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(2) Zeya's POV

“Mom!” I called, throwing open the front door. The house was dead silent, so I called again. “Mom!” I stomped into the kitchen, spotting a note on the counter. Snatching it up, I skimmed over it.

Zeya, had to go to Nan's real fast. I'll be back in the morning, take care. Emergency money's on the counter.

~ Mom

I rolled my eyes, slamming the note down on the countertop. The one person I needed to talk to was gone.

Typical.

I stormed upstairs and plopped down on my bed, still shaken from what had happened with Adam.

What exactly had happened? I still wasn’t sure. Maybe it was just an accident or maybe his jacket got caught on the branches? No, that wasn’t even possible!

You imagined the branches picking him up and that’s exactly what they did.  I flew my back against the bed, lying down as I buried my face into my hands. I sat like this for a few minutes, still attempting to take in the situation. When I finally forced myself to sit up, I gazed towards the window. I felt an extreme temptation to go out and touch another tree; I wanted to see if I could do it again.

I slipped into a pair of dark wash jeans and an old leather jacket, heading into the backyard. It wouldn’t hurt to just go out and try, I repeat over and over again in my head as I descended into the woods. I held my head down as I carefully took step after step.

The sun was setting, however, I could still see my way around. Soon I knew I wouldn’t be able to. When I felt like I had gone far enough, I stopped in front of a large oak tree. Feeling slightly foolish, I placed my hand on the tree and closed my eyes.

I felt that inner connection that I had before. I imagined the tree branches picking me up, but nothing happened. I peeked open my left eye, seeing no change in the environment around me.

Why wasn’t it working?

I became furious in that moment that all I wanted to do was yell. There lied my problem. I needed to calm myself down. I closed my eye and took in a deep breath.

I imagined the branches reaching down, swooping me off my feet again. At first, I thought it didn’t work, but when I felt the cool breeze blowing through my hair and something poking my skin, I dared to open my eyes.

I was no longer on the ground. Instead, I was looking at it. I screamed as I was brought up and was set down at the top of the tree. Gripping onto the trunk, I held it tightly.

Terror ran through my body but the longer I held on to the tree, the quicker the feeling disappeared. Soon, I dared to let go. I stood atop the tree, staring at the ground below. I was, at least, eight feet in the air.

I found myself laughing in amazement. This was incredible! This wasn’t a dream! I had . . . power. I could change my life, become a somebody. I turned my head around and I noticed I had a perfect view of the sun setting.

Feeling comfort, I watched as it slowly set. The scene was beautiful and I was glad I had the privilege to see it. I could have stayed up there forever, enjoying the beauty. But a branch snapped below me.

My head shot down and all I could see was a person’s figure. I knew if they told anyone it could be bad. After all, wouldn’t the government turn me into a science experiment?

“Hey!” I called, assuming the person would wait for me to come down; the opposite happened. The person, instead, took off running. “Put me down,” I commanded to the tree, placing my palm against it. The branches quickly wrapped around my waist and set me down onto the ground.

As soon as my feet touched the leaves, I took off after the person. Sadly, they had a head start. No matter how fast I found myself darting after them, they always managed to stay ahead of me. Watching as they stumbled and crashed against a tree, I accelerated my speed.

They, of course, kept sprinting away from me.

I took a quick second to catch my breath, putting my hand against the tree they had stumbled against. Suddenly, I was thrown into what I assumed was a flashback. I saw the person run up and touch the tree, his face hidden in the darkness.

Why was I following some stranger, just because they’d seen a tree assault me?  Although, to the average person, seeing a tree attack someone would create interest. I knew I would never catch up to the person though, and decided to leave it be.

If they told a single person, no one would believe them anyway.

Shrugging, I made my way home, carefully avoiding the trees as I did so. Even though I didn’t touch them, I could almost feel the peace radiating from each of them.

When I got back home, I changed out of my mud-streaked clothes and put on a clean pair of shorts.  Sprawling onto my bed, I checked my phone.  Five texts were sitting in my inbox.  I flipped through them.

A message from Verizon Wireless warning me about low credit, one from Mom telling me that Nan had tripped and knocked out her hip, two from Amanda and Chelsea saying variations of ‘where the hell did you go’, and one from Adam.

I clicked on Adam’s.   

Sorry for everything, I wasn't thinking straight.  But do you know what happened? All I remember is the tree picking me up and then tossing me. That's not possible! We need to talk.  Can I come over?  Do you mind?

I sighed, holding the power button until my phone shut down.

How could I talk to him when I didn’t fully understand myself?