Annie POV

'Alright. Write a paragraph describing the effects of the Cold War upon the United States government.'

I stared out the window, watching the rain droplets run down, pretending in my head that they were racing each other.

'An?'

'Yeah?', I said, turning my head, pulled from my daze.

'Cold War, focus.', Roman said, pointing down to his textbook. 'You're in a real daze today.', he said, shaking his head and flipping a page in the textbook.

'She just needs another cup of coffee, don't you, Annie?', Kai asked, his mouth half full of a chocolate donut. I shook my head and rubbed my temples, groaning as I closed my eyes and let my hair fall over my face.

'I've already had threeeeee...'

'Here.', Roman said, sliding the remainder of his mug across the table to me. 'Drink up, drowsy.'

Quinn flipped the pages in her notebook, her pencils sprawled out across the table. She sighed.

'Why does Five want us to do this crap anyway?', she mumbled, mindlessly playing with a few of the pencils. 'Not like we're the ones ever going to time travel. This is useless.'

'Not everything is about a mission, Quinny.', Roman said, staring down intently at his book. 'And besides, he just wants us to be smart. Well rounded. Functioning members of our society.'

I rolled my eyes, smiling, and looked down at my own notebook.

Quinn pulled into the center of the table, resting her chest on top of it, leaning closer to us.

'Can you imagine what we could be doing if he didn't have us pent up learning about-', she flipped through her pages. 'Russia, or some crap?'

Kai nodded sarcastically at her, chewing through another bite of his donut.

'I wanna' get out there, bust some drug dealers, stop a murder, anything where we can use our powers.', she said, her eyes full of wonder and yearning.

'Quinn, we literally just shut down a hospital terror attack three days ago. Chill.', Joan said, doodling a flower on the top corner of her page.

She groaned. 'But that was the first thing in weeks, months, probably, Joan!'. She sat back in her chair, crossing her arms in front of her chest. 'I want something big. Something... something with worldwide impact.'

'Not ambitious at all.', I mumbled as I kicked Roman's foot under the table, and then he tapped it back, and we did that a few times.

'Quinn.', Joan said, looking up from her doodles. 'Some of us don't want world renown. Some of us just want to like... settle down and get married and have kids and a little job in a bookstore.', she said, subtly looking up at Kai. His head was turned, so he didn't see that little hint, but I did.

I knew she liked him, it was clear to see. Always doing the favors for him, going out of her way to help him with things he needed. The unintentional staring, the way she looked at him when he walked into a room. I'd asked her about it before, but she'd blushed and clammed up quicker than I could get through to her.

'Boring, Joan.', Quinn said, taking a big bite from her donut. 'I want more than that.', she said through her mouthful.

'Then go get it.', Joan responded, laughing as she went back to her paper.

'Quinn is just daydreaming about mom's fame and imagining herself in some movie or crap.', Roman said, erasing a section of writing he'd just finished.

'Nah, I'm not about that.', she said, kicking back in her chair. 'I wanna be a hero. Save something, or someone. I'm just not sure what yet.', she continued, confident look on her face.

'Well, you're bound to find it, with powers like yours.', I said to her, smiling as I took a sip from my mug of coffee. She smiled back.

'Thank you, An.', she said. Smiling back. She threw her hand out to the others. 'See? Annie supports me.'

'Annie's just too nice to tell you you've got Diego-level ambitions.', Kai said, starting on another donut.

'Hey, don't underestimate her.', Joan said. 'She straight up roasted me about a book idea I had last night.'. She shook her head. 'I thought a time traveling reboot of Pride and Prejudice sounded nice.'

'You, my dearest Jonesy girl, are your mother's daughter.', I said, shaking my head at her as I filled in one of the responses on the worksheet.

Agnes came walking to us, carrying two pots of coffee, moving slowly. She'd gotten really old over the years, and it was showing now. But all the same, she was hospitable and sweet, filling up our coffee and donuts and giving us warm advice just as she had all our lives. Behind her, on the wall she had came from, was a picture of us all here as kids. I sat eating mine, my face covered in powdered sugar. Quinn and Roman hugged each other, cheesing brightly, while Kai and Joan smiled with their milk moustaches. I smiled as I looked at it.

'Refills?', Agnes asked, lifting the pots of coffee.

'Yes palease.', I said, lifting my mug up to her and laughing.

'Annie, you're going to have a stroke if you keep on. ', Roman said, slightly laughing and slightly concerned.

Agnes laughed warmly and smiled as she filled up my mug. 'The girl needs her pep.'

'Exactly.', I said, eyeing Roman. 'Thanks, Aggy.'

She went to refilling the other's mugs. She moved slow, but steady.

Agnes had in every way been a grandmother to us throughout our childhood. We'd come into Griddy's three or four times weekly, just hanging out and having coffee. On our birthdays, she gave us cards with ten-dollar bills in them. On Christmas, we always brought her a gift and she always got something small for each of us. And the best part? She never charged us for any of the food we ordered. But that was our little secret.

