While I don't mean to rush this, I start school tomorrow and have to wake up at six. And it's almost 11. And I just got home from DC and I have to unpack and all that jazz. Yeesh. It's been a while though, so I'm going to be a good little author and do a double update tonight! (Luckily there was plenty of time on my four hour train ride to work on both chapters). But then I'm going to be a bad BAD author, because unless it's the weekend or spring break or I just have a random amount of time where I can update, they're going to become really inconsistent. However, there's not that many chapters left. I want to say...five? Six tops? We'll see. I already know how it's going to end, so that's good for something ;)
Thanks to (reads reviews and tries to determine which ones are recent) argghh....okay! BIG thanks to XONewDreamsXO, MzMinni3, MizzC, instantLUNCH (haha I LOVE some of your pen names, they are so amusing), and Koki723 for the reviews! If I forgot you, I'm sorry, but a big thanks to you as well.
Blah blah LET'S DO THIS!
Old Soul
Chapter Twenty
"It's not that I can't live without you, it's that I don't even want to try."
-Joshua Jackson
September 2, 2014
Huey
"I don't get it." I turned to look at Jazmine who was sitting on the opposite end of the couch, the remote in her hand and a look of confusion spread across her features. She was leaning forward towards the TV, her eyes narrowed at the current debate on CNN. Since her birthday was exactly in one week and she felt as if being fourteen meant she should be (finally) politically informed she'd done nothing but watch the news, CNN, and the Colbert Report. It wasn't the best method out there but it was a start. "Why is everyone so mad that the entire government got thrown out?" She looked at me and my expression must not have been the most encouraging since she added, "Well, all everyone used to do was complain when Obama was in office! And now that they've started "fresh", everyone's still unhappy."
"Well, you have to look at the facts," I replied, taking the remote from her and muting the TV. I set it down on the coffee table in front of us before turning back to her. "When Barack Obama was in office he had a bunch of people against him from the start, constantly looking for something wrong to blame on him. He got universal healthcare in place, he kicked in the funding for research on global warming and new technology to stop the progression, and by 2011 the United States was out of the red and no longer had a risk of economical fallouts. But when 2012 came and the attacks were made, the government turned against him and said that he'd ordered the attack on our country. That entire "Obama is a Muslim" debate rose back up and no one trusted him. They were convinced he betrayed the country. So naturally he was impeached, but he resigned first and left the short time of his presidency to Joe Biden. Only Joe Biden wasn't even in office for a month before he was assassinated. The elections for 2012 were coming up, so the Democratic Party was pretty much demolished by its turn of events. The republicans, however, weren't doing much better since they acted like complete psychos through most of Obama's presidency in the first place, which led to the rise of the Libertarian Party. A couple of ignorant maniacs on the fundamentalist side managed to convince America that they needed another political party to…Jazmine, are you even listening to me?"
"Huh?" Jazmine blinked before yawning. "Oh. Yeah. Something something fallout something something assassination something something new political party. Gotcha."
"Jazmine-"
"I'm listening!"
I sighed before going on. "Well, these new guys, with their new political party organized, managed to scare America so badly about other religions impacting our country that they not only managed to reorganize the government, they began to control the freedom of religion, which is against the constitution. Only when people began to realize it was wrong, they started disappearing, dying, or being exposed as "terrorists". So, since the country is statistically made up of Christians by a large number of seventy-five percent, some people, namely radicals, were convinced that these new political leaders were right. They felt that as people of the right religion, they had the divine right to determine the fate of this country, as well as what others believe."
"So," Jazmine started while I stopped for air. "Basically, the separation of church and state was forgotten, and people managed to fuse the two together until decisions on either couldn't be made without both church and state involved?" I blinked. "What? That's right, right?"
"Yeah." I scratched my head. "I just never thought you'd comprehend something that didn't involve cartoon plots or taquitos."
Jazmine threw a couch pillow at me, which I caught easily. "Alright, smarty," She sneered with so much feeling I was sure she was mocking me. "Don't make me hurt you."
