I shake off that last thought and walk away, willing myself to forget any personal details I’ve picked up about my classmates. That’s not the point; I’d never look inside someone’s head to learn gossip about them. It was purely a practice session. And I aced it.

I don’t know whether to be happy I’ve begun honing my skill, to use Maude’s words, or terrified of what it means.

All I want right now is to curl up next to Ollie and not think—about anything. I buzz him, asking him to meet me for part two of our movie marathon.

He’s standing outside my door when I return to my room, and he’s wielding a cafeteria tray loaded with our favorite snacks. I don’t ask him where he got all that junk food—clearly not the dining hall. Wordlessly, I open my door, pull out my tablet, and start the movie.

We relax on my twin bed, and I think back to yesterday, and how this felt so safe and normal. And yet—something feels wrong. Off. It’s the kiss, I remind myself. You hurt him, Emma. It’s going to take time for him to heal. You rejected him. Didn’t you?

“Ollie?” I nudge his foot with my own.

“Yep?” he asks, chewing on a Snickers bar.

I hit pause on the movie, then pull my knees up to my chest. “We promised no more secrets between us, right?”

He turns to look at me, his face earnest, and in that moment, I feel so much love for him, as my best friend on the planet, it hurts, like an ache in my chest.

“I can read people’s thoughts. Or hear them, I guess. It’s a mental agility thing. Something that was programmed into my DNA before I was born. It’s been happening since the beginning of the school year. The night of the hazing was the first time. It’s like the person’s talking directly in my ear. At first it would happen without me being able to control it. Without me even wanting it. I heard your thoughts, the night of the dance,” I add, my heart pounding. “That’s how I knew about your feelings for me. And you’re right, I tried to stop you from telling me. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have kept that from you. I shouldn’t have kept so many things from you. But that stops now. I swear.”

Ollie sets down his candy-bar wrapper, looking like he’s trying to process what I just told him.

“Em—who knows about this? Who else, I mean?”