The Seer

The Gift

Heather raced ahead, dirt kicking up under her heels slapping Evan in the face. He swiped the particles from his eyes, launching himself toward his friend. The two tumbled over each other before stopping in a giggling heap on the ground, their bodies feet from an old well. Heather quickly untangled herself and raced toward it, peering into its dark pit over the cobbled stone edge. Evan soon joined by her side mimicking her actions. Evan's eyes met Heathers, who were lit with intense curiosity.
"Whaddya' think's down there?" Heather asked, her voice quick and enticing.
Evan shrugged as he stared deep into the well. The blackness and obscurity of its bottom only egging him to stare deeper.

"Water?" Evan finally replied after a silence. He looked back up from the well to find his friend staring at him with an unimpressed expression.

"Seriously?" Replied Heather, picking up a pebble and tossing it gingerly in.
They both waited. Heather especially dramatic as she cupped her hand over her ear.
And then, the echo of a soft plink reverberated from its depths. Like rock colliding with stone. Heather sighed in disappointment. And then promptly shrugged afterwards. Taking steps away she glanced back over at Evan.
"So I guess we're both wrong." She said, picking at her nails.
Evan didn't respond. He still leaned over the edge, his eyes fixated on the seemingly bottomless well.
"Evan?" Heather asked, wondering what could possibly be more interesting about this decaying structure that it kept him unmoved.
No response. She tried again, only to have her call fall on deaf ears. The sound of the external world became drowned out by a subtle yet high pitched screening sound. The same sound one would hear in total silence; with its mono-pitch kreeeeee tone taking over his eardrums.
He leaned further, feeling his body becoming dragged down.
And then, he saw them.
Arms, long and black with boney fingers shoot up, latching onto him.
As he was drug down into the abyss, screams echoing,  he heard a raspy voice calling out.
"We've found you."

"Evan!"
A loud bump awoke Evan from his slumber. His heart racing despite how calmly he'd slept.
Staring at him with bulging green eyes was Heather.
She looked worried.
When she saw him jump awake she seemed to relax slightly.

"Christ Evan I thought you'd died in your sleep."
Heather was morbid. In her speech, dress, interests. It was all dabbled in the macabre.

"Well obviously I didn't" Evan replied sarcastically "are we there yet?"
Heather could tell Evan was deflecting telling her about what he'd dreamt about but took it on the nose and glanced briefly out the bus window

"Close, probably another hour." She said, looking back to him with a grin.
"I cannot wait to get to Manhatten!"
If Evan truthfully had a say in whether he'd go along on this trip or not, he wouldn't be on the bus.
Cities made him feel claustrophobic, like air was being forcibly squeezed out of his lungs.
The trip wasn't his idea either. In all fairness he did like seeing Heather happy. But part of his brain was screaming, about something.
But he couldn't pinpoint it.

"Soooo" Heather's voice rose up again in a curious descend in pitch. "What we're you dreamin' about?"
He couldn't avoid this question, could he?
Evan's heart jumped into his throat. He shrugged, trying to sound casual.

"Just, dream, stuff."
Heather's head dropped to one side, her expression a 'are you serious?' look.
Rather than responding to Evan's obviously pitiful answer, she pressed again.

"Same dream as last time?"

"That was over two months ago, how're you remembering I told you?" Evan quipped defensively. Heather swiveled her body and crossed both her arms over the top of the bus booth.

"Good memory" she responded. "But c'mon Evan, I don't get why it's such a big deal. It was just a freaky ass nightmare, it's not like it means something." She saw Evan's eyes drop and she groaned. "Your kidding me, you actually think your nightmare had some weird cosmic meaning or whatever? I mean really it's just a dream so--."

"I don't know ok?!" He shot back in fearful anger. "But it felt real. Like I was actually being pulled into a well. And every time I wake up, I feel cold, super cold, all over." His words came out fast. "I sleep with three frickin' comforters Heath, plus a heating pad AND a radiator! And I still wake up feeling like I just jumped into the Arctic!"

"Ok ok I get it! Sorry..." She back off, momentarily turning her head to the window. "I was just asking..." Despite being somewhat angry over the subject, it didn't last long. He'd known Heather since pre-school and she'd had it bad.
Real bad.
The least he could do is cut her some slack.

"Sorry I freaked out I was just--."

"No Evan I get it." She interrupted. "It's a scary ass fever dream and you don't like talking about it. I probably would've said the same." He could tell she was still upset. But rather than try to apologize he did something he knew she couldn't resist.

"Yeah but you would've been twice the bitch." He replied with a smirk. Heather swiveled around, her mood changing instantly as a grin spread across her black lips.

"Hey I own my bitchiness. And I'm damn proud of it!" She declared.

"Yeah but your my bitch." Evan shot back again chuckling. Heather faked a gasp and shoved him in one shoulder.

"I am not!" She laughed.

"You know what I meant!"
The two bantered back and forth with insults. They were like pirates or drunken sailors. If one called the other ugly they would reply with how the opposite looked like barfed up garbage.
The kind of friendship that allowed you to brutally insult one another knowing well it was all in fun; and that your friendship was a deep one.
If not occasionally annoying.
And that's partly what made them inseparable.

It was evening upon reaching Manhattan, and not one part of the city had gone to sleep. It was alive as ever. Nightclubs were lit, restaurants still bustled, and the sidewalks were still plenty crowded.

Evan felt a vibrant light ignite in his mind. He'd only ever lived in small or suburban towns. Places that, while lively, were never comparable to cities in their activity. This place had cars racing and turning on every road he could see from the bus window. Gazing upward he saw buildings that seemed to pierce the sky. The side walks were crowded, and no doubt noisy.
This might be harder than he thought.
Then again he had Heather with him, and she had been navigating busy cities her whole life. Probably the reason he never saw her much save for on holidays. She was always disappearing to some place new.
"Hop off!" Heather's voice rang as she tugged Evan to his feet. "My apartments just up a few blocks. Go on ahead, I'll catch up." She started off in the opposite direction

"Hey wait!" Evan grabbed her arm. "Address? Jeez, I don't even have a key." Fishing through the pocket of her black leather pants Heather tossed him a jingling pile of metal.

"I'll text you the address kay'?"
And with that she was gone, melting into the sidewalk crowds. Seconds after vanishing Evans phone buzzed with the promised message from Heather.
Well, he had some hours to kill. Where in New York was a hot spot? Evan had only been here once before.

If he couldn't find hot spots, he could find what pretty much everyone remembered about New York.
Central Park.
And the rumors were true, it was huge. From one street corner you couldn't even see to the other corner. Entrances to the park poked out everywhere and the whole landscape was covered in flourishing trees and flowers.

Man this was gonna do murder on his allergies. Good thing he had drugs.
And a little weed for extra help.

As Evan casually strode into the park, a woman with silky black hair; sitting on a nearby bench, legs crossed, perked up. She held up a phone to her ear, her emerald gaze not leaving Evan's until he disappeared from view.
"Tell the others I've found him." She spoke with a Hispanic accent.
"The last Seer"