Unaltered #2_A Diamond in my Heart Page 9

  It was that time of the year again; my birthday. As in years past, my birthday signified the closing of summer, the nearing of another school year, and one additional candle on the cake. This year I officially became an adult according to the state of Ohio. I certainly didn’t feel any different being eighteen and I had no desire to purchase tobacco in any of its forms, so becoming another year older really only meant I’d soon be off to College.

  My parents gave me supplies for my dorm room; nothing too expensive. Brand gave me a new Mp3 player and a set of small external speakers. My mom eyed him curiously and I resisted the urge to read what she was thinking. I decided it was better not to know. The last thing I wanted to discover was if my mom was disappointed Brand didn’t give me jewelry or perfume.

  I received another bouquet of roses and a card from Maetha wherein she reemphasized the importance of meditation and learning how to calm my mind. Between my struggle to visualize auras and feeling like an idiot whenever I sat in the lotus position to meditate, I hadn’t made any progress toward mastering either. I was too afraid my mom would walk in and make fun of me for succumbing to Eastern hooey. She’s a supporter of stress relieving methods and often prescribed relaxation techniques to her patients, but if she saw me meditating she’d probably flip out and question me about what’s bothering me. I think she’d haul me off to a doctor for evaluation and demand a prescription.

  Maetha reminded me in her letter to socialize at college and she also applauded my decision to pursue a medical degree. One particular paragraph stood out in my mind. It read:

  Brain scans are being used to study the brain’s activity during the thought process. Similarities between people are emerging and the data is being catalogued. Soon, a brain scan will be able to determine if someone is lying, or if a crime was committed out of premeditation or self-defense. The future of this science is unforeseeable as the ones to perfect it haven’t been born yet. Placing yourself on the frontier of medical advancements allows insight to possible directions these types of inventions might go. No one is immune to something like a brain scan. We are, after all, just humans. -Maetha

  *****

  The next four weeks flew by rapidly. I’d located a possible manufacturer to produce my Demon devices and sent my written requirements via email with my shipping address listed as my dorm. The developer estimated three months to kick out a prototype. I figured Brand was covered adequately, although a little ridiculously, and the $900 price was much lower than the other manufacturers wanted.

  My parents followed me to my dorm and helped me move in. It was a tough day for all. I caught my mom wiping her eyes a couple times and it made me feel bad. It wasn’t like I was moving away for good or anything; I’d be back at Thanksgiving. She’d really be amazed and upset if she knew what I’d been through in Montana.

  I said my goodbyes and settled into my new life; well, that was an understatement.

  The next day I ran into Suz at the Student Union building. She was originally going to be my roommate but opted out after graduation. Huh, go figure. Too bad, we had a really nice apartment picked out near campus with a hot tub. I guess that’s the way the cookie crumbles. I quickly found an opening at the co-ed dorm Brand would be in, not that I wanted to be located that close to him, but he was kind of handy to keep around for all those moments when a do-over was needed. My close proximity to Brand only seemed to make matters worse with Suz.

  Brand never ceased to amaze me. He was offered a full-ride scholarship in football but he denied it and went into Performing Arts instead. What the hell? I wasn’t the only confused person to find out Mr. All-Star Jock wanted to be a singing actor. I hadn’t questioned him about it yet, but I fully intended on doing it.

  College life was a real rush to say the least. I think what amazed me the most was observing the minds of everyone on campus and just how different people are in their thoughts and behavior. Take, for instance, the girls from my school who were attending college with me. I’d seen their behavior in high school when they were stuck-up, ‘holier than thou’ gossips. They never missed an opportunity to criticize all the other girls who were ‘too easy’. However, now they were in a reversed role where they had become the ‘too easy’ sluts chasing after the jocks without a relationship in mind. It seems when girls like these move out of mommy and daddy’s house they go wild. Hmm, the girls were mild but now they’re wild. Someone could write a song about that. Someone probably already has.

