She walks with elegance to an unknown beat, which is always in her head - there's never silence. It could drive some crazy, but she's used to it - probably because she knows that one day there will be silence, and so all she has to do is wait.

I can feel emotions just dripping off a person. It's usually slick and wet with words and images; I can just taste in the air and watch it dancing on my fingers if I raise it in the air and strike it threw the thick sensations. It feels like gauze.

It's helpful sometimes but it's mainly annoying or sickening. It's helpful only around friends and lovers, because at work all I feel is the sleaze or the boredom and it's hard to concentrate on my own work when all I can sense and hear behind me is aggravated boredom or slick thoughts of what they'd like to do to whoever. It's hard to keep up a professional relationship with someone when you can feel what they're thinking and feeling in such vivid detail. They can't know what I do. It's embarrassing for all and I've heard what they'd done to witches in the past and present. Let me tell you right now that I am no witch though, I'm simply more...in tune with what's going on around me. I haven't done anything special; I haven't inherited any special blood or anything of the sort. I guess my head just works in a different way to most...I read signs that are there for all to see and that are ignored most of the time. If I point out what I see then sometimes another can slowly learn to read the signs but it's not often another cares enough to learn, or they eventually get annoyed that it's so much harder for them than it is for me...

As soon as I feel the jealousy I back off. Jealousy is a suffocating feeling and I hate it. I hate being around it.

Love is awkward to be around. A couple can be stinking of love even if they're sitting at opposite ends of a table because their thoughts are always connected. In my childhood I was sickened by it, that's why I stray so far from relationships. Those kinds of emotions are too powerful, and I hate getting headaches.

I like hate. It has energy and power, and it warms me up inside. I can breath in hate the easiest out of all the emotions and it wakes me up better than coffee does – it’d like a thrill.

I guess the worst to be around is passion, how you are too near a couple having sex? That’s just embarrassing. Thankfully the only real time I have to worry about it is when I fly, but I usually inform a hostess of what’s going on so it’s quickly ended. I’m quite malice at times but who the hell wouldn’t be if you were feeling those emotions out of the blue? It’s quite sickening.

It was rough going through school – especially through exams. I could feel all the stress and worry, the weight of everyone’s turns enough to turn my stomach into a mess as the air was thick with frets and upsets. I’m all through that now of course, but I hated it. I figure if I’m ever in a situation where we’re all about to die – a plane crash or if I was caught in a burning building with no chance of escape that I would be killed before any other elements could get me - the crushing fear and panic of those around me would simply squeeze the life out of me in an instant. A cruel fate, but it's unlikely I'd be in such a situation anyway so I try not to dwell on it.

It is interesting though...

This gift (or curse) turns even the most simple experience into a huge deal.

Take falling in love for instance. One simple experience is enough to harm me enough for a lifetime. But I always knew if I found the right guy…he could even be my cure. But would anyone ever go through that extra trouble?

Not likely…

She was running, trying to close off her mind to it for the first time in years – like she had done as a child. She didn’t want to feel it anymore, she wanted to reject it so much – if she had to break her own mind she would in an instant if it meant she would finally be free from the tender awkwardness she had felt from both him and herself – emotions mixing together fluidly as he had taken her hand in his.

“Would you wait!?” he demanded, and she felt flickers of irritation which powered her on, drinking on the adrenalin, and tried to ignore the desperation of his emotions which weighed her down.

She knew that it was too risky, if she took what he offered. He was only a thing of pain, bringing his own emotions and making her create her own as he even just smiled at her! It was hopeless! She knew it had been a mistake to tell him everything but she couldn’t help it, as soon as he had asked her so sweetly to tell him what was wrong…it all just came flushing out…

…And then he hadn’t even treated her like a freak…

How could he just look like that? How could he offer his help, murmur so sweetly that he wanted to help her through it?

What kind of flaming imbecile was he!?

She stumbled as angry tears fell from her cheeks and then yelped as her wrist was grabbed in his hand and he hauled her against his chest, saving her from hitting the pavement.

“Don’t be so scared of everything!” he demanded, and didn’t step back as she rounded to face him, eyes ablaze.

“You have no idea of what I go through!” she snapped. “I’ve lived this life – you haven’t! You have no idea at all!”

“But I can – if you just take one more risk and trust me!” he demanded, voice clearly exasperated. His bag with all his textbooks in it from uni were strewn behind them on the footpath along with her own bag, even her violin case was dropped on the ground and she didn’t want to ever open it again and witness the damage.

“Look…” he took a deep breath, trying to catch his breath. “…We’ve known each other for ages now…almost a year. …Have I ever done anything wrong besides try to get to know you?”

“You stole a pen from me once.” She muttered, looking off to the side at the cars busily passing them. “…You borrowed it and then never gave it back…”

“What?”

“…It was my favourite pen…” she muttered, feeling embarrassed at her lame remark as he looked at her in slight bewilderment.

“You mean this one?” he fished the very same pen from his pocket and pressed it into her hands, which flinched back from his immediately as his emotions shot stronger from his fingertips through to hers and he apologised.

“…I’m not worth it.” She muttered, realising that he was now missing soccer practise for this. “…It’ll be too much work…”

“You are too, idiot. And I need to work out more, getting a bit flabby.” He joked, and managed to raise a smile out of her hesitantly.

"Look, fear can hold you prisoner. Hope can set you free.” He suddenly turned serious, knowing he could easily lose her. At least at that moment she was listening. “...Someday you won't feel as much. You need to release your fear so it won't bother you as much. That’s what the big problem is…you’re so afraid of the pain and dealing through all those extra emotions you don’t want to try, do you?” He carried on without letting her reply. “…I’ll go about it anyway you like Tess, but you’ll never be able to cope if you don’t get experience…and teach your mind how to cope with it all, right? I’ll go as slowly as you want, I’ll try my best to hold back everything, all thoughts and feelings until little by little you can handle more and more…"

“You’d do that for me?” she asked quietly, as if she had finally heard the words she had always been hoping for.

“Of course…I think you expect too little from those around you.” He raised an eyebrow at her and she looked away in embarrassment.

“…I hope…that I can give you hope.” He murmured. “Hope that one day you’ll be free from this all or you’ll at least one day be able to handle the emotions of a thousand people at once.” He touched her hair softly and ignored as she flinched, brushing the loose hair behind her ear. "If you trust in that hope...you'll soon forget your worries. At least, that's what I hope will happen," he chuckled, smiling warmly at her as she looked at him with a blush. "Maybe if you stop worrying about it…that’ll be a few less emotions you need to deal with and that’ll be enough so that you do cope. …So, what do you say? Will you give it a go?"

"…I'll try." she nodded, a strong look in her eyes as she gazed at the ground with rosy cheeks. “…But I still think you’re crazy…”

“Most people do.” He agreed with a nod. “We’re a bit of a pair then, aren’t we?”

“Except that the people who think I’m crazy are right.” She frowned, and then found her hand instinctually reaching for his. “…Promise I won’t drive you crazy? …This won’t be fun…”

“Life usually isn’t. It’s a good thing you’re pretty hot.” He joked, and then laughed as she hit him. He finally had her. And she was finally nearing the silence.

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This was written for a challenge on FictionNET (Link to such site can be found in my profile.)

The challenge was: Original/AF Challenge 13/08: Tag! You're It.

I hope you like :) If you're interested in such challenges please join FictionNET and tell them Keladryie sent you!