Chapter Eleven
Everyone except Jay was sitting around the fire pit in the back, overlooking the water, so they saw us approaching.
I could feel the tension as they watched us coming up the slight hill.
I avoided eye contact with Kevin for as long as I could, but he was too impatient to sit still.
Before we could reach everyone, he jumped out of his chair to close the distance between us.
“Not yet, Kevin.” I walked past him and went to Annie and the baby.
“I know this is odd, but I’ve missed you.” She hugged me with such intensity I thought she might break my ribs.
“Not so hard, Annie.”
“Sorry. Sorry. I’m so happy to have you back fully with us.”
“I’m not sure if I feel happy or embarrassed, but I am grateful for your loyalty. Thanks for always being there for me.”
Anali gave me a quick hug, and even Dr. Ryder shared his sentiment of happiness. Of course, in his case, he was mainly happy for not having to explain too much to me anymore. I did genuinely enjoy and understand a lot of his science-y explanations.
In a not-so-inconspicuous manner, they all hustled back in and left me alone with Kevin. He sat on a double swing they’d bought for Annie and the baby. I swallowed hard before sitting next to him, as my heart threatened to burst out of my chest.
“So.” He smiled.
“So.”
“You remember.”
I held his hand in mine and looked at him. “I do remember. I am so sorry, Kevin.”
“No, are you kidding?” He pulled both my hands into his and placed them on his chest. “I’m sorry. I was such an asshole to you.”
“You really were.” I laughed. Okay, he’s making this easy for me. Phew.
“In my defense, a lot of that was influenced by Gabby.”
“I know.”
“But it doesn’t matter why or how. We hurt each other, and that’s something I hope we can leave behind.”
“Can you forgive me?”
“There’s nothing to forgive,” he said.
“I took away your powers. I know how much they meant to you.”
“That’s nothing. I have it back. We’re fine. And look at you, Ry! Yours are insane now!”
“It’s so wild! I always thought I didn’t know how to control it enough.”
“Turns out you were overly in control. Let it out a bit. Give in to the chaos.”
I settled in, comfortably molding my side to his. I relaxed my head onto his shoulder. “I missed you.”
“I missed you, too. When I thought you died, I really thought I’d have followed you into whatever pit of hell you’d fallen into.”
“Hell? You thought I went to hell?”
“I mean, you did betray us all and took away my powers. Where else would you have gone?”
I laughed. “Yes, I guess that makes sense. I’m glad you stayed strong.”
“Strong? I didn’t want to, but Jenny needed me. Everyone needed me.”
“Jack needed you. In case . . . in case anything happened to Annie and Nick. I chose to remove your powers because I knew those two never miss a fight. Nor would you, but part of me wanted to protect you. The other part knew Jack would have needed you . . . either to save his parents or to give him a future.”
“You thought of everything, didn’t you?”
“Not really. It was a good story to tell myself. To help with the guilt. But there is truth to it. I just needed to believe you’d see it that way to help with your hatred.”
“I could never hate you. Even when I did . . . I didn’t. Not really.”
“Well, I did. I actually did hate you when you turned on us . . . on our friendship,” I said. “I hated that you’d make me feel that way.”
“Okay, but that wasn’t really me.”
“I know. I mean, now I know that. Back then it was so confusing.”
“It’s over.” He pulled me tighter and wrapped one arm around me. “But for what it’s worth, I’m so sorry, Ry.”
I adjusted my head on his shoulder and stared at the stars. “The sky is so clear here.”
“Mm-hmm. So . . . speaking of . . . When did you get that tattoo?”
I could feel the heat rush to my face. “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I showed it to you like that!”
“Yeah, okay, but when did you get it?”
“One of those times you ditched me to hang out with Gabby instead. I pulled Jay with me to a boxing match. We got a little drunk after, and I dragged him with me to the tattoo parlor.”
“Jay was there when they did that tattoo? Like that tattoo? In that area?”
“Yeah, he’s cool like that.” I pulled away to look him in the face. “And you have to be nice to him! He looks up to you.”
“Me? Why?”
“I’ve told him a lot about you.” I sighed. “I’m gonna regret saying this, but he knows that everything I’ve taught him, I learned from you. He couldn’t wait to meet you.”
Kevin frowned. “He’s still not getting a fist bump from me. No bro of mine should see you get that tat.”
“He was respectful. He faced me while the tattoo artist did her thing.”
“You did spend a lot of time with him, then. To trust him going with you, I mean.”
“For the most part, he kept me company while Gabby kept you warm at night.”
“Did he keep you warm at night? Like any night?”
“Nope. If it makes you feel better, he says I’m like his older sister.”
