25.

"I've figured it out!" I bawled down the dock, almost tripping over my backpack as I hightailed it towards my unimpressed friends aboard Hugo. Kit had already been gone when I made it into the kitchen, Whitney unusually still in bed, so I just had Cooper to distract me from my extreme guilt.

I needed to make it up to my father, and soon. I had already texted him (to no reply) about going over to Ella's this evening. But for now? I was about to explode their worlds.

"What's up, Tor? You're late, again." Hiram was tapping his watch and looked mighty unimpressed from underneath his bed-hair. "If you'd warned me, I could have tried out my new boat shirt on you for the ride. It's green and orange. Very slick." I stuck him with my elbow and bounced on the balls of my feet, apologising nicely to Tom Blue, who only vaguely nodded as he cast off. I'd got off easy.

"I'm about to blow your brains out," I whispered breathlessly, plonking down on the bench in the stern and shoving hair out of my eyes. "I've figured it out."

"Yeah, you said." Shelton swung down next to me, eyes wide. "But figured what exactly? And don't we need Ben for this?"

I grinned widely. "Give me one second…"

Closing my eyes, I hoped desperately that my confidence – born from the new-found knowledge about our own minds – was not rash.

Golden sparks fizzed behind my eyelids as I shot down the mental pathways and almost immediately snagged Ben's consciousness. His mind was dimmer than usual from the distance, hazy, and it took more energy than I was used to – but I still managed to shoot a Ben! into his mind.

I presumed he'd gotten it, but how to open the pathway back?

I pulled my forehead together in concentration, imagining a golden track running antiparallel to this one. I cleared it of junk and connected it to both our consciousnesses and then – Tory?

Yes! Ohmygod.

What's going on? How can I do this now? He was fading in and out a little but when I focused hard Ben's voice was clear as day.

I've figured it out, I shot back, and I need to tell you all. I'll just bring the others in.

Opening my eyes, I grinned at Hi and Shelton like the Cheshire Cat, remembering to lower my voice just in time. "Guess who's managed to set up Ben's mental messaging?"

"How. How have you managed it after all those fails?" Hi demanded.

"One sec," I promised, squeezing my lids shut again.

It took another moment of pressing against the walls of my mind, but managed to draw in the other two quickly, pooling the spool so we had an open forum. It took concentration, but I could keep everyone connected and open just by myself, without needing the cords to flame up.

Guys? I tested.

Wow.

What the actual hell?

You really did figure it out.

Yeah I did, I shot back in, and it's all a matter of perspective…

I quickly ran through last night's revelations, explaining how I thought we were all learning to access the collective unconscious. That would explain why I kept having random blips of hearing other people's voices, like yesterday in the cafeteria.

Wait, you heard other people's voices – in your head? Alarm rang from Ben's mind to ours. Tory –

I'm sorry, I replied immediately, trying to push away the seeping guilt. But more importantly, I think it means that our internal attacker can access the mutt collective unconscious in this same human way we can.

There was silence for a moment as the boys pondered this. I opened my eyes for a second, sitting up to take in the beautiful sun-dappled waves around us and the soft lap of the ocean against the ferry. We really did have the most beautiful ride to school.

So this… it means Chance is definitely our guy. Hi's voice layered the sound of seagulls.

"Tory?" My head jerked at Tom's voice, my focus snapping to him. But the boys were still connected to my mind, and I was very aware of their alert presence.

Tom jerked his head towards the front of the boat. I had no choice but to stagger up and wobble my way down till I was gripping the side opposite Ben's dad. "Hey Tom. What's up?" The casual conversation starter belied my internal anxiety that this was not a quick check-in.

"I trust you," Mr Blue began, stiff-shouldered. "And this isn't some sorta warning, Tory. But just listen for a moment, because I've got to say this."

I nodded warily. He was speaking softly enough that I knew he wasn't intending to embarrass me, or make the words count for Hi and Shelton too. And he probably wouldn't want Ben to hear.

Okay, scratch that. He definitely wouldn't want Ben to hear.

Knowing the boys were still getting a full 360 of my situation, I gathered the spool of golden lines in my head and cut them. My shoulders immediately relaxed, but Hi's groan reached me from the other end of the ferry.

