“So you’re the one who infected my daughter,” he said as the red veins on his forehead popped out – he was getting angry.
“
Sir,
your
daughter isn’t ill,” I answered.
“The specialist should tell me, not you,” he defied.
Just then, Lisa’s younger brother joined us in the living room and stood next
to her. Unlike his father, he was interested to hear what I had to say. Lisa
introduced him as Calvin, but we didn’t have the luxury of shaking hands due to
the crucial discussion his father and I were having. I wanted to verify his
definition of specialist.
“Which hospital are you taking her to?” I asked.
“It’s none of your business, young man, but if you must know, I don’t
plan on sending her to one.”
“So it’s a lab facility then. You’re making a big mistake, sir,” I said.
Meanwhile, Lisa was biting her lips to avoid interfering, which I’d asked her not to do.
“She gave me no choice. I’ll be sending her during the weekend. I
would rather live with a son than live with no child.”
His words really stung Lisa’s ears: tears streamed down her cheeks as her father
disregarded her existence. She wasn’t alone: her mother and brother were
alarmed with his words. Her mother looked at her husband with disgust, and so did the victim of the fire incident, Calvin. It was obvious Lisa’s brother loved her; his eyes were teary as well.
“Sir, if there was a way she could stay and not harm
anyone, would you agree to it?”
“I’m listening,” he said.
“I believe your daughter possesses a special gift. She has the power to
create and manipulate fire, run faster than the speed of sound, and hear
things from miles away.”
During my elaboration, Calvin’s mouth gaped open; he was dazed with
what I’d said.
"Your point?" asked her father.
“Her ability to create fire affects her temper in a way,
meaning any little thing can offend her.”
“How is this going to help me cure her?” he foolishly asked.
“As I mentioned earlier, your daughter is not ill. She needs no treatment.”
“What are you proposing?”
I glanced at Lisa.
“Although she easily gets offended, the feeling can be suppressed.”
“And how is that possible?” he asked – but still with a lack of interest.
“She is able to control her anger anytime I’m around her,” I stated.
He stared at me for a long minute.
“How does this work?” he asked.
“I’ll demonstrate.” I got up and walked to meet Lisa. She looked confused as to what I was about to do, she had no idea of my next move.
“I’m sorry,” I said to her.
“For what?” she asked.
“This.”
I gave Lisa a slap on her left cheek. Instantly, her eyes turned red, and so did her white skin. I reached for her hands and held them, causing the color of her eyes to change back to golden brown, and her skin returned to its former state.
I turned to look at her father.
“Under normal circumstances, someone or something in this living
room would have been damaged or burnt by now.”
“Does this mean you’ll be with her every second of the day?” he asked.
“If it comes to that,” I answered.
“Your daughter’s ability is a rare gift, if controlled.”
“And if not?” he questioned.
“If neglected or treated by lab specialist, she could become dangerous
to everyone and impossible to stop.”
It’s a bit funny how I spoke, like I knew what I was saying; mean
while
all I’d mentioned was produced out of fright.
Anyways, the discussion wasn’t resulting in a positive outcome. Mr. Morgan
didn’t like my idea; he thought I was after his daughter’s body and not
her
happiness. I saw the frown on Lisa’s face as she read her father’s mind.
“I’ve tried to make you see reason, but it’s obvious you
don’t trust me. I don't really blame you, but at least you should trust your daughter. You have just two options: either you allow me to take care
of your daughter, keeping her from harming others and ensuring she
lives a normal life at college. Everybody wins.”
“And the second?” he inquired.
“I take her away from you. You’ll never see or hear from her again.
Taking her to a specialist is not an option.”
Lisa’s eyes popped out of her their sockets as I said the words; she seemed so surprised hearing my second option – but, as usual, she didn’t object, waiting to hear the final verdict.
“You can’t do that,” he snarled.
“I won’t, but only if you agree to the first option.”
He was playing hard to get, so I had to raise the bar to see if he could
catch up. It was then I knew he cared for his only daughter.
“You can’t take her from me. I won't let you. For goodness sake, this is insane.” His tone was
rather worrywart than tempestuous.
“Honey, please can I have a word with you?” the wife spoke for the
first time.
