A Bond of Trust

I dont believe you.

I dont know how many times Ive heard those words. No matter how much
logic I use to backup my points, nobody ever believes.
Nobody except Cassandra. And she is deaf. Or as she prefers, she has an
untreatable hearing impairment. Cassandra has been my best friend since the first
day of kindergarten. There had been a kid who was falsely accusing me of stealing
his cupcake . None of the teachers believed
anything I said.
Cassandra was there to take my side. She
told the teachers that she saw one of the fifth
graders take it and was at the tennis court eating
with his friends. The teachers found the suspect,
and from that day forward, we became best
friends.
I learned sign language1 in second grade
after 2 years of writing down everything I wanted
to tell her. Cassandra learned it with me as well, and also took the time to get
accustomed to lip reading.
She was the only person who believed anything I said. Even my own family
didnt believe me. That was before my life was changed. Forever.
I race across the lawn, having already missed homeroom due to a dentist
appointment, I dont want to be late to first period as well.
The bell screams throughout the school, piercing my ears. I wince, slowing
down to a walking pace. The thought of having to make an entrance gives me a
wave of shivers.
I walk into the class, hearing the loud clippety-clop of my shoes against the
tile floor. The class looks to the door as I walk into the
class. Everybody, literally everybody, stares. Maybe their
brains werent processing what being late meant.
Finally, Cassandra speaks up, Verity what are
you wearing? I frown. That was not what I was expecting.
Im wearing what I usually- I begin looking down
at my clothes but gasp midway. Where my clothes were
before is now an long hot pink dress.2 Hot pink! Why hot
pink?!
Um I had. um... family pictures.. this
morning I stammer, coming up with a spot on excuse. I
regret saying the words the moment they come out of my
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mouth. I had told Cassandra to tell the entire class that I would be late because of a
doctors appointment.
But for some reason, for the first time in my lifetime, everyone goes back to
work, completely convinced with my lie. Nobody questions my story. Everyone
seems to believe me, except for the confused look I get from Cassandra. The blank
look on her face gives me the impression that whatever spell had been cast over
the class wasnt affecting her.
Puzzled by everyones trusting expressions, I walk to my seat at table three
on the other side of the class.
The entire class time, nobody contradicts my statements. Nobody, say,
disobeys by appeals. It actually gets quite bothersome and exasperating.
Hey, Darin. Dont put that into the mixture, I tell the dark haired guy in my
science group, trying to get him to muck up whatever ploy the class is playing on
me. Usually, he would argue and say that I was wrong, or just flat out ignore me.
But he doesnt miss a beat. Yea, sure. Okay, is all he says. And he moves on
to the next step of the experiment as if nothing had happened. The three oclock
bell rings, signaling the end of class. I give Darin a final, dubious look and run to
catch up with Cassandra.
Cassandra stands at the end of the isle near the inconsistent dripping of the
leaky pipe in the wall. She nods towards the water and signs, Lets go. I dont like
the smell. I take a deep whiff of the air and catch the scent of old rain and rusted
copper. I scrunch up my nose and nod.
Cassandra had always had greater senses
than I did.
We walk side by side to the school
library, our footsteps echoing across the
deserted corridors. We step into the
expansive, spacious room. The noise is the
first thing noticeable when we walk into the
room. Students3 are sprawled everywhere, in
groups, alone, or with a few friends. They talk
noisily, screaming and shouting, rushing to
finish last minute projects. I roll my eyes. Cassandra signs what we are both
thinking. Procrastinators.
Not wanting to look like we dont speak to each other, I say, Come on, let's
go find a computer. Cassandra leaves my side to scour the area for an unused
device.
Hey, Aphrodite, says a familiar voice behind me. I turn around. Darin. Of
course.
Who are you talking to? I ask inquiringly.
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You, of course.
Why did you call me Aphrodite?
You were wearing that pink dress earlier today, Darin explains impatiently. I
give him a confused look. Look, Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of beauty and
love. But focus on the beauty part. She was supposedly the best looking female
ever known and she had taste in everything that had to do with looks.
Ahh I say, though I only partially understand. And exactly how do you
know so much about this love goddess?
Darin mutters something about his sisters books lying around everywhere in
the house. I smirk inwardly.
Okay then love goddess, why dont you run along and read some more of
your sisters books, I tease him. I nearly miss the dazed look that overcomes
Darins features before he turns around and walks away without replying.
I frown. I could have sworn that a wave of unfathomably soullessness had
blown by for a second. I shake my head, clearing my thoughts. I must have been
imagining things.
Verity! A voice shouts. I found some computers! Cassandra is standing up
waving her arms in the corner of the library. Her location is perfect. We sat at this
very computer a few years ago to research how deafness affected the brain. We
found out that the sound connections to the brain did not process correctly,
therefore not allowing for people's words to affect her brain. However, we also
found out that other senses such as vision or touch take over the hearing functions
in the brain. On the bright side, Cassandra wouldnt have to listen to any lectures or
get swayed by false influences.
So what happened back in class? Cassandra signs.
I reply with a shrug of my shoulders, I dont know. I thought maybe
everyone was playing a practical joke on me or something.
My brother had a superhero comic about a persuasion superpower. The
main character was able to convince all of his
villains into a trap just by speech. Maybe you
have something of the sort.
A superpower? I scoff. No way. 4
Its completely possible, Cassandra signs
sincerely, as I roll my eyes. Fine, let's take a
break from the school world. Cassandra and I
had this belief between the two of us that there
were intergalactic dimensions of which we traveled to and from depending on our
situation in life. In this case, we were leaving the society of school and entering the
technology socialization world.

