“Noted,” she said, rolling her eyes,
He stepped in close, close enough for comfort but not so near she mistook comfort for ease. “Talk to me.”
“About what?” she muttered
“Anything. It’s harder to control your energy when you’re using another part of your brain.” he said, as if this would make this session any less mundane.
She snorted. “Fine. Erin made a jungle out of the kitchen yesterday. Mary didn’t blink, which is strange for her, she really hates when shits not organised. Sam is also weird, she pretended she didn’t like all the flowers but saved a flower behind her ear.”
“Left ear?” Byron asked
“Right.” She answered, with a side eye.
“Means she’s in love.” He giggled
“With who?” Lucy demanded.
“Knives,” Byron said deadpan, and Lucy’s laugh broke the surge that had been pushing up her throat. The light in her eyes softened back into her irises. He nodded. “Again.”
They went like that for an hour, breath, talk, partial flare, control. At one point he made her recite the entire grocery list Mary had rattled off at dawn. At another he asked her to describe the feel of each person’s presence in her mind.
“Barnaby?”
“Fast and minty.”
“Minty?”
“Like chewing gum, when you take that first bite.”
“Sam?”
“Steel. But warm. Like a sword that’s been handled so much it knows your grip.”
“Nick?”
“A firework you’ve already lit.”
“Corey?”
“Guard dog. But the kind that will let a toddler braid his hair if he thinks no one is watching.”
Byron’s mouth curved. “Damien?”
“A locked door with a light underneath it.”
He hesitated. “Mary?”
Lucy swallowed. The word that came wasn’t exactly a word at all. “Theedgeof something, I can't put my finger on it”
“Mandy?” Byron interjected.
“A Canvas. Waiting for paint.”
“And me?” His voice went softer.
She let the answer slide into his mind where it belonged,Love.They stopped and just stared at each other. The door eased open. Mary stood at the threshold with Mandy just behind her. “It's Mandy’s turn” Mary said to Byron, and before he could protest, he caught Lucy’s eye and surrendered. “Fine.” He squeezed Lucy’s arm.I love you, so much more,he sent, a warmth that filled her chest like breath after a long run.
As they left the room Mandy came and joined Lucy. “Let’s try what we talked about, start how you would with Byron, but now imagine you bringing your thread, as we use to call it towards me.” Mandy said. Lucy nodded slowly. She closed her eyes. A current spooled under her ribs like a quiet ribbon. She lifted it and imagined carefully laying it over Mandy’s outstretched hands.
