My Surreal Story (to be continued)

Today has been an up and down day.
I felt fine in the morning.. I even went for a run in the park with my dog.
But in the afternoon I've come down with something.. and I'm feeling sick, actually, feverish atm.
So I decided to write this short story.. it's actually a dream I had the other day and it's kind of surreal. I think I'm going to sketch out what I saw in my dream.. because it was soo surreal, so different.. and I think I actually experienced this emotion unconsciously in my sleep. Aneways, enjoy =)

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I stared at the ocean.

In all honesty I've never seen anything so beautiful. Just to think a man created this haven, this home with the ocean at its feet.

Perfection.

Tears strolled softly down my cheek. I was angry and almost felt sorry for myself. How is it possible being this rich? Having the possibility of building such great things? Why is this not mine?

The tears grew stronger and I found myself sobbing. I have never felt this low, this pathetic.
I can have all of this, I thought. I can make it all mine. But no, I won't.. not with the responsibility I take on everyday..

"I planted those three palms", he said, interrupting my thoughts. He walked onto the balcony and leaned on the railing admiring his kingdom.
"I was three years old when my father said to me, 'point where you want them son' and so I did. All I can remember are the big machines that moved the trees to that very spot".

Why is he telling me this? Days ago he hated me, hated all of us for invading his territory, his home.

I whiped my tears quickly with the towel before he turned around. How much I hate him. I hate all things about him and he knows.

"I know we haven't gotten around to a good start. But I learned a lot about you over the past few days and I understand everything", he said.

"I don't think you have the slightest idea what we're about. You can stop pretending you care. Really, it's ruining your image", I said back.

"That's unfair. You think I wanted all of this? You think I'm prepared to take on what lies ahead for me and my family?"

"I think you know all the percks of the job and you take advantage of all of them".

He sat down on the leaning chair beside me. His grey Hugo Boss suit and Italian leather shoes made me uncomfortable. He looked at me with a serious face as I hid the army green bikini I was wearing with my towel. He senced my uncomfort, took off his jacket, and motioned to his server to get a bottle of wine.

"I don't like this tension between us. I made a mistake judging you guys but I trust you and am willing to help in any way I can. You know I have the power to do so. So why don't you start from the beginning. Tell me your story, and I'll tell you mine".

I was surprised at how relieved I was to hear him say that. Finally, a sigh of relief. I looked back into his deep blue eyes and saw a young man who was lost but fearless. I have nothing to lose and quite frankly we were floating on the same raft, facing the same open ocean. I can see by the formulation of his thoughts that he is sincere. Fine. I will let down this wall and maybe, just maybe he will be the first to believe my story.

I leaned my head back on the chair, closed my eyes, and imagined it all from the start.

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Rumours.

They were all around me as I walked through the park.

These dirty words in the air, hanging, waiting for sentences to catch them. The sentences were being built and sucked into the minds of others. I saw this of course. The whole process. It was my gift. I see sentences in this raw dark form waiting to be absorbed by the imagination of ordinary people. I see their choices in their minds and their beliefs in their eyes.

But the truth is, on this day I did not believe any of this circulating bull shit.

Timothy, at the centre of it all, was above all this. I knew him well and we all knew he would never commit to such a crime.

I knew Tim from university. We met randomly in the school cafeteria where he was presenting this new computer software he discovered (to anybody that wanted to listen). As I walked by his power point presentation, it felt to me that he singled me out from his little crowd of mostly Asian peeps. I tried looking for his words in the air but couldn't see anything he was going to talk about. At that moment, my thoughts were interrupted and I felt a whisper in my ear "Uhmega"..

"Uhmega?" I said loudly.

"Yes. Uhmega. You're absolutely right", Tim said pointing in my direction.

I had no idea what he was talking about. Nor had I ever heard anyone pronounce Omega in that manner. Trapped in this phase of curiosity and awe.. I stayed, listened to his presentation and was convinced to be taken out for an ice cappucino.

That was the day Tim and I became good friends.

I always knew there was something mysterious about Tim. But I was not expecting, nor would I believe what I was going to hear about him from the Keepers.

I met Sayah that same day the rumours about Tim circulated. Prior to that walk in the park, I thought all the words I saw floating in the air were illusions of an unknown metal disorder I had. Earlier in the day Tim sent me a text to meet him and some members of a club he belonged to in Dux Field by the Lake. He belonged to numerous clubs and organizations in school so I thought this was another social meet he didn't want to sit through by himself. But as I walked through the park on that evening I found the isolation and darkness very odd. Something was off.. where was everybody? Where was this event Tim dragged me into.

That's when I saw the words. "Tim".. "killer".. "knifed a girl".. "death".. "dangerous".

All these words ringing around in circles. At first I couldn't see who these thoughts belonged to, where they were coming from. But then at a spot on a hill surrounded by Hibbiscus bushes I saw what looked like a group of people sitting and laying down, pointing in the air, talking, yelling. None was laughing. At moments it looked like they were appearing and disappearing. It had to be the lighting, I thought. I approached the group, who stopped to look at me, a stranger among known company.

The Gift Keepers, or Keepers, I learned that day were an ancient group of people with gifts of the supernatural. Tim was the second to find out about his gift, thus, making him one of the elders of the group. He and Sayah shared the same gift; that of controlling motion. Sayah however, was the oldest and wisest. She was a thick skinned woman, born and raised in the Carribean. Sayah grew up with the knowledge of her gift. It was passed onto her from her ancestors, and as so, she was the one responsible for bringing us all together. Her instruction was to safe keep all gift keepers and reveal our gifts only if we were in danger.