Awakening Book One of the Trust Series(62)

He elbowed her lightly and she smiled for the first time in hours. He continued, “Besides, I was starting to feel inadequate. Don’t worry-” he said patting her knee with his hand, “Tomorrow is another day.”

Tomorrow came, and then the day after that. Caitlyn stood up in frustration, walking past Declan not even acknowledging him, to stare at the blank wall. Staring at the blank wall was better than nothing. Caitlyn rubbed at her eyes, trying to stave off the tears of frustration.

“I can’t do it!”

Declan sighed, a move that he had been doing consistently for the past several days. “Of course you can. You are your own worst block. If you think you can’t, you will never be able to. Look, you have already proved you have the capability, you just need to implement the techniques I have been teaching you.”

Caitlyn threw her arms in the air. “But I have been!”

Without even turning around, Caitlyn knew that Declan’s eyebrows were raised highly, making Caitlyn feel like the two year old she was acting like in that moment. “Caitlyn, for the past three days, I have been seeing you try harder than you have ever tried. Stop.”

“What?”

He turned her around, placing his large hands on her petite shoulders. Declan’s blue eyes bored into hers. “You heard what I said. Just stop. You can’t push teleportation. You can’t will yourself to do it. You just can’t. You are trying too hard.” His hand touched her shoulder. “Let go.”

Caitlyn closed her eyes at his words. Garrett had told her the same thing months ago, at her sister’s funeral. She had stood by her grave for hours, having a silent conversation with her sister, begging forgiveness. Begging her sister to forgive her, but more so herself. She stood in the rain for hours, with Garrett watching from a faraway tree as she let go of her guilt.

Now, Caitlyn realized, she needed to let go of her pride. She hadn’t failed at anything since she had been here. She realized with clarity that there were going to be some things that she was not going to be best at, some things that others could do that she could not. Garrett would always have Projection Telepathy over her; she did not have photographic memory required. Jonathan McPherson would most likely have his unique brand of telepathy over her as well. It was not out of the realm of possibility that she would not be able to teleport, especially when it was so rare.

She did not want to disappoint Declan, and she had been worried for days that was exactly what she was going to do. She needed to stop worrying that she was not going to be as great as Declan. Declan was not competition, he was her teacher and her friend. If she could not teleport, she could not teleport. Simple as that. For the first time in a week, she felt better. She drew a deep breath.

“Better?”

She nodded. “Better. Sorry about that.”

He shrugged. “No need to apologize. As I told you the other night, we have all been there. Now, if you are ready to continue, we can sit back down.”

Caitlyn did as she was instructed and walked over to the middle of the stark room again. “Ready.”

Instead of Declan taking his normal place in front of her, he began to walk around her. Caitlyn focused on his steady steps, listening to the rhythmic sounds of the footfalls, the soft swish of his cotton trousers rubbing together. She felt warmth spread throughout her body as she focused on each muscle as it loosened, reducing the tension that she had been desperately clinging to.

Declan began speaking to her, his words calm and gentle. “Take a deep breath. Now, let every thought slip away. Think of nothing but the sway of the wind, the feel of the grass beneath your feet…”

For the first time since her mother’s death, she let everything melt away. Her mother, her sister, her father, the Trust’s expectations, and Garrett all fell behind her. It was Caitlyn alone with Declan’s voice guiding her. She felt at peace as she continued to listen to his instructions, imagining the beautiful foliage around her. Her body and soul finally aligning as one.

It was then she felt the shift. Her body was weightless, floating, ascending. She was tunneling towards its destination, leaving the confines of the training room, where she suddenly felt like she had been imprisoned in for years. Her body and her mind were free. After what seemed like seemed like only a moment, but at the same time an eternity, her body was unfairly grounded. And then she felt it.

Her next breath was an intake of cool air. She opened her eyes slowly, only to squint as the sunlight hit her pupils. The field she had hiked no more than a week ago was alive around her. She heard it before she felt it, the uncontrollable laughter that peeled from deep within, crossing her lips with exuberance. Declan appeared only moments later.