Submerged in Water

"Robyn said she couldn't make it today, had something to do." Rune said just as he landed near the cove. "You should really get a cellphone." He added.

"Been begging my parents for years, no luck." I sighed.

I had dropped the one-piece swimsuit today because it was in the wash and pulled out the black two-piece bikini that I had planned to wear if I had lost more weight, which I had. I figured it wouldn't matter if Robyn was here but now that she had cancelled, I secretly cursed because I was stuck with it on. With Rune. Alone.

You do the math.

I was still in the water and I thought if I just didn't exit, he wouldn't really notice and there wouldn't be much of a problem.

"Did you talk to Aubrey?" He asked.

"Yeah." I swam a little closer to the edge of the river without exposing my body. "She says that Jonathan and Scott aren't that close, or at least, it felt that way to her. She also said that whenever she catches the two having a conversation that it abruptly ends with her arrival."

"You think they're hiding stuff from her?" He asked.

I shrugged. "Maybe, but she added that Jonathan was a nice guy and that he even hugged her the first time they met."

Rune's eyes furrowed at that. "Has Jonathan touched you yet?"

"What!?"

"Don't get mad." Rune steadied me. "I need to know because well... I guess we really haven't talked much about Enders yet."

"Yeah. You said they were the third race in the tri-supernatural world."

He nodded. "Yup. I haven't noticed any at the school, for good reason, they're good at blending in. They don't have a set eye colour or hair colour like Oro and Kamille do because the Ender are just a more evolved version of a regular human."

"Oh?"

"The Kamille are of the water. Oro of the wind and Enders are of the Earth. Earth, Air, Water. The normal elements."

"Ohhhh." I understood now. "So humans are just a de-evolved version of the Ender?"

"To put it shortly, yes, since the history for that is a bit detailed." Rune chuckled. "Anyway, the reason I wanted to know if Jonathan had touched you yet is because Enders all get a special ability that usually involves exposing something about that person if they make skin-to-skin contact. It has to do with the Enders being part of nature and all that crap. They are more connected with emotions, feelings and destiny."

"So if he makes skin-to-skin contact with me he can...?"

"I don't know. It's different for ever Ender. It usually has to do with whatever kind of person they're destined to be. Enders believe strongly in fate and what your life path will be. Some people can see the person's future, some can tell you where your happiness lies and some can even tell you things you might not want to know, like when you will die or what impact your soul will make on Earth."

"Wow, that's so cool."

He shook his head, a smile on his face. "Not so much, at least when you're younger, that is. When Enders are coming into puberty, it's a lot harsher than it would be for a Kamille or an Oro and a lot of them don't know how to adjust to their new-found abilities and what they're supposed to do with their life. Their race is about finding the truth and about keeping the natural flow of the Earth unharmed. If any of them are near here, you can bet on your life, that it's because of you."

I laughed, but it was purely out of nervousness. "What else is new?"

Rune had distracted me with his Ender discussion and I had forgotten about my original plan to stay in the water. So that when I exited and walked towards Rune, I didn't notice until Rune's eyes left my face and travelled downwards.

Rune swallowed, hard. "But yeah." He went on, trying to remain composed. "At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if Jonathan was an Ender. His brother too."

"Scott?"

He nodded. "Actually, the more I think about it, the more sense it makes. Enders are rarely ever confused and they know what needs to be done. Think of them as the Gandhi or Jesus of the supernatural community. They know all."

"If they know all, then how would that explain Scott planting the hydrangea?"

"Actually, it makes more sense that Scott would plant the hydrangea. They may know all, in terms of destiny and what needs to be done, but when it comes to outside influences that are unknown, they might feel threatened and are trying to determine how dangerous you really are."

"So it was a test then?"

He kept his eyes off of me and started pacing back and forth along the sand. "Possibly."

I stared at Rune's bare chest. I liked being out near the cove with him, he seemed so much more at ease with his wings out and his body exposed. I could relate, since I knew how hard it was to keep yourself hidden.

"And to answer your first question. No, I don't think he's touched me."

"What about Scott?"

I had to think about that one. "Maybe once or twice."

"Any time recently, within the past couple of weeks. After you started meeting Robyn and I?" He persisted.

I began to shake my head and then stopped. "Wait, maybe once."

"When?"

"When he was trying to set me up with Jonathan, I think he may have."

Rune stopped his pacing to stare at me. "He tried to set you up with him?"

A slow and yet wicked smile spread on my face. "You wouldn't be jealous, would you?"

"No." He mumbled. "Anyway, you think he may have touched you?"

"Yeah, actually, now that I remember it, when he touched me, he retracted his hand like I just burned him or something. I didn't think much of it since I was focusing on Layla at the time."

"Oh." He pursed his lips in thought. "So when was this?"

"A day or two after I'd met you, before Robyn came into the picture."

"Shit." He cursed. "I wish we had started talking about this sooner and you know what? For once I actually wish Robyn was here. She told me not to call her though."

"Why? Is there something I should know?"

"Well, everything adds up, why Scott is dating your sister and why Jonathan moved back to town just as you were meeting up with me. It can't be just coincidence. Enders don't believe in coincidence. So unless I'm totally jumping to conclusions, Scott and Jonathan are probably Enders."

I groaned and threw up my hands in surrender. "Is there anybody not in my life that is supernatural?"