  Many guys, on the other hand, were horn dogs in high school but too stupid to actually score. In college the guys were still horn dogs but scored more often. What was the causality of this? Was it that the guys had become smarter or that the girls had loosened up? I was leaning toward the latter of the two. In my dorm I found that girls seemed to wear much less clothing than at the beach and guys liked to walk around without their shirts all the time. I’m not complaining, as a medicine major I fully appreciate the many muscles that make up the abdomen and chest, but as an inexperienced female who doesn’t leave my room without being properly covered I still blush a bit when I run into that much skin.

  My class schedule was quite manageable leaving a lot of extra time for studying and practicing my abilities. Acting on Maetha’s advice to socialize and mingle, I began an experiment of sorts in the college cafeteria that involved unsuspecting students and faculty. I read minds looking for girls who had the dreamy gaze in their eyes for a particular guy and then I would read the guy’s mind to see if he liked the girl, or if he even knew the girl existed.

  One day while reading minds I found a girl staring longingly across the room and in her mind I saw the image of the boy she was attracted to. I scanned the room, located the boy and read his mind finding he liked her too but was too shy to act on it. It was more than that though, these two were in a couple of classes together and took turns looking at each other.

  As a female who appreciates love, I had to help out. I walked across the room to the girl and said, “Excuse me, I couldn’t help but notice you’re checking out that guy over by the soda machines. I hope I’m not butting in too much but when you look away from him do you know he looks back at you?”

  “What? Are you sure?”

  “I’m Calli Courtnae, and yes, I’m sure. I’m fascinated with body language and have a pretty good sense for it. His body language is screaming for you, but I get the idea he’s really shy and afraid to talk to you.”

  “I thought he was looking at me in class. I’m Pamela Gilespy, nice to meet you Calli.”

  That’s all it took and suddenly I had a new friend. Over the next few weeks, Pamela and the guy named Spencer Wainsfeld became acquainted and really hit it off. They were a match made in heaven with similar interests and backgrounds and it made me very happy to know I helped them out.

  Pamela started hanging out with me more often whenever she wasn’t with Spencer and one day her friend Stacy Nelson came along too.

  Pamela introduced us. “Hey, Calli, do you think you could work your magic on Stacy too? There’s a guy she likes but it’s unclear if he likes her or not.”

  “Sure. Where do we find him?”

  “He’ll be at the Mixer tonight. Are you going?”

  “I wasn’t planning on it, but I guess I am now.”

  “Spencer has to work tonight, so it will be a girls' night out.” Pamela added.

  The two girls became all giddy and giggly; female aspects I really don’t like. They helped me pick out an outfit to wear and played with my shoulder length hair experimenting with different 'do's; another detestable activity.

  Later that evening, after layer upon layer of makeup had been applied and I’d tried on several pairs of high heels eventually settling on a pair that would match the skimpy emerald green dress I wasn’t even sure I owned, the three of us left for the party.

  Pamela and Stacy were very comfortable in their barely-there dresses and heels and it amazed me how different I was compared to them. Still, like Maetha had sugges
ted, I was determined to learn how to blend in. Once we zigzagged our way through the crowd, we found a good vantage point on the staircase where they were able to locate Stacy’s guy across the room.

  Pamela pointed in a less than stealthy manner and yelled over the blaring music, “Over there, by the large fern in the corner, he has blonde hair and is wearing a dark blue polo shirt.”

  I found him and entered his mind. Yuck! This guy didn’t have a good cell in his body. His mind was not just in the gutter, it was down the drain and in the sewer. I looked for any recognition of Stacy and didn’t find anything right away. I detected within him a strong athletic ability; his mother must have been close to a cosmic energy event but not quite close enough for him to become a Runner.

  “So… what do you think?” Stacy was excited to hear my opinion of the guy.

  “Why don’t you walk over that way and mingle with people around him. I’ll watch his body language from here.”

