50. Chapter 50
Chapter 50
Once inside the room, Jacob looked around, his curiosity pushing aside some of his fear.
The walls were painted a cheerful yellow that made him think of sunshine, with the lower half of one wall made up of built-in bookshelves, filled with books, toys, games, and other delights. Another wall boasted a long window seat, padded with green and white striped cushions and pillows, and the remaining two walls were decorated with a detailed mural of trees, flowers, and various woodland creatures.
In the center of the room, there was a green love seat with matching chairs arranged directly across from it, creating a cozy seating arrangement. But instead of leading Jacob there, Lauren took him instead to a low, round table, with a white, furry rug underneath it and large pillows scattered around. After letting go of his hand, she kneeled down on one of the pillows and invited him to do the same.
“First, I want to say you coming here to talk to me is a very brave thing to do. It’s hard to talk to someone you don’t know, especially if you’re going to talk about something that you might not want to talk about. But I want you to know you’re safe in this room and you can tell me anything, and I mean anything. And … the more you tell me, the better.”
“Okay.”
“Also, nothing you tell me will make me mad at you, or get you in trouble, all right? I promise.”
Her voice was soft and melodic, soothing, even, but there was still a ribbon of anxiety running through Jacob, and he looked down at the table for a moment. As he did, his eyes landed on a clear bowl in between them, filled with shiny, colored rocks, of all shapes and sizes.
He rose up on his knees a little and leaned forward to pull the bowl closer. A dark purple rock on top caught his attention and without thinking, he picked it up and rubbed its smooth surface before setting it on the table and reaching into the bowl for another one. This time, he chose a light green one, and it got placed on the table, too. Jacob did this several times, until he had a dozen or more stones in front of him, like an extended rainbow.
“They’re pretty, aren’t they?” Lauren asked him.
He blinked at her and nodded.
“They’re crystals,” she told him. “Do you know what those are?”
He shook his head.
She leaned forward and plucked one from the bowl and held it up, the red color catching the light. “They’re like … magical rocks.”
“Magical rocks?” Jacob looked down at the crystals, wondering if they were going to disappear or turn into something else in front of his eyes.
“A lot of people think they have powers.”
“What kind of powers?”
“All kinds. Like helping you be happy, giving you courage, good health, protection … stuff like that.”
His eyes widened. “How do they work?”
“Well, they’re kind of like vitamins.” She tilted her head, then asked, “Do you know what a vitamin is?”
“You eat them.”
“Yes, some vitamins do have to be eaten, to help make you healthy and strong, but crystals help make you healthy and strong without having to be eaten.”
“How?”
“Crystals are made in nature, so they have natural energy inside them. I like to think of this energy as a kind of … power. And this power stays in crystals forever, and sort of gets shared with you when you wear one, or hold one, or keep it nearby.” She paused for a moment. “It’s like when you play outside in the sunshine and breathe in fresh air, and it makes you feel better, right? That’s how crystals work.”
She picked up the dark purple one he’d set on the table. “This is amethyst,” she said, then pointed to one of her rings with a similar, though much smaller, stone. “It’s one of my favorite crystals. It helps relieve stress.”
Lauren picked up a mossy green stone which matched another of her rings. “This is aventurine. It helps with luck.”
“You have a lot of rings.”
She chuckled. “I do. And I wear different rings every day, depending on what extra powers I think I might need.”
Jacob pointed to a pink crystal. “What’s that one?”
“It’s rose quartz. It helps with love and peace.”
“What’s this?” He pointed to a brown crystal with streaks of tan and cream in it.
“That’s a tiger’s eye. It helps protect you.”
He looked over his assembly of stones and then picked up a light blue one. “What’s this?”
“That’s aquamarine. It’s known for its calming powers, among other things,” she answered, then used her thumb and forefinger to lift a matching stone hanging from a black cord around her neck. “I actually wear this crystal every day.”
“Does it work?”
“Yes, it does.”
She let the pendant settle back into place, and then began putting all the crystals back in the bowl, and Jacob watched, disappointed. When she was done, she pushed the bowl toward him even more. “How would you like to pick a crystal of your very own? To keep, so that you can use its power to help make you healthy and strong?”
He nodded enthusiastically and reached into the bowl, his fingers going for a bright blue one.
With a gentle touch, she stopped him from taking it by placing her hands over his, then met his confused look with a smile. “You always have to pick the first one with your eyes closed.”
“Why?”
“Because that way, you pick the one you need, not the one you think you want.”
Not entirely sure what the difference was, Jacob pursed his mouth for a moment before reluctantly closing his eyes, hoping that the blue crystal would be the one he needed, since he really wanted it.
Lauren moved his fingers down into the bowl, helping him mix the polished stones around and filling the air with the rumble of rock against rock, and the clink of rock against glass. “It’s important to touch them, and hold them,” she instructed softly, before pulling her hands away and letting him take over. “There’s no rush, so take as much time as you want. You’ll know it when you feel it.”
Even though he really wasn’t sure this was going to work, Jacob kept his eyes tightly shut and followed Lauren’s instructions. He touched and held rock after rock, going through what felt like the entire bowl before he picked up one that made him pause. Oddly shaped and slightly warmer than the other stones, it was also not as heavy, and his heart began to race with excitement as he pictured the blue one in all its bright glory.
“Looks like you found it,” Lauren murmured. “Open your eyes.”
