Dreaming With Frost Read online

  Chapter 6

  It felt like time froze in the following moment as we stared at each other, but it couldn’t have been more than a second before Crystal bent to scoop up her bag. She approached me without ever taking her eyes off mine. She opened her mouth twice to say something but closed it both times before getting anything out. Finally, she managed to tear her gaze off my face and look at Diane.

  “My mom?” was all she said.

  Diane gestured over her shoulder. “She’s going through some inventory in the storage room.”

  Crystal held up the paper bag in her hand. “I didn’t want her to go hungry. She keeps forgetting to eat, and she can’t keep doing that. I—um—I’ll go find her.” Crystal surprised me by turning my way. “We need to talk.”

  My feet moved under me without consciously deciding to, and I followed her down the hall I’d seen her in the other night. I peeked back at my friends and saw they were now occupied by the crystal balls on display.

  Crystal paused outside a door and peeked inside. “Mom, I brought you some lunch. I’ll set it in the break room, okay? Don’t forget it this time.”

  I couldn’t see into the room, but I heard her mother’s reply. “Thanks, sweetie.”

  Crystal crossed the hall and slipped her mother’s lunch into another nearby room. The look she shot me told me to follow her. We continued to the end of the hall, out a door, and down a few steps into the chilly November air. At least the sun was out today, which helped warm my cheeks.

  As soon as the door clicked shut behind us, we both spoke at the same time.

  “Who are you?” Crystal asked.

  “Can you astral travel?” I spoke simultaneously.

  We both went silent for a moment in confusion.

  Crystal was the first to speak. “What’s going on? You’re not…” She reached over to run her fingers across the back of my hand. It was awkward for a moment, but she came across friendly. “You’re here…I mean, you’re solid. You’re not dead.”

  I nearly took a step away from her. “What? Um, no. Don’t you know what I can do? That’s why I came here. I thought you knew something I didn’t.”

  She tilted her head and spoke slowly. “I think we should start over. I’m Crystal.” She reached her hand out in a friendly gesture. I had no other choice but to shake it.

  I coughed to clear my throat. “I’m Kai.”

  She glanced down the street. When she saw no one else was around, she spoke slowly. “I’m only telling you this because there’s clearly something going on here, but I’m…well…psychic. I see ghosts and predict the future.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “And clearly you’re not a ghost, so your turn.”

  Was she for real? Ghosts? Predicting the future? It sounded like she belonged in a mental institution. Except, wasn’t that the exact reason I was too afraid to tell anyone about what I could do? If astral traveling was possible, wasn’t all this other paranormal stuff just as likely to be real, too?

  Apparently I hadn’t said anything for a while because Crystal raised her eyebrows impatiently.

  I cleared my throat again, but my voice still came out sounding small. “I’m, uh, not psychic. I…” My face grew hot despite the cool air brushing across it. I’d never said the words out loud before. I didn’t even keep a diary where I could dish my secrets. It felt wrong to tell a complete stranger.

  Crystal’s shoulder’s relaxed, and a compassionate expression crossed her face. “You’ve never told anyone, have you?”

  A nervous giggle bubbled up from my throat, and I had to blink to keep the tears at bay. I crossed my arms over my chest and silently blamed the water in my eyes on the cold. “Is that a psychic thing?” I stared down the street at a naked tree while I spoke.

  Crystal raised a single shoulder and then let it drop. “Not really, but I can feel other people’s emotions when I touch them.”

  My eyes snapped back to hers. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Ghosts. The future. Emotions. It all sounded so unbelievable, but at the same time, it amazed me. “So, when you touched me just now…?”

  Crystal nodded. “I didn’t mean to. I was just making sure you were real.” She laughed lightly. “I don’t get it, though. I saw you. I thought you were a ghost. It really kind of freaked me out when I saw you in there just now, all solid and everything.”

  “Honestly, I don’t understand it myself.” My knees began to shake uncontrollably, and it wasn’t even that freezing outside. “Can we sit?”

