The Clairvoyant

Twenty | 58 days, 19th hour

"You’re inviting him for dinner?”

I gave Audrey a shrug, my eyes flickering against the lamp post and the bench where Cain is. “My mom did,” I correct her, giving a nod. “When he walked me home last night, mom saw him before he could leave and then decided to get to know him.”

Colton elbowed a guy in the stomach, before dropping to the ground and being hit on the head by an enemy behind. “You guys seriously aren’t going to help me?” He calls from the fight, Blake’s henchmen paying us no attention.

It’s three against one, and Audrey and I decided that we let Colton fight them off instead.

One of the guys walk away from the fight, his hand clenched tightly as he began nearing us. “Audrey!” Colton hollers, trying to fight off the two other men. He grabbed the back of his collar, yanking him backward and then punching him on the face.

“Remember,” I call out to Colton as if I give no care to the fight. “Plan Drop Dead.”

Plan Drop Dead simply meant striking out as many opponents as we can before heading straight for Blake. It seems that neither Blake and I plan to pull a head on fight just yet – we’re preparing one way or another.

Blake has a lot of men on his side, and if we attacked now in their hideout (like what Tristan and the guys did a few days back) we’d only get beaten. If Blake attacks us now, then we can think of a plan to take out the weakest of his henchmen first.

Either way, we aren’t ready for a full out attack yet.

“I’ll go help out Colton,” Audrey mutters, skipping off the sidewalk and running to Colton’s aid who just fell on the ground. “Why don’t you two just go on ahead?”

“You don’t want to eat dinner at my place?”

She gives me a kind smile. “I’d rather eat with that guy.”

Then all of a sudden, she gives me a flying kiss and I pretend to catch it and kiss it back. We both laugh, then I’m standing up and heading to Cain; Audrey’s there, helping Colton fight off while in the middle of their fights they come and kiss randomly.

“You’re not going to help her?”

“Does my mom want to see me beat up by the time I get home?”

Cain scrunches his eyebrows. “Right,” He says very slowly. He then raises his hand to wave a ‘good bye’ to his cousin and her boyfriend; they wave back in the midst of the fight. The others simply stare at our uncanny acts.

“You think they’re going to do okay?”

I look back at them, tilting my head. “I’m sure.”

The moment I walk in, Cain just close behind me, two cute different colored kittens appear all of a sudden. One’s black and the other is brown. Cain jumps at the sight of them, but I bend down and scratch the black one’s neck.

“A black cat always means bad luck,” Cain hisses from behind me, his hands firmly planted on my back as he watches the kitten curl around my hand. “I don’t understand how you can like those things.” He jeers.

“It’s not a thing,” I frown, slapping his hand off. “It’s a kitten.”

“It bites.”

“A dog bites too,” I point out.

He shakes his head, saying, “They’re loyal to their master. Besides, I don’t like cats.”

I ignore him now and see Vincent in the kitchen. “Vince, did you see the cats?” I call out, showing him the black one in my hand as Cain closes the door behind me. “Who brought them here?”

“Mom did,” He answers, flipping the egg omelet in midair. “Chey already got the white one. I guess the brown one’s for Ian now. Can you set the table? Mom and dad went out to buy a chicken since Chey decided to char it.”

I open the cabinet after putting the cat down. Reaching for it, Cain’s suddenly grabbing it before me, his chest onto my back. “This one?” he asks me, his voice just above my head, and I can feel my heart beat beating faster by the second.

“Yeah,” I mutter, looking down as I open the drawer for the spoon and fork.

“Oh, hi Cain,” Vincent greets while placing the egg omelet on another plate.

“Hi Vincent,” Cain greets with a nod, placing the placemats on the round table.

I quickly take it from him, shaking my head. “The dining room’s over there. Since mom and dad’s here, we’re eating there.” I point to the other room, making him follow behind me just as I open the lights to the room.

In the middle of the room, over a maroon rug is a long Oakwood table. North is a window revealing out backyard, east is a picture frame of the beach, and the other side has a vintage cabinet filled with regal plates and silverware.

“It looks so… clean.” Cain whispers, dumbfounded.

“It’s rarely used.”

I set the placemats and he follows along. After placing the glass cups and silverware, the black cat comes pouncing in the room, its long ebony tail swinging side to side. I swoop it off the floor and return to the living room, jump on the sofa as Cain sits on the opposite.

“You’re so cute!” I squeal, pinching its ear and kissing its light pinkish nose.

Showing it to Cain, who obviously just frowns at it, I show one of its paws and grin. “It looks like it’s got a sock on with this one being white unlike its other paws.” I laugh giddily, touching the kitten’s head again as it pounces on my thumb.

“It’s biting you!” Cain yelps as if he’s the one being bitten.

I shake my head at him. “It’s just nibbling, Cain.”

“I didn’t think he was afraid of cats,” Chey appears all of a sudden, jumping on the sofa beside me and showing me the white cat in her hand. It looks rather sleepy, and if that’s not how it really looks like, then Chey must have played with it all day.

“I’m calling her En,” Chey giggles, showing it off to Cain who only recoils backward like a snail. “Anne because of my name, ‘Cheyenne’.” I notice the cat’s got aqua blue eyes, which I find extremely cute right now. “What are you calling her?”

I poke at the black kitten’s belly, and it paws on my pointer finger.

“It’s a guy actually,” I inform her, smiling. “I’m calling him Cane.”