Gossip-monger. This was private.

I focused on Mr Blue as he fixed his gaze on the horizon. Calm, collected; he was a more amiable version of his son, and I wondered if that was from time or temperament.

A lot of me wanted to find out.

"Ben's got a lot on his plate right now. The change of schools… well, we all know it wasn't ideal." Tom nodded slightly as the Charleston smudge emerged ahead. "SATs are coming up. Wando seems to be preparing him about as well as Bolton, all things considered."

Meaning, the Bolton teachers were biased towards going the extra mile for students who could pay them handsomely for it. I nodded in understanding, sensing I needed to hold my tongue for once. Ironic, considering I was in the presence of one of the least verbose people I knew.

"But still. New school, new people, new routine. And not as much of you guys. I'm not saying what is going on between you – yourself and Ben, or all four of you kids, or even Chance Claybourne – Kit mentioned y'all were in some crazy scheme with him but…" Tom shook his head. "Could you be kind, Tory? If you're going to stay for good this time, then stay." My cheeks began to flame and I was suddenly very glad Tom was fixed ahead. He wasn't judging, which I appreciated, but he was safeguarding his son. "You're good for my boy. Except when…

"Well. Just be kind. I know he can handle whatever crazy schemes you four get yourselves into." That was something refreshing to hear, although I knew that it hardly meant Tom was happy with us gallivanting about breaking laws. I smiled slightly anyway, but the corners of Tom's mouth were turning down.

"What he can't handle – or, I mean, what I'm worried about – it's the other stuff. Nice girl like yourself, don't…"

I swallowed. Made myself finish the cheesy-lyric sentence so this didn't drag out any longer. "Break his heart." Cleared my throat. "Got it."

Tom slid me a sideways glance and nodded. "Thanks."

"Any time," I mumbled, pushing a hand against one cheek, then the other, in an attempt to cool them as I moved away.

Ugh. Definitely not a good idea to go back online with the others now. Heaven knows I still wasn't all that great at controlling what transmitted to the boys, and we were already awkward enough about the whole situation without my adding fuel. Pretending the tension didn't exist just didn't work out in the long run, and we all knew it, but somehow, it's what we were still doing.

What you're still doing, my Mom voice reminded me.

Yeah. It was my fault. What else was new?

I would make a start on fixing the whole mess tonight. What better place to disentangle myself from Jason's web of exaggeration than his own boat?

"So." Hi dragged out the vowel, knocking me from my reverie. "What was that about?"

"Nothing." He raised his eyebrows in disbelief, exchanging a glance with Shelton, but didn't push it. I sighed. "Well, obviously not nothing. But nothing new. Just a… personal reminder."

"You want to try that group chat again?" Shelton's change of subject was a welcome one, but I had to shake my head.

"Don't think I've got enough focus for it again. We can try again later?"

A round of nods from the boys. I fired a slightly awkward text to Ben explaining we were going to leave it. Even that sent a shot of guilt reverberating through me. From Hi's grimace, I guessed he was still connected on some level, and had felt the hit.

Just another problem to sort through: were we ever going to be able to properly unhitch our emotions?

Later. Today, I needed to focus on getting a foolproof action plan for tonight in place. And that meant a good speech outline, leaving Jason and I friends, but with a clear line in the sand.

Get to, Tory. I reached into my bag for my notebook and tried my hardest to ignore the sideways glances Hi, Shelton and even Tom sent me for the rest of our journey.


6.30pm, chewing on pizza and Ashley Bodford at Ella's. We'd gone half-and-half on the Dominoes.

Ashley had provided an unwelcome distraction from my revelations by spreading nasty rumours about me. "Not even subtle," Ella growled around her Vegorama. "That bitch definitely wanted you to hear."

"Well, yeah." I swallowed, reached for more of my Double Bacon Cheeseburger. "Otherwise she wouldn't have told Maddy so loudly as I passed." I shook my head, running through our past couple of weeks. "Talk about bipolar."

"She really can't decide whether she wants to be your bezzie or your nemesis," Ella grumbled. "But why does giving you a bad rep add to either?"