'You guys need anything else?', she asked, her voice frail and old but still sweet and sing-song-ish.

'I think we're good. Thanks Aggy.', Joan said, smiling. Agnes smiled back, and then shuffled off back to the kitchen.

I looked out the window as I sipped some of the hot coffee, which quite nearly burned the entire roof of my mouth off.

Recovering from my excruciating mouth burn, I squinted my eyes, looking across the street. A man stood next to the traffic light post, sunglasses and a black winter coat. Dark khaki pants. And he stood there and stared, unmoving.

My heart rate picked up immediately. I knew this was the same man who'd been at the volleyball game. And from my dad's reaction to him, he was apparently dangerous. Why then, did I have the absolute strongest urge to go and talk to him?

Seeing that he wasn't moving, even though the light had switched to allow pedestrian crossing, I got up from my seat, still staring out at him.

'What're you doing, An?', Roman asked, grabbing my hand from across the table. I gripped it for a second, and then let it go.

'I'm just gonna' step outside for a minute and get some air.', I said, mumbling.

'An, it's raining. In sheets, practically.', Kai said, staring up at me.

'Yeah... I've just gotta' see something.', I mumbled in response, already moving towards the door. I looked back at Kai as I walked out, who shrugged at Roman's confused face.

I walked through the rain, not minding getting wet, towards the man until I knew he saw me. He stood motionless for just a minute, and then as I got closer, he turned and walked. Slowly.

I picked up the pace. He knew I was following him, and started walking faster too. He led me through the town, and then turned down an alleyway.

Did I want to follow him this far? Was it worth it? Sketchy.

Before I could turn down it, a glowing blue ghost appeared in front of me, stopping me.

'And just what do you think you're doing, Annie Gloria Gaynor Hargreeves?', the young boy said, placing his hands on his hips and smirking.

Him.

'Haunting me now, Lucas?', I said, looking past him, wanting to get back to following the man.

'I think I have the right to. Considering you killed me and all.', he said, smiling, just like his dad.

'It was an accident, you loser. You don't get haunting rights from an accidental death.', I said, trying to outwit him.

'I kinda get whatever I want. I mean, you can't really get rid of me.', he said, tilting his head.

'I could get high as Mt. Everest and forget about you.', I said, smirking in return, growing impatient with him.

'Fair point, but you wouldn't really do that, with dear old daddy being sober and all, now would you?', he said, poking me. He was so much like uncle Five that it was actually terrifying sometimes.

'Can you go away? I need to catch up with this guy.'

'What's so interesting about him?', he said, turning to look behind him, seeing that the man had stopped at the end of the alleyway and was standing just around the bend.

'Not sure. Please leave.'

'Suit yourself. You'll miss me, though.', he said, putting his palms out in front of him.

'Yeah, I'll cry myself to sleep and everything.', I said, and he disappeared. Finally. I took off after the man again.

When I reached the end of the alleyway, he started walking away quickly again.

'Hey! Stop!', I yelled after him, having to pick up my pace. 'Hey!'

He turned around really quick, stopping me in my tracks.

'Why the heck are you following me?', he said, throwing his hands up. He had a twinge of an accent in his voice, one I didn't recognize.

I crossed my hands in front of my body, defensive.

'You know, I could ask you the same question.'

He smiled. 'Good, you noticed that.'

What the heck?

'So? What do you want? Or are you just some creepy pedophile that I shouldn't even be standing here talking to right now?', I asked, my arms still crossed in front of me.The rain poured still, and we stood there in it.

He shook his head. 'I'm not a pedophile, I promise. And besides, you're not some little kid.'

'Well you sure seem like one, to be honest. Creeping around. Why were you at my game, anyway? I don't even know you.'

'Because despite that, I know you.'

I tilted my head at him.

'Excuse me?', I said, opening up my palms, ready to summon some demons if need be.

'Follow me. Let me take you for a drive.', he said, holding out his keys to me.

I hesitated for a moment, and then snatched the keys from his hand. 'If we're going somewhere together, I'm driving, bud.'

He shrugged. 'Fine by me.'

I shook my head at him, so confused. This whole interaction felt so risky and wrong, but I kept going.

'Where are we going?'

'Anywhere you want, really. Just wanted to talk.', he said, giving a sad smile. I almost felt bad when he made that face.

I thought for a moment.

'Alright.', I said tightly, gripping the keys in my hand. 'But you're going to have to answer a question first. And if I find out you're lying, I have some very powerful people around me that could whip your butt in minutes.'

He looked down at the ground. 'Yeah, I know.', he said, his accent bleeding out again.

I looked him dead in the face.

'Who are you?', I asked, holding my stance.

He hesitated for a moment, but then gave another sad smile.

'I'm your uncle, Annie.'

And the keys dropped right out of my hands, onto the wet concrete.