Page 64 of Should Our Hearts Catch Fire

“You can read people, Gabe. So can any good psychologist.” Dawson nods towards Ash. “And you know how to make them feel better because you’re a kind, empathetic person. It’s amazing, but it’s not magic.”

Gabe doesn’t take offense, though he is a little tired of all the skepticism. He’s had this argument before. A hundred times.

A little demonstration should do it.

Slowly raising his hand to give him a chance to move back, he places it over Dawson’s, deliberately sending a trickle of positive energy through the connection.

He knows when it reaches Dawson because his eyelids flutter, a peaceful expression replacing the anguished one. He aims his gaze down, eyes trailing over the floor as if he’s expecting to find himself levitating. Gabe has had some people describe the feeling as floating above the ground before.

Dawson takes a gasping breath when Gabe withdraws his energy, breaking the connection.

“Could a regular empathetic person do that?” Gabe asks, not trying to sound smug or anything.

Dawson does a double take when his eyes land on Gabe’s. He must be seeing the golden hue that always appears in his eyes when he uses his powers like that.

“What was that?” Dawson demands, not sounding particularly freaked out. Then again, it’s probably not the weirdest thing that’s happened to him lately.

“Magic,” Gabe says with a small grin. He feels his eyelids begin to droop, a wave of exhaustion falling over him. Damn, he’s going to feel dizzy for a good while, but it needed to be done. “I’m sorry. I try not to do this without consent, but you were being stubborn.” Thankfully, he can’t feel any irritation coming from Dawson. “I have…empathic abilities. There’s more to it. Remember the first time you brought Cal here? After he was released from the hospital?” Dawson nods. “I talked to him. There was something about him I couldn’t put my finger on. And for a moment there, we touched, and I…I didn’t understand what I felt. I’d never felt anything like it. But whatever it was, it wasn’t bad, it wasn’t malicious.” He holds Dawson’s gaze. “But it wasn’t human either.”

Panic floods Dawson’s gaze. “I—I don’t…”

“I felt how much he cares for you,” Gabe prowls on. “You’re on his mind constantly, Dawson. Whoever this man is, he’s not the person you knew. He's worlds better, and he loves you so much that I can feel it in my bones when you two are around.”

“He’s telling the truth,” Ash takes over. “I’ve never met Cal, but I know Gabe. He’s the real deal.”

“How do you know?”

“I’m not the only one with superpowers,” Gabe says, leaving it there.

“Another time,” Ash says when Dawson looks at him for explanation. “I think you should talk to Cal.”

“Nowyou’re advocating for him?” Dawson bristles.

Ash shakes his head. “Do you remember the second time you came to see me?”

“Which part?”

“You said you were so happy you couldn’t bring yourself to care about what anyone else thought. You said that when you are with Cal, you can be yourself. You said he makes you feel safe. Is it really so unbelievable that he might not be the man you thought he was?”

Dawson’s face, and his energy, go through a complicated myriad of emotions, finally settling on something resembling an epiphany. “Can people hear you when they’re comatose?” he asks Ash.

“What?”

“Cal said something about the hospital. About me and Kieran…going into his room. Could he have been aware of what was going on around him even when he was sedated?”

“Possibly,” Ash says, very reluctantly. “Just because the conscious part of your brain is on vacation doesn’t mean the whole thing shuts off. Kind of like when you’re sleeping.”

“I have to go.” Dawson pushes his chair back, giving Donut’s leash a gentle tug as he hurries outside.

Gabe looks at Ash, and they both shrug. They’ve done everything they could. Whatever Dawson does next is—

Gabe’s vision blacks out, an urgent, high-pitched sound piercing through his ears. In the darkness, a golden line twists and curls in various shapes.Words,Gabe realizes as the first one appears.

“Gabe?” comes Ash’s worried voice.

“Pen. Need a pen and paper.

A chair scrapes across the floor, and then two items are placed in his hands. “Here.”