A small crowd had gathered in the hallway by that time, drawn by the violent clamor and shouting they had heard coming from inside Zach's bedroom. They all looked pensive, concerned enough to think about finding out what was going on yet too worried or self-conscious to do so. They listened as the shouting and breaking from inside suddenly ceased. One girl, Colleen, a nursing student in her early twenties who had heard about the party from a friend of Steve's, had been in the bedroom next door, in the middle of her own romantic tryst when she heard the first noises through the wall. She listened to the scuffling thumps and shouts, half-ignoring her one-night-boyfriend's fondling, torn as to what to do before finally throwing on a shirt and stepping outside, to where she now stood closest of those assembled to the door. Several moments passed in relative quiet where all she could hear was a shuffling movement from inside. She had just about made up her mind to knock on the door to see what was happening when the door burst open, ejecting a pair of terrified teenage girls, clutching each other as if for dear life. They looked up at her for a moment before the blond one urged the younger-looking Asian girl forward. Colleen, too surprised to say anything, leaned against the wall to make way and watched them pass, nudging their way through the crowd and down the stairs, before turning toward the still-open door.

She peeked her head cautiously around the jam, as if expecting a guillotine, before leaning the rest of the way in. The room was a mess. Splattered drips of blood marred the carpet along with the bedspread, which was itself tossed and disheveled. Scattered pieces of a large football trophy were strewn about the floor, and she could see a large crater, spider-webbed with cracks and breaks, in the drywall near where she was standing. Colleen heard a groan next to the bed and saw Zach, Steve's younger brother, push himself up from the ground, naked and clutching a bleeding gash on his forehead.

"Oh, god!" Colleen exclaimed. She rushed forward and put her hands under Zach's shoulder and chest, helping him to his feet. "Are you okay? What happened?"

Hand still stemming the bleeding on his forehead, Zach turned to look at her. Despite the blood marring his face, his piercing eyes were still held hers without wavering.

"Yeah. Yeah, it's fine," Zach finally replied. "It's just..."

"Is everything okay in there?" a male voice called from the hallway. Zach nodded slightly, wincing from the motion.

"Um, yeah. Yeah, every thing's okay," Colleen called back. "Just give us a little bit, okay?"

"Okay," the voice came back hesitantly. "Just say something if you need anything, all right?"

"All right," Colleen answered, sitting Zach down on the bed. "Are you sure you're okay?" she asked Zach softly. "Is there anything you want to talk about?"

Zach looked at her again with those piercing eyes. "Yeah. Could you...?" his voice trailed off, his head turning slightly toward the open door.

"Oh! Yeah, sure," Colleen jumped up and eased the door closed. She picked up a handful of tissues from a box on the desk, moving to wipe some of the blood from Zach's face when he stopped her. He took the tissues from her hand and dabbed gently at his forehead. Colleen could already see the bump that was forming there. It must have been some hit.

"So what happened?" she asked, sitting down on the bed next to him.

"Oh, it was...it was just a stupid mistake," Zach admitted. "I didn't mean for it to happen like that, I...I just got carried away, that's all. It's all my fault."

"What do you mean?" Colleen wiped a hand across her face, feeling very warm. She wondered about Zach. Sitting so close to him, she could feel the warmth radiating from his body.

"It's just..." Zach whispered. Colleen leaned in close to hear him.

"It's just..." he continued. "I've never really...done it before. And I got a little too excited, I guess. And she got scared."

Colleen smiled a little at that. "That doesn't sound so bad. Just a...a miscommunication, that's all. Why were there two of them, though?" she asked, wondering where that question had come from even as it passed her lips.

Zach's cheek seemed to twitch at the question.

"I guess they didn't want to be separated," he finally replied, giving her a shy smile with those piercing eyes. "Maybe she just wanted to watch."

Colleen giggled at that, her stomach seeming to turn in knots at this little detail. She'd been in college a few years; those kinds of exploits weren't that unusual to hear about, but hearing it from him seemed different, somehow. She ran a hand across her neck and tugged at the collar of her shirt. She felt his hand on her thigh, and she was suddenly aware that he still had no clothes on. She thought about asking him to put on a towel or something, but somehow it didn't seem all that important. She'd seen her fair share of naked men, before, and none were as impressively endowed as he. It seemed rude to ignore it like that. There was something a bit odd about it, though. Something she'd never seen before, but she couldn't quite think of what. Something she read in a textbook, maybe?

"Warm, isn't it?" he asked.

"Yeah, a bit," Colleen admitted.

