Chapter 26: Power Overload - Part 3
POV: Kole Martinez
Saturday morning's quiet was shattered by persistent knocking that carried the particular rhythm of someone who'd traveled far and wouldn't be deterred by lack of immediate response. Kole opened his apartment door to find Jessica Day standing in the hallway with overnight bag and expression of determined concern that made his chest tight with complicated emotions.
She came. Despite the distance, despite her schedule, despite my attempts to handle this alone.
"You sounded off all week," Jessica said without preamble, studying his face with teacher's practiced ability to read distress in people trying to hide it. "I took emergency personal day."
Emergency personal day. She used sick time to check on me.
"Jessica, you didn't need to—"
"I'm not here to fix anything," she interrupted with gentle firmness that brooked no argument. "I'm just here to be here."
Just here to be here. Simple presence as healing strategy.
If only she knew what she's really dealing with.
Kole tried protesting her unannounced arrival, citing work stress and need for solitude, but Jessica remained unmovable with patient determination that suggested she'd made this decision carefully and wouldn't be dissuaded by polite deflection.
She's worried. Actually worried about me.
And I can't explain why she should be.
They walked to nearby Prospect Park, Kole wearing sunglasses against lingering light sensitivity while Jessica provided gentle company without demanding explanations or immediate solutions. The autumn air carried promise of winter while afternoon light filtered through bare branches with forgiving softness.
Walking together without talking. Companionable silence that doesn't require performance or explanation.
They found quiet bench overlooking the lake, settling into proximity that felt both natural and carefully maintained. Jessica waited with characteristic patience, understanding that healing often required time and space rather than immediate intervention.
She knows how to be present without being intrusive. Teacher skills applied to personal relationships.
"Want to talk about it?" Jessica asked finally, her voice carrying invitation without pressure.
Want to talk about supernatural memory overload and traumatic recall that I can't forget because of impossible abilities?
No. But I want to share what I can.
"Rough case," Kole said carefully, choosing partial truth over complete evasion. "Lot of violence, lot of victims. Sometimes the job shows you things that stick around longer than they should."
Truth wrapped in incomplete explanation.
Jessica nodded with understanding that came from professional experience dealing with traumatized children.
"I had a student last year," she said quietly, settling deeper into the bench while watching ducks navigate the lake's surface. "Seven years old, finally told me about abuse she was experiencing at home. The look on her face when she shared that secret—"
Jessica sharing her own experience with trauma that can't be forgotten.
"I still see that expression sometimes. When I'm trying to sleep, when I'm driving to work, random moments when my brain decides to replay the worst thing I've witnessed."
Random moments when the brain replays trauma without permission.
She understands the fundamental problem even if she doesn't know about the supernatural enhancement.
"Some things we can't unsee," Jessica continued with empathy born from personal experience. "We just learn to carry them."
Learn to carry them. Management rather than cure.
Maybe that's all anyone can do with trauma, supernatural or otherwise.
They sat quietly for several minutes, watching park visitors navigate afternoon activities while processing the weight of shared understanding about traumatic memory and its persistent effects.
She's not trying to fix me. She's just acknowledging that some problems don't have solutions, only coping strategies.
"There's a technique I use with kids who've experienced trauma," Jessica said eventually, turning toward him with gentle instruction. "Want to try it?"
Technique for trauma management. Anything's worth trying.
"Sure."
"It's called grounding. When memories get overwhelming, we focus on immediate sensory experience to stay present. Name five things you can see."
Five things I can see. Simple observation exercise.
Kole looked around the park, his photographic memory automatically cataloguing details with enhanced precision while he deliberately focused on present moment rather than recalled trauma.
"Ducks on the lake. Jogger in red jacket. Children playing on playground equipment. Man reading newspaper on bench. Woman walking dog."
Deliberate observation rather than automatic enhancement.
"Four things you can hear."
"Kids laughing. Traffic from the street. Wind in the trees. Your voice."
Your voice. Anchor to present reality.
"Three things you can feel."
"Bench beneath me. Cool air on my skin. Your hand."
Your hand. Physical connection to someone who cares.
Jessica had placed her hand over his during the exercise, warm contact that provided grounding beyond sensory awareness.
"Two things you can smell."
"Autumn leaves. Your perfume."
Personal details that connect to specific person rather than general environment.
"One thing you can taste."
"Coffee from this morning."
Present moment rather than recalled trauma.
They practiced the technique several times, Kole's enhanced memory responding better to structured deliberate observation rather than automatic replay of accumulated violence. Not cure, but management strategy that provided temporary relief from relentless recall.
Structured observation versus automatic enhancement. Different way of using the same abilities.
"Better?" Jessica asked.
"Better. Not perfect, but better."
Better. Honest assessment of incremental improvement.
"Perfect isn't the goal," Jessica said with quiet wisdom. "Better is enough."
Better is enough. Permission to aim for management rather than cure.
Acceptance that some problems don't get solved, only survived.
Jessica's hand remained in his, providing physical anchor to present reality while his enhanced abilities learned new patterns of engagement. Human connection as therapeutic intervention, presence as healing strategy.
She's helping without knowing what she's really helping with.
And somehow that makes it more meaningful rather than less.
The afternoon progressed with careful conversation, shared silence, and gradual recognition that traumatic memory could be managed through deliberate practice rather than simply endured through willpower alone.
Trauma management as learned skill. Something I can practice even if I can't explain the supernatural source.
As evening approached, Jessica prepared to return to her hotel before morning flight back to Los Angeles, their time together providing relief that felt both temporary and sustainable.
She has to leave. Return to her real life while I continue managing supernatural problems alone.
But she gave me tools I can use even without her presence.
"Thank you," Kole said as they walked back toward his apartment, meaning it more than she could possibly understand.
"For what?"
"For being here. For understanding. For not trying to fix everything."
For accepting that some problems require presence rather than solutions.
"That's what people do for each other," Jessica replied simply.
That's what people do for each other. Basic human care applied to impossible circumstances.
Proof that connection matters more than complete truth.
Jessica's taxi arrived to take her to JFK, carrying her back to California while leaving behind techniques and understanding that would help Kole survive his supernatural burden with slightly less isolation.
She returns to LA. I return to learning how to manage powers that are consuming me.
But now I have grounding techniques that work even with enhanced memory.
Now I have proof that human connection can help with trauma, even trauma that can't be fully explained or shared.
Better is enough.
And sometimes better is everything.
Practicing Jessica's grounding technique in his apartment that evening, Kole found partial relief from relentless traumatic recall. Not cure, not elimination of supernatural memory overload, but management strategy that provided breathing room between overwhelming episodes.
Learning to survive my gifts, one careful day at a time.
Learning that even impossible problems can be managed through human connection and deliberate practice.
Learning that better is enough.
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