The Catalyst (GirlXGirl)

Chp. 45 "The Lab"

Then it was finished, and the doctor spoke, “Ok, we’re going to run it through tonight and let you know if you’re infected first thing tomorrow.” I heard sympathy in her voice, as if she already knew the answer but didn’t want to scare Avery even more. She continued, “You two should get some rest, meanwhile don’t come into contact with anyone.”

Avery and I stood, following Roger out and to the elevator, and he punched the Living Quarters and then floor 5, which was labeled Office Sector. I looked at him, “What’s Office Sector?”

He shrugged, “That’s where I work, it’s where all of the Agents work, superhuman and human. I have a lot of paperwork to get done before tomorrow morning.”

The elevator shifted upwards first, opening on an office setting where Agent Boyd exited and looked back at us. “Tell Max and Gage they have a day off tomorrow. You two need to meet me in the Lab at 8:00 AM. We have a lot to get done.”

Then the doors closed, allowing Roger to disappear from our view, leaving Avery and I alone. She was still holding my hand, and she was squeezing it a little tighter than usual. I looked at her, feeling the shift of the elevator bring us back down to our floor. We walked out and banged on Gage and Max’s doors, and soon they were both out in the hall with us.

“What?” Max’s deep voice held concern, but looking into his eyes I saw genuine concern for Avery.

“Roger told me to let you two know you have the day off tomorrow, but Avery and I have to be in the Lab by eight.”

Max and Gage nodded, and I could tell that being around Avery was making them uncomfortable. In all honesty, I couldn’t blame them. We all knew somewhere deep down that Avery wasn’t looking good, but our hearts couldn’t fully accept it.

My heart couldn’t full accept it.

“See you two tomorrow.”

They seemed to linger a bit, and this made me sadder than I already was. “Night girls,” Max spoke before disappearing into his room again, along with Gage, leaving Avery and I alone.

I looked at her, “I want to sleep with you tonight.”

She smiled, but I saw pain in it. I could genuinely do nothing until tomorrow, but I just wanted to make her feel better. I didn’t know how, but I knew I wanted to, I just wanted her to be the carefree, happy Avery she really was.

My hand slipped into hers and she responded, “I want that too. I need that…”

She led me into her room and I questioned, “How do you exactly feel?”

She shrugged, picking out clothes for her shower while looking for an answer. “Right now, perfectly normal, except for the ache in my arm, but the nausea went away several minutes ago. I’m sure it’ll get worse-”

“Stop, don’t…” I cut her sentence off short, not wanting to hear her get negative about this situation. I was trying to stay positive, trying not to frighten her more than she already was, but her getting negative was too much.