The Mindreader [Santario]

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Erka

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Emma walked through the park alone, listening to the constant buzz of thoughts around her. Emma was a mind reader, and while most would likely be happy with that, she was not. The problem wasn't that it wasn't useful, but she could never turn it off. She often stayed home, avoiding people so she wouldn't have to listen to their thoughts. It was alright here, just a low background buzz, but larger crowds gave her an instant headache.
She paused in her walking, startled, when she began hearing some thought far more clearly that the rest of the buzz. She looked around, within about twenty feet of herself where she could actually hear people's thoughts clearly, but saw no one. It didn't take her long to figure out that these thoughts were coming from one person, and from the sound of them she could tell they were a man's. Confused and curious, she began searching the park for this person.
 
Jack had been walking through the park when he heard a child's cry. Jack immediately felt the urge to help and began to follow the sounds of the crying. Most people would scoff and ignore the child being annoyed by his persistent cry wondering idly why his parents couldn't shut him up, but not Jack. He was concerned and worried immediately for his safety wondering why he was crying and more importantly who was causing it.

The people made way for this man as he walked hurriedly towards the fountain. Standing at 6'1" and being a lean but muscled 173lbs and dressed head to toe in black. His black hair was a loose messy spike and his sharp green eyes slightly intimidating people couldn't help but part for him like the dead sea. He quickly found the child sitting on the edge of the fountain alone and crying. Jack walked up with a smile on his face "Hey there, what's wrong?" The child looked up at him tears still streaming down his face like a waterfall and he bit his lip looking around with sniffles. "I'm... I'm not pose to tawlk to trangers." Jack nodded his approval. "Well that is very good advice indeed. My name is Jack Ryder and I work with the children at the local orphanage." He pulled out his wallet, which was attached to his pants by a chain, removed his driver's license and handed it to the little boy. "I want you to hold onto that it tells you who I am and has my picture. You hold on tightly till I help you with whats wrong. Okay?" The little boy took the plastic card and looked at the picture and back to Jack. He nodded while wiping his eyes with his sleeve.

"Now why don't we start off with you telling me your name and what's wrong?" The little boy chewed on his sleeve as he looked at Jack who now knelt in front of him getting on his level. "Brandon. Too many people... I can't find my mommy." Jack would hold out his hand with that same soft smile on his lips. "Well let me help you find her."
 
Emma didn't have too much trouble finding him, hearing his thoughts as he found and began trying to help a lost child. Deciding to find a reason to approach the man, she went about finding the child's mother.
That didn't take long either, as the woman's frantic, emotionally charged thoughts rose above the buzz of normal thoughts almost as much as the strange man's. She spoke to the woman for a moment, explaining that she had seen her child -the boy's name was Brandon- and quickly led the mother to her lost child. The woman was very happy and relieved, hugging her son before thanking both Emma, for bringing her to him, and Jack, for watching over him, profusely.
 
Jack took the boys hand and had put him up on his shoulders so he could better spot his mother. After a moment the boy pointed at two females headed their way. Jack relinquished the boy to his mother and gave him a hug while also taking back his driver's license. Jack smiled at the mother. "Really ma'am it was no trouble at all." He looked at Brandon. "Remember next time you've got to take deep breaths and calm down that way you can find your parents calmly. Yeah?" The boy nodded frantically while his mother hugged him and then they walked off together. Jack looked at the female who had found the mother and gave a chuckle. "Great minds think a like I guess." He held out his hand. "I'm Jack" He looked over her stunning red hair and blue eyes. 'Wow she's beautiful'
 
Emma smiled and nodded, as she shook his hand. "I'm Emma." She replied, smiling more at his thoughts. He was pretty attractive himself, she thought, but she didn't say that: she had learned long ago never to reply to thoughts unless they were also voiced outloud. That brought about way too many questions, many of which she really didn't have an answer for herself. "That was pretty impressive, how you calmed that kid down. How did you know what to do?"
 
Jack smiled as she acknowledged his skill. "Oh uhm, well I work with kids a lot at the shelter. A lot of the new ones are very emotional given the circumstances. So I learned fast how to calm them down and get them to cooperate." He kind of shrugged it off like it was really no big deal. 'Wow... I kind of just made myself sound like I could be a kidnapping sociopath...' He chided himself. "I'm going to be studying to be a child psychologist to better help children who are put into the system and have to endure traumas." He ran his hand through his hair it was weird for him, for people to talk to him for more than 30 seconds if he wasn't working with them. Especially females who happen to look like her.
 
Emma nodded, "I see. That seems like a nice thing to do, those kids need people like that." She said. "You haven't begun studying yet?" She asked. Odd. He looked to be old enough to be in college by now, but then again he might just look older than he was. He definitely looked meaner and more intimidating than he was.
 
Jack nodded in agreement. "Yes they really do." When she asked her next question he shrugged. "I decided to take a year off before going into college." He glanced around at the people giving them a wide berth he was definitely not someone people normally found themselves wanting to be seen with. "So, uh, Emma may I buy you some coffee or some kind of beverage that you happen to enjoy?" He asked just trying to see if she was just making polite small talk or if she was in fact being friendly.
 