  I didn’t wait for an answer. I sank onto one of the steps we’d just walked down. Crystal sat beside me. I didn’t know what it was about her, but she seemed nice, like we could actually be friends.

  It took me several seconds before I composed myself enough to speak again. I didn’t like the idea of opening up so much to a stranger, but it was the reason I came. Plus, she’d just told me something personal without hesitation. Didn’t I owe it to her to explain myself?

  Once I started speaking, the words just sort of tumbled out of me. “I actually came to ask you about what I can do. Well, I mean, I came to ask the ladies in there.” I gestured to the door behind me. “I don’t know if it was your mom or the lady at the counter, but I read online about this woman who runs this shop. I thought that maybe she could tell me a little about the paranormal. When my mom wouldn’t let me come, I decided to scope out the place and see if it was worth coming to. And that’s when you saw me.” I knotted my sleeve in my hands, but nothing I could do in this moment could slow my racing heart. Still, I knew I came here to tell someone, so I forced myself to spit it out. “The thing is, I don’t really know much about it. That’s why I’m looking for someone to help me. All I know is that when I fall asleep, my spirit leaves my body. I can take it anywhere I want. I just can’t touch anything, and no one else can see me. Except for you.” I began to relax the more I talked to her.

  Crystal nodded like she understood. “It sounds a lot like astral traveling.”

  “That’s what I thought!” My voice came out high and squeaky. Hope filled my heart. So she did understand, on some level at least. That made me feel a little better about telling a complete stranger my secret. “I mean, I don’t know a lot about this stuff, so I’m just getting that from what I read online.”

  “You know what?” she asked kindly. “Maybe you should talk to my mom. After all, she’s the person you came here to talk to. My friend Emma is pretty good with this stuff, too.” Crystal began to stand, but I stopped her.

  “Your friends know? Like, that you’re…” The word sounded strange on my tongue. The only concept of the paranormal I ever really considered was astral traveling. It sounded silly to think that all this other stuff Crystal said she could do was possible. “Psychic,” I finished.

  She nodded confidently.

  “Oh. I—uh—my friends have no idea. The other two people in there? The guy is my boyfriend, and the girl is my best friend. I only brought them along for the ride.”

  She looked at me sympathetically. “You should tell them. I’m sure they’ll be really understanding.”

  I crinkled my nose. “I don’t know. We’ve never even talked about the supernatural. Up until a minute ago, I’d never told anyone in my life. You’re the only person who knows what I can do. And I only told you because I thought maybe you could help me understand it. And, well…you seem nice.”

  “Thanks,” she said with a smile. “But they’re your best friends. I’m sure they’ll support you.”

  “I don’t think I’m ready for that.”

  That expression of understanding crossed her face again, and I mentally thanked her for not pushing it any further. Wait. Could she read my thoughts? With the way she looked at me, it didn’t appear that was how it worked. Thank God.

  “I should get back to my friends, though,” I told her. “I kind of just disappeared on them. I’d like to talk to your mom, though, if she knows anything.”

  We both stood. Crystal reached for the handl
e on the door, but before she could pull it open, I grabbed her wrist to stop her.

  “Wait! My friends think we know each other. I told them we met online and that I wanted to meet you because we’re both into running. I hope you like to run.”

  A wide smile spread across her face. “Running isn’t my thing, but I can play along. Anything else I should know?”

  I relaxed my grip on her wrist and felt the tension in my body ease. I got lucky that she was so nice. “I don’t think so.”

  Chapter 7

  By the time I returned to the front of the shop, Savannah and Collin had made it back to the candles and were sniffing them again. They both looked up when they noticed my approach.

  “Hey, guys. This is my friend I was telling you about. Crystal, these are my friends.” Thankfully, my voice came out sounding stronger than it had all day.

  “Hi.” Savannah gave a light wave. “Kai didn’t tell us much about you. We were starting to wonder if you were real.”

  Leave it to Savannah and her big mouth to make the conversation awkward. I didn’t miss when Collin lightly elbowed her in the ribs. She shot him the evil eye.

