The Awakening

Slipping my backpack off my shoulder, I turned away from the man behind me and unzipped it. The vibration had been subtle, but clear as a bell to my hyperactive mind. I was sure I’d felt it. It was almost … rhythmic, flowing, like a heartbeat. I peered into my backpack. The mini lion was back. My jaw dropped. So, I haven’t gone mad after all! What’s more—it was glowing, pulsing a faint red and green and vibrating softly. You can’t be real! I stared, mesmerized by its surreal beauty. The thought was hardly through my shocked brain when it faded slowly into the background of my bag and disappeared. I blinked and looked again. No sign of it. Okay, so now I was more amazed than afraid. I closed my bag and put it on my back. I could have made a fool of myself rummaging around looking for the little lion, but I wanted my hot cocoa, and I didn't want to draw attention to myself by staring into my backpack like I was stoned. I glanced around quickly to make sure nobody saw, and like a cat zoning in on a beetle crawling up the screen door, my eyes locked onto a flicker of movement in the corner of the room. It was the same girl I’d seen earlier. She was standing alone in the corner, watching me, acting as if no one could see her. There was something different about her this time. Her eyes were violet. Either I hadn’t noticed last time, or they’d changed. But there was no mistake; her eyes were violet! I’d never seen anyone with violet eyes before. They were, quite honestly, the most beautiful eyes I had ever seen. I stared, dumbfounded. She stared right back at me. Neither of us said anything. After a long moment, I mustered my courage and decided to confront her again. “Hey!” I called sharply, “you!” Everyone in the shop turned to stare at me. Some of them looked confused as if they wondered if I was talking to them. I pointed at the girl to clarify. “What do you want, and why are you stalking me?” The girl remained still and watched me with her intense violet eyes. Like she couldn’t believe I was talking to her—like she thought that by standing in the corner, she was invisible. She took a slow step to one side, then another one back. My eyes followed her, scowling. Once she saw I was indeed looking at her and trying to talk to her, the look on her face became even more serious than before. I wondered briefly if she wanted to kill me. But instead, she cocked her head to the side, looking confused. A moment later, her eyes hardened, and she shook off her confusion. Appearing to not know what else to do, she stood still, probably hoping that I’d stop making a scene. I was too curious and irritated to gratify her wish. On a typical day, I go out of my way to keep from drawing attention to myself, but this was anything but a typical day, and I was in no mood for games. It didn't help that the girl seemed much more confident in herself than I was of myself. It was evident in her violet eyes that she was in charge of this situation. This didn’t discourage me from trying to get her to react. In fact, if anything, it only made me more determined. “Hey,” I said, “what, are you afraid to talk? Come on. If you're going to follow me everywhere, you might as well tell me why.” I made an exasperated face. “Look, I’ve had a rough day. A smile and a word of explanation wouldn’t hurt.” The girl glanced at the other customers and her brow wrinkled. Teeth gritted, she muttered, “Walk away, Sleeper.” She’s the crazy one, I decided, laughing to myself. “Sleeper?” I asked to her in a taunting tone. I’d been called a lot of mean things, but this was an unfamiliar insult. “What does that even mean? You kook.” It was only on the word kook that I noticed no one in the shop was drinking or talking anymore. No feet were tapping. Even the lady behind the counter had paused, my hot cocoa in her hand. Everyone was staring at me. “Are you okay, boy?” a man in line asked in a worried tone. I blinked at him, astonished. Am I okay? Of course, I'm okay! She’s the one— “I’m fine,” I said. “I'm just talking to that crazy girl in the corner who keeps following me.” Heads swiveled to the corner, then turned back to me. An elderly woman in line touched my arm gently, “There’s no one there, dear,” she whispered. I leaned away before she could pat me on the head like I was a little dog. I’d been raised to respect my elders, but I admit—I looked at the old woman as if she was an alien, and not the cool kind. “What do you mean there’s no one there?” I snapped. “Are you blind? She’s right there in plain view!” I pointed to the corner where the girl was still standing, arms folded across her chest, smiling smugly. The woman looked where I was pointing, then back at me. She smiled a bit tightly and withdrew. There was a look in her eyes of pity, which cut me to the bone. She was probably trying to be considerate, but I found myself insulted. I was not stupid or crazy! The girl was there—I spun back to her, angry now. Before I could open my mouth to demand an explanation, she grinned broadly. “They can’t see or hear me,” she said. “And if I were you, I would pretend you couldn’t, either. Just go about your day as if you never saw me.”