eyes snap open to the sound of a door slamming against the wall
"THOMAS! Get UP! You think the world's gonna wait for you?!"
Charlotte's standing in the doorway, arms crossed, already mid-scowl. You barely have time to blink — and then it hits you.
Not her voice. Something beneath it.
—lazy little shit, can't even get out of bed on his own, I swear this kid will be the death of me—
The thought isn't spoken. It just... appears. Clear as day. Like hearing someone whisper right next to your ear, except nobody's whispering. It's her. Inside her head. And she doesn't know you can hear it.
—nineteen years old and still sleeping till noon, Dan was right, we should've put our foot down years ago—
Your heart's hammering. Your skin prickles with something — static, maybe. A faint buzz, like electricity still living under your skin from that night. The Lichtenberg scar on your arm tingles.
Charlotte hasn't noticed anything. She's just standing there, tapping her foot, waiting for you to move.
"Well?! Are you gonna lay there all day or what?"
—god, look at him, just staring at me like an idiot—
You don't react. You can't. Your brain's too busy trying to process the fact that you just heard your mother's actual thoughts.
And they were about you.
And they were ugly.
The buzz fades. The room is quiet except for Charlotte's impatient breathing. Your hands are shaking slightly under the covers.
What do you do?