Talent

The Talent is a scary story about a young girl who seems to have the ability to predict deaths. It is based on a story by CardboardPizzas. The art is by AdilSantosa.

My little sister Zoe is 13 now. I really love her and I think I owe her my life. I was 7 years old when she was born. I was so excited to finally have a little sister.

At first, I was jealous that she was getting all the attention from my parents and I didn’t pay much attention to her. Sometimes I was just downright mean to her. However, all that changed on the day I realized my little sister had a special talent.

We were sitting on the couch, watching TV, when Zoe suddenly said, “Daddy isn’t coming home.”

I was confused. “What did you say?” I asked.

“Daddy isn’t coming home,” she repeated.

I was quite unnerved by this and tried to question her further, but she wouldn’t say anything more.

About half an hour later, the phone rang. When I answered, there was a police officer on the other end and he sounded gravely serious. He explained that there had been a traffic accident. My mother was in hospital with relatively minor injuries, but my father had not been so lucky. He died on the way to the hospital.

The next few hours were a blur. I just switched off the TV and sat there in shock, staring at the blank screen. I was numb. They said Zoe was too young to grasp the situation, but she understood that dad was gone and he wasn’t coming back.

Almost a year later, there was another incident. It was a nice, warm, summer day and Zoe and I were in the park. Zoe was playing on the grass when, all of a sudden, she stopped and pointed at something.

“There’s a bad man over there,” she said. “We need to go.”

When I looked in the direction she was pointing, I saw a man nearby. He was dressed in a grey hooded sweatshirt. He had his hands in his pockets and seemed to be waiting for someone, but something about him seemed strange.

With the memory of our father’s death still fresh in my mind, I didn’t question Zoe. I just grabbed her by the hand and together we hurried home.

The next morning, at breakfast, my mother was reading the newspaper and I noticed the headline on the front page. “Mother and Daughter Stabbed to Death in Park”. Beneath it, there was a picture of police leading away a man in handcuffs. It was the man in the grey hooded sweatshirt.

A chill ran down my spine. Any doubts I had before were immediately quashed. My little sister definitely had a talent.

From that day on, I listened carefully to anything she had to say and I would write it down in a notebook I kept in my room.

One day, when Zoe was 6 years old, it happened again. We were at a restaurant when Zoe suddenly dropped her knife and fork, looked at my mother and I and said, “Grandpa’s gone.”

An hour later, my mother got a phone call telling her that our grandfather had passed away in his sleep. Mom was very sad but she had been prepared for the bad news. That was the last prediction for a long time.

As the years passed by, I gradually forgot about my sister’s talent. It got to the point where I began to dismiss it all as just coincidence.

However, last week, when my girlfriend and I were spending some time together in our apartment, I got a text message. It was from Zoe.

Zoe: I need to tell you something

Me: What is it?

Zoe: I need you to listen to me.
Zoe: I have a terrible feeling
Zoe: Something is going happen.
Zoe: You and Megan need to get out of there.
Zoe: Go to a hotel or something
Zoe: Just get out of there.

Me: Why? What’s going on

Zoe: I don’t know.
Zoe: I told you what I know
Zoe: That’s all I know

Me: OK… I understand
Me: Bye Zoe

I immediately grabbed my girlfriend, forced her to pack some things in a suitcase and rushed her out of the apartment. We went to a nearby hotel and booked a room for the night.

The next morning, I got a call from our neighbor. He said our apartment had been broken into, but strangely nothing had been taken. When he heard strange noises, he called the police and they arrested the intruder.

We had to go down to the police station. Apparently Megan’s mentally unstable ex-boyfriend had broken into our apartment. He was armed with a knife and he was planning to kill both of us.

When my girlfriend heard that, she was utterly dumbfounded. All she could say was, “How did your sister know?”

Without Zoe, we would both probably be dead. It still haunts me. Nobody else believes it and even my girlfriend is still skeptical, but I know what happened.

My little sister has a talent.