"What happened?" I asked, my heart pounding. I don't know what I had expected, but it wasn't this.
"We were in grade six, about a year after I moved here." she started, her eyes watering up. "Sawer was one of my best friends, but you know how kids are; they upgrade to the shiny new toy when they are bored. Sawyer started hanging around more with Millie, and we kinda grew apart."
"Millie doesn't sound like a decent person," I scoffed, but her expression never changed and I could tell that she was trapped in the memory.
"It was an accident," She closed her eyes, a single tear rolling down her cheek before she continued. "They were showing me around, my hair was everywhere, blinding me and I couldn't see a thing. I swear, I didn't hit him that hard, but he was a small kid and I didn't know my own strength."
"What happened?" I frowned.
"I hit him and he stumbled backwards, smoking his head on the low brach of a tree before smashing it on sharp rocks. It happened so fast. One minute I was defending myself, the next my old friend was laying in a pool of blood, the force of the impact had been too much for him."
"It wasn't your fault," I told her.
"Yes," she argued. "It was."
"It wasn't," I insisted.
"You don't understand," she shook her head. "I just wanted it to stop. If I hadn't pushed him, he wouldn't have hurt himself. He wouldn't have bled out in front of us, we were just kids. And I did that to him. I should have left when it happened, but I didn't. I stayed around even though most of the kids hate me."
"What about those kids I saw you with when we first got here? What about Serena and River?" I scoffed. "They don't seem to hate you."
"No," she shook her head. "But they fear me. That's worse."
"Well than they're pussies," I retorted. "I've seen some scary shit, but when I look at you, I don't see anything to be afraid of." I don't know why I said that, and I don't know why I leaned in closer to her, our lips meeting. It just happened .
When I was laying in bed later that night, I couldn't stop thinking about her and the kiss we had shared. There had been a few others back when I had lived in Chicago, but none of them had felt like this had. Melody stirred up a feeling inside me that I had never felt before, and I wanted it to go away.
"You're Nathan's little brother, right?" I hear Melody ask Five as I round the corner to my locker. I see them sitting on a bench together so I stop, listening in on their conversation.
"Yeah," He nods. "Malcolm adopted us."
"That's neat," she tells him.
"What about you?" Five asks her. "You have any siblings?"
"I used to," she mutters.
"That's unfortunate," he shakes his head. I can't tell if he is genuinely apologetic or not. "What happened, if you don't mind me asking."
"We were separated," she shrugs, I notice an uncomfortable shift in her voice and instantly hate Five for making her think about all that. "His name was Andy," This seems to interest Five, although he notices me and grins, waving me over.
"Hey, Nathan." He smiles, I return it but internally I'm rolling my eyes.
"Bye, I gotta go to work. I'll see you later, Nathan." Melody smiles, waving as she leaves after the final bell has rung. We had plans to meet at the park after she was finished work.
"What was that about?" I retorted.
"What?" Five raises his eyebrow as he stands to leave.
"Why did you want to know about her family?" I hissed.
"Jesus, its called small talk, Nine." he rolled his eyes, walking faster so I wasn't beside him anymore but something told me that there was more to it than that. I didn't pester him any further, but mentally told myself that I would keep an eye on him. Although he was one of us, there was something about him that made my skin curl.
I lose him in the crowd but I'm not really paying attention to him anyways. Keeping my head down to avoid confrontation with anyone, I walk quickly out the doors and towards our home. When I arrive, I kick my shoes and head straight to my room.
Throwing my bag on my bed, I noted that I was the only one there. I had found a note on the counter in the kitchen that said Malcolm had gone somewhere with Sam, and the others were out trying to find Number Ten. I laze around the house until it was almost time to go and meet Melody. When I opened the front door, there was a man standing there. He had a short stubble, and short black hair.
"Who are you?" I demanded, my heart racing as I cautiously glanced around in case there were any Mogs. There didn't seem to be any, but I could never be too sure.
"You're Nathan." He said slowly, ignoring my question. "I spoke to you on the phone." Thomas. Melody's father. My heart started pounding. Damn it! He probably tracked my cell phone.
"Yeah, so?" I scoffed cooly.
"Where is my daughter?" He demanded.
"Why should I tell you?" I retorted. "From the sounds of it, you didn't try looking for her, so she built a life of her own. She's happy. She's been happy for a long time and she definitely doesn't need you bursting into her life now that she's finally settled in." He can't take her away now. Not until I find who Number Ten, otherwise I'll be alone here.
"Who are you to speak for her?" He scoffed. "You have no idea what's really going on."
"If you excuse me, I have to go." I brushed past him, turning my back to him. I'll just leave. He can't follow me.
"Hey," He grabbed my arm and out of impulse, I shoved him back roughly, using my strength. He went flying backwards, off the steps and into the shrubs. I didn't wait for him to get to his feet. I just ran. My heart pounded as I raced down the road, my feet slapping the asphalt. When I was far enough away from the house, I broke into a slow jog. I couldn't risk being seen going my full speed. When I arrived at the park, Melody was already waiting.
"Hey Nathan." she smiled.
"Hey." I grinned. She frowned suddenly when she she saw my face.
"Is everything alright?" she asked.
"Yeah," I assured her. . "Everything is fine."
"Okay." she shrugged. We walked out onto the field and sat down. I kept shooting glances the way I came, just in case Thomas had followed me. Melody and I sat, talking. The longer we sat there, undisturbed, the more I relaxed.
"I'm not sure how long my family is staying here," I told her. "Malcolm came here looking for something for his work, and once he finds it, I guess we're leaving." It's not far from the truth.
"I hope he finds it," she smiles.
"We came here on a hunch," I added. "We don't even know for sure if its here,"
"Well, I think fate brought you here," Melody grinned.
"Is that so?" I raised an eyebrow.
"I don't know how to explain it," she shook her head. "But I feel like we were destined to meet."
"Well," I started, but something coming in the distance made me stop, something I knew the sound of all too well. I looked up to see the outline of a mogadorian ship. It started to lower, directly above us. It's happened again. My heart beat pounded. She betrayed me.