The Gifted

The Prologue

"Wait up!" called the teen to her friends. A spring breeze drifted past, carrying the fresh scent of the wild flowers and nearby trees. It was midway through April when the leaves were a gleaming green and four teenagers had no cares in the world. Tessa Griffin caught up to her three best friends in the world, taking a minute to catch her breath before crouching down onto the blanket, gently falling back so she was now sitting. The four seventeen year olds began to unpack the small picnic that they had formed together. They were located by a lake's edge in the middle of the local forest, well if you count an hour bus ride as local. Insects and bugs flew and crawled all around them but were no strangers. Thick trunks shot up towards the sky, with branches at all levels, completely enclosing the four in the forest. Besides their small talk and gossip, the only other sounds were the gentle rustles of leaves, a child laughing in the far distance and an occasional couple who would walk by.

"If you touch that cake Alex, I will personally drop you on a tree and leave you there" scolded Beth, swatting away Alex's hungry hand before returning to her job of unpacking the food. Tessa had always admired Beth's natural beauty, she need not to wear any makeup, although she still put a light and natural look on, as her skin was pale and flawless. Her eyes were the same shade of blue as when the sunlight broke through the branches and hit the water; Her hair was so long it tickled the bottom of her back loose (but she had tied it into a braid for her outing), and was of the purest blonde Tessa had ever seen. It reminded her of when babies are born and they have a small amount of blonde hair on them. Tessa felt confident about her looks, but Beth was a sight to behold. Tessa's brown hair, that fell just below her shoulder, matched with her hazel eyes, gave her beauty of an average sort. She usually preferred to wear colourful clothing to contrast the bleakness of her features. Tessa couldn't resist a grin when she heard Alex huff and go onto his knees looking at Beth with what Tessa could only have assumed was his 'puppy dog eyes'.

"Please miss, can I have some more?" He held up a paper plate towards Beth. She ignored him. Alex had what some may call 'unnatural natural beauty'. Like Beth, he had blue eyes but his were more the colour of the lake but in the shade. However, compared to the rest of him, his blue eyes were quite boring. His right eye was half blue and half brown, the brown creeping into the blue ever so slightly. Alex's heterochromia partnered with his styled hair the colour of a raven, people were never surprised to hear he had been on the most dates out of the four. Tessa still found him breath-taking after so many years and there were moments, very short and very quick, that sometimes she wondered if she wanted him more than her best friend.

"I would have thought as it's my birthday, I get the first piece" said Eddie, completing the group of four. He sat cross legged on the navy blanket, reaching over to get himself a plate. His light brown eyes shone in the sun, the brown paling and looking near beige. A spring breeze brushed past them, lifting the few strands of Eddie's hair that curled over his forehead. Tessa was convinced that if Alex had not had such unique features, Eddie definitely would have been the eye candy in the group.

"I don't care that it's your birthday, no one's having cake yet until we've had something proper to eat, okay?" said Beth firmly, ignoring the smirks that the boys were throwing at each other and Tessa's snort. She continued to unpack the rest of the picnic; Soon, the teens had a wide variety of food from fruit to sandwiches to a variety of treats, including a vanilla cake covered in white fondant, and topped with a picture of Ash and Pikachu on from Pokémon, spread out across the blanket. Eddie helped himself to a ham sandwich while Tessa began to unpeel a banana. Alex however was eyeing up a pack of chocolate biscuits. "Not until you've had something of some nutritional value" said Beth, already catching onto Alex's juvenile appetite.

"Yes mum" mocked Alex, reluctantly taking a red apple and biting into it. Without finishing his bite, he added "You know, chocolate is made from cocoa which is a plant, so chocolate is like a salad". Tessa tried, but failed, to hide her smile behind her half eaten banana, this was a side to Alex only they could see. He was acted so cool and mature around other people but the minute it was just them four, they were three teenagers and an overgrown toddler.

"One, don't 'yes mum' me; Two, for someone that knows how chocolate is made, I am stunned that you still haven't learnt how to not talk with your mouth full" Beth nibbled at the corner of her chicken and lettuce sandwich and looked very pleased with herself. Alex opened his mouth, revealing a disgusting blend of chewed apple, which his tongue was threatening to push out, and saliva, "Give me strength" prayed Beth under her breath.

"Happy birthday to YOU Eddie" Tessa announced, raising a can of fizzy orange. Eddie grinned and swallowed his last mouthful of sandwich.

"Thank you Tessa, the only person whom knows how to act their age" He smiled and raised his chin towards Tessa, perfectly aware of Alex's proud grin and Beth's apologetic look.

The rest of the afternoon was filled with food, banter, laughs and presents for Eddie.

After singing 'happy birthday' and sharing out the cake, which Alex was delighted to have finally received some, the time had run round to half past five. Picnic blanket, leftover food and gifts were all packed up and the teens went their separate ways. It wasn't even Tessa's birthday but she felt like she was walking on air. Spirits high and brown hair lifting gently in the April breeze, she didn't believe life could get better than this. That evening, after a successful avoidance from her brother, Joe, and her mother, Tessa's head hit her pillow and she fell into a satisfied sleep.

Night loomed over her house, the moon was at its peak, announcing to the world it was the first couple minutes into a new day. A low vibrating came from Tessa's desk. She groaned and rubbed her eye with her finger while yawning deeply. She was taken aback at the fact that is was still night, or very early morning, so it definitely wasn't her school alarm. She forced herself to get out of bed, another yawn escaping her lips, and she squinted at the brightness from her phone as she lifted it up.

Unknown Caller

Tessa swiped answer without even thinking, a mistake she would carry for the rest of her life. "Hello?" She said groggily into the phone.

"Is this Tessa Griffin?" Tessa felt her heart skip a beat, and goose bumps trailed up her arm.

"Um, yeah?" She replied unsurely. The person on the other side of the phone was definitely male. They had a professional tone to their voice, Tessa was almost certain it wasn't anyone from school, "Sorry who is this?"

The man ignored her question, "I'm calling about your Gifted friends, Alexander Wood, Elizabeth Chase and Edward Green" Tessa's goose bumps turned to chills, it was rare anyone spoke to her about her friends while using their full names.

"Has something happened? Is this the hospital? Are they okay?" The questions couldn't be stopped, in a rising panic and change to hysteria, Tessa gripped her desk, trying to prepare herself for what she was going to be told.

"This is not the hospital" the man said, his voice steady but cold, "I am obliged to call one person of the Gifted's choosing to inform them that you will not be seeing them again, you have my condolences" His voice did not match his words, it was the coldest 'I'm sorry' Tessa had ever heard. The man hung up, no more questions to asked, no more answers to be received.

Tessa dropped her phone onto her desk, not caring if it woke Joe or her mother. 'You will not see them again'. The words spun in her head like when you get a line from a song stuck in your head. What did he mean? Were they dead? Was this just a practical joke? Tessa tried to slow her risen breathing, aware her head began to feel light. She convinced herself it was just a joke and tried to go back to sleep.

Monday morning came too quickly for Tessa's liking and her friends, a bunch of other kids and even a small handful of teachers were absent. Tessa had felt sick all day. This continued every day that week. However, it only took until Wednesday for Tessa to realise that the people that had been absent weren't coming back, but also that more people were disappearing. Everyone that was disappearing had been a Gifted. So, it was Wednesday evening, and Tessa was filled with emptiness as the initial shock settled in. None of her friends had been seen, replied to her texts or answered her calls. Her friends were gone, and the worst thing was, Tessa had no idea where.