"As if you could," I mumbled. "Anyway, with most of the clueless population on their side and the opposing forces being too dwindled in numbers to make much of an impact, the government doesn't have much in their way to completely reshape American politics. They could turn us into a dictatorship, a republic…it really depends on how quick Americans can get their heads out of their asses as realize how wrong this all is."
"Is that why Ashley Dihlion and her mom were killed at the farmer's market over the weekend?" Jazmine asked, more serious than before. "Because they were Muslim?"
"Probably." I turned the volume on the TV back up just as the front door flew open and Caesar ran inside. We both looked up.
"Damn, can you learn to knock?" I asked. Caesar rolled his eyes, his hands on his knees. He seemed to be catching his breath.
"Can you learn to lock a door?" He replied. I shook my head. Jazmine scooted over so that he could shuffle up to the couch and flop in between us.
"What took you so long to get here?" She asked, picking up her history book. "We thought for sure that you'd be the first one out the door with it being the first day of school and all."
"Would've been," He replied in a rush, picking up the remote and flipping through the channels, ignoring both my and Jazmine's protests. "Until I overheard some of the teachers discussing…this."
He landed on a channel and set the remote down, leaning back. Both Jazmine and I exchanged perplexed looks before turning our attention to the TV as well. Caesar had turned to the five o' clock news.
"And now, we're getting word on the new background check that is being required for all students entering schools from middle school to universities," One of the reporters, a woman with cropped hair, was saying into the camera. My jaw dropped.
"What?" I snapped.
"What does that even mean?" Jazmine asked in a desperate voice.
"Ssh and you'll find out!" Caesar hissed, his eyes glued to the screen.
"This act, which still remains unnamed even after being presented to congress over a year ago, is now going through its second trip to the house. If passed into legislation, this would give the school system as well as the district court systems the right to check the background of any child over the age of thirteen without any seen appropriate cause. Faculty as well as workers of the city would be able to interrogate a child based on race, orientation, religious affiliation, or gender, for the known whereabouts of foreign operatives of terrorists-"
"Gender?" Jazmine made a face. "And orientation? How would anyone even be able to tell someone's orientation based on a simple background check?"
"The woman just said that if teachers or other members of authority felt like interrogating you, they could." I sighed, rubbing my head. "So if they thought you were gay or thought you were an Arab, they could just pull you aside and you'd be legally obligated to talk to them."
"But it hasn't been passed. So that's good, right?" Jazmine said in a hopeful voice. Caesar shrugged.
"Yeah, it's not passed yet. But once the lobbyists up in Washington get to the few people who got enough balls to stand their ground against it there's no telling what will happen."
"We could try and protest-" Jazmine started, but her voice instantly cut off in her throat as the front door opened and her father stuck his head in. He looked tired, but his face lit up when he saw us on the couch.
"Hey there, guys!" He said in a cheerful voice. Jazmine gave him a look. "And girl," He added.
"Daddy!" She bolted to her feet and waved with one hand, the other reaching behind her to grab the remote off the coffee table. She handed it to Huey, who quickly changed the channel to some talk show that was on. "How was work?"
"You know." Tom DuBois strode in, setting down his briefcase and wrapping his arms around his only child. He let her go and gave her a quick glance over. "I told you the new school uniforms wouldn't be bad."
"Why'd you change the channel?" Caesar whispered in my ear. I shook my head.
"While Jazmine is busy trying to keep up with all of this," I hissed back as Tom came over, Jazmine a few steps behind him. "Mr. DuBois is busy trying to keep her ignorant. He thinks if she knows too much she'll want to get involved."
"So what's going on?" He asked, tucking his hands in the pockets of his traditional blue suit pants and staring at the TV. "I didn't know you guys liked The Miley Cyrus Show."
"We don't," I said quickly. "Um…Jazmine was watching it." Behind Tom's back Jazmine shot me a death glare. "Actually, Caesar and I were discussing that bill they're trying to pass." His face visibly darkened. "Caesar was saying we should do something about it."