"Here." Zach set aside the wad of tissue and, before Colleen could think to react, took hold of her shirt in both hands and pulled it over her head in one swift motion. "Better?"

Colleen had begun to protest, but had to admit that the air on her bare skin was much more relaxing. "Yeah," she told him in a small voice. The hand on her thigh crept higher, fingers sliding between her legs before resting at the clasp of her belt.

"This will help even more," he whispered against her neck, sending shivers across her body despite the heat. He eased her back onto the bed. She stared at the ceiling, only vaguely listening to the jingle of her belt coming loose. Moments later, she closed her eyes and decided that yes, it did feel much better. It was her last coherent thought.

* * *

Kendra took the lead. With one arm wrapped around Cassie's shoulders, she guided her forward, shouldering her way past the small crowd gathered in the hallway. She heard at least one person ask what the hell was going on, but didn't answer. The most important thing right now was getting the hell out. Even if she did have the time to spend, who would believe the answer? That she had sat in a chair with a dreamy-eyed stare while her best friend was almost raped not five feet away? That the guy who did it was twice as strong as he should have been and had something on his head that didn't look human? Not many, that's for sure.

They moved quickly down the stairs and headed for the door. The blaring music from the stereo had been turned off and there were only a few couples left on the couches in the living room, too caught up in their own activities to pay them any mind. Cassie had the presence of mind to reach out and grab their jackets from the closet by the door, handing Kendra hers and shoving her arms through the sleeves of her own. Cassie looked at the handful of extra clothes in her hand, briefly wondering what to do with them before finally balling them up and shoving them in her jacket pocket. Kendra got the door and they exited, Kendra slamming the door closed behind them, and ran to the sidewalk. They were halfway down the block before Cassie turned back. No one seemed to be following them. There weren't any sounds or commotion coming from the house that she could hear. Once they rounded the corner and were out of sight, they slowed down to catch their breath.

"What...?" Kendra started to ask before cutting herself off. She shook her head and tried again. "What...what was that?" she said finally, still breathing heavily.

Cassie shook her head. She was still doubled over, hands on her knees, trying to slow down her breathing enough to reply. Her heart was pounding, and the cold breeze felt like ice against the sweat on her face and chest. She knew that not all of it was because of the sudden sprint.

"I don't know," she finally gasped out. "It was like...like I couldn't control myself. I mean, I couldn't even think."

"Me, either," Kendra told her. "He just said to sit down and it seemed like such a good idea. And I just sat there and watched while...and I couldn't move. I mean, I didn't want to."

"You mean, like mind control or something?" Cassie asked. Maybe if they could find some kind of explanation, then she would stop feeling so confused.

"I dunno. Everything seemed fine. I was just sitting there like it was the most normal thing in the world."

"Me, too," Cassie nodded. She thought back, shoving the fear and panic out of her mind and tried to concentrate on what she was feeling at the time. It had felt like her brain was swaddled in bandages. Trying to spark a single thought was a massive effort that her body had rebelled against taking, like trying to lift a heavy weight while sinking in quicksand. She knew herself, the way she thought things through, and she knew that the way she let Zach go so far with her after knowing him for just a few hours was completely out of character for her. And yet, her body nearly trembled at the thought of it. Some dim part of her still longed to go back and let him finish what he started, but her rational self took that thought and choked it down with revulsion.

Mostly recovered by then, they began walking down the sidewalk. It was only a few blocks to Kendra's house, but still, every few seconds one of them looked back to make sure they weren't being followed.

"Should we call the police?" Kendra asked, turning toward Cassie as they walked.

"The police? What for?"

"I mean, Zach did try to...you know," Kendra gestured in the air, clearly not wanting to go into detail. "We weren't exactly in a right state of mind. Isn't that the kind of thing they're supposed to deal with?"

Cassie thought about this for a moment. "What would we tell them, though? That we went to a party, didn't have anything to drink, and then went up to a boy's bedroom and started making out with him and didn't say a word against it? And then broke a trophy over his head?"

"What about your face?" Kendra asked, pointing to the red mark Cassie's cheek where Zach had struck her, which had already started to swell. "That didn't get there by accident, you know."

"Yeah, I know, it's just..." Cassie trailed off, frustrated. "I mean, did you see that thing on his head? He told me he had a bruise from football practice. And the things he was saying? It's like he wasn't even human or something."

Kendra opened her mouth say something, then shut it again, conceding the point. They continued on for another half block before she spoke again.

"So how did you get out of it, anyway?" Kendra asked.