Her voice was soft and tender. She looked so good for her age. The dark circles which were meant to be found around her eyes were unnoticeable. She reminded me of Sandra Bullock, but with a prettier face. Her hair was blonde, just like her son's. Lisa
must have taken hers from her dad: his was black.
“Please give us a minute,” she requested.
I answered with a nod.
Lisa stood still staring at me, enclosed in the arms of suspense, while her
brother was recovering from the aforesaid shock. The only cheerful thing in the room was
the chandelier as it lit the room with its luminosity.
As I paced in the living room, I was secretly listening to her parents’ conversation.
“Let’s think this through, dear,” the mother said.
“There’s nothing to think through. I’m putting my feet down on this one; she’s going to be tested, and that’s it.”
“Didn’t you listen to anything the boy said?” she asked.
“You mean the threats he issued? He’s lucky I haven’t called the police,” her husband replied.
“Let’s just give him a chance. If he fails, you can… send her away.”
There
was much silence, until he said, “I’m agreeing to this because of you and
Calvin … and of course Lisa.”
Immediately, they returned with a hesitant look on their faces.
“Sir, just give me a chance. You won’t be disappointed
and if anything bad happens, you can send her to the lab.”
Silence filled the room as everyone waited for Mr. Morgan’s final
decision.
He took a deep breath as he stared at his daughter.
“Okay, I’ll give you a chance, but you have to
keep to your word.”
Instantly, I moved toward him and reached for a hand shake, which he reluctantly
gave.
“Do
you
have any ability like hers?” Calvin asked randomly.
But before I
could answer, his father added, “Yeah, do you?”
“Yes,” I said.
“Then show us,” the father demanded.
There was a glass of water on the table closest to where Calvin stood.
I focused really hard on his posture, and then all of a sudden, the water erupted from
the glass like a tap running upside down but without the effect of
gravity. It didn’t stop there; the shapeless water was frozen to form Calvin’s
posture, and it looked like a small frozen statue of him placed on
an invisible table in the air. The best part of it all was that I didn’t use my hands. My blue eyes carried out the action.
Everyone including Lisa was astounded by what I just did. Calvin dropped his jaw as he gazed at the little statue. He was
the first to speak.
“Wow! That’s awesome. How did you do that?” he asked.
“Practice,” I answered, seeing Mr. Morgan wear a smile for the first time.
“Very impressive!” he said.
"Thank you," I replied.
That night, I didn't want to leave Lisa alone, because she scared that her parents would feast their anger on her – or most likely her father, but I had a cousin who would be worried if I didn’t return, and I believed my last performance would have lightened Lisa's father's mood. Though he seemed stern, like Beauty and the Beast all he needed was a tear drop to see his daughter's true nature.
Chapter Ten
A Basketball Game
It was a nice cold winter day. I sat on the soft leather chair in my room, observing how frost cohered to my glass wall. One could imagine how bored I was.
This day marked a week since I’d approached Lisa’s parents, which probably was the best decision I’d made since I decided to move to Sloutenville. It gave me the chance to be with Lisa every day of the week. Although it seemed like a bad idea at first, the more time I spent with Lisa, the happier I felt.
I stood up from the chair and strolled out of my room. I couldn’t endure the boredom, so I decided to go visit Lisa, but Stacey was in her room and I had to inform her before leaving; not that it was mandatory, it just felt like the right thing to do.
“I’ll be going to school; the keys are on the table. Take care of yourself and see you soon,” I said as she lay on the bed.
Stacey nodded in response and adjusted her sleeping posture. I hadn’t informed her about Lisa and I and I didn't plan on doing so. She was better off not knowing about our involvement. After all, she didn’t like Lisa.
So I left her room and dashed to Lisa's house.
Lisa lay down on her bed – which, by the way, was extremely beautiful; it made Stacey's princess bed look small. Her room was decorated with the colors red and yellow, the chandelier was exactly the same as the one in the living room, and unlike my glass wall her windows were frostless due to the heat she emitted. The atmosphere in the room had a unique scent; I took a deep breath as the fragrance overwhelmed me. I wasn’t bothered to enter her closet or bathroom; she needed her privacy. Also, there was a glass door at the eastern part of the room which led to a balcony, a feature I wished my room had.