Chapter 3: Discoveries
"Teli, how late were you up last night?"
"Late..." Teli answered, trying to dodge a lecture.
"You're going to run yourself down Te, everyone needs sleep - even 16-year-olds!" Jane worried about her daughter, maybe just a little too much.
"I know, I know. But what am I supposed to do, pretend to sleep even if I can't?" They'd been down this road many times before. Jane gave her daughter 'that look.' Teli groaned, grabbed a breakfast bar and dashed outside. 'It's not my fault I don't sleep. I just...don't need to...' Teli continued the argument in her head.
Grabbing her bike, Teli headed off towards her best friend's house. Pedaling up the winding mountain road was easy for her; 'too easy,' she often thought. Teli reached another quaint mountain home, and saw that her friend's window was open. Teli cupped her hands together and blew a familiar call-whistle. A smiling blonde head appeared and whistled back.
"Come on Kat, let's go!" Teli called up. The blonde disappeared from the window and soon the girl came running out of the small garage.
"Katherine -- be back before supper!" A motherly voice called.
"'K, Mom!" Kat grinned at Teli.
"Hey girl, where to?" Teli grinned back.
"Let's bike around the lake a ways." The girls set off on a familiar path, which went all the way around Lake Tahoe. They had made a deal to bike every day -- this was going to be their routine over the summer. With one week left of school, they figured it was a good time to start.
Teli's slow, powerful strokes on the bike pedals glided her easily up the mountain path, in contrast to Kat, who was having a bit more difficulty - she had to stand and pump the pedals to keep up.
"I think you're trying to tell me I'm not in shape or something Te." Kat called in a teasing tone, "'coz I just plain can't keep up today!" Kat laughed. But Teli frowned to herself; she hadn't meant to leave Kat in the dust.
"Sorry girl, I've just got a funny feeling in my legs -- like I want to stretch or work, or something..."
Kat was the only one who knew. Things Teli didn't understand about herself -- like how she could pedal up a mountain path at 20 mph and not break a sweat, disturbed her, and Kat provided a sympathetic ear, as well as a partner in solving the mystery.
"Well, in that case Te, I think you *need* to go fast -- stretch those legs of yours!" Kat grinned at the idea forming in her mind.
"What?" Teli wondered where Kat was going.
"You wait right here for five minutes while I bike up on ahead. I'll stop at five minutes and at that point you start biking. Go as fast as you can and catch up. We'll time you. It'll be fun. 'Kay?"
"You sure?" Teli was skeptical, but Kat didn't answer, she just smiled and grabbed Teli's watch.
"Okay, watches on timer. Ready? 3, 2, 1, start!" Kat pedaled quickly away as they both hit START. As the fourth minute ticked off Teli put both feet on the pedals -- practicing staying upright at a standstill. 'This could get interesting,' Teli mussed.
Five minutes. Teli burst out the standstill. Her muscles stretched and contracted, beginning to push harder. Teli could hardly believe the power she was already pushing out, or the sense of pure enjoyment she felt at being able to use her body to the max. She barely saw Kat as she swept by. Teli slowed and turned back towards Kat, remembering to hit stop on her watch.
Kat had a puzzled look on her face, and she looked up.
"What's your watch say, Tel?" Teli glanced down.
"Five minutes and, whoa, 51 seconds." Teli looked up at her friend with wide eyes.
"Yeah. Mine says five minutes and 48 seconds. Damn, girl. I could barely see you when you swept by."
"Kat. That's impossible," Teli rested her forehead on her handlebars for a moment, "Not to mention, not normal." Kat smiled sympathetically at her friend.
"Don't worry Teli. Yes, you're a mystery, but we'll figure you out!" Kat winked to lighten the air. Teli almost giggled.
"Thanks, girl." They both smiled.
"All right, enough of this, let's go get some ice cream!" Teli laughed at her friend's words.
"I though the biking was to be in shape." Kat gave that comment a skeptical look.
"Well, we'll finish the ride after we get the cream. Now step on it!" Teli just shook her head at Kat and pedaled off after her.
*******
"Come on Molly, let's go!" The young dog leapt up, excited to be going out. It was early -- 5:30 in the morning. But Teli, as usual, has already been up for hours and needed to get out.
Molly ran ahead, up the mountain their house was nestled into. Molly knew where they were going and was eager to start checking out the new smells. Teli smiled as the dog bounded up the incline.
