The Master Psychic

chapter 8 - the truth

The table was set with steaming bowls of food, the soft clink of silverware filling the room as everyone settled into their seats. Harper sat beside Mason, while Sage found herself directly across from the boy Harper had called a family friend.

"Jared," Harper said kindly, breaking the quiet as she passed him a dish. "So, how was the drive over? Mason didn't terrify you with his road rage, did he?"

Mason shot her a look, but Jared only gave a faint, almost absent smile. "It was fine. Quiet." His voice was calm, even, but his eyes weren't on Mason. They hadn't been since he sat down.

They were on Sage.

She shifted uncomfortably in her chair, stabbing at the vegetables on her plate, trying not to notice. But the weight of his stare was unrelenting—steady, searching, like he was studying her every breath.

"So, Jared," Harper continued, her tone bright as though she was determined to smooth away the awkwardness, "Sage is finishing up her senior year. Just one week left."

"That so?" Jared asked, his voice slow, low. His gaze never broke from Sage. "One week..." His lips curved faintly, but not enough to be a real smile.

Sage forced a small laugh, glancing between Harper and Mason as though they might save her. "Yeah, almost done. Can't wait to be finished with school."

Mason cleared his throat, giving Jared a warning look. "You'll have time to get to know each other later. For now, just eat."

Jared finally lowered his eyes to his plate, but only for a moment. Every few seconds, Sage caught him glancing back up at her, quiet and unblinking, as though there was something he saw in her that no one else could.

Dinner carried on with small talk—Harper asking Jared polite questions about his interests, Mason tossing in the occasional sarcastic jab—but for Sage, the air felt charged. She chewed slowly, heart thudding in her chest, because no matter what was said, she couldn't escape the piercing truth:

Jared wasn't just looking at her. He was watching her.

The last clink of silverware against plates echoed through the kitchen before Harper gathered the dishes, insisting she'd handle the cleanup later. The air felt heavy despite the small talk, and Sage's skin still prickled from the way Jared's gaze kept returning to her.

Mason pushed back from the table, his chair scraping softly against the floor. He stood, towering over them, his expression set and serious.

"Alright," he said, his voice carrying the kind of weight that silenced a room. "Enough stalling. Everyone—living room. Now."

Sage's stomach flipped. She glanced at Harper, who only offered her a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder before following Mason out of the kitchen. Jared rose quietly, his movements slow and deliberate, eyes flicking toward Sage as though waiting for her to move first.

Reluctantly, Sage stood, trailing behind them into the living room. Mason was already there, standing in front of the couch with his arms folded, waiting for everyone to settle. Harper sat close at his side, her fingers laced through his like an anchor. Jared took one of the armchairs, leaning back with a calmness that didn't match the intensity Sage felt radiating from him.

Sage perched on the edge of the couch cushion, her hands folded tightly in her lap. "What's going on?" she asked, her voice small but steady.

Mason exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair. His jaw tightened, and for a moment he just looked at Sage, his protective instincts clear in his eyes. Then he looked at Jared.

"It's time," Mason said at last. "No more secrets. If we're all going to be under the same roof, then everyone here deserves the truth."

Jared's eyes flicked to Sage again, a flicker of something unreadable crossing his face before he gave a slow nod.

The living room seemed to shrink around Sage, her heart pounding harder with each second. She had the feeling that whatever was about to be said... it was going to change everything.

The room was still, tense. Sage sat rigid on the couch, her eyes darting between Mason and Jared, waiting for one of them to break the silence.

Mason finally did. He drew in a slow breath, then lowered himself into the armchair opposite Sage, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. His gaze locked on hers, firm but gentle.

"Sage... there's something you need to understand about Jared," Mason began. His tone was calm, but there was a hardness beneath it, like he was bracing for her reaction.

Sage swallowed, her pulse quickening. "What about him?"

Mason's eyes flicked briefly toward Jared, then back to her. "He's a Hyde."

The word hit like a stone dropped into water, rippling through her chest. Her mind flashed to her visions—the shadow, the silver eyes burning in the dark. The creature that haunted her dreams.

"A... Hyde?" she repeated, her voice shaking. "You mean... like the monster from my visions?"

Jared shifted slightly in his chair but said nothing, his eyes steady on her.

Mason shook his head quickly. "No. Not like that—not exactly. Jared is a Hyde, yes, but he's not the same kind of danger you've been dreaming about. He's... in control. He can transform when he chooses, and he can stop himself. That's not common for Hydes, Sage. Most of them—" Mason's jaw tightened. "—most of them lose themselves when it happens. But Jared doesn't."

Sage's stomach knotted, her gaze flicking between them both. "So... you're saying he's safe? Just because he can control it?"

"I'm saying he's not what you think," Mason answered firmly. "He's not here to hurt you."

Her hands curled into fists against her knees. The air felt too thick, her breath coming faster. "But Mason... I saw him. I've been seeing him for weeks. The eyes, the darkness—it's him. It has to be."

Jared finally spoke, his voice low and steady. "You saw me," he admitted, leaning forward slightly. His silver-gray eyes caught the light, just enough to make Sage's chest tighten. "But that doesn't mean what you think it does."

The weight of Jared's words pressed down on Sage until she felt like she couldn't breathe. His voice, steady and calm, only made her visions echo louder in her mind—the silver eyes in the dark, the whispering soon.

Her pulse thundered in her ears. She shot up from the couch so quickly that Harper flinched.

"I—I can't," Sage stammered, shaking her head. "I can't do this right now."

Mason rose halfway from his chair, his hand outstretched. "Sage—"

"No!" Her voice cracked, sharp and trembling. "You drop this on me like it's nothing, like I'm just supposed to accept it? That he's the thing I've been seeing?" Her chest heaved, tears burning the edges of her eyes. "I need time to think."

She didn't wait for them to answer. Before Mason could say another word, she spun on her heel and bolted for the stairs.

Her footsteps pounded up the steps, the sound echoing in the silence she left behind. She burst into her room, slamming the door shut behind her, and pressed her back against it, breathing hard.

The quiet of her room wrapped around her, but it didn't soothe her. The feeling lingered—Jared's eyes on her, that strange pull in her chest, and the haunting truth that her visions weren't just dreams.

She slid down to the floor, hugging her knees, whispering to herself, "Why me? Why always me?"