"I did?" Caesar asked. I looked at him. "Yes! I did!"
"I don't know, Huey." Mr. DuBois shrugged. "It's a dangerous time to be the rebel, even with a cause."
"Mr. DuBois, do you realize that if this bill is passed, children over the age of thirteen will be at the mercy of the school system for no valid reason?" I couldn't help but point out. "A kid whose parents came here from Afghanistan could be expelled just because his teacher felt as if he was affiliated with terrorism?"
"I know it's terrible, but-"
"And what about Jazmine?" I went on; behind him Jazmine made a cut-throat gesture, shaking her head wildly. "Maybe when it gets cold outside she'll feel like wearing uniform pants instead of a skirt and her teacher will think she's gay! Next thing you know you're going to be getting summoned down to the district office because your father's grandfather was an illegal Irish immigrant and you're married to a white woman who has relatives from Louisiana. For all anyone knows, they were into voodoo and would pose a threat to the sanctity of our divine soil. You know they look poorly on interracial couples," I added. Jazmine smacked her palm against her forehead while Tom straightened. He didn't look happy, to say in the least.
"Huey," He said, keeping his voice even. "I'm sure my family and I will be fine."
"Oh, of course. How could I forget." I rolled my eyes, turning towards the TV. "You're Catholic."
"Now that's enough." Mr. DuBois turned towards Jazmine, picking up his briefcase. "Come on, honey-"
"As long as you and your family are safe it's enough, right?" I went on, not being able to control the anger I could feel flaring up inside me. Caesar elbowed me but I ignored him. Tom, whose back was to me, stopped in his tracks. "It doesn't matter what happens to anyone else. You don't give a damn about anyone else."
"Huey!" Jazmine wailed. Tom whirled around, letting his briefcase fall to the floor. He leaned down, his face inches from mine. I couldn't help but blink, surprised. Tom never let himself get this worked up, at least not behind something I said.
"You listen to me, and you listen well," He said from between clenched teeth. I glared at him. "You don't know what I do or what I've seen. I don't care what you think you know, I have a better knowledge of what's going on than you do. You won't ever know how much I sacrifice for people I'll never even meet." He straightened, turning on his heel and picking up his briefcase, walking past Jazmine. "Come on, sweetie."
Jazmine stared after Mr. DuBois as he stalked out the front door, slamming it behind him. "He just slammed our front door!" I couldn't help but let out in disbelief. "What was he thinking?" Caesar managed to crack a smile but lost it quick when Jazmine glared at us over her shoulder. She bent down and grabbed her backpack, stomping for the door as well. Obviously I'd missed something.
"Whoa whoa, hold up." I jumped up, beating Jazmine to the door and slamming it shut with one hand as she started to open it. I glared at her. "Why are you mad?"
"Why do you think?" Jazmine glared at me. "You made my dad angry!"
I blinked. "But he was in the wrong!" I explained, throwing up my hands. "He doesn't think about anyone else! He doesn't care about the rest of us who have no religion to save our asses!"
"He's my dad, Huey!" Jazmine shot back, making me raise my eyebrows. I saw the tears rising in her eyes. "And this might come as a surprise to you, even though I don't know why it would, but I'm Catholic too!" She glared at me. "I'm sorry some people feel as if Christianity makes them superior, but not all of us are like that. And if you can't see that then that makes you just as judgmental as them." She wiped at her eyes with her sleeve. "If my dad's beliefs…if my beliefs are too much for you then don't even bother talking to me." She wrenched the door open, but only because I was too shocked to keep holding it shut. She gave me a cold glare before stomping out into the sunshine. I groaned, pulling the door open wider.
"Jazmine." She ignored me. "Jazmine! Come on!"
"Damn." Caesar came up beside me, sipping on a glass of orange juice. "She told you."
"Shut up." I threw the door shut, stalking back towards the living room. "She's always taking things so personally."
