“And these techniques you’ve learned? Have you ever taught them to someone before?”
I smiled. “Trying to test if I’m legit?” His features clouded, so before he could ask, I continued. “Yes. I work with other war refugees. You know that’s my job, right? Ann and I both work at the International Refugee Support Center.” At least until I began traveling with the Faire in June. The thought of leaving the RSC was one shadow over that bright spot of moving on. “We help refugees from places like Iran, China, Cambodia and now Syria, with all that’s going on there.”
“I’m not a refugee.”
“You don’t have to be for these techniques to work for you. You have a trigger—something that stirs panic. For me, it was loud noises…anything that sounded like bombs or rifle fire. For you, it’s crowds. We can work on that.”
I scooted across the mat until our knees were almost touching. “Here…let me show you. This is simple breathing.”
“I already know how to do that.”
I laughed. “Okay, true. Everyone knows how to breathe, or we wouldn’t be here. But there is a right way to breathe.”
He looked skeptical. His eyes flicked to mine and then immediately darted away. “I didn’t know there was a ‘right’ way to breathe.”
“Well, there is. It’s the way that’s healthy for your diaphragm and your abdominal muscles. It’s probably counter to what you’ve always thought. When you breathe in, your chest expands, and when you breathe out, it contracts. But it should actually be the reverse. If you breathe correctly, it will trigger a sense of calming in your nervous system. Here…give me your hand.”
William tentatively held out a big hand and I took it. Placing it on my stomach, I took a deep breath in and then exhaled it. “Do you see what I mean?”
His fingers moved ever so slightly against my abdomen, and through the thin cloth of my baby tee, my skin reacted to his touch—really reacted to his touch. Tingles everywhere, like I’d been shocked by static electricity. I resisted the urge to move away and chanced a glance at his face to see if he understood what I was demonstrating.
He frowned. “Do it again.”
I did and he paused. I waited.
“One more time.”
I complied and he didn’t say anything, just moved his fingers again then splayed them across my stomach. His fingers were so long that his hand covered most of my belly. After another moment of no commentary from him, I looked up. He had the biggest grin on his face.
Well, he might not think his brain behaved typically, but right now he was acting just like a typical man.
I batted his hand away. “You get the point.”
He blinked. “I might need a refresher course later.”
“Don’t make me smack you, Wil.” His face clouded briefly, and it occurred to me that he might not realize I was joking. I immediately felt like a jerk. “I’m kidding.”
He nodded. “Now you tell me if I’m breathing correctly.”
He inhaled and exhaled. I leaned forward to get a better look at his abdomen. “Again?”
“Maybe you should put your hand here.” He gestured to his firm, sculpted abdomen, which was now, thankfully, covered by his t-shirt. “So you can tell.”
I peered at his face to see if he was pulling a fast one on me, but he appeared deadly serious. I tentatively reached out my hand and, with the lightest of touches, placed my fingertips on the area just below his sternum. He inhaled and exhaled, and the feel of his rock-hard, muscled chest under my fingertips made them tingle. Again.
I jerked my hand back. “That’s good.”
“So we’ve established that I know how to breathe. Now what?”
I smiled. “Now we ground and center.”
“Ground and center? That sounds like baseball.”
“It’s a visualization technique that should work well with your style of thinking. So time to put your image-centric mind to the test. Close your eyes and rest the backs of your open hands on your knees, palms up.” Hesitantly, he complied, closing his eyes last, as if he had no concept of how to move or place his hands unless he was watching them.
I began to speak in a low voice, keeping it calm and even. “Okay. Now you are going to relax every part of your body. With each breath you take in and expel, you are going to become more relaxed. Your muscles easing. Your heartbeat slowing. Your breaths becoming further and further apart.”
A long pause. “You’re using a Jedi mind trick to get me to stop breathing, aren’t you?”
“Wil! Be serious. Do as I say.”