The Outcasts

Chapter 6

Cyrus stepped through the door cautiously as if waiting for me to tell him to leave but I said nothing as he came in,  observing the small confines of my apartment. The kitchen table sat up against the wall with a single chair tucked underneath it. My bedroom wasn’t far from it. The coffee pot sat on the counter near the stove and right next to it was the toaster that I used too often. I wasn’t much of a breakfast person and when I was hungry, I resorted to something light. I couldn’t say that wasn’t normal for some people but I went with it. “Do you want something to drink?” I asked him just to break the awkward silence that seemed to hang between us. Cyrus looked at me and only nodded. I went around him to open the fridge then back at him. “Anything in particular?”

Cyrus took a breath and mumbled. “Coffee if you have it.” He looked at the dining room table and I noticed Jem giving me faces. I gave him a cold stare and mouth before Go Cyrus turned his attention to me again. “You don’t need to hide the fact that there is someone sitting there.” He pointed to Jem and I instantly felt my heart rate rise. “Don’t worry,” he continued. “I have someone with me too. Just glad that I’m not the only one.” He half grinned at me as he sat across from Jem who had fully appeared before him. Jem stuck his tongue out at me and I glared at him in return.

“How long have you been able to see spirits?”  I asked as I went over to the cupboard to retrieve a mug and then the pot of coffee that was still warm from earlier this morning. I poured him some and placed it on the table because I didn’t know how he liked it.

“Since I was ten.” I said quietly. “It came with dreams that I couldn’t really explain to my parents or else they’d send me to the loony bin.” I chuckled at that. 

“I was that age as well.” I said bluntly. “My parents wouldn’t have done that though.” I looked at Jem who was still sitting in the other chair, “May I?” I asked politely. Jem was reluctant to move, deciding on the sofa in the living room to get comfortable even though he was a ghost that needed to move on.

“What’s his story?” Cyrus asked as he took a sip of his coffee and grimaced slightly at the taste. “How did he get stuck here?”

I drummed my fingers on the table. “He doesn’t remember what happened to him.” I said softly. “I told him that I’d help him figure it out so he can move on.”  I gazed at him and thought of something else to say but drew a blank so I stayed silent. 

“It must be hard,” Cyrus said. “To live with one and not have a decent answer on why they are haunting you.” I heard Jem laugh from the living room and I looked over and saw him get up from the sofa that he sat on.

“I am just a visitor.” Jem defended. “And it's not a haunting because if it was I'd be doing some messed up stuff right now that would have Cora leaving.” he huffed and vanished leaving Cyrus and I alone with shock on our faces.

“Did he though?” Cyrus asked his gaze traveling to me again. “Haunt you?” I only shook my head.

“Jem is a nice person,” I replied. “For a short period after I moved here, he did move my stuff just to mess with me but after we kind of bonded.” Cyrus raised his eyebrows at me.

“You should never bond with a spirit because then it would give them a reason to stay.” Cyrus said.

“As if you didn’t?” I asked him as I stood from my place on the table and went to the window. “Jem has kept me company since I moved here. It gets lonely after a while and when you're experiencing things that you can’t explain, it’s best if you try to do it on your own.”

“You shouldn’t have to do things by yourself,” he said. “No matter what it is. You should have someone to confide in when you're stuck or just needing someone to talk to.”

“I don’t think I had much choice,” I stated. “When I found out, I couldn’t tell anyone.” My head lowered and I felt a hand on my chin. My eyes met Cyrus and I felt my heart do a flutter motion.

“From now on,” he said. “We can discover our powers together.” 

My eyes met Cyrus’ and for a brief moment something in me had this urge to do something. This is something that I haven’t done to anyone ever but I controlled this impulse by slowly looking away from him. “I appreciate your help but the only thing that I don’t know is what my own abilities are.” I moved away from him because my body felt a little awkward being close to him. “I mean where would we even start?” 

“That’s the million dollar question isn’t it?” Cyrus’ humor made me smile and I felt a faint blush creep slowly to my cheeks but I hid it from him. “Lucky for you though,” he continued with an air of confidence that I wish that I had. “I’ve done some research about all this before coming to see you.”

I turned to him again. “How did you find me?” I asked him slowly, unsure on how he managed to find me within two days.

“It’s easy once you learn the ropes,” Cyrus replied. Pieces of his hair hung over his eyes and my fingers twitched to brush it away but his voice continued like a harp to my nerves. “I traced the mental path a few times and found a few other people with the same ability to communicate like us but each person is special. After sifting through who was who, I found yours.” 

“It must have been hard to concentrate on doing that.” I said and in return Cyrus nodded. “I haven’t done much practice nor have I had the interest to.”

“Why not?” I felt Cyrus’ gaze on me and I started to pace a little out of being nervous. “Trust me when I say, it gets easier.”

“The thought of it was scary.” I responded. I brushed my hair behind my ear. “Same as discovering our other abilities.”

“It’s not that scary once you know what you're doing” Cyrus shot me a reassuring smile and it made my heart flutter again. 

“Where do we begin?” I asked as I put my trust in him completely.

Cyrus sighed and said sternly. "I have no idea but we can get a head start tomorrow if you like," his gaze wandered to the floor and I had this instinct feeling that I knew what he had been thinking. He was feeling slightly awkward about this entire situation. Showing up on my doorstep after telepathically finding my 'mental path' whatever that meant. His voice had snapped me back to reality and when he did, his tone was soft like a satin pillow. "I'll give you my cell number to stay in touch." He reached inside of the jean pocket after he had stood and placed a piece of paper onto the table top that clearly had his number scribbled on it.

"Thanks." I all but whispered. "Does this mean that you're not going to do that telepathic thing you did?" The question seemed to linger in the air between us and I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks. I bit my lip and glanced at the piece of paper sitting on the table to distract me.

"For now," he said lightly. "I won't but when it comes time to practice and hone our skills then that's when I will." He gave me a faint smile. "Deal?"

"Okay." I had said with a nod. Cyrus walked around me and toward the door, he paused and looked back at me.

"Keep in mind that there could be others like us out there." He warned but his tone was calm like he knew what he was talking about. I gave another nod and waved goodbye.