"You tried to clown on her dad, Huey." Although his tone was serious it was obvious he found the entire thing to be hilarious. "It doesn't matter what he is, not to her. That's her father."
"Yeah…but…" I rolled my eyes. "Fine. I was wrong."
"It's alright. She never stays mad at you." Caesar clapped me on the back. "Admittance is the first step towards-"
"Shut up." I plopped on the sofa while he headed into the kitchen. I lay down and propped my feet up on the arm of the couch, staring up at the ceiling. I heard the refrigerator door open.
"Aye. Ya'll got any sandwich meat up in here?" His question was followed by sudden footsteps that came from down the hallway.
"What the hell is wrong with y'all?" Granddad snapped. "I'm up here trying to get some sleep and can't even drift off for two minutes without everyone slamming the damn door! Can either of you afford to replace the door when you break it? You wanna slam a door? I'll slam your door…and is that my orange juice? And my sandwich meat? What, you want me to starve? Yo food at yo own house ain't good enough, hmm? And you know I like my daily supply of…Huey! Boy! Why you letting yo beggar friends come in here and eat our food?"
I sighed. Today was just going to be one of those days.
November 27, 2022
Cairo
"Yup." I watched Howard, probably my favorite doctor, remove the stethoscope from Jazmine's chest, letting it fall around his neck. He whipped a pen out from the breast pocket of his white coat, scribbling something down on the clipboard that sat in a shelf on the door to Jazmine's hospital room. "Definitely pneumonia." He looked up. "It's lucky your nurse heard you coughing like that yesterday and got us to get your x-rays pushed through. Otherwise we might've caught it later."
I looked at Jazmine as her face fell. She sat up straighter, pushing her hair behind her ears. "Really?" She sighed. Huey, who was sitting in the chair beside her bed on the opposite side, looked up from his paper. "I was hoping I could go home today."
"Yeah, right," Huey mumbled. When she shot him a dirty look he rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on. Like they really would have let you go today regardless."
"He does have a point," Howard pointed out, replacing his pen in his pocket. "Your lung function has improved greatly and your kidneys are working fine. There doesn't seem to be any internal organ damage."
"But? There's always a but." Jazmine blew a strand of hair out her face.
"But you still weren't one hundred percent, even before the pneumonia," Howard finished with a soft smile. "And with your lungs the way they are, letting you go home with pneumonia would be asking for trouble. And we don't want trouble, do we?"
"I guess," Jazmine mumbled in a lofty tone, settling back against her pillows and crossing her arms.
"So is she going to be okay?" I asked, resting my elbows on my knees as I leaned forward.
"She should be fine." Howard pat Jazmine's blanket covered foot and she stuck her tongue out at him. "Luckily it's not too far along so we can pump her full of antibiotics to do away with it."
"Can I still use the breathing thingy?" Jazmine asked hopefully. Howard looked towards the ceiling, as if resisting the urge to say something smart.
"Yes." He shook his head, snorting. "You can use the "breathing thingy"."
"Yay!" Jazmine pumped her fists in the air before erupting into a coughing fit. She gripped her throat with her hands and fell dramatically against her pillows. Huey turned the page of his newspaper, shaking his head. For some reason Jazmine found great enjoyment out of using a cylinder shaped instrument she'd been given to help improve her lung capacity. It was one of those things that are impossible to understand about her so I didn't even bother asking what was so good about it. I leaned back in my chair instead.
"Alright, so I'm going to start you on some azithromycin and hook you back up to an IV." Jazmine sighed. "It's not my fault you don't eat anything and have a low nutrient intake."
"Don't nag," Jazmine replied haughtily as he walked out the room, gently shutting the door behind him. She held her nose in the air. "It's not my fault the hospital food sucks."
"Jazmine." Huey's tone was filled with boredom. "Of course it's terrible. It's the hospital. Suck it up and eat or else you're never going to build your strength back."
"Look, you don't have to eat the stuff!" Jazmine replied, slumping down and snuggling under her covers. "It's disgusting."
