Seclusion (4 page)

I decided to wear something
more conservative for the dinner. My talent did come in handy, knowing Chase’s
parents were extremely conservative and strict. I had warned my aunt and uncle.
I put the finishing touches on my new hairstyle and was so thankful that my
aunt and uncle thought to spoil me with a new hair dryer, straightener and
curling iron, since I’d need my own at the school. It didn’t look as great as
Tori’s perfect style, but it had a softer, more natural wave.
Gotta do with
whatchya got
, I thought. I decided to go with flats and a floral dress and
sweater that my aunt had purchased. But I decided on dangly earrings. I
couldn’t be
too
conservative; plus, they were mostly hidden behind my
hair.

As I walked downstairs, I
could smell the delicious aroma of the meal my aunt was orchestrating in the
kitchen. There were candles, and mood lighting, and I heard something classical
in the background. The dining room was brightly lit with beautiful red accents
everywhere, and Aunt Jan’s nice dishes were set. The front room was filled with
empty trays waiting for delicious, warm appetizers. My aunt always did have a
flare for overdoing things. But she just loved to cook and be the hostess, one
of the things I loved most about her.

The knock on the door made
me jump. I knew that Chase was on his way; he’d already texted twice. We were
quite the text buddies now. I felt like he was my best friend already. I was
surprised when I saw Taylor at the door first.

“Hi, Raegan, it’s good to
see you again!”

“Hi, come in, sit down. Can
I get you a drink?”

My aunt was already running
out of the kitchen carrying bottles of white and red wine.

“Thanks, red please,” Taylor said.

I pointed to the file of
completed paperwork and questionnaires that Taylor had dropped off earlier. She
nodded in response.

There was another knock at
the door, and this time I ran to answer it. Chase was there, and seeing his
rich hazel eyes knocked the wind out of me. I had started to think of him as my
good girlfriend and had forgotten how really handsome he was. I smiled
nervously.

“Where are your parents,
Chase?”

“They drove separately.
They’ll be here soon. I thought they might go home earlier than I’d want to,”
he said with a wink. I felt the blood rush to my face. “You know, in case the
tests that Taylor gives us take all night.”

“Of course, g…good idea.” I
ran my hands over my dress and sweater, straightening them in an attempt to
keep my hands busy.

After Chase’s parents
arrived, we all sat in the front room and watched a video about the academy
while enjoying my aunt’s appetizers. I was immune to all the chatter about how
great the food was, but I was completely engrossed in the video. I looked over
at Chase and he seemed interested, but also preoccupied with something else. He
caught my glance and smirked at me.
Embarrassing!
I guess hoping that
I’d get away with gawking at him was asking too much.

The school reminded me of
an elite college campus. It looked huge, but I knew it couldn’t be that big.
These advertising videos always make things look way better than they are. I
was excited to see where my housing would be, and the cafeteria, and the
library - three places that would make the school home sweet home to me. Give
me a library, bed, and cafeteria, and I am a happy girl.

During dinner and dessert,
the conversation jumped around from praising my aunt’s cooking to the funding
of the school. Chase and I were very excited when we learned that there was a
cleaning crew, and we were only expected to go to classes and seminars and
feed, clothe, and entertain ourselves. There was also a laundry service, and an
all-hours cafeteria and a mini mart store were on the grounds. There was even a
24-hour coffee shop with Wi-Fi. In fact, the whole campus had Wi-Fi access. I
looked over at Chase and noticed he looked worried, not eager.

After the Knights left,
Chase and I followed Taylor up to the office with our coffees.

“Are you okay? You seem
worried,” I whispered to him, hoping Taylor couldn’t hear me.

“I’m fine. I’m just
concerned that this all looks too good to be true, and in my experience, things
that seem too good to be true usually are.”

I was stunned by his
comment and just nodded absently.

“Well, at least we’ll be
together,” I said.

 He smiled and gave me a
slight nod as he squeezed my hand. I felt comforted by the gesture.

Taylor
said, “Okay, I know you
are thinking this is going to be a long night, but you guys have done most of
the hard work already. Thanks for filling out the paperwork. I have some
personality inventories for you to complete while I just scan and download all
your paperwork.”

Chase and I began filling
out the inventories. After we completed them, we noticed that Taylor had set up
some equipment that looked like something you’d need for a medieval science
experiment. Taylor wasn’t in the room. We looked at each other and started
busting up laughing.

“Looks like it’s time for
the torturing,” Chase commented.

The physical exams went
quickly, although they were a little embarrassing. Chase rocked all of his -
eye sight, sense of smell, hearing, IQ. I didn’t realize how smart he was! His
senses were extremely sensitive. I’d have to remember that he could both hear
me and see me from far away.

“No wonder Shaun thinks
you’re a superhero!” I said, and laughed when his reflex test was given; he was
so fast I only saw a blur.

Next, Taylor separated us.
I went to the den, while Chase stayed in the office. Taylor said that she would
be testing me while Chase was doing something on his own in the office.

“First of all,” she said,
“I know you will be hesitant to try what I’m asking you to do, but keep in mind
that many of our students have abilities they don’t realize. I have arranged
some objects across the room on the nightstand. I want you to try to draw the
pencil to you with your mind.”

I gave her my
are-you-out-of-your-mind look. She gave me a reassuring smile in return.

“Calm your mind, focus on
what it would look like, imagine its weight and feel, then pull the pencil to
you.”

 I attempted to do what she
said, and nothing happened. She said, “That’s okay, just relax and try again.”

Again, nothing.

“How long will I have to do
this to prove I don’t have this talent?” I asked as nicely as I could.

“I’ll know when you’ve
really tried,” she said.

