SHY BOOK 1 - Chapter 2 (continued) - It sounded so much like his

Greyson looked at Indianna with a scrutinising gaze, and she squirmed uncomfortably. Indianna hated people staring at her.

She had always lacked confidence and struggled to see the beauty she was lucky enough to have been born with. She was naturally pretty, with big green eyes, olive skin, high cheekbones, a button nose and long brown hair. She hid behind large glasses and clothing that was on the baggier side.

Pretty was a word she had never used to describe herself.

"Indianna?" he said and frowned, thinking to himself. "Hughs," he murmured.

Greyson had spoken quietly, and Indianna wasn't sure if she had heard him correctly.

"What?" she asked, staring at him cautiously.

Greyson smirked. "So, she speaks."

"What did you say just then?" Indianna asked shyly. She avoided eye contact.

"It was nice to meet you, Indianna," Greyson said slowly, dragging out her name.

He pushed himself away from the cupboard and made his way back over to his seat with Kal and Ace. Indianna watched with furrowed eyebrows as he whispered in their ears, and immediately they both looked at her.

Slowly, she noticed their gazes travelling to her hand, which was holding her wrist.

Covering her scar.

"What is wrong with you three?" Brooklyn gasped when she noticed the three boys looking at Indianna. "Gosh, leave the poor girl alone! It's her first day; she could do without the attention from you!"

Brooklyn rolled her eyes once the three boys looked away and began talking amongst themselves.

"I'm so sorry. Just because everyone is scared of them, they think they can get away with anything. They're a freaking nightmare!"

"It's fine," Indianna said quietly, and she looked at the door of the classroom, praying that the teacher would arrive quickly so she wouldn't have to talk to anyone else.

Brooklyn turned to Brandon, and Indianna tuned them out as they started a conversation. She tapped her foot impatiently and rubbed her forehead as a headache started.

She so desperately wanted to run out of the classroom, away from all these unknown people. Indianna liked to be by herself. She—

What happened to your wrist?

Indianna jumped in shock when she heard a voice. It was loud and clear, ringing in her head. She looked around in panic, wondering where it had come from.

She wasn't certain if the voice had spoken out loud... or in her head.

"Are you okay?" Brandon asked, noticing Indianna's wide eyes. He and Brooklyn both looked at her with concern.

Don't panic. You are not going crazy.

"I, er..." Indianna choked on her words.

The voice was definitely in her head. Was she imagining it? Was the stress of moving to a new town, being in an unfamiliar environment and being surrounded by people who wanted to talk to her, making her go crazy?

You're not imagining it.

"Indianna?" Brooklyn said softly. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Indianna whispered and rubbed her eyes. "I think I just have a bad headache coming on."

What happened to your wrist?

Indianna swallowed nervously and tried to control her breathing before she started to panic. Hearing voices was never a good sign.

I told you, there is no need to panic. Just speak to me.

Indianna furrowed her eyebrows. She couldn't help but notice a familiarity in the voice. She wondered if she had met this person before.

Who are you? she asked in her head.

It felt incredibly strange, and this whole exchange between her and the unknown voice felt horribly invasive. Indianna didn't like it.

How do you know my name? How are you even in my head? Am I going insane—

No. Calm down. You are not going insane. Now, answer my question. What happened to your wrist?

Indianna paused, thinking. She wondered what harm could come from talking to this voice. It clearly wasn't real. She guessed it was like talking to a figment of her imagination.

Indianna.

The voice was growing impatient, and seeing as Indianna had no idea how to get rid of it, she decided to answer its questions.

It happened when I was younger.

I'm going to need a bit more information than that.

I was... attacked.

Even in her mind, her voice sounded fragile as she talked about it.

Wolves.

It wasn't a question; it was a statement. Indianna had a feeling that the voice already knew the answer to the question he was asking.

Observant.

She snapped her head towards Greyson and his friends, but this time he wasn't looking at her. He was looking down at his desk, drawing absentmindedly on the surface.

She tried to remember his voice and wondered if there were any similarities between his and the one in her head.

"What are you looking at?" Brooklyn asked, snapping Indianna out of her thoughts.

She followed Indianna's gaze to Greyson and frowned.

Indianna shook her head and looked at her hands, mumbling, "Nothing."

Brooklyn caught Greyson's gaze and narrowed her eyes. He smirked and raised his eyebrows challengingly. Eventually, she looked away.

Who are you? Indianna asked. You're not real, are you?

I am most definitely real, but who I am doesn't matter.

It does if you're in my head.

You talk a lot more when you aren't physically speaking, the voice observed.

So I've met you. In person?

I didn't say that.

You implied it.

Indianna was a mixture of scared and irritated. She wanted to know who the voice was and how he was in her head.

How old were you when you were attacked? the voice asked.

I have a feeling you know.

Indianna's voice was hostile. She hated remembering the attack.

I was five.

Your father—he died, didn't he?

H-how? How do you know this?

Lots of people know the story of the attack, but they don't know that it's your story, Indianna.

What do you mean?

Clearly, not even you know the whole story.

Then tell me, seeing as you seem to know so much.

No.

Why not?

It's not the right time.

You are a voice in my head. I don't care! You are scaring me. Now tell me how you know so much about me!

Just focus on making friends. You're shy. Take the chances you get. Brooklyn is a nice girl; don't ignore her by talking to me. You'll hear from me soon.

Wait!

But the voice was gone. It was almost like there had been a presence in Indianna's mind, and now it was gone, along with her headache.

"Are you listening, Indianna?"

"Hmm?" Indianna looked at Brooklyn, who smiled.

"You're shy and not very talkative, but I like you, Indianna," Brooklyn said with a laugh.

"Um, thank you?"

"You are very welcome," Brooklyn said with a grin and looked at Brandon. "What do you think of our new friend?"

"I think that you're going to take a while to warm up to us," Brandon said with a chuckle.

"Sorry," Indianna said, forcing herself to talk louder. She smiled nervously. "I don't trust easily."

"We've got time," Brooklyn said with a grin.

Soon, all attention was turned to the teacher, who entered the classroom and began the lesson. Indianna was grateful to blend into the background once again.

She spent the whole lesson lost in her own thoughts, and she couldn't help but look over at Greyson. She had realised why she thought the voice in her head sounded familiar.

It sounded so much like his.