"All I'm saying," Huey said in a matter-of-fact voice. "Is that if I had to choose between eating unappealing food and being fed my daily dose of vitamins through a needle sticking in my arm, I'd pick the bad food."
"That's because you don't like needles," Jazmine pointed out. Huey snapped his paper shut.
"Why does everyone keep saying that?" He groaned.
"Because it's true," Jazmine and I said in unison. We looked at each other, grinning. Huey rolled his eyes again (he was pretty good at that) and rose to his feet, retrieving his crutches and starting for the door.
"Well, fine." He opened the door and glanced back at us. "I'm going to get real food." He closed the door behind him. Jazmine's jaw dropped.
"That jerk." She folded her arms tightly over her chest, making a face. "This is so unfair. My body hates me."
"It would help if you ate something," I pointed out.
"Not you too!" Jazmine wailed.
"Yes, me too." I traced her arm with my fingertip. "You've barely eaten since before you got here."
Jazmine looked down to the foot of her bed as she wiggled her feet. "Because I feel too sick to eat anything," She admitted, her voice holding a sad tone to it. I looked at her.
"So why didn't you say anything?" I asked, alarmed. "Howard and the other doctors have all been asking you what's bothering you so they can make sure there's no underlying problems-"
"I already know what they're going to say. They're going to say I should stay even longer while they run more tests, and I don't want more goddamn tests. I want to go home." Jazmine groaned before coughing. "It's so ridiculous, being stuck in here when there's so much other stuff going on." When I kept staring at her she shifted so that she was sitting up. "I feel so useless in here. I'm tired of seeing the same four walls and being confined to the bed."
"You're only "confined" because the first day anyone let you roam around you organized a wheelchair race on the oncology floor," I couldn't help but point out with a smile. Jazmine stuck out her tongue.
"Those cancer patients lovedme."
"Of course. Who wouldn't?" I pat her knee. "Don't worry. You won't have to be in here forever."
"You want to know something?" Jazmine confessed, her smile fading as she lowered her head. I nodded. "I don't like being in here alone. I'm afraid that someone's going to find out who I really am in the middle of the night and they're going to come for me while I'm weak and defenseless." She sat back up. "That's why I really don't want to be here. Are you happy now?"
"No one's coming for you." I took her hand in mine. "You're safe here."
"Bull crap." Jazmine coughed again and took a deep breath, her voice down to a whisper. "We're not safe anywhere."
"True," I agreed. "But you're safer than we are." She gave me a look. "The hospital doesn't just let anyone in to see you while you're in intensive care. You can only have two visitors at a time. Not to mention, don't you wonder why Huey's been so grumpy these past few days?"
Jazmine really looked confused at this point. "What's he got to do with anything? He's Huey. He's always grumpy."
"He's also nocturnal now." I shook my head. "He's not only getting food right now. He's probably crashing in his room before he comes back tonight to stay in your room till morning." Jazmine raised her eyebrow. "I guess you aren't the only one who doesn't like the thought of you being alone."
"He sleeps in here?" Jazmine asked slowly, her voice filled with disbelief. "But why?"
"Well, he's the only one who can. Otherwise I'd be the one in here." I shrugged when her confused expression deepened. "He is legally married to you, you know."
"Which is pretty weird."
"Oh, come on. Married to Huey Freeman." I gave her a sly grin. "It's your dream come true."
"Shut up." Jazmine reached across the bed, jabbing me in the ribs. "I'm married to undercover alter ego Huey, not actual Huey."
"Close enough." I stuck out my tongue this time. "How does it feel?"
Jazmine sat up and climbed on her knees to the edge of the bed so that her face was inches from my own. "Being that I've been "cheating" on him with you, I don't think it's been working out too well," She joked with a smirk. I leaned forward, touching her nose with the tip of my finger.
"You could always file for divorce," I joked back. Jazmine giggled.
"There was a prenup. I'd get nothing."