I wasn't sure either. One thing I did know: our pack's hanging out with Chance had finally been noticed by the outside world. I suspected Maddy as the leak. She was the one dating him and all. It was only a matter of time before the witch-hunter realised what was up.

And really, that meant that our time was ticking for some sort of cover story about our Viral powers…

Oh man. We're so screwed.

Had that thought reached the others too? My mind had become a confusing mass of semi-privacy. Or, more disturbingly, semi-openness. I was not a fan of being an open book, to say the least.

I rubbed the goosebumps on my arms. Tried to convince myself it didn't matter now, we couldn't know till our next Candela date, which wasn't yet scheduled.

"I mean, at least it was an unoriginal rumour. And not too horrendous. Comparatively." Ella looked up at me through her eyelashes, but I twisted my lips, semi-amused.

"She said Jason and Chance were both paying me." Ella's expression didn't shift. "For romantic 'favours'. It doesn't get much worse than that, Ells."

"Sure it does," she said casually, "you could be the one paying them for sexcapades. But!" she caught sight of my unimpressed face. "That is not the point. You should really run Ashley through tonight. Make her back off. Take Madison down while you're at it."

"Ashley I could face and hope to win, but Madison…" I shook my head. "Tried there, failed that. And Jason is still the top priority."

"Sure thing, as long as you do it properly, and not some half-assed job that makes another enemy." Ella's words of wisdom rang true. It was a possibility I hadn't actually considered yet. It made me wince just imagining all the resulting problems.

There were just so many. I dropped my head into my heads as I ran through them all. It was almost like a prayer: internal attackers, external attackers, Madison's hunt, Jason's lies, Chance's loose cannon act, our mutating DNA, failing Kit…

What I wouldn't do to be back in the bunker with the boys, oblivious to rampant viruses and smitten lacrosse-players and all the problems they had brought. It brought my familiar vein of tense irritation to the fore; I tried to push it back. That particular reflex of emotion was starting to feel like a long, knotty muscle that needed a good massage so I could move freely again.

If only I could find the damn solution.

One thing at a time. Tonight: Jason.

I shook my head to clear it. "So we need to clear Jason. I've got a good three-point plan of the breakup speech. Well. Fakeup speech."

"Of course you do. But do you have something hot to wear?"

I stopped. Groaned. Dropped my head to the table. "Of course I forgot clothes. Of course. I clearly wanted to wear this sexy tartan skirt to a damn boat party."

"Makes my job easier then," Ella said breezily. I turned my head to raise an eyebrow at her.

"What job?"

"The one where you wear what I tell you. Because now, you have no choice." Ella grinned wickedly at me, standing up expectantly, and I just held out my hand in surrender for her to pull me up.

We skittered into the corridor, past the mahogany sideboards lined with orchids in wafer-thin Oriental vases, socks skidding across the gleaming white tiles. I had been in her house before, but each time the entrance hallway's magnificent antebellum flying staircase caught my breath. Ella had jokingly called it the 'stairway to heaven', her quip made poignant by the fact that it would have cost so much to put in the house all those decades ago.

The carpet whispering under our quick steps, I trailed my free fingers up the mahogany banister behind me. Polished to near-perfection, there were occasional fingerprint blemishes I put down to my friend. Her lack of care for the fussy niceties of traditional South of Broad homeowning was a comfort to me, the boat kid.

Pulled along past the stern ancestors' portraits and abstract coastal paintings, I was only released once we were inside Ella's bedroom. She beelined for her walk-in closet. I did a surreptitious sweep with my eyes, drinking in her cool minimalist white bedroom. Too messy for a catalogue, but the setup was copied straight from Home & Living.

Yeah, I had major bedroom envy. But then, I was allowed a dog. Cooper was worth more than any material possessions.

"Tory!" Ella staggered back in with piles of clothing in her arms, dumping it in the middle of her duvet then shoving items into two rough piles. She stood back proudly, hands on hips. "You're on the left. We're sorting your outfit first, no budging. And before we start, can I just say that I think that now is totally the time to begin your era of dresses."

