“I’ll come with you!” I said again, shouting my offer this time. But, Cassie’s steps didn’t falter. Before I’d even had time to collect my belongings to follow, she had already gone. It was obvious she couldn’t wait to get away.
What just happened?
My internal voice sounded just as confused as my conscious mind. And it raised a good question. I had no idea what had happened to make Cassie behave the way she had, just now. As I muddled over the last few minutes of our conversation, I began to gather up my things from the ledge and my training spot. I bent up and down slowly, exaggerating the process of picking up a few items and stuffing them into a bag: more focused on what was replaying in my head, than what I was doing.
Cassie had just told me everything: about her problems hearing voices inside her head, the disturbing dreams, what had happened between us… And she had seemed fine – better than fine, even – she had seemed relieved, to be able to talk to someone about what was happening to her…
What had she said just before she freaked out?
We had been talking about her talent getting stronger, hadn’t we…maybe that had scared her?
I shook my head, dismissing the idea. It didn’t feel like the right answer. She seemed scared because of something else, some connection she made after we’d talked about that.
What was the last thing she asked me?
Something about her dreams being real, other people’s thoughts drifting into her head, when her conscious mind wasn’t in control. Then she’d said something about it “being Ami, not me,” and had run off.
Having picked up everything I could see from the ground, I patted my pocket out of habit, to check that the wristband was there. It wasn’t. I realised that Cassie must still be wearing it, from when I put it on her. I only hoped that she had remembered to take it off before leaving the park, otherwise I’d be claiming a system malfunction much sooner than I’d been anticipating.
Looping the strap of the bag across my shoulder, I set off at a brisk jog, hoping I might catch up with Cassie. From what she’d said, I guessed she would be heading home or to Ami’s – maybe she’d forgotten they were meeting up – and so I headed in the direction of the Green Zone.
In frustration, I slammed my palm onto the panel at the entrance to our apartment. It took a moment or two, longer than usual, to register my mark and open the door. Once it was halfway open, I shoved my way inside, scraping my arm as I went.
“Hello?” I called out.
As I expected, silence was the only answer I received. Mother and Father must still be at work. Slipping into my bedroom, I pulled the bag from my shoulders and began peeling off my sticky day-suit. I’d ended up running all the way home from Park 42, not seeing any sign of Cassie. I could only assume she’d taken a different route back…either that, or she’d sprinted all the way!
Letting my suit fall into a heap on the floor, I walked across the hallway to the bathroom, not bothering to cover my body as I would normally when my parents were home. They were not big on nudity.
The water in the shower was warm as I got in. I turned it down as low as it would go, and within a few seconds it had cooled. Sticking my head into the spray, it washed away my sweat and irritation. As I relaxed, I let my thoughts drift back to Cassie, and the secrets she had told me that afternoon…