"So you're a cheater and a gold digger?"
"And I'm wanted in all fifty states." Jazmine flopped back against her pillows, grinning from ear to ear. "How's that for messed up?"
I shook my head, running my fingers through her hair. "A gold digging cheater wanted in all of America. Huey sure does know how to pick em."
Jazmine smacked me in the shoulder. "Shut up!" She laughed. I leaned forward again, kissing her forehead before rising to my feet.
"If you put some of that energy into getting better you'll be home in no time." I jammed my hands in my pockets. "I miss you."
Jazmine's eyes softened. "I miss you."
I strode to the door, pausing as my hand touched the doorknob. "Try to eat something."
"Don't nag."
"Don't die."
"Deal."
August 23, 2016
Jazmine
I could still hear his words, as plain as day, floating in my ear.
"Are you afraid?"
The sunflowers, wild and untamed, sway around us as they danced to an unheard melody. We were at the top of a hill not too far from our own, the gentle breeze ruffling through the leaves and flowers, making my hair rise off my shoulders and float around me as if it were gently coasting on an invisible sea. I shook my head.
"No."
He knew better, and I knew that he knew better. I forced myself to stare down at my buttercup yellow dress. It was as bright as the flowers that were still hovering around us, as bright as the sun itself. But none of it held a candle to him. None of it ever had.
I'd changed out of my hot, black dress into my current one just to bring some kind of color back into my life. I'd stuck a white daisy in my hair, one that had come off her casket, her final resting place. Her gold bracelet decorated my arm.
The bright rainbows and pastels that had painted so much of my life had suddenly broken and collapsed, leaving the dark and dreary exposed underneath. My heart felt so raw and torn, and I was sure it had stopped working the moment I'd realized one of the most important people in my life were gone. Only when he'd shown up, still in his own funeral suit, I'd felt it sputter and flop back to life. It was still broken. But it lived.
Now I rested my elbow on my knee as I stared at him, those mere days ago when we'd kissed on my doorstep feeling so far away. I couldn't imagine what I could possibly do or say to make any sense of what had happened. I didn't want to try. As amazing, as incredible as he was, even he couldn't get me my mother back.
He looked up into the blue sky, which was clear as the sea give or take a few fluffy clouds that sat in the distance. He looked back at me, his eyes hard to decipher.
"You have to be." He was quiet, his voice more cautious than I'd ever remembered it being. "She was in a car accident that was caused by some of them-"
"Please." My voice was so sad, so empty. "I don't want to talk about it."
He fell silent, watching me. I gently kicked my sandals off, lifting my head to the sky so the sun could warm my face. For the first time in my life, I'd run out of tears. I didn't know if that was good or bad.
"I have nothing," I heard myself whisper. I was so soft I doubted even the enchanting flowers could hear me. "Nothing to be afraid of."
I'd always known I was afraid of spiders, terrified of clowns. But I'd never known the true pain of losing someone. I now knew there were things worse than objects in this life to fear.
Without my mother, my confident, kindhearted, compassionate mother, I had nothing. We'd been as close as sisters with a bond that resembled that of best friends. Whereas my father kept more to himself my mother filled the house with music as she'd cooked dinner; old songs from jazz records her parents had given her. I'd inherited her green thumb and we'd both spent many summer days up to our arms in dirt in the backyard, talking and laughing our troubles away. With her around there hadn't been many, despite the crumbling of civilization around us. Now, she was gone, and she'd taken everything good with her. She'd taken everything and left me with nothing.
"I feel like I've lost everything," I said softly. The breeze blew my hair, in its rare stick-straight form, out of my face. He shrugged. "My arm, my leg. My kidney, or…I don't know. It just feels so…different." I swallowed down the emotion that clogged my throat. "I feel like I have nothing left to lose."
"There's always something to lose." Huey shrugged. "Always."
"Like what?" I asked before I could stop myself, consider the words that were pouring out of my mouth. "You have no parents. You should know how I feel. How can you sit there and pass this off like I'll get over it?"
