Kassy and I are making our way through the freshmen party, listening to random conversations and boisterous laughter as we go. The people are free and wild as they have their first taste of adult life. The atmosphere in this room is so warm and equally chaotic. I am having a hard time focusing on one thing at a time in my vision state.
The majority of the students are faceless, and my steps feel liquefied and slow. I turn to ask Kassy a question. Before I can get the unknown words out, I realize Kassy is gone from the spot she was standing just moments before. I scan the faceless crowd and find Kassy’s shoulder-length ponytail turning a corner to an upstairs bedroom.
I move slowly after her up the stairs, wondering why she didn’t tell me where she was going. When I enter the bedroom, I see her standing outside on a balcony, leaning uncomfortably close to a strange man I have never seen before. His back is turned to me, but I can already tell he is older than us and overdressed in a suit and tie. His long, tan fingers reach up to brush a strand of hair away from Kassy’s blissful face. I cannot help the concern that washes over me at the sight. Kassy is not an overly forward girl and she is way too cozy with this complete stranger.
I step around the guy to grab Kassy’s arm when the man spins and looks me dead in the eyes. I step back abruptly and stifle a scream when I see that he is not faceless like the others, but his eyes are completely black from corner to corner. My stomach drops and he literally hisses at me like a snake before jumping over the balcony edge and disappearing into the night.
I open my eyes to the white tile floor pressed against my cheek. Grateful that Kassy likes a clean bathroom, I look around the room and realize I just had another vision. I have had a few of these visions each year since my parents died. It wasn’t until a week ago when we moved to Jacksonville, that they have been more frequent and so clear like this one was. I also have never felt such raw fear after a vision like this. Who was that black-eyed man?
This is the big secret my parents told me I must always keep to myself. The one thing I hide from the people I love most. My mom and dad knew that someday I would be able to predict certain things but never speak of it. So, I never told Aunt Mags, and I haven’t even told Kassy, for fear I’d lose my best friend. But it looks like I may end up losing her to someone or something else anyway unless I can use my power to protect her.
Chapter 2
I cannot get that haunting vision out of my head. Kassy and I have spent the entire day perfecting our best cute, but casual looks for our first college party, although I’m having a hard time getting excited. Even though Kassy is not aware of my secret ability and the cause of my see-sawing emotions, I just know that she suspects I have been hiding something for years but doesn’t talk about it.
Kassy has dressed me up in brand new, skin-tight jeans and a shiny blue blouse that sways around me in a playful manner. Against Kassy’s wishes, I also put on my usual black flats because, unlike her, I have always chosen comfort over style. Kassy is gussied up a little more in a knee-length black dress with a wide neck and half sleeves. She dons her fancy 4-inch black heels that I would absolutely fall and break my neck in.
“Let’s go, girly! Ooh, this is going to be so fun!” Kassy yells from the front door, ready to take on the world.
I rush after her, not so ready. “Yeah yeah, here I am,” I say as I lock the door behind me and breathe in the thick mountain town air.
I climb into her little Bug, still a bit shaken from what the night may bring, and we drive the thirty minutes out of Jacksonville, to the university in Ashland.
We pull up to the curb in front of a huge white house, just outside campus. An instant rush of déjà vu assails me as we make our way up the brick steps and into the beautiful home. My eyes never leave Kassy with each step we take through the carefree crowd.
“Let’s go look for Liam!” I yell to her over the loud music, in the hopes that a second pair of eyes watching over Kassy will prevent my vision from happening.
Liam is a new friend of ours that we met during freshman orientation the day after we got to town. He and Kassy hit it off instantly and have been talking almost daily ever since. I don’t know if I see romance on the horizon, but I definitely see a lifelong friendship forming fast for all three of us.
Kassy looks at me over her phone with a pouty lip poking out. “Liam just texted me that he can’t make it tonight! I guess he has the flu or something.” She shoves her phone in her purse, disappointed. “He said he’ll take us dancing next week to make up for it.”
“Well, I guess I’ll just have to be your dance partner tonight then,” I say with a deep rumble in my voice as I bow at the waist and offer her my hand.
She laughs loudly at my awful attempt at sounding manly and nearly chokes on her big gulp of water. A cute bodybuilder looking guy interrupts her outburst with a tap on her shoulder. “Hey, I uh, don’t know what’s so funny but I’d like to hear about it on the dance
