20th June, 2019

RENEE

Noah and I sat on the large flat rocks that bordered the edge of the stream, the cool water tickling our toes. As I unravelled the bookshelf incident, Noah grew silent, tangled in his thoughts.

"But why would anyone target you, Renee? I mean, you haven't done anything wrong," Noah said as he picked up a pebble and threw it across the stream. It glided across the water, before landing smoothly on the other side.

"Is there a tiny chance that they know about the Realm?" I asked him hesitantly and saw his face harden.

"Not a chance, Renee. This Realm is well guarded," Noah answered firmly, wiggling his fingers so that the stone came flying back into his palm.

"But, it's Sir Johannes. He has his ways of finding out, right?" I countered.

Noah didn't say anything, but I saw the frown lines etched in his face. He threw the stone harder this time, that it barely skimmed the surface of the water, before disappearing from our line of sight.

"It's just that... I'm scared," I felt my voice trembling, "I'm really scared Noah, and I have no idea of what is going to happen and if I'd ever be alive at the end of this-" the tears overcame me, choking my words and making me feel like a helpless little girl. But that's exactly what I was, helpless and little and extremely frightened.

I covered my face with my hands, not wanting Noah to see me cry. But he pried my fingers away and stared at my face with a determined look.

"Renee, I won't let that happen, I'll save you-"

"You're a whole Realm away!" I told him, frustrated, pulling my hands away, "How can you save me? It makes absolutely no sense!"

Noah looked startled but I only felt a tiny bit of guilt. I wiped my tears away, knowing that Noah had no idea how anxious I'd been for the past few days.

"Calm down Renee, there's a way-"

"Oh really? Come on, Noah, tell me if there's a way for me to not get killed! Oh, that's right, there isn't!" I screamed hysterically.

I knew I had no reason to get furious with him. But I couldn't take it anymore, not when I spent every minute watching out for death traps and falling bookshelves.

Noah sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. A part of me immediately felt guilty for seeing him like this, but anger made the guilt evaporate pretty quickly. He was as helpless as I was.

"There's a way," He said loudly, as if he didn't want me interrupting him again. "No, it's not about people not killing you. I can't make you immortal." He almost scoffed at his own words.

"But I can talk to you, whenever you want. If something happens to you, you can tell me immediately," He paused, as he gripped my hands, "And I'll be there."

"And how are we doing that?" I asked, staring straight at him, my heart beating with anticipation.

"Telepathy," Noah grinned, "In the seventh dimension."

*****

Telepathy, as it turned out, was the dimensional ability of the seventh dimension. Which meant that upon access to the seventh dimension, I would be able to communicate with him through telepathy.

The seventh dimension was all about communication. Being truthful. Clearing out misunderstandings. Noah told me that as we sought higher dimensions, they would drain us more emotionally than before.

This was also why reaching the White Realm was a herculean task.

"Can I skip a dimension like that?" I questioned him excitedly as he snapped his textbook shut. "I mean, I've only learnt until the fifth dimension, and I'm going to be learning the seventh..."

"You're not skipping a dimension. You'll learn it next week," Noah answered, as he carefully avoided looking at me. "Besides, the sixth and seventh have very similar dimensional energies, so it's not going to be a large shift for you."

And yet, as to why that sentence made Noah blush, I have no idea.

"We reach the seventh dimension by admitting our acts of falsehood and relieving the guilt that has been burdening us. This is the literal key to unlock the seventh dimension," Noah recited.

At this point, he didn't even need a textbook, since the ISA made him memorise it so well.

"So, what do I do?" I asked him eagerly as I leaned forward, and crossed my legs so that I sat comfortably upon the rock.

"First we accept our lies and mistakes," Noah inhaled deeply, and I mimicked him. "And let them out." He exhaled, and so did I.

As Noah exhaled, a black smokey substance effused out of his throat, whereas, mine stayed the same.

"This is the centre of communication," Noah pointed at his throat, his Adam's apple bobbing prominently. "The wheel of the seventh dimension. Clearing this would unlock the seventh dimension."

I tried again, focusing on any mistakes that if made in my past. The black substance floated out, but I could still feel most of it inside, whirring inside me like a loud yet tiny motor.

"Accept your mistakes, and release the guilt," Noah said in a soothing voice.

I thought about all those lies I told my parents about the Realm, and how I was hiding this place from my family. It made me feel guilty, but I only gathered the guilt and released it, trying not to think too much about it.

"Sometimes, white lies are necessary. Don't hold that guilt, for it isn't beneficial." Noah said as if he knew exactly what I was thinking about.

I thought about my family again, all those times I'd lied to people, hiding the fact that my dad was mentally unstable. And all that guilt that blamed me for Mike disappearance.

The smoky substance thinned out, and I soon felt the last remnant leaving me. I smiled at Noah, and he did too, causing my heart to skip a beat. The way he was looking at me, with so much admiration and love, made me tear up.

And that's when the guilt returned. Stronger than before. So much of the smoky substance had formed, that my throat was clogged like before, choking me with invisible hands.