Cassie turned to face her. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know about you, but when I was in there, I couldn't even think straight and I was just sitting in a chair. Zach was spending most of the time with you, so it was probably even harder on you. So how did you get out of it?"

Cassie thought back again, trying to remember. She remembered laying on the bed. Her eyes were closed, but she could feel the unnatural warmth of Zach's body above hers. She could feel him moving against her and remembered feeling right then that the world was perfect. That all she had to do was relax and bask in the ecstasy of it. She had wanted to, but then...

"I heard a voice," Cassie answered quietly.

"A voice? What kind of voice?" Kendra asked dubiously.

Cassie spoke faster as the memory came back to her. "It was Dr. Bowman. Remember? When we left school, he said to use my head and keep my eyes open. When I was in there, I heard him talking to me again, telling me that exact same thing. Then I opened my eyes and started looking around and that's what broke me out!" she finished excitedly.

"So you remembered Dr. Bowman talking to you and that's what snapped you out of it?"

"I think so. I mean, the way he was talking to us when we were leaving, it's like he knew something bad was going to happen."

"But he's a science teacher," Kendra protested. "How could he have known?"

"I don't know!" Cassie shot back, somewhat louder than she meant. "All I know is that when I was up there, I heard his voice talking to me, saying the same thing he said earlier today. That makes me think he knows something about this."

Kendra thought about this for a moment before nodding. "Makes sense, I guess. It's just...I don't get it. Why would a substitute teacher be warning us about some bizarre hypno-rape?"

"Maybe we should try and find him?" Cassie wondered aloud.

"Maybe," Kendra conceded. By then, Kendra's house had come into view. Cassie couldn't see any lights in the windows, but nonetheless it was the most welcome sight she'd seen all day. Beside her, Kendra sighed with obvious relief. "Let's talk about it tomorrow, though. I'm ready to get inside and go to bed."

Sleep definitely sounded tempting, but Cassie was hesitant. She looked up and down the street again, but they were still the only people walking around this time of night. They weren't being followed, as far as she could tell, but still...

"Does Zach know where you live?" Cassie asked.

"No chance. My mom doesn't let me have any boys over, you know that. Relax. Everything'll be fine. Tomorrow we'll go to school and see if we can find Dr. Bowman's phone number or something, okay?"

"All right." Cassie gave in, and the two of them headed up the front walkway to the door. Kendra unlocked the door, quietly opening it to avoid waking up anyone inside. It was well past midnight by now. If Cassie were staying at home tonight, there would have been hell to pay with her dad by now. Kendra's parents, with decently successful jobs and a house in a clean, safe neighborhood, allowed their daughter a great deal of freedom, though they'd probably grilled her on her plans before she even left the house that morning. Cassie's dad never paid much interest to what his kids did after school as long as they were home on time, and even that wasn't always a sure thing when he started drinking and lost track of time.

Leaving their shoes by the door, they padded up the stairs to Kendra's room. It was much larger than Cassie's was, and much more "girly". Along with a large bed and oversized comforter, a dresser and desk were set against opposite walls, each one covered with a collection of stuffed animals and figurines. Posters of various bands and movie stars lined the walls, and several rows of bookshelves, filled with a mishmash of fantasy and romance novels, were mounted to the wall next to the bed.

A small green night light was plugged in by the door, but Kendra flipped on the lights after she and Cassie had gotten inside and closed the door. Both squinted at the sudden brightness. Cassie eased out of her jacket while Kendra headed for the dresser. Part of the zipper brushed against Cassie's cheek as she tugged out of her sleeves, making her wince.

"Here you go," Kendra said. She held out a pair of shorts and a sleeveless over shirt to Cassie. "You can wear these for tonight." She started, seeing Cassie's cheek clearly for the first time. "Geez, are you okay?" she asked, reaching out with one hand, making sure not to touch the mark, but brushing a speck of blood from Cassie's lips.

"Yeah, it's fine," Cassie replied, reaching a hand up to caress the imprint. She dropped her jaw and slowly worked it side to side. "Just hurts a bit. Doesn't feel like it's broken or anything, though."

"That's good," Kendra replied, relaxing a bit. She gestured toward a bathrobe folded at the end of her bed. "Go ahead and take a shower and I'll run downstairs and grab you an icepack."

"Won't that wake your parents up?"

"Don't worry about that. We're just trying to get you better, okay?"

She looked so concerned and maternal trying to ease every ache and pain that Cassie couldn't help but smile just a bit. "Yes, mother," she said with mock sullenness.