  Stacy and Pamela pushed through the crowd until they were in his line of sight. The boy, named Jake Jones, spotted Stacy and gave her body a once over. Pervert! Then he turned to his friend and dismissed Stacy without a second thought. I was pleased with our little covert mission and to find that the disgustingly-minded Mr. Jones wasn’t interested in Stacy, but I knew Stacy would be let down when I told her Jake was a ‘no go’ so I watched different guys as the two girls made their way back to me. A couple of guys were attracted to Stacy, but more were drawn to Pamela.

  “So, what do you think?” Stacy asked me nervously when they returned.

  “He wasn’t interested, sorry. But there were other guys who were. Do you want me to point them out to you?”

  “Really? Are you sure? Because I thought I picked up on a vibe.”

  “You’re welcome to go after him, but beware, he’s nothing but a Conquistador if you ask me.”

  “A what?”

  “A Conquistador; a con-man who will knock you on your keester then kick you out the door when he’s done with you. Look, an interested guy is coming over for you, Stacy, gray jacket, black hair.”

  She turned and gave him the once over and turned back to me. “What do you think about him?”

  I’ve learned that individuals with good hearts have a certain feel to them when I look into their minds; recognizing that feeling makes it easier to figure someone out and this guy was a decent guy. I looked Stacy in the eye and winked and nodded my approval because he was now standing right behind her.

  Pamela and I watched as he introduced himself as Allan Kingston and led her out to dance. They were a cute couple and upon closer inspection I saw in Stacy’s future she would be married to Allan. He would be a successful lawyer due to his extraordinary memory ability and Stacy would teach music lessons from her high-end suburban home. I pulled out of their future and realized that Stacy was a gifted musician. Why hadn’t I paid attention to that aspect of her before? What about Pamela? What cosmic ability did she possess? I felt into her body and found she had a weakened version of a Seer. She would often receive premonitions of events to come and was always shocked when they happened. However, her power wasn’t strong enough to attract Shadow Demons.

  I looked around the room trying to detect and categorize the many different minor abilities in the room. I cannot even begin to describe the feeling flooding through my body as I connected with each individual on a deep level. I found that everyone excelled in some area or another which also solidified in my mind that to be accepted into a major university one must have some extra ability. Each grouping of individuals such as the athletic had varying ranges of intelligence which I found fascinating. Not all jocks are idiots! Oh dear, that kind of thinking will get me beat up.

  A boy by the punch bowl caught my eye. I don’t know why it was called a ‘punch bowl’ it certainly didn’t contain much punch. My Hunter senses determined the alcohol content to be about 40%. He held up two glasses of red colored liquid and nodded to me. Even an ordinary girl would be able to read his body language; he was asking me if I wanted a drink. I shook my head in refusal and smiled. He didn’t persist and set the extra glass down. I was a bit shocked he gave up so easily but when I felt inside his body for his cosmic ability, I realized he didn’t have one.

  An unaltered human.

  I put my two fingers in my mouth and whistled loudly to catch his attention. It worked and I nodded and pointed at the drink. I followed him with my eyes as he weaved through the crowd, came up the stairs, and handed me a glass.

  “Hi, I’m Travis.” He had to holler over the music. He had a pleasant smile, too-tanned skin, short medium blonde hair, a trim body and manicured nails. I don’t know why I noticed his nails, but they were beautiful; well, for a guy. He wore a basic Rock Band tee-shirt and faded blue jeans.

  “Calli.” I reached my hand forward to shake his. Was this normal? Did I come across as being too formal? I wasn’t sure, but he shook my hand.

  “Are you here with someone?”

  “My friends; girl-friends that is.” I was nervous for some reason. Travis was a good looking guy, no doubt about it, but my attraction to him was strictly due to the fact he was unchanged by cosmic energy. “Where are you from?”

  “Central Ohio. You?”

  “Northwest area. What’s your major, Travis?”