  “It’s great to meet you,” Collin said sweetly, reaching out to shake Crystal’s hand.

  “You, too,” Crystal replied, moving to shake Savannah’s hand as well. “Kai’s told me so much about you.” Her eyebrow twitched ever so slightly at the lie, but neither Collin nor Savannah seemed to notice. “It’s so great to meet you all in person.”

  Collin shoved his hands in his pockets. “Well, now that we’re all here, was there a plan? Are we hanging out here the rest of the day?”

  That was my problem. I didn’t really have a plan. I subtly bumped my arm up against Crystal’s. She said she could read emotions by touching people. I hoped she would hear my silent plea for help. I wasn’t sure if it was her psychic powers or just the tension in the air, but she responded quickly.

  “Would it be weird if I invited you to my house?”

  Savannah and Collin exchanged a glance.

  “That sounds fine,” Collin said. “I mean, Kai knows you, so if she’s fine with it, so are we.”

  “Great.” Crystal smiled. “Let me just go talk with my mom.” She disappeared into the hallway again.

  “She seems nice.” Collin moved to entwine his fingers in mine. The gesture relaxed the final bit of my lingering nerves.

  “Yeah,” Savannah agreed, setting down the last candle she’d sniffed. “I like her.”

  “Thanks, guys. Hey! Does anyone want chocolates? I’ll buy,” I offered.

  My friends and I approached the counter where Diane had kept my chocolates safe for me. Collin and Savannah picked out their own candies, which she added to the bag. Just as Diane handed over the receipt, Crystal emerged from the hallway.

  “My mom says you guys can come over. You ready?”

  Crystal took the front seat in Savannah’s car and gave her directions to her house. As strange as it may seem to be invited over to a complete stranger’s house, this didn’t feel that weird.

  “Feel free to take off your shoes and get comfortable,” Crystal offered when we entered her living room. “Anyone want some snacks? Maybe lunch? Kai, can you help me in the kitchen?”

  Her kitchen was mostly open to her living room, but there was a short wall separating part of it that gave us a small amount of privacy.

  She pressed her hands to her face for a moment before dropping them. “I’m sorry if this is weird. I think we need some more time to talk about things, and I needed to distract your friends. I sent my friends a 911 text, so they’ll be coming over soon. This was the only place I thought we could all go. There’s not exactly much to do in this town.”

  I knew exactly what she meant. There wasn’t anything to do in Amberg, either. “It’s fine, really. Just as long as your parents don’t mind.” And mine will never know, I thought.

  “Yeah, it’s fine. I convinced my mom. Remember how I can feel people’s emotions? Well, it was pretty clear when I touched each of you that you’re all trustworthy.”

  I smiled at that. So the handshake thing was a ploy. Very sneaky, Crystal. I like you.

  “Snacks?” Crystal turned to the cupboard.

  We returned to the living room with a bag of pretzels and some string cheese.

  “Sorry, guys,” Crystal said. “This is all we have for snacks.”

  Savannah straightened up on the couch. She’d already stripped her shoes off. “Oh, that’s so nice of you! It’s totally fine. I’m just hungry.” She took a string cheese from Crystal’s outstretched hand.

  “Thank you,” Collin said from the couch when Crystal handed him the pretzels.

  The doorbell rang, and Crystal hurried over to answer it. I took a seat between my friends and leaned into Collin’s shoulder. It was warm and inviting.

  An excited female voice came from just outside the door. “I brought games!”

  “We have more than enough,” a male voice agreed.

  Crystal opened the door wider to invite her friends inside.

  “Hi,” the girl sang cheerfully as she set her pile of board games on the ground. The boy placed an equally high stack next to it.

  “These are my friends Emma and Derek,” Crystal introduced. “And this is my friend Kai and her friends Savannah and Collin.”

  We all exchanged nervous smiles and waves.

  Emma brushed dark curly hair out of her face and then held onto Derek’s hand. Apparently they were an item. “So, what do you guys want to play first?” she asked.