Oh, brother!
I had really been hoping
we wouldn’t finish too late so Chase and I could hang out. So, I did what Taylor asked. I relaxed, saw the pencil in my mind, felt its weight, and asked it to come
to me. I opened my eyes and it was wavering.
Must be the fan
, I thought
as I looked up to see that the ceiling fan was turned off.

I looked at Taylor, and she smiled and said, “Close! You have the potential, try again.”

I tried and tried again,
but nothing happened. But then, the pencil rolled off the desk.

“That was great!” Taylor praised. Really though, I thought the pencil just rolled off, with no thanks to me.

When Taylor and I walked
into the office, Chase looked refreshed, like he had just taken a nap. I
noticed he was playing something on his smart phone.
Figures
, I thought.

Taylor
explained my next activity
to me. There was a deck of heavy duty flash cards, maybe 50 in total from the
look of the stack. I was supposed to pick up a card and place it in another
stack without looking at the other side. Taylor explained to me that I should
clear my mind and make a list of whatever items popped into my head. I got
through the stack pretty quickly and just waited for Taylor.

Overall, the tests went by
pretty quickly, even though we had completed, like, seven of them by the time
we were done. I hoped that Chase and I would have some classes together, even
though our talents were so different. I was happy to hear we wouldn’t find out
our results until we met with our advisors, when we started classes. I didn’t
want Chase to see how incompetent I was.

After the testing, Chase
and I helped Taylor pack everything up, and we walked her out to her car. It
was a breezy night. I could feel the butterflies having a dance party in my
stomach. I caught myself swaying, and my fingers were tapping my thighs. I took
some deep breaths and focused on Taylor.

Taylor
smiled at Chase and me and
said, “You both did very well, and I’m excited to have you at the school! I
will email you a file that has your class schedule, maps, and rest areas for
your drive. I’ll also give you directions on what to do when you get to the
school. We have another student that I was hoping you wouldn’t mind picking up.
She’s going to be a third year at the school, and she can show you how to enter
the school grounds. I thought it would be good for you guys to meet another
student.”

“That’s awesome!” I
replied.

“Wonderful, because it’s a
great place to stop and spend the night with chaperones. You didn’t think you
two would be stopping at some hotel alone, did you?” she asked with a knowing
grin on her face.

My heart pounded out of my
chest; I hoped no one noticed. I really hadn’t considered the drive. I didn’t
even know how far the drive would be, actually. I figured we’d be pulling an
all-nighter if necessary. I could see how that would not be feasible to any
parents, least of all Chase’s.

“That’s fine with me.” I
glanced at Chase and he winked.

“Okay then, get some rest
this weekend and pack up. You can leave whenever you’re ready. It takes about
20 hours to get there without breaks, and you’ll be driving two days straight.
Are you sure you don’t want to fly?” Taylor asked.

“No, the road trip sounds
fun. Maybe we can stop in Vegas!” Chase exclaimed.

Taylor
laughed. “Mmm, not really
on the way. Your parents are already worried about the drive.”

“Had to try. See ya,
Taylor!”

She pulled away from the
house in a rented Beamer. Chase and I watched quietly as she drove down the
street. I didn’t know what to say, but the silence was getting awkward. I
didn’t want him to leave yet. I inhaled quietly and pushed my nerves aside.

“Sooo, want to come inside and
I’ll make us some coffee? We can decide what we need to bring, and when we
should leave.”

His laugh was rich and
deep. “I thought you’d never ask.

Thank goodness it was dark,
because I could feel the blush spread over my face in a heat wave.

“How long will it take you
to pack?” I asked.

“Not long. I think I’m
pretty much packed. The school seems to have everything we’ll need except for
clothes and personal items. I don’t even need to bring my Xbox,” he said.

“Have you ever heard of Loving County?” I asked.

“Nope,” he replied.

“Let’s Google it!” I said
excitedly.

I ran up to my room to grab
my laptop to bring downstairs. When I got to my room, I felt Chase behind me.

“Oh, you scared me! My
room’s a mess, sorry.”

He laughed. “I really just
wanted to get a peek at your room. See what you’re all about.” He commented on
a few CDs, and skimmed through my bookshelf. “Aww, typical teenage vampire
trash,” he said.

“Hey, I’ll have you know I
liked those books before they got popular. If you’re going to rag on my taste,
you can just get out,” I said, raising both my hands and giving him a playful
shove.

He laughed. “Oh, first
grade flirting, huh?”

I was mortified. “Don’t try
to embarrass me. I know you bought that shirt for tonight!” I didn’t even
realize what I was saying. I must have gleaned that from my little push.

He paused. “Wow, I’d better
be careful around you or you’ll know everything about me,” he said with a
laugh.

“Oh, I’m so sorry! I really
didn’t mean to, it just happens. I can put my gloves on…” I turned to find
them.

He grabbed my arm and
turned me toward him. “Raegan, I’m an honest guy. If we are going to be
friends, I don’t want you to worry about my feelings. I’m a big boy, okay? You
are welcome to touch me anytime, and if you have questions about my feelings,
just ask. I’m a straightforward guy, and I think I’ve already made it quite
clear that I think you’re great, and very cute by the way. I’m already hoping
we can turn our friendship into something else, but I think it’s best if we take
things slowly. I know you don’t know who I am yet, and I’m patient enough to
wait for that.”

Chase flopped onto my bed.
“Enough seriousness!” he said as he pulled my hot pink laptop to him and Googled Loving County, Texas. I flopped down next to him on the bed.

We didn’t find much. Turns
out there wasn’t much to Loving County, Texas. Surprisingly, the population was
67 people!

“Where are we going? We
might as well be hiding in a cave. The school has more students than that,
don’t they?” I asked.