stands on shifting sands, the scales held in her hands

[justsookie]

One of the rules that I generally live by is that it's criminal to waste a good bathing suit. They're kind of like shoes — it's really hard to find one that fits in a flattering way, and sometimes also difficult to find the right color for your complexion. Human bodies aren't really designed to be perfect, and even if I bought into the idea that people shouldn't mind those imperfections, that didn't mean that I wouldn't try to dress myself up. Fashion's all about emphasizing your best features.

So when I'd found a cute little set with cherries and blossoms speckled all over, clearly that meant my day would be devoted to both laying on the beach and taking a dip in the water. And for the latter, I headed to the waterfall by the Compound, one of the things Louisiana really didn't have too many of. The water was almost unbelievably clean, not at all murky like the marsh ponds I was accustomed to. With a stifled laugh, I ended up taking a running start, tucked into a cannonball, and splashed right in.

In that moment, it was sorta hard to keep my mind on any of my greater worries. I guess a lot of stereotypes really do have some truth in them.

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[justsookie]

Even though I'd just covered myself with a towel, Cal's stare was making me feel all the more naked. And I hated it. I don't like feeling cornered on a good day, but give me someone who had just told me that he was descended from some type of monster, who should have known by then that the island took away all traces of abilities anyway, who talked about relationships with vampires like they weren't a big deal, and yet still have him getting all bug-eyed over my former ability to read minds? It had me going defensive, and I could feel myself tensing up as I tried to pull my towel even more tightly around myself. Even if it didn't actually work, it helped take my mind off that weird look I was getting from Cal.

Because I recognized it. It was like the look I got every time people in Bon Temps were reminded of how I was different, how they tried to deny to themselves the fact that I knew just a little too much for it to be coincidence, how they were always uneasy when I was around. Sometimes the reasons differed a little — occasionally, I even found someone who thought it was really cool. But they were always nervous.

"No," I muttered, and at the moment Cal's only saving grace was the fact that he'd been honest to me about his own background. If it weren't for that, I would probably have just up and left. "Not psychic. And I'm not telepathic anymore either, thanks to the island, so you can stop lookin' at me like I'm gonna just root in your head. I always try to keep out of other people's business."

[dichotomos]

"Whoa, whoa, hold up there with your assumptions," I shot immediately back, frowning as I sat up and turned my complete attention to Sookie. "Did I say I thought you were going to root around in my head? Did I say I thought you would be in my business? No, I didn't, so chill out." The good news was, I was at least temporarily annoyed enough to ignore the continued torment of her tits. I huffed out a sigh and looked moodily back to the water.

"I…knew a girl back home, okay?" I began, hating myself a little for mentioning it at all. Most days, I did my best to forget that George even existed. It was just easier that way. "She was psychic. That's all. I wasn't fucking assuming anything about you, I was just reminded of her, and no I don't want to talk about it."

[justsookie]

In that moment, I knew that if I was back home in Bon Temps, I would have gone searching through his mind for more details. It was the very same reaction I'd had when Bill first mentioned Lorena, or when Bill had introduced me to Jessica. I hated secrets. Sure, people are entitled to keep certain things private — that's not something I'll ever argue against. But most of the time, secrets didn't help. I kept my own because I knew how people acted around me when I was brazen about things like my telepathy. Because if I acted proudly, people would think I was rooting around in their business and drag me into the mud. It had happened before. But most secrets just make things worse.

I should have been glad anyway, that the island was cutting off any sort of temptation.

Instead, I just turned away with furrowed brows, not sure how to process anything and similarly being denied the very thing I would have done, which would have been to ask Cal to tell me more about this girl.

"Fine," I replied instead, still beyond frustrated as I let my toes graze across the surface of the water. "Sorry I brought it up."