Jacob slowly raised his eyelids and stared down at the crystal … only to feel like he’d been dealt a crushing blow as he realized the crystal he’d chosen was nothing but an ugly, black rock.
“I can tell you’re disappointed, but I know you’re going to change your mind and really like it, once I tell you all about this awesome crystal,” she told him, taking it out of his hand. “It’s obsidian, one of the coolest crystals out there, and is actually made from volcanoes.”
At that, Jacob raised his eyes. “It is?”
Lauren nodded. “Do you know what volcanoes do?”
It was his turn to nod. He’d seen a show on TV about volcanoes not too long ago. “They blow up and then red, hot stuff shoots out all over the place.”
“Yes, that’s more or less true,” she said with a soft chuckle at his description. “And the hot stuff that comes out is called lava, which cools off and becomes this …” she trailed off as she held the crystal up. “Volcanic glass.”
“Volcanic glass?”
“That’s right. And you know what else?”
“What?”
“Obsidian is believed to have very strong energy. It helps heal those who’ve been hurt, by pulling bad energy out of them and absorbing it.”
“It does?”
“It does. Which makes it really good for anyone who’s feeling … sad. Or worried. Or scared. But that’s not all. It also helps protect you against being hurt in the future, by blocking bad energy and acting like a shield against it.”
Jacob’s eyes were locked on the crystal, as he imagined it doing all of those things. He felt bad for thinking it was an ugly black rock at first, and as Lauren put it back in his hand, he couldn’t believe how glad he was that it wasn’t the blue one.
“So, what do you think about your crystal now?” she asked with a raised eyebrow. “It’s pretty cool, huh?”
He wrapped his fingers around it. “I like it a lot.”
“See? I was right when I said you’d change your mind, wasn’t I?” Then, as if it was no big deal, she added, “But, what can I say? Always being right is one of my super powers.”
Jacob blinked at her. “It is?”
“Of course.”
“How many do you have?”
Lauren looked thoughtful for a long moment before answering. “Four.”
“Four? What are they?”
“Well, helping kids feel better is one of them, as your dad may have told you,” she answered, and when Jacob nodded, she continued. “Another one is always being right. The third one is making the world’s best chocolate chip cookies, and number four is being able to do this.”
He watched as her eyes rolled around, then became crossed for several seconds, before slowly un-crossing. When she was done, Jacob frowned, unsure if Lauren was teasing him, because a few of those super powers didn’t really seem like super powers, not even the cool thing her eyes just did.
“No, wait, make that five,” she quickly corrected herself. “I can also read minds.”
“You … can?”
“Yes. You were just thinking a few of those aren’t really super powers, weren’t you?”
Jacob’s eyes widened to the size of silver dollars, literally struck speechless at having his mind read.
“Well, they are.” Lauren gave him a quick smile, before leaning forward. “You see, super powers don’t just belong to super heroes like Superman or Spiderman. They also belong to regular people like you and me, and they can be anything, even something you wouldn’t think was a super power … like making the world’s best chocolate chip cookies and crossing your eyes.”
“Oh.”
“So, can you think of a super power you might have?”
He thought for a moment, then shook his head, disappointed. “No.”
“Well, everybody has at least one, and it’s usually something they like to do and are good at, so what’s something you like to do?”
“Draw,” he answered quickly, without hesitation.
Lauren’s mouth fell open. “No way. Really?”
He nodded, her reaction taking him by surprise.
“That’s …” she trailed off and took a deep breath, releasing it in a soft whistle. “That’s one of the best super powers to have.”
“It is?”
“Oh, yeah. You’re so lucky.”
“I am?”
“Really, really lucky. I always wanted that one, but it never worked out for me.” Resting her arms on the table, Lauren asked, “Do you draw a lot?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm. I’ll bet you’re good at it, right?”
Suddenly shy again, he nodded, instead of answering.
“Jacob, Jacob, Jacob,” she murmured, inflecting her voice with a touch of fake reprimand. “When you have a super power, you have to own it. Be proud and be loud. So, let me ask you again: I’ll bet you’re good at it, right?”
“Yes.”
She cupped her ear. “What did you say?”
“Yes.”
“One more time, like you really mean it.”
“Yes!”
“Much better,” Lauren told him with gusto, then made a fist and held it out. “Give me a fist bump.”
He looked at her raised fist with uncertainty.
“Never done that?” she asked, and when he shook his head, she began walking him through it. “It’s easy. First, make a fist, like me.” She waited for him to set his crystal down and comply. Once he had, his small fist making her smile, Lauren told him, “Now meet me in the middle.”
After a brief hesitation, Jacob moved his fist forward. When their knuckles bumped together, she said, “Boom,” followed immediately with explosion sounds before pulling her hand back and spreading her fingers wide. “Fist bump,” she deadpanned, as he laughed in delight.
Then, to her surprise, he held his fist up again.
“You want to do one more?” she asked.
“Yes,” he said eagerly.
Lauren made another fist, and this time, when their knuckles met, Jacob made explosion noises, too, making it her turn to laugh.
When silence had settled between them once again, she got up and grabbed a box of crayons and colored pencils and sheets of thick construction paper from one of the shelves, then set it all out on the table. “How would you feel about showing me some of your super power?” she asked.
“Okay.”
With a look of concentration, Jacob pulled a piece of paper toward him, then searched through the crayons until he found the one he wanted, and began drawing.