Teli walked for 15 minutes before she reached her spot. She quickly climbed up the large boulder-and-rock pile to the flat spot that was at the top. From there she could see the whole little valley where Lake Tahoe resided and the little resort town that had sprung up around it. This was where Teli came to be along with her thoughts.
Molly was snuffing around at the base of the rock pile. Teli smiled slightly as she listened to her root around. Molly started digging at the soft dirt, looking for something. Teli closed her eyes and concentrated on the soft, pleasant sounds. 'I love the sound of dried pine needles crunching, silly Molly,' Teli thought, 'I wish I could hear a little better, though.' Teli strained to hear better. Suddenly, her ear felt like the ear drum had opened up, and the noise of Molly's digging got very loud. Now Teli could hear not only the digging, but also Molly's breathing and even her heart beating.
Teli's eyes shot wide open and she shook her head. The noise dropped back to normal levels and her eardrums 'closed' again.
"What the hell?! That was whack!" Teli said aloud to herself. "How many more things am I going to discover about this deranged body?!" Teli asked, frustrated.
Teli was distracted from her thoughts when she sensed something else, something suspicious. Without really meaning to, Teli zoomed her hearing back in on the noises Molly was making. Molly's heartbeat... and another, faster heartbeat.
"Molly! Get out of there!" Teli yelled. Molly jumped up and ran up the rock to Teli, just barely evading a porcupine that was about to leave spines in Molly's nose.
Teli smiled and hugged her dog. 'Well, at least these whacked out abilities of mine come in handy sometimes...' she thought.
*******
Dear Angel,
Today has been a day of discoveries. Not only can I bike a mile a minute, I can change my hearing just like I can with my eyes. Will the discoveries ever end...? What I'm wondering is why I'm figuring all this out *now*. I mean, I must've always had these... functions and just not known about them. Maybe I was suppressing them in my subconscious or something. Though, it feels more like I'd forgotten and now I'm remembering. Odd, very odd. Well, going on...
I had a dream about you again. You were running through a long, dark, hallway -- the only light was from some huge old window. Two little kids, I think, were following you. Then we were outside and you jumped over a 15-foot fence, easily. Maybe that means you're like me. I know you're out there somewhere, and you hold the key to the secrets of my life. Please come back.
-Teli
"Teli, how late were you up last night?"
"Late..." Teli answered, trying to dodge a lecture.
"You're going to run yourself down Te, everyone needs sleep - even 16-year-olds!" Jane worried about her daughter, maybe just a little too much.
"I know, I know. But what am I supposed to do, pretend to sleep even if I can't?" They'd been down this road many times before. Jane gave her daughter 'that look.' Teli groaned, grabbed a breakfast bar and dashed outside. 'It's not my fault I don't sleep. I just...don't need to...' Teli continued the argument in her head.
Grabbing her bike, Teli headed off towards her best friend's house. Pedaling up the winding mountain road was easy for her; 'too easy,' she often thought. Teli reached another quaint mountain home, and saw that her friend's window was open. Teli cupped her hands together and blew a familiar call-whistle. A smiling blonde head appeared and whistled back.
"Come on Kat, let's go!" Teli called up. The blonde disappeared from the window and soon the girl came running out of the small garage.
"Katherine -- be back before supper!" A motherly voice called.
"'K, Mom!" Kat grinned at Teli.
"Hey girl, where to?" Teli grinned back.
"Let's bike around the lake a ways." The girls set off on a familiar path, which went all the way around Lake Tahoe. They had made a deal to bike every day -- this was going to be their routine over the summer. With one week left of school, they figured it was a good time to start.
Teli's slow, powerful strokes on the bike pedals glided her easily up the mountain path, in contrast to Kat, who was having a bit more difficulty - she had to stand and pump the pedals to keep up.
"I think you're trying to tell me I'm not in shape or something Te." Kat called in a teasing tone, "'coz I just plain can't keep up today!" Kat laughed. But Teli frowned to herself; she hadn't meant to leave Kat in the dust.
"Sorry girl, I've just got a funny feeling in my legs -- like I want to stretch or work, or something..."
Kat was the only one who knew. Things Teli didn't understand about herself -- like how she could pedal up a mountain path at 20 mph and not break a sweat, disturbed her, and Kat provided a sympathetic ear, as well as a partner in solving the mystery.
"Well, in that case Te, I think you *need* to go fast -- stretch those legs of yours!" Kat grinned at the idea forming in her mind.