“Excuse me?” Cain repeats, eyes widening as Chey goes, “Cain?”

I shake my head. “Not Cain. Cane as in candy cane or something. C-A-N-E?”

“Why Cane?” Chey giggles, eyebrows wiggling with curiosity.

“It’s black, and has brown eyes.” I laugh, shaking my head.

I then give the cat a kiss on the lips, my eyes darting to Cain who now raises an eyebrow. “Aww, you’re so cute!” I cry, tapping my finger on its nose as Cain bites his lower lips. “Maybe I should kiss this one instead?”

“Hey! Hey, hey, hey, hey,” Cain repeats again and again, grabbing the cat by the back of its neck and hauling it away from me. He quickly puts it on the ground and glares at it, sitting beside me like some jealous little kid.

I raise an eyebrow at him. “Give him a break, it’s just a cat.”

“Then stop kissing it. It’s just a cat.”

“You guys are so cute!” Chey suddenly squeaks, hugging me as En jumps to the carpeted living room. “When did you start dating? How come you never bothered to tell me! At least tell me these things in advance!”

I pry her hands off her, but keep it at a minimal distance as I shake my head. “First thing, we’re not dating at all. Second, I never had time to tell you with me being busy lately as it is already. So, yeah, sorry for not telling you.”

“Not dating?” Cain and Chey repeat in unison.

I eye Cain, frowning. “You never asked me to be your girlfriend.”

“But we already did a kiss! And I told you I liked you already!”

I cross my arms and put it against my chest. “Dude, you did not.”

“I didn’t?”

“So you aren’t dating? Yet?”

“Yet,” Cain confirms, confident.

I swoop Cane off the ground, giving it another kiss. “Depends if he asks me to be his girlfriend.” I tell him as I hear the door opening, and mom calling out to me and Chey. “But I’ve already got Cane, I don’t need you anymore.”

“That’s so mean,” Chey laughs whole heartedly as she hops off the sofa.

Cain on the other hand pulls me near his face and plants a kiss on my lips, an obvious frown on his face at the moment. “Be my girlfriend?” He asks, his hazel eyes staring deeply into mine. Or maybe that’s just how it looks like.

I push him away, softly, a small smile appearing on my face. “Try again.”

I leave Cain on the sofa, but seconds later he follows just behind me. “Hi Stella!” My mother beams happily, grabbing me into a hug and kissing my cheeks. She’s always just as beautiful as she looks on the covers of her magazines.

“And hi, Cain! Aren’t you handsome?”

Handsome? I snort, stepping away from my mom as she gives Cain a peck on the cheek. My dad gives me a kiss on the forehead, and then nods politely at Cain.

Aren’t I? Cain sends to me as he pulls away from my mother, who now goes on to greet (and apologize) to Vincent. Surely I must be, if not for that, Bri and the rest of the girls at school wouldn’t have fallen for me.

No, you’re just arrogant. I spin around in place and head back to the sofa, catching Cane in my arm and paying it more attention than Cain who’s sitting beside me.

“I know,” I suddenly rise up to him, grinning. “Kiss the cat and I’ll answer you.”

He kisses the cat without hesitation, and I frown as I realize how easy he just did that. I shake my head quickly before he can even speak. “Can’t you at least do those simple things like first serenade me or something?”

“I didn’t know you were a romanticist.” Cain notes, tilting his head to the side.

I pinch his cheek, doing that pig face at him. “No, I just wanna see you embarrass yourself.”

“Can’t I do something else?”

“Think of something much more embarrassing than serenading me in the middle of the school.” I grin at him, propping my arm on the arm rest as I set Cane on Cain’s lap. He doesn’t budge or push it away.

We’re in the middle of watching a movie on HBO when Vincent says it’s time to eat. I turn the TV off and Cain places the cat gently on the sofa. It’s still lazily asleep so we leave it like that – and apparently it’s joined by the other two cats.

Sitting beside Chey, Cain sits across from my seat. Vincent’s setting out the food, dad helping him and Ian just jumping quickly onto his seat beside Cain. Mom’s already on the seat next to the dad’s, and she’s beaming countless of stories at us as dad and Vince lay out the food.

Finally, we begin eating like a family we are.

Toast the food (despite buying it).

And at last, eat the cold night away.

But of course, it’s not done quietly. At least, in my mind anyways. Either Cain forgot to put up that barrier around his mind, or he’s purposely letting it run wild.

The whole time we’re eating dinner (or at least midway to say the least), Cain’s thinking on numerous of embarrassing events on how to ask me to be his girlfriend. And it was really funny half because he didn’t notice I was hearing him, and half because of his obtuse plans.

“Why are you laughing?” Chey whispers, glancing at Cain.

Cain catches us looking at him, and his mind’s just silent except for the fact constant idea that he should “remember to chew while looking at me”.

“Nothing really,” I frown right away, my acting obvious to my twin. She gives me a pointed look, and I laugh again. “It’s just that, people who have this wifi hooked up in their house should remember to put up a barrier or something.”

Chey says that it’s fine, and that the one who didn’t put up a barrier is at fault for not remembering. But Cain’s reaction is a lot funnier that I end up just drinking down the rest of my water in one gulp.

He’s blushing deep red, already chewing at the bone of his chicken.

“Dude, you sick or something?” Ian asks, titling his head at Cain.

Cain coughs a bit. “No, it’s just… nothing.” He blushes as he looks at me.

And I don’t even need to say anymore as I begin laughing once more.