I'm really sorry, I don't really have time for review replies this time. I'll try for next time!
"Absolutely not"
"—but—"
"—No, and that's my final answer".
This is what I hear as soon as Mal and I enter the station that same morning, the reaction starting as soon as Captain Yeong sees me. I don't belong here, and I know it. The dark world has already claimed me as its own, and I can't go back to the way it was. I can't go back to who I was before I was trapped inside myself.
"—She's a capable interrogator, memory or no memory! She can—"
Well, at least they had the decency to argue behind me rather right in front of me. I can still hear them, but their voices are quiet enough that I can almost block them out. I wish I would have stayed home now, I'm afraid I'll only make things worse. Or maybe even find out things I don't want to know. Maybe it was my own stupid fault for what happened to me, and if it is, I'll probably find out today. I just don't know if I'm ready to hear this yet, Alessa was wrong. Time doesn't heal, in fact, it only makes things worse. I spent all that time wishing I could return to the real world, but now I don't think I was ready for it. I was like a baby bird, I thought I was ready to leave the safety of the nest, but then I realize I'm not ready to fly yet. My wings are still broken.
I lean back against the wooden desk behind me, hoping Mal will be back soon. It's so crowded in here, it's clear they're still trying to get back everything they lost and placing everything in this new building. Well, at least I'm not the only one doing this. I realize this is the second new building the police department has needed in two years, and smile slightly as I think how Seth must have reacted. And to think, I missed it because I slept through it all. Suddenly my eyes get very heavy, and I blink several times to try and shake this feeling. But it doesn't go away, and I can feel myself slipping…
I'm walking down the stairs to the crime lab with Mal, and I can hear the arguing from here. The noise hits me full blast as I open the door, and I can hear Kai calling from the back near the morgue.
"I told you, I smell something!" he tells "What if there's a gas leak?".
"It's nothing! Just let it go!". Amy yells back. She turns around and ushers us over, eager to show us something on her computer that I can't recall. Several minutes tick by, and it's only after ten minutes that I realize something's wrong. Kai hasn't come back from the morgue, in fact, he's stopped talking entirely.
Our canary had just stopped singing.