"What?" Teli wondered where Kat was going.
"You wait right here for five minutes while I bike up on ahead. I'll stop at five minutes and at that point you start biking. Go as fast as you can and catch up. We'll time you. It'll be fun. 'Kay?"
"You sure?" Teli was skeptical, but Kat didn't answer, she just smiled and grabbed Teli's watch.
"Okay, watches on timer. Ready? 3, 2, 1, start!" Kat pedaled quickly away as they both hit START. As the fourth minute ticked off Teli put both feet on the pedals -- practicing staying upright at a standstill. 'This could get interesting,' Teli mussed.
Five minutes. Teli burst out the standstill. Her muscles stretched and contracted, beginning to push harder. Teli could hardly believe the power she was already pushing out, or the sense of pure enjoyment she felt at being able to use her body to the max. She barely saw Kat as she swept by. Teli slowed and turned back towards Kat, remembering to hit stop on her watch.
Kat had a puzzled look on her face, and she looked up.
"What's your watch say, Tel?" Teli glanced down.
"Five minutes and, whoa, 51 seconds." Teli looked up at her friend with wide eyes.
"Yeah. Mine says five minutes and 48 seconds. Damn, girl. I could barely see you when you swept by."
"Kat. That's impossible," Teli rested her forehead on her handlebars for a moment, "Not to mention, not normal." Kat smiled sympathetically at her friend.
"Don't worry Teli. Yes, you're a mystery, but we'll figure you out!" Kat winked to lighten the air. Teli almost giggled.
"Thanks, girl." They both smiled.
"All right, enough of this, let's go get some ice cream!" Teli laughed at her friend's words.
"I though the biking was to be in shape." Kat gave that comment a skeptical look.
"Well, we'll finish the ride after we get the cream. Now step on it!" Teli just shook her head at Kat and pedaled off after her.
*******
"Come on Molly, let's go!" The young dog leapt up, excited to be going out. It was early -- 5:30 in the morning. But Teli, as usual, has already been up for hours and needed to get out.
Molly ran ahead, up the mountain their house was nestled into. Molly knew where they were going and was eager to start checking out the new smells. Teli smiled as the dog bounded up the incline.
Teli walked for 15 minutes before she reached her spot. She quickly climbed up the large boulder-and-rock pile to the flat spot that was at the top. From there she could see the whole little valley where Lake Tahoe resided and the little resort town that had sprung up around it. This was where Teli came to be along with her thoughts.
Molly was snuffing around at the base of the rock pile. Teli smiled slightly as she listened to her root around. Molly started digging at the soft dirt, looking for something. Teli closed her eyes and concentrated on the soft, pleasant sounds. 'I love the sound of dried pine needles crunching, silly Molly,' Teli thought, 'I wish I could hear a little better, though.' Teli strained to hear better. Suddenly, her ear felt like the ear drum had opened up, and the noise of Molly's digging got very loud. Now Teli could hear not only the digging, but also Molly's breathing and even her heart beating.
Teli's eyes shot wide open and she shook her head. The noise dropped back to normal levels and her eardrums 'closed' again.
"What the hell?! That was whack!" Teli said aloud to herself. "How many more things am I going to discover about this deranged body?!" Teli asked, frustrated.
Teli was distracted from her thoughts when she sensed something else, something suspicious. Without really meaning to, Teli zoomed her hearing back in on the noises Molly was making. Molly's heartbeat... and another, faster heartbeat.
"Molly! Get out of there!" Teli yelled. Molly jumped up and ran up the rock to Teli, just barely evading a porcupine that was about to leave spines in Molly's nose.
Teli smiled and hugged her dog. 'Well, at least these whacked out abilities of mine come in handy sometimes...' she thought.
*******
Dear Angel,
Today has been a day of discoveries. Not only can I bike a mile a minute, I can change my hearing just like I can with my eyes. Will the discoveries ever end...? What I'm wondering is why I'm figuring all this out *now*. I mean, I must've always had these... functions and just not known about them. Maybe I was suppressing them in my subconscious or something. Though, it feels more like I'd forgotten and now I'm remembering. Odd, very odd. Well, going on...
I had a dream about you again. You were running through a long, dark, hallway -- the only light was from some huge old window. Two little kids, I think, were following you. Then we were outside and you jumped over a 15-foot fence, easily. Maybe that means you're like me. I know you're out there somewhere, and you hold the key to the secrets of my life. Please come back.
-Teli