Emma nodded, "Sure, if you'd like." She said. She decided she wanted to get to know him better, especially since others seemed to be avoiding him. She felt bad that he seemed to be so misunderstood by others, he seemed to be a really nice guy.
 
Jack smiled and nodded. "Cool. I know a place just outside of the park we can go to. It's a little hole in the wall place but it's some of the best coffee in town." He would start walking in the direction of the place putting his hands hands in is pockets. "So you know a little bit about what I do, what is it that you do? In college or working?" He asked just trying to make some like conversation. He was never a great conversationalist when it came to small talk or starting conversations but he did try. It was easier because most people just stayed away from him not really wanting much to do with someone who looked so aggressive. He had even tried not wearing all black but apparently it was just his facial structure and voice that made people think he was like that.
 
"Okay, that seems nice." Emma said, walking with him. She smiled a little, ignoring all the thoughts around them. There were so many people around today that it was a little hard to ignore, and she just hoped she wouldn't end up getting a headache from it. "I'm just finishing up my last year of high school, actually." She told him.
 
Jack nodded as she spoke. "Well that's pretty cool." His thoughts drifted to how the skyline here would make a pretty amazing sketch wondering how he could capture the culture of their city and try to preserve it. "So any ideas as what you want to do with the future?" He asked the ever cliche question proving how bad he was at small talk. It wasn't too long before they were in front of a small brick facing set around a heavy door. Jack walked up and opened the door for her.

Despite having no widows the place was bright and spacious. Painted in a light powder blue with 12 4 top tables a spacious counter and a nice soft ambiance which inviting a warm soothing atmosphere. Jack would walk up to the counter and order a black coffee and a burger with fries. The menu had pretty much everything you could expect from a cafe.
 
"Thanks." Emma said, "I'm not really sure. I think I'd like to get a job where I have to investigate and figure things out, I've always liked doing that." She answered, and looked around once they entered the building. "This seems like a nice place." She commented, just ordering some coffee for herself. She wasn't very hungry, and didn't want to cost him much since he was buying and she barely even knew him.
 
Jack pointed at the table he was going to be sitting at indicating where the server could deliver. Jack walked over to the table in the corner and took the seat where he could see the entire place his back to the wall. "That definitely sounds interested. Hahaha you can be the FBI Investigator and I can be your Criminal profiler." He laughed some more at the ironic partnering of their career paths. "This is pretty much my favorite place to be besides home. I have a tendency to come here for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Estelle can attest to it for sure." Estelle came walking over with their order setting down Emma's drink first than Jack's drink and food. "Oh that's for sure this kid doesn't leave this place. I've even caught him falling asleep at his table while studying a few times!" Estelle was an older woman, not unattractive, but more of the motherly/grandmotherly type. Jack flushed and chuckled softly. "Yeah well blame yourself for having delicious food and coffee." Jack looked back to Emma with a smile. "Are you sure you don't want any food? I honestly don't mind." And he didn't mind if she was hungry he would prefer that she ate something.
 
Emma grinned as she sat at the table with him, "That would be really cool." She said, and nodded to the woman, greeting her in a friendly way. "That seems cute." She commented, laughing a little as she pictured him sleeping here while trying to study. She nodded again and sipped her coffee. "Yeah. I already ate before I came to the park.. The coffee is good here, though." She commented, offering another smile.
 
Jack seemed to flush a little more when she commented that it was cute but he hid it with taking a bite from his burger. He didn't really know what to say his thoughts drifted from trying to figure out what to ask her or talk to her about, about how pretty she was, and about why she was still even there. "Sorry... I'm not really great at talking to people my age... Most people don't really stick around this long." He was better with children they didn't make judgements and were extremely honest and more importantly entertaining them was as easy as thinking up a game to play.
 
"That's okay." She said, smiling a bit as she ate. "So how did you find out you wanted to work with kids?" She asked, deciding to introduce something to talk about so he wouldn't have to figure out what to talk about.
 
Jack kind of shrugged a little when she asked him her question. "It just kind of came to me. I'm used to protecting people and who but the lost and forgotten need more protection." It was pretty simple to him. "In school I was always watching out for, what most people would label, the nerds and geeks." He set his burger down and a pang of profound sorrow enveloped him. "I was in my 7th year and I was already trying to help people but one thing really pushed me over the edge... There was this kid who we all knew didn't have a great home life. It was pretty typical. His mom was a drunk who hit him and his dad was sleeping with whatever with a pair of legs that walked past him next." He took a breath before continuing clasping his hands together. "They didn't have a lot of money so most of his clothes were hand me downs from cousins or honestly whatever he could find rejected from the Good Will... Well he got picked on a lot, beat up, shoved in lockers, harassed in the locker room. One day they hung him by his ankles from the catwalk, which was on the second floor, and threatened to drop him. They finally pulled him back over after he wet himself." His hands tightened into fists and his jaw muscle clenched. He was filled with regret that he wasn't strong enough then to help. "The kids were all way older than me... but I'll never forget that next morning walking into to school... There he was hanging from the catwalk. Everything had been just too much for him... I don't really blame him, but he was a nice kid and really smart. At lunch he'd help me with my classwork and I'd share my lunch with him. From then on out I vowed to become stronger so I could help those who cannot help themselves."
 
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