“You are looking kinda worn out, now that you mention it.”
“And you still think you’re funny. Note taken.” I raised my hand to stop him, as he opened his mouth to say something. “The point is, I wanted to spite you for not caring about me anymore, so I got the tat without you.”
“I like it,” he whispered, leaning in.
“Thanks.”
He continued to stare at me. “And I like you.”
I laughed, shifting away from him. “You better like me. We’re BFFs.”
He didn’t laugh. He didn’t move. He just looked into my eyes and said so much more than his mouth ever did.
The silence was so profound that I could hear condensation forming in the air.
I mean, I literally could. It was part of my powers.
Eventually, he sighed. “You know at some point we’ll have to talk about us, right? ”
I clasped my hands together over my legs, desperately seeking comfort in the grip. “I’m not ready.”
“That’s okay. I’m here.” He pulled me back close to him and wrapped his arm around me again.
I wanted to run away, but the flutters in my belly kept me sitting still. “I’m not sure what’s scarier: everyone coming after me with my memories or without them. At least before, I could say I didn’t know and truly mean it. But now it’s petrifying.”
“Cha-a-a-nging the subject completely. Got it.” I felt his shoulder slump.
“Sorry. I can’t now.”
“Mmm. Well, you’re better off knowing everything. You were in more danger before.”
“Speaking of danger. God help you. Where’s Milo?”
“Don’t worry, your cat has a new safe and loving home.”
“You gave him away?”
He sighed. “I had to, Ry. Our lives are too complicated. I couldn’t keep him.”
“He was the best cat!” I said, pouting. “But thank you for finding him a nice home.”
“Of course.”
“Do you think the twins’ powers will really work the way Jay said?”
“Dr. Ryder said he spent the past couple of days studying the possibilities and thinks the way their blood reacted to his manipulation, yes. There’s some fusion that seems promising. They need to get a hold of their powers, though, and we’ll know more then.”
“Especially if we can get them to combine it.”
“Especially then, yes. Dr. Ryder is only concerned about there being so many of us.”
“It’s a crazy thing . . . But if we can get Annie and me to really magnify and boost it up, it should work.”
“But what if it doesn’t? I don’t want Nick, Annie, and the baby to come with us. A lot can go wrong.”
“They’re in danger either way. And you know they won’t let you go alone.”
“They might, for Jack,” he said.
“You should talk to them. Maybe they’ll listen to reason.”
“Maybe.”
With the necessary amount of caffeine coursing through my veins, I set out on a mission to find Jay, who was showing Anali some moves. Watching her attempt to be even remotely violent was like watching a kitten fight a wolf. It was adorable.
“I hate to interrupt whatever fun this is, but the baby summons you, Anali.”
She leaned forward, resting her hands on her knees. “Oh, thank God.”
“There she is.” Jay opened his arms in a welcoming pose. I hugged him as I watched Ana leave, still panting.
With a slight movement, I pulled away from him, just enough to get a better view of his face. “What are you doing to that poor girl?”
“Exactly what you did to me when you trained me,” he said with a smirk. “Sorry I missed the big return yesterday. I was so tired I fell asleep after dinner.”
I shook a finger at him. “Just because you were on watch the night before doesn’t mean you get to slack off, mister.”
He grinned back at me. “So how does it feel to remember everything?”
“Strange. But I’m glad you’re here with us. With this group! What?”
“Yeah.” He looked around. “It’s been interesting.”
“Thanks, by the way. For saving my butt when I met you the first time . . . for the second time.” I laughed.
“That’s what friends are for when they, you know, re-meet.”
“I see you and Kevin are getting along better than when you first met.”
“Yeah, he wants to kill me less now. Which surprises me, honestly.”
“That’s because we all see how you look at Anali.”
“Oh no . . . That’s just—she’s our ticket out of this. Plus, she’s a good babysitter. You have to like anyone who’s that good with kids.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Trust me, Ry! I’m not here to pursue the babysitter.”
“Good point. WHY are you here? You’re in no danger at all.”
“You want to know what’s in it for me?” he asked, wiping sweat off his face.
“That’s literally what I’m asking.”
He shrugged. “You tell me what else I should be doing. There’s a war. At this moment in time, I have no official family or friends, except you. I have information and theories that might help. Why wouldn’t I? And most importantly, it’s the right thing to do.”
“It is. And I’m not questioning you if that’s what you think. I’m offering you an out. When we do the jump, you don’t have to come. We don’t know how things will turn out. There’s no need to put yourself in that danger.”
“And miss out on this amazing achievement?” He shook his head. “Nah, I’m coming.”
“Well, then. Let’s get to it.”
“Yep. Let’s train them twins to use those powers.”