Tied

My head pounded as we silently got in Raven’s car and drove home. The psychic’s words oozed through my head like magma, and fear ran similarly through my heart.

Einstein was inside of me… he spoke with my voice, with my tongue. I wasn’t sure whether to feel honored or seriously creeped out. I was also thinking about what the spirits said, and what that really meant for us. I could tell the others were contemplating similar things.

We decided to skip dinner together, and Raven drove us home. Unfortunately, we all lived in different parts of the county, so Raven had to do a lot of driving. We each contributed a few dollars in gas money to make up for it. Our first stop was Rhea’s house, and Raven decided to walk her up to the front door (not an obvious display of affection at all). Aurore and I sat in the car, pretending not to listen to their conversation.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come over for dinner? We’re having spaghetti.” Rhea asked, a note of hopefulness poorly disguised in her voice.

“Nah, I don’t think I can. Cici’s at Grandma’s house, and Mom’s out of town.” Rhea giggles.

“That actually sounds like the perfect excuse to come over and get a free dinner from your best friend. I know you. When you’re home and your mom is out of town, you heat up frozen fish sticks.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“You’d better. Text me when you decide.” With that, Rhea turned and headed inside, greeting her family warmly. Raven stiffly walked back to the car and got in the driver’s seat, starting it up without a word. Aurore and I feigned disinterest.

The 20 minutes it took to get home were silent, except for the faint sound of music coming from the car speakers. Raven kept it turned down low, but even at the low volume, I could tell that it was Hozier…

Raven dropped us off and peeled out of our driveway. By the lights in the kitchen and the two cars in the driveway, I could tell that our parents were already home. Aurore and I headed inside, dropped off our bookbags in our rooms, and sat silently at the table. We ate quickly and quietly, avoiding our parents’ feeble attempts at conversation.

I excused myself from the table and headed to my room, sliding into my desk chair. I pulled my math homework out of my bookbag and started working on it, trying desperately not to think about every crazy thing that was happening to me currently.

Eventually I finished my homework and got ready for bed, floating through the familiar actions like a phantom. I crawled into bed and lay under the covers for nearly an hour before finally… drifting to…