"I completely disagree." Dresses were probably the hardest thing to run in that I could think of, and the deb balls had left me with a strong fear of unnecessary corsets.

But I grinned in anticipation. Dress-up would be fun.


Ella had got her wish, but I promised this would be the only night. Even if I was enjoying the appreciative glances and smiles several people were sending my way at the skater dress. Black, made of some weird spongy material Ella called "scuba fabric", it was form-fitting enough to make me feel good without actually exposing much skin. Win-win.

As we strolled through the gossiping clumps of our classmates on deck – Ella was searching for the bar, saying a Jack-and-coke was in order – I kept my eyes roving, intent on finding Jason. He was my main purpose for being here tonight, and I also needed to know when we'd be returning to the harbour, so I could plan my ambush.

Faces, faces… I ducked around a group of sour-looking Mag League girls, momentarily separated from Ella but quickly grabbing her shoulder in her Bardot-style top. It wasn't even nine and the boat was already crammed, dammit.

We were directly beneath the speakers on the deck above, so I almost didn't hear when the whoops sounded. Turning, I saw Ashley and Courtney climbing aboard, sending flirtatious winks and wiggles, and almost immediately setting those around them dancing. Within seconds, a good 80% of the males aboard had materialised around them and were trying to get in close on the impromptu dance floor. I rolled my eyes. Boys were so shallow. And Ashley was another target for tonight.

But for now – still no white-blonde head. Where was the man of the party?

"I'm going to go up a deck," I shouted in Ella's ear. The formless thumping was already grating on my nerves. "Text me if you find Jason."

She half-turned to nod at me. I made my break for the steep stairs, smoothing my borrowed dress down at the back as I climbed the narrow case so nobody got an eyeful. Emerged onto the upper deck, eyes roving. It was a bit less crowded up here, giving a girl room to breathe, something I appreciated.

I wove between clumps of classmates, snagging a Red Bull from an abandoned 12-pack while reciting my three-point argument in my head. Paused to chug. Unsurprisingly, I immediately started buzzing.

Plan change. I'm too wired to do anything but come straight out with it.

"Tory!" I whipped around, swiping an arm across my mouth guiltily. But it was, at last, the suspect I'd been searching for. My eyes widened then narrowed as Jason edged towards me, taking hold of my upper arm and grinning lazily.

He smelled of beer and my own impending bad decisions. Bring it.

My resolve hardened and I snatched my arm away.

When Jason's lazy expression didn't change at the snub, I realised just how drunk he was. If I'd left the issue lie, he'd have been hard-pressed to remember this.

"You enjoying the party, babe?" His words were lazily formed, loose versions of sober speech. "Here, c'm'over here." He grabbed slightly lower down my arm and pulled me the remaining yards to the upper deck's bow. I couldn't escape from his vicelike grip this time, but when we cleared the crowd Jason let go to lean back on the railings lazily.

I pursed my lips tightly and rubbed my arm while he raised an eyebrow. "So? You enjoying it?"

"What? Oh. Well. It's a nice boat," I hedged.

"Too right. Sanlorenzo, thirty-eight metres of award-winning sea-beast."

"Yeah, well, when are we leaving the marina?" Bring in the focus, Tory.

Jason waved a hand easily. "Nah, we're not untying. Too much hassle, there's a whole group of ex-teammates coming over from CU later, they don't know when… But it's good to see you, Tor! Bring it in. Come on."

He held out an arm, motioning me in warmly, but I had never felt more repulsed by my friend. A drunk, insensitive jock right now. How had I let him get me in this position in the first place? I had truly been a doormat for him to walk right over, and I'd let him, because he was nice.

God. What a fool.

My circulation spiked, the thrumming tension indicating a flare was straining to snap free. I took a deep breath to steady myself, slapping away Jason's waving hand.

Right. Do this. Come on.

"Jason," I began sharply, "I do not appreciate the fact that you have told everyone we are dating. Because we are not going out, and we never have, and I do not want to date you."

"Aw, bring it in, Tor." Jason lurched a little more upright and pulled me into him. I shoved his chest hard, properly glaring up at him now. He was still smiling goofily.