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For one hour, we catch up on internet trends and viral videos. Advertisements
pop up throughout the time period, and I regard each and every one carefully. The
nagging voice in the back of my mind repeating the phrase, persuasion techniques
does not dissipate. I examine the different ways companies advertise their products,
making mental notes of how well each one persuades me.
I confess my discoveries to Cassandra and thankfully, she doesnt run off in
fear of my potential superpower. Instead, she reveals that the super ability would
most likely not affect her because she wouldnt be able to hear me.
I can still read words off people's lips, I can still understand sign language,
and Im even able to speak properly. But I think that because I cannot hear the
passion that is incorporated into people's speech, it will never produce the same
reaction out of me as in other people. I still know the purpose of certain choice of
words, but for me especially, actions speak louder than words. But in this case, your
special ability wont affect me because the demands will not process into my
hearing. And so I am invulnerable in these circumstances, Cassandra declares
importantly.
At that moment, a great roar shakes the building. I look around just in time to
see the building collapse into itself. The high, gleaming ceilings in the room crumble
as if they were cookies. Thundering rumbles shake the building. Beautiful arches
that formerly adorned the walls now lie in criss cross patterns on the ground. Rough,
grey charcoal-like stone covers the floor.
Two attacks in a row! Terrorists have been trying to attack the school ever
since they found out about the valuable education weve been receiving. Our school
was the highest scoring public in the entire
nation; fit with new technology and a huge
campus5. We believe that they are envious of
our vast expanse of knowledge and want to take
the opportunity away from us. Their attacks
have been becoming more frequent as they get
closer to the school, and now, they are
attacking our precious library.
Screeches are withdrawn from students, staff,
and now, parents who are picking up their
children. The once enchanted library has been abolished within a matter of seconds.
A continuous set of footsteps grows louder as it comes closer to our location.
People visibly panic all around Cassandra and me.
They are coming, are they not? Cassandra asks inquisitively. It would have
been more secretive if she had used sign language, but there just wasnt enough
time for us to have an unspoken conversation.
I respond with a nod.
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I thought so. I can feel the vibrations in the ground. Their silhouettes are
starting to emerge out of that smoke. I think, Verity, that you know how to handle
this, Cassandra says understandingly. She doesnt wait for a reply. She skillfully
darts around the debris and out of sight.
I am the only person who hasnt fled yet. The attackers are a good 150
meters away from where I stand. As soon as the thought formulates, I know they
have noticed me. In an organized fashion, the
terrorists make their way to me. Each soldier
wears a full black uniform, covering every inch
of skin, with a helmet shielding their face. They
look identical to the Syrian attackers 6, whove
recently been showing up on the news stations,
with each of them holding the same type of
gun.
What happens next came to me faster
than imaginable. Retreat your soldiers! I call valiantly. Go back to your home and
never attack our city again! dozens of men halt mid step and spin around on the
heels of their boots.
I smile to myself and catch my reflection in a fallen glass table. The long pink
dress has reappeared, but with the disastrous in the background, it comes across as
quite bright. I look forward to seeing what I can do in the future.
I am a superhero. Nobody has ever listened to me before. But now, they will
have no choice. Whether this power will become a problem, or whether its uses will
be magnificent, I know my abilities. I know my new power. My new power is the gift
of Charmspeak.

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Works Cited
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"Aphrodite, Greek Goddess of Romance and Beauty." Aphrodite, Goddess of
Romance and Beauty. Web. 13 Sept. 2016.
"Charmspeak." Riordan Wiki. Web. 13 Sept. 2016.
"How Does the Brain Process Information?" How Does the Brain Process
Information? Web. 13 Sept. 2016.
Lisa Packer, Staff Writer, Healthy Hearing. "New Study Shows Hearing Loss
Impacts Brain Function." Healthy Hearing. 11 Sept. 2016. Web. 13 Sept. 2016.
McLeod, Saul. "Information Processing." Simply Psychology. 13 Sept. 2016.
Web. 13 Sept. 2016.
"Persuasion." Superpower Wiki. Web. 13 Sept. 2016.
"Voice Acoustics: An Introduction." To the Science of Speech and Singing. Web.
13 Sept. 2016.
"What's Hearing Loss?" KidsHealth - the Web's Most Visited Site about
Children's Health. The Nemours Foundation. Web. 13 Sept. 2016.
"Words Can Change Your Brain | World of Psychology." World of Psychology. 28
Jan. 2015. Web. 13 Sept. 2016.