[ WP ] A person who has used his ability to read minds to glide through life , finds the one person whose mind he ca n't read .

Spoons and forks clanked on porcelain as Adam carefully sipped his coffee. The diner was lively with the cacophony of what seemed to be hundreds of voices; voices that primarily emerged not from the mouths of the various patrons, but from their minds. And like a butterfly dancing on the wind did he bob and weave among the chaotic thoughts that ranged from the cool weather to the deliciousness of the food, or how *absolutely dreadful her mismatched scarf was*. 
 
 It was unclear as to whether or not Adam was cursed or if he was surreptitiously blessed by some deity, but he discovered long ago that he could read the thoughts of others. And such a wondrous discovery it was. The thoughts were initially incredibly basic when he was a child -- mere urges and primal desires like hunger and the need for sex. But with age came clarity, and with clarity came the capacity to take advantage of others. 
 
 He was no monster, he thought, but rather one who made use of his available resources. Nothing *evil* about that. If you gave a man the gift of flight, would he need to buy a car? And if you gave a woman the gift of healing, would she need to visit the doctor? 
 
 Adam sipped his coffee once more as the waitress approached him, and he slipped his mind into hers. 
 
 *I should ask him how he's doing. I have n't checked on him in a while. Hopefully he's not upset. I need a good tip* 
 
 `` I'm fine for now'', Adam said to the waitress as she approached him. `` And I've already left your tip under the plate''. 
 
 She stopped and confusedly frowned before saying, `` Alright! Let me know if you need anything else.'' 
 
 *That was weird. * 
 
 She had no idea, Adam thought with a grin. To invade the mind of another is stuff of fiction, something that the clinically insane might claim to do. And that was the beauty of it all. You could answer their thoughts directly and they'd still find some way to rationalize it all away. *Lucky guess. * *He's weird. * 
 
 And that cognitive dissonance was the shield that Adam needed, the protection that kept him one step ahead. 
 
 But as Adam sipped more of his coffee, he felt a dreadful sensation in his gut like that feeling you get when you're falling. And soon the mess of voices began to fade until there was nothing but thick silence. 
 
 He began to nervously scan the diner for something, *anything* that was off or unusual in some way. But nothing obvious stood out. There were children with their parents, young and old men reading newspapers, couples flirting. *What was it? * 
 
 And with that curiosity came the crippling urge to turn around. But Adam did not. Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. 
 
 *Are you afraid? * 
 
 Adam's eyes widened as he stared at his coffee. The voice, one of a man, was clear and bold and demanding, but no mouth in the diner spoke it. It emerged from that horrible silence in Adam's mind. 
 
 *Who are you? * 
 
 *Something of an admirer, * said the voice. *You've been my favorite even since you were a child. * 
 
 Adam held his breath. His heart pounded at his chest as if it might try to escape. 
 
 *I knew back then that you'd be one of few that would avoid being driven mad by the mess of voices. And now look at you, dancing around the thoughts and urges of these people as easily as you raise your cup of coffee to your lips. You are a work of art. A fine work of art* 
 
 *What are you saying? Who are you? Are you responsible for this? * 
 
 *In due time, you'll know, but not now -- not here. I merely want you to know that you are n't as unique as you think you are. That there are others, some of which are much like you and some that are something else entirely. Perhaps you'll meet the rest of the Children one day. * 
 
 And slowly, the void of silence that suppressed Adam's mind began to whither away. The mangled mess of voices began to return to Adam like a growing echo at the back of his mind. But that damned urge to turn around did n't go away. 
 
 Slowly, Adam rotated in his stool and saw a single young man near the window directly behind him, a man with a newspaper in his hand and coffee on the table. And as he stared at this young man, noting the dark clothing that he wore and the unusual silver tint to his hair, he *knew*. 
 
 The man looked up from his newspaper and smiled. 
 
 *Nice to meet you, Adam. * 