"Jason! Listen to me. You are going to tell everyone right now that we have broken up." I grabbed his chin to stop his looking out over the party. Injected my words with a little more venom. "If you don't do this nicely, then I will tell the world that we never were together and that you made the whole thing up to impress mommy. Got it? Say we broke up tonight, and we can stay friends. I can put this behind me if you do that. You got that?" Nothing. "Jason?"

"Yeah, okay, you want me to lie to everyone. Why, Tory?"

"Because I am absolutely uninterested in dating you!" I was beginning to see red. "And it's not lying! You're the one who lied, and I don't like liars!" Well, that in itself was a fib, seeing as I regularly lied to cover our Viral asses. But I didn't enjoy it.

Jason heaved a sigh. "Fine. We're not going out any more. Happy? I'm not."

"Well I am very angry at you right now." Seeing as he was acting like a child, I would treat him like one. I was only a whisper away from flaring, and pulled a wolfish snarl to stop him pawing at my hair.

Perhaps too wolfish. Jason began to look genuinely sorry through his pathetic state. "I apologise, babe. I just really love you. And I want the world to know."

I froze.

Crap. Crap crap crap.

First time a boy said those words to me, and it had to be drunk Jason? Blargh. Males suck.

I needed to get out of here ASAP.

New destination: manipulation central. "Well I'm really upset that you've done all this lying about me. We can't speak again until you've done something for me." I turned away, feigning haughtiness with my nose stuck in the air.

As anticipated, Jason seized my wrist and tugged me back towards him. "Wait, what? What? I'll do anything for you, babe. Let me sort it. I want to be dating you."

"I'll speak to you again when you get Madison Dunkle to leave me alone. Got that?"

I narrowed my eyes at Jason, but he stuck out his bottom lip in a pout and seized my waist, pulling me right up and trying to nuzzle my neck. I craned the other way, trying to pull away, but his grip was remarkably strong.

"Tory, hun!" I looked up, still scowling, in time to see Ashley Bodford teetering over us with her iPhone and sly face. It was horrendous timing and she knew it. Courtney was right behind, leading three near-slobbering boys with her.

And they called me the rhymes-with-more. "How's the lovebirds? You treating her right, Jase? Kiss for the camera!"

Jason, happily nodding along to the words spewing from her mouth, eagerly tugged me right in. I managed to turn my head at the last second so he only sloppily got a half-cheek kiss, but this final violation was too much.

My flare was swift and brutal, arriving in under two seconds. A new PB.

Incidentally, that is the perfect amount of time to pull back a right arm and curl fists into the correct punching shape.

My brain measured the angles, distance and power as I let fly.


A/N: helloooo fantastic readers! A couple of things to say. Firstly, "Catalyst" is the THIRD MOST REVIEWED VIRALS FANFICTION! And 15th most followed, 19th most favourited. I cannot thank you guys enough for such a show of love; I was an absolute mess on twitter when I realised, because I am so incredibly honoured that our baby fandom likes me! I love you all so much, thank you for all the support.

Secondly, I read "Shock". Super cute beginning, and I really liked it! Definitely a fitting start to Tory meeting the boys, and it shows how a lot of our fanfictions imagining the first meeting haven't even been that wrong haha. BUT you could tell it was written after the first four books. Just from an English Lit student's perspective, there was quite a strong vein of cultural materialism coming through, in terms of Tory's noticing Ben's attractiveness. The Reichses had obviously tried to compensate for how the characters have evolved, and tried to un-evolve them, but it just felt like some sort of pre-"Code" limbo in terms of character. Still super super cute though and I loooved it, still probs my fave Virals e-short (we'll have to see about "Spike" when it comes out!)

Thirdly, "Terminal" has just come out in the UK so I can read it over Easter!

Oh! And hope the Led Zeppelin reference wasn't confusing. Seriously banking on readers knowing "Stairway to Heaven" lyrics here.

In conclusion, you're all incredible and I love you and I hope you liked the update. NEXT TIME: maybe I don't forget about Cooper for once, ill-timed Instagram, and that other (even more tense) boy argument I was totes trying to include this chapter