CHAPTER 1

"Nat? Please, wake up!"

I heard a familiar voice. Telling me to wake up. Am I in heaven? I mean, last thing I remember is being sucked into a whirpool. Don't tell me I'm not dead yet, after God-knows-how-long.

Anyway, I opened my eyes, I try to see but was blinded by the white light… exactly as Simple Plan described in Untitled. I can't remember how, I can't remember why, I'm lying here tonight…

Wait, or was it day? I don't know.

"Look, mum, Nat's woken up!" I heard another voice call. I snapped out of my reverie and snapped, "Matt! It's all your fault!"

Well, isn't it? If Matt didn't jump off that yacht, I wouldn't be unconscious for God-knows-how-long.

My mum pursed her lips. "Natalie Portman! It is not your brother's fault that he sacrificed himself by jumping off that yacht to safe our lives, but catapulting you with him. Understood?"

I nodded. I could see that Matt was a hero now. He looked as though he's truly sorry for taking me to the eye of the whirlpool.

"Glad you're ok, Nat," he smiled.

I blinked. I realised that Matt would be going to college in the fall. Yale. And me? Going to New Hampton High School. Suddenly, my head filled with a vision… of Matt getting on the cab taking him to Yale for his orientation, which was to start a week before official schooling, and a truck barrelling into them. I could just make out the cab's number…

"Nat? Are you alright?" My father asked, concerned.

"I'm ok, dad. Just tired."

And then a nurse came along and shooed my family out. Young lady needs her rest, she said.

I was discharged the following day. My parents threw this BIG party celebrating my safe return from the depths of the sea.

My father was going out to the racing arena. He was going to bet on them. He caught me looking, and stared guiltily.

"Hey, Nat," he whispered, "how about you helping me choose a horse? Then if I won, you could take half of the money. But don't tell you mum, ok?"

I smiled. "It's ok, dad, I won't tell. Hmm, how about number five?" Five is my favourite number, but I really suddenly had a vision about horse number five, a chestnut stallion, finishing first in the race. "Is number five a chestnut horse?" I asked, just to be sure.

My dad looked startled. "You're right! How'd you guess that?"

I just smiled. After all, what can I do? Admit it?

… And lo and behold, number five came in first. And my father

won. Three thousand dollars, and half of it mine! Wow.

The day came for Matt's journey to Harvard for his orientation. I had almost forgotten about the vision. But suddenly, as a cab came into focus, and Matt raising his hand as if to signal to it...well, I just freaked. I knocked Matt to the floor, which was no easy job, seeing as he weighs twice of me.

"Ouch! Whaddya do that for? You crazy? I—" Matt suddenly stopped his ranting. I looked up and saw why.

The cab, whose serial number coincided with that of my vision, was involved in a traffic accident. With a truck. And I'd just stopped Matt into aboarding on that truck.

"Tell me the truth. Why did you knock me down? Do you know what's gonna happen?" Matt demanded.

I was so shocked, I told him everything. About how I'd been getting visions of him, and about dad winning his bet on horse number five. And he believed me.

"Natalie! Why did you push your brother? He missed the cab!" my mother shouted at me.

Matt said, "Mum, Natalie was just overwhelmed by her sadness at seeing me leave. Besides, you saw what happened to the cab."

My mother said, "Oh, well. Here comes another cab."

Matt asked me, "Nat? Can you like, find missing people or move objects with your mind?"

I look at him like he's nuts. "No."

"Well, go to some psychic website and test yourself, ok? You could make a fortune if you can predict the future. Serious…"

Do I want to make a fortune? If I can predict the future…

"…oh, and see if I'll ever find a girlfriend, and if I invented the cure for cancer, and when did I die, while you're at it."

Hmm. Do I want to know if Matt ever found a girlfriend, invented cures for incurable diseases, and when did he die? No. I don't. Because I don't like to think about that. I'm the sort that take life as it came.