Despite coming to grips with his newfound power it was still too overwhelming. He felt smothered in his own room -- barely able to catch his breath. He got dressed and headed out, avoiding Mark and June downstairs in the kitchen, and quietly let himself out the front door. Nobody even noticed him.
He needed to get this all sorted out. He needed somebody to confide in. He needed to go next door. He crossed the lawn, careful not to let his foster parents see him, and stood in front of the old white house next door.
He needed Erin. His one and only true friend. She was 23, entering her third year of college come autumn, and the one person who really got him. She was tall, with long blonde curls, incredibly nerdy and fun, and wonderfully beautiful. He had had a crush on her since she had moved in four years ago.
He found himself knocking on the door and gulped. Her parents were out of town, they'd be alone. He could talk to his friend about... his gift.
Erin answered the door dressed casual and stared down at Ty with open arms. They exchanged a quick hug and she smiled. "Hey, little buddy! The dictators let you out for a bit?"
"Yeah." Ty shot nervous glances over his shoulder. "Listen, Erin, I have to talk to you. I have... well, a problem. Or, no, no, I guess it's not a problem, but it is. Just, I have to tell somebody."
The blonde knew that tone of voice and nodded, reaching her hand out and taking Ty by the shoulder to urge him in. "Okay, kiddo. Just relax, come on in. Sure thing."
She shut the door behind them and knelt down in front of him with sympathetic eyes. "What's wrong, honey? Did they hurt you again? Do you need me to call someone?"
"Well... no." Ty breathed in heavily. "It's... I'm okay. But... well..."
Erin's eyes widened and she rubbed the boy's back gently. "Hey, you know you can talk to me about anything, right kiddo?"
"Yeah..." Ty met her eyes. "But this is different. You'll think I'm crazy."
"Nah." Erin shook her head. "Come on, come sit down, take a load off. I'll go make some lunch and then you can tell me about it."
* * *
If Ty hadn't of been so serious she wouldn't have believed it, but somewhere in the back of her mind she was intriqued. Had he really shrunk Dustin? With just a mere thought? Willpower? Magic? In either case, something didn't seem quite right with her memory of Ty's step brother. Like it had been fogged somehow. And in her books that was tangible. You didn't just lose a huge part of your memory of a person for no reason.
"So, I guess what it boils down to is this." Erin smirked, and sat back on the couch with a pillow between her legs. "I'm not sure if I believe all this, but I know you've never lied to me. So..." She sighed, not sure of what was about to happen, but maddeningly intriqued. "Show me something. Do something."
"Like what?" Ty asked sheepishly.
"Well... how about you do something impossible?" Erin laughed.
"O-Okay." Ty nodded, wrung his hands together nervously, and thought.