blinding; an e. o'connor short story

chapter iii; truth be told

"I cαɴ ғeel нιѕ preѕeɴce нere ιɴ every ѕтoɴe нe нαѕ lιғтed υp,
every ѕтreeт αɴd αlley αɴd cιтy тнαт нe нαѕ cнαɴɢed ιɴ тнe ғew yeαrѕ oғ нιѕ lιғe,
вecαυѕe нe ιѕ тнe Repυвlιc, нe ιѕ oυr lιɢнт, αɴd I love yoυ,
I love yoυ, υɴтιl тнe dαy we мeeт αɢαιɴ I wιll нold yoυ ιɴ мy нeαrт αɴd proтecт yoυ тнere, ɢrιevιɴɢ wнαт we ɴever нαd, cнerιѕнιɴɢ wнαт we dιd.
I love yoυ, αlwαyѕ."
-Froм 'Cнαмpιoɴ (Leɢeɴd ♯3)' вy Mαrιe Lυ

Saturday, 7th December 1963 | Tuesday, 3rd September 1940

Horace and Enoch kept their confused gazes trained on me. Miss Peregrine's previous remark about seeing how it was didn't really help with keeping them out of my business. If only there was a way for me to get better at hiding my reactions to longer visions, the shorter ones, like the one about Emma and the two boys, were much easier to ignore.

"So what now? Are we just going to stand around or are you going to tell us what you saw?", Enoch spoke up and gave me a funny look. I decided that the vision was, even if it did concern Enoch (so did the one about Victor but that was an entirely different story), meant for Horace's ears only, so I went and grabbed him by his arm to which he protested but still went along nonetheless. Enoch raised an eyebrow and muttered something along the lines of "women these days". Once I'd dragged Horace far away enough from prying ears I began to tell him of my vision earlier.

"I had a vision about Enoch... specifically about Enoch and I. We- uh... we-"

"You what? Just get it out, Robyn! It can't be too bad."

"Wekissedandhetoldmehelovedme!", I exclaimed perhaps a little too fast and a slight bit too loud as well.

Horace's eyes grew a little larger as he asked unbelievingly, "You two did what?"

"Heavens, Horace! I don't even know him and I'm having weird visions about him! I knew there was something off about the frequency of us being together in your dreams as well, in the way we talk to each other in them. We were just too stupid to see it, Horace! And now it's hit me in the face!"

Horace sighed and brought his hand to his chin, rubbing it in thought.

"You're right, the two of you did seem rather intimate in my dreams at least. And now this... Will you tell him now or when it happens?"

"What? Horace! I can't tell him! I'm not even interested in him!"

"Well, that's too bad then since he sure seemed interested in you just now," Horace remarked with a sly smile on his face, adjusting his monocle. I looked at him with the most unbelieving look ever on my face. Enoch was interested in me?, I asked myself in thought. It had a nice ring to it after having my latest vision. On the outside I could feel my face getting warm yet again. I hit Horace's arm and turned around, running off again. Before entering the house I spotted Enoch sitting where Horace and I had sat earlier, one of his homunculi in hand, shaggy blonde hair covering his expression from the side. I ripped my gaze from him as fast as possible, then paraded back into Emma's room.

The door flew open with a crash and I averted my gaze from the book on my lap. Emma stood in the doorframe, bright grin on her face, a horrified-looking Horace rushing from my vision as soon as he spotted me sitting on my bed. Emma closed the door behind herself and skipped over to my bed in a flash. Immediately she had her hands propped under her chin and was looking at me with that all-knowing smirk of hers.

"So, I hear you've had a vision about Enoch and yourself? I want details," Emma demanded.

"Horace, you little traitor," I whispered under my breath barely loud enough for Emma to hear. She chuckled and then asked, "So? Anything you want to tell me about this vision?" I sighed.