ADVANCE WARNING: EXTREME FLUFF- READ AT YOUR OWN RISK
The rest of the day passed in a mostly uneventful fashion- a huge relief. Derek told Simon and Tori the news and Tori completely flipped out, screaming "I knew it!" and punching the wall. Simon on the other hand didn't say much of anything. He just holed up in his room for an hour.
Thankfully, he emerged for lunch (a delectable course of peanut butter sandwiches eaten in my room). Throughout the informal meal we were all watching him out of the corners of our eyes, watching for any sign of discontent, but he seemed fine, if not a little quiet. At one point I asked if he was ok and he nodded, saying "Yeah." And that was the final word on the matter.
After lunch everyone drifted off to play detective. Simon and Derek decided to search the attic together for more clues (although what else they hoped to find there after all the other search attempts I have no idea). Tori wanted to keep examining the laptop but she was too scared to stay downstairs alone so she unplugged it and brought it into my room. Not that I minded, I was just glad for the company.
With the rest of them being useful, I decided to read the journals Derek had printed for me. It didn't take long, there were only a few pages on each of us. And he was right, they were just observations. Just reading it brought back bittersweet memories of doing science labs at school.
Under my name was a detailed account of the whole cemetery experience, although Margaret thoughtfully left out the detail that she forced me to use my full powers. her powers are completely uncontrollable, she wrote, she is dangerous. That simple sentence was the only opinionated statement, which made it sting like a slap in the face. The line emphasizing "dangerous" hurt even more.
After I read through all the journals finding no more insight than the fact that all our mentors (Margaret in particular) are total ***-holes, I reread them. And re-reread them. I probably spent three hours pouring over those simple documents, searching for some hidden message that I had somehow missed before. As far as I could tell, there was none.
Not only was the information in the documents (or lack-thereof) troubling, but I still had the recently gained knowledge about Kit resting on my chest. Add in a pinch of abandonment, a smidgen of romance confusion, and a dash of recent injury. Stir well and bake on high stress levels to get a delicious migraine. Yum.
"Are you finding anything?" I sighed at last, turning to Tori. She was sitting cross-legged on the bare mattress, back leaning against the headrest. The screen from the computer illuminated her face with an eerie white glow in the growing darkness as the sun faded to dusk. Derek had warned us before not to turn on any lights in case people were watching the house.
"Tori?" I tried again when her transfixed gaze on the computer in front of her didn't waver.
"What?" she snapped her head up, blinking as if waking from a long sleep.
"Did you find anything useful?"
"Not really…"
"Not 'really'? So does this mean you did find something?" I pressed.
"No." her eyes flashed with sudden hostility. "I didn't find anything."
I could tell she was lying but didn't feel like promoting her wrath at the moment. The last thing I needed was to get her more angry with me. "Ok, ok. I didn't find anything either. Do you think the guys did?"
"Of course not. They've already searched that upper hell hole, like, ten times already. If they didn't find anything then, they won't find anything now."
"All right, miss optimistic." I muttered, discouraged. She either didn't hear me or chose to ignore me.
Instead, she changed the subject. "What do you miss most?"
"Huh?"
"You know, what do you miss most? About normal life? Not this on-the-run crap."
I thought about it, remembering all the things in my life I used to take for granted. School, daily showers, a full wardrobe, regular meals, drama class, weekly trips to the movie theatre, trustable adults… "Homework." I said at last.
She choked on her laugh. "Homework? Please tell me you're kidding and not just a total loser nerd!"
"Well," I fidgeted, knowing what I said was weird but still not able to change how I felt. "It was…reliable, I guess. You could always count on it to be the same tedious workload every night. And yeah, it is kind of nerdy, but it just…oh, I can't explain it." And I couldn't. When I had it, I hated it. Now that I don't, though, I missed its stability. It was constant, normal, and somewhat impractical. Everything my life now wasn't.
To my immense surprise, Tori was nodding slowly, deep in thought. "I didn't think of it that way before, but I think you're right." she paused, chewing on her lip. "Yeah, you're definitely right. I miss homework too- although if you tell anyone that I will kill you."
I smiled and she smiled back. Yes, we were definitely having a bonding moment.
Unfortunately, that moment was shattered when the guys came in shaking the dust out of their clothes. "Might I just point out that we're the only ones to have gone up there in about a millennia?" Simon pointed out, running his hand through his hair and grimacing when it came out white and powdery.
