Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 62262 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 311(@200wpm)___ 249(@250wpm)___ 208(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62262 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 311(@200wpm)___ 249(@250wpm)___ 208(@300wpm)
“Does he have powers?”
“Minor telekinesis—he can move small, light objects. If he ever lost control of it, not much would happen. Maybe he’d knock over an empty soda can, but that’s about it. He definitely couldn’t relate to what I’d done.”
“How did people know you were the one to blame?”
“Most of my classmates had experienced me losing control at some point or another during our years together in school, so when the birds showed up they immediately assumed it was me. I confirmed it by apologizing, both that day and later on, through a public apology.”
“I’m sorry. All of that must have been tough.”
“It sucked.”
“Do you remember what you were thinking right before you summoned the seagulls?”
His brow creased as he searched his memories. After a few moments, he said, “I’m not sure, but I know I didn’t want to be there. If my dad hadn’t flown in from Korea to see me graduate, I would have skipped the ceremony.”
“Why?”
“I had a hard time in school, and I just wanted it to be over with. I never fit in, and I didn’t have any friends, except for Moira. They’d arranged us alphabetically, so we weren’t sitting together. All around me, my classmates were talking, laughing, passing around a flask someone had smuggled in, and making plans to meet up at a big party which was happening that night. But of course, no one included me. I knew it would be like that.”
“What about the most recent time you accidentally set off your powers? What was happening?”
He shifted a bit and tucked his feet under him. “I hadn’t lost control in a while, but then I had two incidents in a short period of time. Most recently, I called a bunch of cats when I was sitting on the fire escape outside my bedroom. Before that, I was out for a run, and next thing I knew, I was getting chased by a bunch of raccoons.”
“When was that?”
“It happened shortly before dawn, the morning of my first day at SPAM.”
“Do you always run so early?”
“No. I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to get it over with,” he said. “I didn’t like it, though. The city was eerily quiet and empty at that hour. It usually doesn’t feel like that.”
“Can you spot a common thread between those three incidents?”
Andy shrugged. “I was unhappy, but that’s not enough to set off my powers. If that was all it took, I would’ve set them off every single day during high school.”
“What was going on when you called the cats?”
He thought about it before saying, “Moira was with her fiancé, and Mom and Julie were out with friends. So, I was by myself, and…”
“Lonely?” He nodded. “Maybe that’s the common thread, the thing that sets off your power unintentionally.”
“If so, that’s pathetic.”
“No, it isn’t. We all get lonely, Andy. Maybe your subconscious figured out a way to deal with it.”
“By calling a bunch of animals? Then what am I supposed to do? Make friends with them, run off to live together in Golden Gate Park, and become the Tarzan of the raccoon world?”
“Not exactly.”
“How’s knowing this going to help me? I can’t set the goal of never being lonely.”
“No, but knowledge is power. The more you understand what’s going on, the better your chances of controlling what happens.” He nodded and looked away. After a minute, I asked, “Are you okay?”
“I’m just tired of being this guy. I wish I was powerful, instead of some weirdo with the worst superpower ever.”
“You’re incredibly powerful! Do you realize what would happen if you put out a general call, right now, in this location? Hundreds of animals would come running.”
Andy looked horrified. “It would be absolute carnage. The bears would try to eat the deer, the skunks would go off like bombs, the squirrels and raccoons would probably start a gang fight—”
“I know, but that’s still raw, undeniable power. To be clear, I’m not suggesting you try it, only that it would be astonishing.”
“Yes. An animal tidal wave would be astonishing, in the same way earthquakes or other natural disasters are.”
“Let’s approach this another way.” I got up and walked to the edge of the deck. “If you get real control over your power, maybe you’ll stop seeing it as a negative.”
“Okay. How do I do that?”
“Practice. Try using it intentionally. You’ve done that before, right? Calling animals on purpose, instead of by accident?”
“A few times. Once, I called all the cats who live in our apartment, so we could get them into carriers and take them to a vaccination clinic.”
“There’s a squirrel under that big pine tree at the edge of the clearing. Why don’t you see if you can call it? Just that one.”
Andy joined me at the railing and put his glasses back on. He frowned at the squirrel in question, and then he concentrated on unleashing his power. After a minute, I pointed out the obvious. “Nothing is happening.”