I guess Noah noticed the change in my expression because he soon asked me what was wrong. I shook my head, knowing that I could never tell Noah the real reason.

Shay.

Every happy memory I spent with Noah was tainted with the fear of Shay finding out. That she'd accuse me of stealing him away from her. That's what the guilt was, the fact that I secretly liked a guy who belonged to another girl. I was taking Noah away from her, and I wasn't doing anything to stop it.

"Renee, if you tell me the problem, then maybe I can give you a way to release the guilt," He told me worriedly. "You can't stay vulnerable for so long."

He was right. All the energy in my Spirit self was being sucked into my throat, spinning like a wheel, faster and faster the guilt swirling like a huge storm. I could see my hands grow paler like I was dissipating into thin air. Noah gripped on my fingers and shook them violently, but even that just energised me briefly.

I felt my headache, and I knew that I was running out of energy. Maybe if I told Noah what was bothering me, that would clear out the guilt.

"Renee!" Noah yelled, now panicking. "You're fading!"

And I was. I was also crying, torn between telling Noah what I was feeling and fading into oblivion. I didn't even know what fading implied, but it couldn't be good, because Noah looked terrified, clutching my hands like I was going to die.

"Tell me!" Noah shook my shoulders. "You can tell me anything!"

I turned my head away from him, only feeling the guilt multiply as he neared me. I should've never agreed to get close to Noah, and now I was dragging him away from her. I was the one causing all the problems.

I was a terrible person.

"Renee!" Noah's hands were on my face, turning me so that I looked directly at him. Another wave of guilt hit me like nausea, and I wailed loudly before pushing his hands away.

The closer he came to me, the worse I felt about myself. I hated the feeling, but it was the bitter truth.

Then, since I couldn't bear it any longer, I screamed, knowing that Noah was the only one who could help me now.

"Shay!" I blurted out.

If Noah knew, would he stop visiting me? Would we stop being friends?

Before I could take back my words, he spoke.

"Shay what?" Noah looked puzzled.

"Shay and you..." I sucked in a deep breath and felt my palms shaking violently. "I feel like I'm coming between you two!"

There. I said it. Already the smoke was leaving me, the relief that he knew. But I was also dreading what was about to happen next.

Noah looked half-mad, half amused. "There's no Shay and me... She's like my sister." He lifted my face, so that I looked at him, and he gave me a soft smile.

Oh.

OHHH.

"Did she tell you that I was dating her?" Noah asked as he leaned away, now frowning at the horizon.

"Yeah," I nodded, lowering my gaze, feeling stupid for believing her.

Another cloud of smoke wafted away from my throat. Before I'd even realised it, all the smoke had drifted away, dissolving the confusion and tension that had been in me until a moment ago.

"You've done it," Noah smiled encouragingly.

"So, Shay isn't your girlfriend?" I asked him as soon as my voice returned, still unable to believe it.

"Nope," Noah mimed gagging. "That's so gross, we're literally siblings."

I giggled, already feeling a lot better. My face was still wet from the tears, but I wiped them away, as I glanced at Noah again.

"So, I'm assuming you aren't seeing any geeky guy from your class either..." Noah asked rather timidly, shoving his hair off his eyes.

"No, I'm not," I raised my eyebrows. "Where did you get that from?"

"Sneaky old Shay lied to me too," Noah said, hurling a stone across the water. As he said that, a small smoky cloud rose from his throat, before drifting into the surrounding. I wondered what that was for. "I can't imagine why..."

Then he stiffened as though he'd realised something.

"What's wrong?" I asked him.

"You still need to gain access to the seventh dimension," Noah shook his head. "Focus on your guilt and a door will appear in front of you."

I closed my eyes, thinking about all the guilt that had just escaped me. A blue door appeared in front of my eyes, a high pitched, melodious sound emanating from the other side. It was similar to the sound I'd heard when Noah gave me access to the Spirit Realm, filling me with peace and clarity.

Then the door swung open, leading into a blue room, with high ceilings and decorative pillars. And then, I heard Noah's voice in my head, which surprisingly resonated throughout the room.

"Hi Renee!" He nearly cheered, trying hard to suppress his enthusiasm.

"Noah, hey," I thought, feeling his name reverberate in my head.

"Yeah, I can hear you," Noah answered. "Now try opening your eyes."

As I opened my eyes, I saw Noah grinning madly, his cheeks flushed with excitement.

"Can you still hear me?" He spoke telepathically in my head.

I smiled at him. "Yes, yes I can."

As his blue eyes mirrored the happiness in mine, I could only think of how I didn't have to worry about Shay anymore. More than anything, the simple feeling of relief, combined with the exhilarating ability of telepathy, I knew that things could be better again.

"Can I talk to you like this all the time?" I asked him telepathically.

"Yeah. Even when you get back to your Earthly Realm, doing your mundane stuff," Noah winked. "I've shielded our telepathy link, so the ISA can't find out."

"Noah, this is freaking awesome!" My cheeks were aching from smiling so hard, but it didn't matter.

At this rate, I don't think I'm ever going to stop talking telepathically to him.

Especially now that Noah was just a thought away.

*****