Waters of Lethe, Book 2

15. Up The River

The party had progressed a little more into what I'd originally expected.

Most everyone had cups of alcohol in their hands, chattering away like earlier. I heard more laughter than I'd heard before, and the atmosphere was more easygoing.

"Yo, El," Deebo said from behind me as I spotted Enzo. Deebo was carrying two drinks in his hand. One for me. "No, thank you," I politely told him. He went on to another group of people and passed the alcohol to someone else.

Enzo was with Natali and Ming and a few others I hadn't met. He was drinking, along with the others.

I leaned against the kitchen counter and pursed my lips. I felt so out of place and wanted more than anything to leave. I wasn't one to party, and I certainly didn't think I was one to get piss drunk with people I didn't know.

I looked around a bit more. No one paid any attention to me, making me feel more out of place, as if they didn't realize I was there. When it came down to it, though, I'd rather be nobody than someone people never stopped looking at. After thinking about it like that, I found it soothing that I was in the background.

I let my eyes fall on everyone in the room, taking them in: what each one looked like, what each one sounded like, how they were built. One by one, I looked them up and down. And then my eyes landed on Piper.

She sat in the corner, staring with her icy eyes at a group of people as they talked. I knew what she was doing. She was listening in as they went about their conversation, taking interest in what they had to say but knowing they couldn't say the same about what came out of her mouth. Probably because she was only a seven year old.

So why was she holding a cup of alcohol, gingerly sipping on it as she listened?

I took one step in her direction then felt a large hand on my arm, pulling me towards the elevators.

"No," Alex told me.

"Excuse me—"

"Walk."

Maybe it was the authoritative tone he used, maybe it was because I didn't want to make a scene, but I obeyed. His voice tugged at a memory, at someone else with both harsh and relaxed tones. Alex felt familiar.

Alex pressed the down button by the elevator and the doors immediately opened. A few people turned around to see what the noise was and raised their eyebrows when they saw us. A few people looked back and forth between themselves and giggled, which made Alex punch a random button blindly while staring them down. The people giggling shut up in a heartbeat.

I didn't say anything, but he'd hit the button that would take us to the seventh floor.

A few seconds went by after the doors shut and I felt the elevator descend. Alex said nothing, causing me to begin.

"Explanation?"

"You first."

"Pardon?"

A short, small laugh sounded in his throat, and I realized how the word pardon sounded paired with my accent.

It would be a miracle, a Heaven sent miracle, if I didn't end up killing this guy in my time here.

"You aren't her mother. You aren't anyone's mother here."

"She's a fucking seven year old," I retorted.

Alex side-eyed me, making me realized I'd cursed.

"I'm sorry. For cursing. Not for caring about her well being. Don't you guys care about people around here? I mean, what is this place here for? They obviously care about our well being," I said, referring to the weird mutated young adults that were here, including myself.