paranoid.”
Colton walks out of his room and stops at my side, placing an arm over my shoulder. I ignore the butterflies in my stomach that flutter every time he touches me. “Who’s paranoid?”
“Oh goodness, I’m going to go find Claire.” I’m surrounded by a bunch of worry warts. I can feel their eyes on me as I walk away, but I don’t stop or turn around. I walk down the stairs to the kitchen and find Tom and Claire in their usual positions: Claire baking something and Tom sitting at the table reading.
“Claire, do you know of any way to get rid of exhaustion? I can’t seem to wake up fully. I just want to go back to sleep, but I know everyone will start to worry about me if I do.”
“No dear, I’m sorry. I can make you some coffee or something if you don’t want to go to sleep. I think that sleeping would be your best option at this point though.” I crinkle my nose at the prospect of drinking coffee. I hate coffee, but if it will help right now I’ll drink it.
“Sure, coffee sounds great.” I walk over and sit down next to Tom. He smiles at me, but doesn’t say anything. I look out the window and watch the squirrels in the yard, running up the base of the trees. There are a couple of small birds pecking at the ground. It’s so peaceful outside. None of them have to worry about someone chasing after them or bringing an end to a war. They just have to gather food and survive. Their biggest worry is whether or not they can make it across the street without being hit by a car. Suicidal animals.
Claire puts a mug of coffee in front of me, jolting me out of my thoughts. I smile at her and thank her. The cup is warm. I bring it up to my lips and swallow some. It is hotter than I anticipated. I start coughing as the scalding liquid travels down my throat. Tom slaps me on the back with a giant thud. Wincing, I nod at him, telling him that I am fine. That’s going to leave a mark. I take smaller sips, trying to quickly swallow so I can’t taste it for too long.
I sit at the table for a couple more minutes, before venturing back upstairs. I feel slightly more awake now. No one is in the hallway anymore, so I continue walking until I hear voices. Hearing my name, I stop outside the doorway.
“I’m worried about Ryanne, guys. I think something is wrong with her,” says Emma.
“I agree. I was watching her earlier and she seemed to have trouble standing on her own. She kept leaning on everything whenever we stopped walking,” Logan responds. “I wanted to tell her that I may be able to help, but I didn’t want to draw any attention to her. If it’s just simple exhaustion, she just needs to sleep.”
Goosebumps rise on my skin and I start shivering. The hall is freezing cold. I quietly walk back to my room and unzip my suitcase searching for a sweatshirt. Of course I didn’t pack one. I walk back to the entertainment room and interrupt their conversation.
“Does anyone have a sweatshirt I can wear? I forgot to pack one.” I’m visibly shaking at this point. Seeing me, Colton jumps up and leaves the room. Logan walks over to me and grabs my shoulders, turning me towards him. He closes his eyes and concentrates. After a couple of seconds, he shakes his head and reopens his eyes. Colton comes back into the room, carrying a sweatshirt. I gratefully take it from him and put it on. It’s way too long and covers my shorts completely, but it’s warm, so I don’t care.
“There’s nothing I can do. Her body is not used to having so much power inside. That and the lack of sleep. You’re exhausted, Ryanne. Why don’t you go lie down?”
“I’m fine.” I brush past him and sit at the end of the couch, near Liam.
“No you’re not. Quit being so stubborn. Do you want to pass out again?” I ignore him and bring my legs up to my chest and pull the bottom of the sweatshirt over them. Colton’s sweatshirt is so big on me; I don’t have to worry about stretching it out. No one moves; they all just watch me.
“Please stop staring at me. You know how I feel about