"Does this mean you didn't find anything?" I asked.
"No surprise there." Tori muttered. Friendship moment over- the pessimist was back.
"No," Derek sighed. "But we'll try again tomorrow when it's light out again." I was tempted to point out that if they hadn't found anything after three hours of searching today they wouldn't find anything tomorrow but decided not to mention anything if it gave them a plan. Derek always needed a plan, goal, mission…
Dinner was quiet (microwavable spaghetti and meatballs) and then, since it was pretty much too dark to do anything else, we went to sleep. Like the night before, Derek decided to stay up with me.
"You are aware you need to sleep too, right?" Simon crossed his arms when he heard Derek's decision.
"Not tired." he grunted, settling onto the mattress and crossing his own arms.
"Getting some sleep isn't going to get your girlfriend killed, wolf boy." He glared at Tori. "What if the Edison Group attacks us tomorrow? Don't you want to be rested so you can kick their scrawny butts for us?" A flicker of doubt blinked across his face, so fast I almost missed it, but he merely said "They don't know we're here."
"Derek, just go to bed." I urged. He shook his head. "Well, if you're determined to stay here, can you at least get some rest? You don't have to be awake to be on guard."
He gave me an exasperated look. "I'm sorry but this matter is closed. I'm not going anywhere, so the rest of you can go to bed."
"Fine, but wake us up for our shifts, ok?" Simon paused in the doorway, knowing Derek wasn't going to surrender.
"Sure." Shaking his head, Simon went to the room across the hall. Tori, shooting one final frustrated glare at Derek, followed him.
"Goodnight Derek," I whispered.
"Goodnight." his voice was soft and alluring in the darkness. I was suddenly painfully aware that we were alone in the dark together…
I rolled over to stifle these thoughts, afraid he would somehow know what direction they were headed in. I lay there willing my mind to blank and allow sleep to move in, but it was a long time before it did.
In my dream, I was back in the forest. I was running, sprinting with a panicked fury that I reserved only for fleeing for my life- something I'd sadly had too much practice with lately.
Behind me echoed the unmistakable crack of gunshots, getting closer and louder with every passing second. Branches whipped at my face, cutting into my hands and face as I tore through the undergrowth with frenzied desperation.
"Chloe!" Someone yelled. I instantly knew in my heart it was Derek. The sound was heavy with fear and I found myself veering towards it, knowing something terrible was about to happen to him and I had to stop it.
I lurched into a clearing, wincing as the new air stung my cuts. The clearing was wide and spacious, glowing blue-green in the moonlight. The far side was ringed with enlarged boulders, much too big to climb over. Derek was backed against the boulders, trapped, eyes wide with panic.
I ran towards him and he seemed to catch sight of me for the first time. His already huge eyes opened even wider. "Chloe, no-"
Whatever he was going to say was interrupted by a familiar throaty chuckle, the sound chilling my blood. I whirled, expecting to see Royce but what I saw was even worse.
Simon, about a foot taller and bulkier, was brandishing the gun, pointing it right at Derek. He grinned a toothy predator's smile that I hadn't known Simon's face was capable of forming and severely hoped it never would again. "Sorry son," his voice was the sleazy drawl I recognized as belonging to Royce. Then he raised the gun and pulled the trigger.
Save Derek save Derek save Derek save Derek, I found myself chanting in my head. I leaped in front of him and felt the world rip apart in a whirl of pain…
I woke up covered in blood. I screamed, knowing this wasn't possible, it had just been a dream. Yet there was no mistaking that sticky red fluid drenching my lower body as I looked down in horror.
The irrational screams came of their own accord now, ripping from my throat with a velocity I was powerless to change. The panic was mind-numbing, absurd. What was wrong with me?
"Chloe!" I was suddenly aware of another body pinning my flailing wrists down, yelling in my face. "Chloe it was a dream. A dream!"
I met his green eyes, full of terror for me, and wished full heartedly that I could stifle the panic long enough to explain that I too had thought it was just a dream but the evidence I now saw proved otherwise.
"What the hell is going on?" A furious female voice yelled, footsteps stomping.
"Chloe?" A more timid voice, taut with anxiety.
