Cassandra Lei Meñosa1014Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2fzFzWsBP4
All rights reserved.
ns3.144.28.234da2
然後按「加至主畫面」