  Savannah hurried over to the pile of games to inspect which ones Emma had brought along. Meanwhile, Collin wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me close, placing a light kiss along my hairline.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  I tore my gaze from the amusing show of excitement Savannah was putting on. “Yeah, I’m fine. Why?”

  “You’ve seemed nervous all day.”

  I squirmed slightly. How had we only been going out a month and he already knew me so well? “It’s just this whole meeting new people thing. I’m not that good with people.”

  “I noticed,” he said.

  “What?” I practically squeaked. I hadn’t expected him to agree with me.

  Only a second later did a hint of a smile touch his lips. I poked at him playfully.

  “Sorry! I love this game!” Savannah exclaimed, holding the box out in front of her. “Too bad it’s only for four players.”

  “That’s perfect!” Crystal said from across the room with almost too much enthusiasm. “I mean, that’s fine. Kai and I have some catching up to do anyway. We don’t mind.” I caught her exchange a glance with Emma.

  “That’s great!” Emma reached for the box in Savannah’s hand. “I love this game, too. Now we have the perfect amount of players.” I suspected she was playing off whatever look it was Crystal shot her way to earn us some privacy.

  “You go play,” I told Collin. “I don’t mind.”

  “You’re just going to leave Savannah and me here with strangers?” he asked in a whisper.

  I glanced over at Savannah. She was the most outgoing person I knew, so I knew she wouldn’t mind making new friends. But Collin was a different story.

  “I want to get to know Crystal a little more,” I told him, almost pleading.

  After a long pause, he sighed heavily and placed a kiss on my forehead. “Have fun.”

  Emma spread out the game board, and Derek helped get out the pieces and cards. Collin joined them on the floor cross-legged while chewing on a few pretzels.

  “Hey, Kai,” Crystal said loud enough for everyone to hear. “That scrapbook you wanted to see is in my room. Want to check it out?”

  I took a deep breath and followed her down the hallway, hoping I’d finally get a chance to learn more about my gift.

  Chapter 8

  “Your friends really know what you can do?” I asked as I stepped into her bedroom and out of earshot of the
others.

  She sat on her bed and nodded.

  “So, they’re, like, in the loop about what’s going on here?”

  She nodded again. “I’m sorry. Is that not okay? I didn’t tell them what you could do. I just asked them to distract your friends while we talked.”

  I relaxed the tension in my shoulders I hadn’t realized was there and then sank into the chair next to her desk. “No, it’s fine. Really.”

  Crystal shifted on her bed to cross her legs. “So, tell me more about what you can do.”

  It took me a moment to realize I was chewing my lower lip. I shrugged. “It’s just something I’ve always been able to do. I don’t know; I got lucky, I guess. When I fall asleep, I just get right back up again, only my body doesn’t come with me. I look and feel like me, but I can’t touch anything. It’s like I’m a ghost.”

  Crystal leaned her chin on her fist like she was invested in my confession. When she didn’t say anything, I continued.

  “It’s kind of like I am dreaming. I’ve never really experienced dreams, but there are similarities from what I’ve heard.”

  Crystal tilted her head slightly. “What do you mean by that?”

  I pressed my lips together. Admitting all of this felt so strange. I’d never said it all out loud before. “Well, like how you can be in one place one moment and then somewhere else in the blink of an eye. The difference is that it all feels real to me, and I can control where I can go as long as I can visualize it.”

  “Hmm... So, if it feels real to you, does time move at the same pace?”

  I blinked a few times, not sure I understood the question. “What do you mean?”

  Crystal dropped her fist from her chin. “Like, for me, time doesn’t really apply in my dreams. I could maybe be dreaming just a few minutes and then wake up. Sometimes I might not even remember my dreams. So, I mean, time seems to go faster when I’m sleeping. I mean, it doesn’t. It just feels that way.”

  I nodded. I only understood because of those two weeks where my travels had been replaced by nightmares. “No, it’s not like that. I’m aware of everything around me, so if I’m asleep for six hours or something, I experience the full six hours.”