"Chloe, look at me." My head had spun away from the fear inspiring blood but Derek forced me to turn back to him. "It. Was. Just. A. Dream."
"No!" I managed to choke, barely able to talk around the lump in my throat. Was this what it felt like to have a panic attack? "The blood…"
"Chloe?" If he had looked scared before, now he looked downright horrified. "What blood?"
I gestured helplessly with my hand at the blood, not able to force myself to look again. "What blood?" he repeated. How could he miss it? "Chloe, there's no blood…"
It was like someone flipped the rational part of my mind back on. I was able to quell the screams and put the facts together.
1. The gory dream I had was just a dream
2. No one else sees the blood
3. This is the bed Austin Banks died in
That third fact settled it. I was simply seeing Austin's residual again. Except this time, it was right on top of me.
Though I now had no real reason for fear anymore, I couldn't help the childish whimper that escaped from my throat. This is where a boy younger than me died. Right in this spot.
"Chloe?" Derek was asking, still sounding on the verge of his own panic attack.
For the first time since waking up I was able to focus on all three of their faces leaning over me, mirrored with the same anxiety.
"Oh god, I'm so sorry-" I shivered, wanting nothing more than to leap from this bed and run far away. It was a struggle to stay still.
"What just happened?" Now that I was normal-ish again, the tight worry that had been dominating Derek's voice was replaced with anger.
"I-I…"
"Slow down." he snapped, making me wince. He knew that wasn't helping with my stutter.
"T-t-there w-was a g-g-"
"Ghost?" Simon guessed. I nodded.
"Where?" Derek spun to glare at the room.
"Here." I pointed at myself, then proceeded to explain about seeing his residual before and how now it was sort of overlapping me.
"And you didn't feel inclined to tell us there was a ghost in your bed?" Derek clenched his hands into fists.
"I didn't think it'd be that big of a problem-"
"Well, clearly it was. God, it's just like that homeless guy from before. When will you figure out your power is a problem?"
"I-"
"Derek. Leave. Now." Simon gave him a light shove out of the room. "Cool off first, then we'll discuss this."
For his part, Derek didn't argue. He gave me an almost apologetic look before stalking out of the room.
"Sorry about him," Simon grimaced. "In case you haven't noticed before, he has a teeny little temper problem."
I made an attempt at a smile for his sake but that was quickly wiped off as Tori whirled on me. "So there's been a ghost in my bed and you didn't feel inclined to tell me?" She shrieked.
Simon and I both winced. "Tori-" he started.
"I'm sorry. I didn't think you would care…"
"What, just because I can't see it? You of all people should know, Chloe, just because you can't see something doesn't mean it's there."
"I-"
My apology was interrupted by the reappearance of a sheepish Derek. "Come on," he told me. "I made one of the beds in another room for you. Hopefully this one will be ghost free."
It was a peace offering and I treated it as such. "Thanks Derek."
"No problem." he wouldn't meet my gaze. "Um…do you need help?"
"No, I-" I tried to stand up but staggered a little as pain sliced through my abdomen. "Yes."
"Here," he stooped over so I could drape one of my arms over his shoulders and let him help support me as I limped down the hall to another bedroom.
Five minutes later the crisis was over, Simon and Tori going back to their room and Derek resuming the guard position.
I was almost asleep when he whispered my name. "Chloe?"
"Yeah?" I rolled over to face him again, jumping as I realized he was standing right next to the bed.
"I…I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. It was…uncalled for. You were just trying to be helpful as usual-"
"No, you're right. I mean, I knew it could have been a potential problem, I should have told you." I sighed.
"Chloe?"
"Yeah?"
"Goodnight." he leaned forward and kissed the top of my forehead in a gesture so intimate and tender it made up for all the times we had been interrupted in the past few weeks. It was with a smile on my face that I slipped into a blissful sleep.
Finally! I just had to throw a kiss in there :) Yes, I am aware this isn't the greatest chapter ever. I knew what I wanted to happen…it was just a matter of actually writing it. Sorry that the beginning in particular is pretty dry and, well, fluffy. I wanted Tori and Chloe to have a bonding moment. And yes, I am aware that this whole chapter is completely OOC. I tried editing it but however I change it they just get more and more OOC. Overall, not my best chapter. Hopefully you'll still keep with the story- though. It get's better, I swear!