The Ultimate

Within the Pages

Ok... Shift. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to force my body into a different form. I opened my eyes and looked in the mirror... the only thing different was a set of purple eyes, a speck of red just beginning to appear.

I sighed and flopped backwards onto the floor.

My hearing zoomed in on a conversation upstairs.

"But baby, if you loved me..."

"I'm not taking the chance, ok!"

Man, I hate this. It just turns on and I don't know how to turn it off. And it tunes into the worst conversations too! I grumbled, hitting my palm against my ears trying to get it to shut off.

"But baby...please"

"Roger, no."

"But I just want to see...."

No no no no. I don't want to hear this conversation.... I panicked trying to fiddle around inside my head to get my supersonic hearing to shut off.

"Roger, I'm not letting you run the blender without the lid on! And that's final!"

I stopped, and then started laughing, rolling on the floor, tears streaming down my face. Oh my gosh. I listened for more but it was silent. I shook my head in both amusement and disappointment. My super hearing would decide to shut off once I actually wanted to listen in. But gosh, I needed a laugh like that. I hadn't laughed since I was still with mom and dad... on good terms... when I didn't remember Neko. That's been almost a whole month now. It doesn't seem like that long ago, and yet it feels like it's been so much longer.

Part of me missed my parents and the fun that we had, but learning that you were literally an experiment, kind of puts a kink in the whole loving family thing.

I picked myself up off the floor and flopped onto the couch. That was enough training for today. Time to lose myself in a good book.

I picked up the first book that was in my bag and opened it to the beginning, staring down at the title page. My heart dropped, a tear sliding down my cheek. My hand caressed the page, fingers running over the words "Beauty and the Beast."

I closed the book and hugged it to my chest. Neko touched this. Neko read this. Neko... Neko...

If only I had just saved him right away. My chance was literally right there. I kissed him... and then I walked away. Why did I walk away? What the hell is wrong with me? No, I didn't remember him. I mean, I was shocked and confused, but he was obviously being held hostage. I should have just- I should have- tears started to stream down my face. I should have saved him, right then and there.

I fell asleep on the couch, face drenched with tears, clutching onto that book, the book that Neko had touched as well. Maybe I was trying to hold onto that part of him that still resided in between the pages. Within the story of a courageous girl and a cowardly beast.