"Because you will get over it," Huey said plainly, so plainly that all I could do was stare. "You get over it. You think you can't, but you will."
I shook my head in disbelief.
"You think you have nothing," He went on to say. "But you have your father. You have your health." He shrugged, his eyes no longer on mine. "You have me."
I bit my lip, looking away and instead focusing on the flowers. "I have you," I echoed softly.
I could see our years of friendship like a moving pictures screen. It was something so special, something that I'd treasured so much that it almost took my breath away. It could be ripped away from me as quickly as my mother had been. That knowledge made me skeptic, distrusting. I didn't want another reason to feel pain. I didn't want it. Any of it.
"No," I said in the same voice, shaking my head. I could feel my heart breaking as I said it. "No, I don't."
We looked at each other before glancing away. Almost simultaneously we glanced back towards each other before looking away all over again. It was me that chose to break the silence.
"Maybe I should go," I said quietly, rising to my feet. Instead of putting my shoes back on I simply picked them up, holding them at my side as I walked. When I passed in front of Huey I stopped, turning so that I was facing him. He looked up at me wordlessly.
Without saying anything I bent down, gently kissing his cheek. It wasn't a kiss I'd consider romantic or even one I'd gush over and dream about later on. It was more like a goodbye to the friendship that we'd known, a farewell to connection I knew that we had. We'd never be the same, and we both knew that. All it took was a front porch kiss and a death to make everything different, but nonetheless that's what it all was.
Different.
I straightened before walking away, my head bent against the warm breeze that did nothing to thaw my cold heart. I wanted to look back but I resisted with everything inside me, every cell that I had, so that he wouldn't have a chance to see the tears that were finally streaking down my face.
November 27, 2022
Huey
The second the door opened I had him collapsing back against the floor, his eyes wide with horror. I could tell, just by the realization that I spotted in them that he knew that I knew what he did. Not only that, but I could tell he knew I was mad as hell.
"Please, no!" Reese begged, crawling backwards towards the living room. He bumped into an end table, sending his cordless phone crashing to the floor with a loud clack. He held up his hands like he was praying. "No! You don't understand!"
"Don't understand?" I snapped, aiming the gun towards his forehead and clicking off the safety. "What is there to understand? You tried to kill Jazmine. Twice." I glared at him as his mouth dropped open. "I'm not a dummy. It became obvious that the first time you poisoned her it was little enough for her body to dispose the toxins on its own, even if it left her in a physically weakened state. It was only by a stroke of luck for you that she came to pay you a visit and you had another chance to finish her off. She was mostly better before she went to see you." I shook my head. "Jazmine tries to see the good in everyone even now when there's barely any good left. But when you mess with her, you mess with me." I held my finger over the trigger. "And I am not the one."
"No! Please-" Reese crawled towards me desperately, hugging my knees. "Please, spare me! I had no choice-"
"Have you lost your mind?" I kicked him aside with my good leg; his back hit the wall with a dull thump and he quickly sat back up, his eyes wet. Luckily he hadn't had time to notice me wince from putting so much pressure on my other leg. "You're going to sit there and beg me to forgive you like you have a chance?"
"I had to!" Reese blurted desperately. "I had no choice! They were watching me, waiting for me…I couldn't let her go. They'd kill me if I did."
"And better her than you, right?" My eyes hardened. "Who is "we"?"
Reese lifted his head, his eyes still on the gun. They quickly flickered up to my face.
"I'm not dropping it, and I don't have much time," I snapped before he could even ask. "So you'd better start talking."
"Aren't you worried about someone hearing the shots and coming to find you?" He asked slowly. I rolled my eyes.
"Consider this one of my areas of expertise." I shook the barrel of the gun at him. "Now tell me who told you to kill her."
"Fine!" Reese shook his head. "Do you know a Thomas Addison?"
"It sounds familiar." After a moment I nodded. "He's the CEO of Sunrise corp. It's one of the world's leading industries in steel right now. What does he have to do with anything?"