  “I haven’t decided. I’m doing my generals. You want to step outside so we don’t have to yell at each other?”

  I nodded and we pushed our way through the crowd. Once outside in the warm night air we continued our conversation. I was enthralled with his expanded vocabulary and deep insights into normally boring topics and how he was able to paint a visual picture in my mind with his words.

  I hadn’t ever encountered another unaltered person except my mother and found it interesting that I couldn’t fully view his future or read his mind with clarity. I could however feel inside his entire body using my Healer senses. I only have a piece of the diamond and maybe that’s why I wasn’t able to fully read another unaltered.

  We talked for a little while until Stacy and Allan interrupted our conversation. Stacy said, “Thanks, Calli, see you later.” The two of them held hands and walked away with a bounce in their steps. Pamela followed soon after.

  “Calli, are you ready to go… or are you—”

  “I’m ready to go. Nice to meet you, Travis,” I said shaking his hand once again before walking away. I read his mind and found it perplexing that he knew my last name was Courtnae.

  I never told him my last name.

  *****

  A couple months went by with the daily rituals of college life playing out. It would seem that I’ve become quite popular in some circles and am known for my ‘matchmaking’ abilities. After the successes of Pamela and Stacy, I’d been searched out by many other girls who wanted a better shot at finding love. Not every match was good because not every girl took my advice. Some ended up with guys who only wanted ‘quickies’ or to be ‘friends with benefits’. I find it hard to understand why a girl who’s looking for a relationship settles for a guy who’s not.

  One girl wanted to know if Brand was interested in her. I laughed out loud when she asked. I answered with, “Brand is interested in all girls, but he doesn’t want to stick with any. He’s a nice guy, but if you’re looking for love and a relationship, he’s not the guy.” Ironically, Brand was the only mind I couldn’t read, well, besides Travis’s.

  I went home for Thanksgiving and was surprised to be visited by Maetha and Beth. I updated Maetha about my Demon devices and she said she knew a few people who might be able to help if my current manufacturer fell through. Beth found it interesting that I had been working on ways to deal with the Shadow Demons and that even with my college studies I still found the time to focus on other things. Beth went on to tell me a little bit about Chris and the fact that he had returned to the Runners' compound to be an instructor. She volunteered way too much information such as the fact that Chris always had a somber look on his f
ace and never smiled, and that a lot of the girls had a crush on him.

  I wished he could be happy and it saddened me to think that he walked around in a state of detachment without hope. The worst part was I knew I couldn’t do anything about it either. I couldn’t let him know everything would work out in the end because if I did, it could alter the future in a way that nullifies the vision I’d had. I rationalized that perhaps Chris had to go through this dark dreary stage in order for the future to pan out.

  Following the Thanksgiving break, I returned to my dorm on Sunday morning. I found that Brand had been busy while I’d been gone and had successfully ticked-off a couple of fraternity guys by stealing their sorority girls and they planned to ‘take him down’ this afternoon at the river dunes. I’d heard all the details several times over before I even reached my room due to the fact that everyone knew me now as Matchmaker Calli; being popular was still a new concept to me and I doubted I’d ever get used to it.

  Once I was in my room, I started to unpack. Brand knocked on the door frame. “Mind if I come in?”

  “Brand, can’t you keep it in your pants for two seconds? I leave you alone to your own devices for five days and this is what I have to come back to?” I laid on the sarcasm extra thick.

  “It’s not a big deal, Calli. Can I help it if these girls want a little more action than what they’re getting from their boyfriends?” Brand walked casually to the chair at my desk and sat down.

  “Just because you can repeat doesn’t mean you should.” I continued to unpack my bag.

  “That’s easy for you to say. I’m in heaven here on campus. It would be a sin not to repeat.”

  “Don’t make me take your Demon device away, Brand. Your night life is probably what brought on the fight planned for this afternoon.” I smiled at him.

  “When will the new devices get here?”

  “They’re still about four weeks out.”