Kendra smiled at that, drawing herself up. "Darn right," she said haughtily. "If you're good, you might get a cookie and a bedtime story. Now march, missy!" She slapped Cassie lightly on the behind on her way out the door for good measure.

Cassie laughed a little, careful not to smile too widely with her tender face. She could still almost feel the hands roaming across her body and she mentally cringed at the sensation. She quickly stripped out of her clothes and shrugged into the borrowed bathrobe, slipping across the hallway into the bathroom and turning on the shower nozzle.

The water seemed to work a miracle against her. In her imagination, she could see the dozens of hand prints sliding into the drain with the soapsuds like dirt. Part of her wanted to stay in there and bask in the crisp warmth forever, but was still a guest at her friend's house. Her dad had a strict five minute rule when it came to shower times, in order to keep the heating bill down, which was just enough time to wash, shampoo, and rinse with a few seconds to spare. She compromised between want and need and counted off a full thirty seconds beyond her usual time, each second to her seeming to be a decadent luxury.

She quickly toweled herself dry and slipped the bathrobe back on. By the time she got back into the bedroom, Kendra had already returned with a plastic bag of ice cubes. Not only that, but as promised, on the bed was a small tray with a plate full of chocolate chip cookies and two small glasses of milk. Knowing Kendra's mom and her food habits, finding those cookies must have been a small adventure in itself. Or maybe she had a supply hidden in her dresser, somewhere.

Kendra handed Cassie the icepack and, gesturing for her to help herself to the cookies, picked up her own night clothes and padded across the hall to take her own shower. Cassie knew from past experience that Kendra would normally have tried to wheedle her out of the bathrobe before she could get dressed properly so she could use it herself, but Kendra was considerate enough to know that tonight wasn't a good time for that kind of thing. Feeling better than she had all night, Cassie pulled on her borrowed pajamas and flopped down on the bed to enjoy her late-night snack.

She had just finished her second cookie when Kendra came back inside, still toweling off her hair to an acceptable dampness.

"Feeling better?" Kendra asked, finally tossing the towel aside.

"Mmmh," Cassie nodded, mumbling through a mouthful of cookie.

"Good." Kendra stretched out across the bed, taking a cookie and dunking it into her glass. "How's your face?"

"A bit better," Cassie replied, swallowing. She shifted the icepack in her hand. "Doesn't hurt as bad, anymore."

"That's good." Kendra looked around, then leaned in toward Cassie, lowering her voice as if afraid of being eavesdropped. "So you really want to find Dr. Bowman?"

Cassie nodded, taking another small bite of her cookie. "It seems like a good idea. I mean, he helped me back there. He's got to know something about what happened to Zach to make him like that."

"Yeah, I guess. It just seems weird thinking that someone can see the future like that."

"No weirder than anything else that's happened today," Cassie insisted. "And if I had to choose, I'd rather have helpful-weird than bad-weird."

"Okay. So you want to go to the school tomorrow, right?"

"It's a good place to start. There's always some secretary or someone working in the office on weekends. We'll just ask and see if there's a good phone number or something listed for him. He's a teacher, they've got to have something like that on file, right?"

"Makes sense," Kendra agreed, finishing the last of the cookies and downing half her milk in one swallow. Cassie sipped at her glass and glanced at the clock on the bedside table. Just after one on the morning. She groaned, suddenly feeling the weight across her eyelids. "I'm ready for bed, how about you?"

The mere mention of bed seemed to trigger a yawn in Kendra. "Yeah." She picked up the tray from the bed and moved it to the desk before flipping off the light switch. Cassie pulled down the covers while Kendra moved an extra pillow to the other side of the bed. The mattress was big enough to give them both enough space without crowding, but they huddled together anyway, holding each other close.

"Listen," Kendra whispered, their faces so close together that their noses touched. "We'll figure this out. We'll get through this, I promise. I love you."

"I love you, too," Cassie whispered back. She paused. "But if you don't get your hand off my leg, you're not leaving this room alive."

"Oh," Kendra replied sheepishly. "Sorry. I thought that was my leg."

"Sure you did, perv," Cassie said. "Good night."

"'Night, Cass."

They burrowed into the mattress for a few moments, each trying to find the perfect spot before settling in. All the hours of the day seemed to hit Cassie's head like a hammer and her eyes eased shut. She breathed in deep and let out a long sigh that seemed to carry all of her stress and fear with it.

It was then, in that instant of perfect quiet, that she heard someone opening the front door.