"I could remember a little easier if there wasn't a gun pointed at my face," Reese tried, visibly shaking. I lifted it higher.
"Let me refresh your memory, then." I pulled the trigger, a loud blast echoing through the room. Reese screamed. The bullet had went through the end table, leaving a small hollow circle in the wood that was inches from his head. "Now talk."
"Alright, alright!" Reese sighed, the prominent wrinkles in his face deepening. "Thomas Addison, along with being the head of steel, he's also a big guy for the anti-equality movement. He's got power, young man. He's got more power and influence than you and I could ever bargain for-"
"Don't talk like you're on my side!" I snapped, my arm not moving an inch. "I don't care who you are. You tried to-"
"I didn't," Reese said softly. I gave him an odd stare. "I didn't. A man made me."
I felt my eyes roll so far back in my head I was surprised they didn't get stuck. "A man, Reese? That's the best you can do?"
"He's with Addison!" Reese wailed. "He wanted some type of metal that he knows your friend had! Some type of stone, or metal, or-"
"The ampscine," I heard myself murmur before I could stop myself. Reese snapped his fingers.
"That's it! Listen, you've got to keep that away from anyone, especially Addison. Whatever you do. He's got people working for him, tons. One of them came to my apartment the evening before I found Jazmine and told me that I was to help them, or he'd expose my association with the resistance and have me killed."
I glared at him. "You're a part of the resistance?" My scowl deepened. "And you double crossed us?"
"Yes! No!" Reese shook his head. "I had no choice. He would've just killed me and gotten it some other way-"
"What was his name?" I asked. He stiffened.
"His…name?"
"He did have one of those, right?"
"I-" Reese opened his mouth before letting it shut again. He bit his lip, as if trying to concentrate. I shook my head, almost sympathetically.
Almost.
"Not good enough, man," I said, holding up the gun again and pointing it straight to his face. "Not good enough."
"Wait-"
BANG.
I aimed but Reese had leapt up too quickly, knocking into me and throwing me off balance. I spun around as he raised a gun of his own.
BANG
"Damn it!" I'd jumped out of the way just in time, only it was at the expense of my leg. I felt a jolting sensation shoot through it as I landed on my side but I ignored it, pointing my gun upwards so that it was aimed straight in his face. I pulled the trigger again.
Bang.
I watched him open his mouth as if to speak before he fell, slumping against the wall. I tore my eyes away and wrinkling my nose in disgust. "Coward." I replaced my gun at my side and took out a cloth, slowly crawling to my feet. I limped as quickly as I could back to the front door, being careful not to touch Reese's body. I used the cloth to open the door and instead of heading for the elevators I took the stairs at the end of the hallway. I tried to clear my thoughts as I walked (more like slumped) down the steps, doing my best not to mess up my leg worse than I already seemed to have done.
It wasn't that I'd wanted to kill him; after all, what kind of person went around looking for reasons to take someone's life? At the same time though, I wasn't willing to let him live after he'd double crossed us once. Who wasn't to say he'd try it again with someone else, or even worse: that he wouldn't come after us with people from the opposite team?
The fact that murder was easier to get away with this day and age was either a good or a bad thing, I hadn't decided yet. It wasn't as if he hadn't brought it on himself. Now I just had to figure out who was after the ampscine as well as the rest of us.
When I reached the first floor I could see a trio of cops heading for the elevators. Adjusting my coat so that it was covering my weapon I walked past casually, strolling along like I didn't have a care in the world.
Which I guess I didn't now.
"Excuse me? Sir?" I looked up as one of the officers noticed me. His eyes were filled with questions. I straightened. "Do you live on the sixth floor?"
I shook my head. "No, sir." He turned away and I continued for the exit, my hands in my pockets. "Just visiting."
Yay? Nay? Aye bay bay? (Anyone remember that song? It was so ignorant it was hilarious
I hope you enjoyed it. please, review! :D
-Kelsey