✅1️⃣ | Hypnosis Doesn't Work Like That!

24: There's Nothing to be Scared Of

Adi and Toni arrived a little early for school. Congestion on the main streets was still a nightmare, but this little bike didn't have any problem turning up back alleys or cutting across the pavement when nothing else was moving. Adi would have been too nervous to take any of those turns, sure that there was some rule against it. But she didn't know if Toni could even hear anything she said with the engine roaring so loud, and Toni moved so confidently that sahe must have done this unorthodox school run before.

By the time they finally stopped, Adi's knuckles were white as she locked her arms around her friend's chest, and her eyes were screwed closed behind the visor of a borrowed helmet. It took her more than a couple of seconds before she realised they'd actually come to a halt, and a little longer before she could prise her fingers loose to let Toni dismount.

This wasn't the first time she'd ridden on the back of her friend's bike, but it wasn't something she'd done regularly, and their previous jaunts had been riding through the open country, where open fields flew past on every side, and the hedgerows were nothing but a blur. It was quite different speeding through gaps in the traffic where she might have sworn the Triumph wouldn't fit, or banking sharply to take a corner that she knew all too well. She was always scared she was going to lean the wrong way, and she was sure that she recognised a few faces among the pedestrians as they whipped away into the distance behind them.

"Guess I didn't need to push it so hard," Toni shrugged, "Are you okay?"

"Y... yeah. Do you always drive like that in town?"

"I'm late often enough. Didn't want to make you late, though. Your future's resting on these exams, right?"

"Yeah. But I'm smart enough to... Wait, what about your future? You say that like–"

"Hey, sidekick! Adi!" britney came jogging over, waving as if they couldn't see her. "Didn't expect to see you two together. Did you..."

"I had an attack in Leatherface's class yesterday. She was watching me on the bus home, because I couldn't take the bike." She gestured towards the Kawasaki, still resting in its parking space next to them. They were on the student parking area, around the back of the school, but Adi hadn't heard Toni negotiating with the notoriously mean-spirited janitor who was stationed on Grimer Street to prevent unauthorised entry. Presumably Toni knew a way in that didn't involve going through gates, maybe squeezing the bike through a supposedly-inaccessible gap between buildings. It wouldn't have been such a surprise.

"That was kind of you. Good going. A real attack?"

"Kind of. Real enough, anyway. I think she was having some trouble too, so it was good for both of us to head to the nurse's office. Right, Babe?"

"You can call her Adi, you know?" Brit pointed out with a smile. "Or is the pet name a sign of a new bond between you?"

"Hey, she's called me Babe before."

"And you didn't tell me that yesterday, just the cryptic message about watching out for anyone saying her name. I know now I can say 'Adi', but I'd already got myself psyched up for not saying her name. And I kinda like 'Babe'."

"Don't know if I do," Adi answered, "It's sweet, and I know it's like you don't mean anything by it. But in the circumstances, it might be a bit too close to 'Baby', and I..."

"You don't like 'Baby'? Oh, because..."

I think I need to tell you, anyway. The full story, now you both helped me so much. I don't think I'll be able to keep it secret much longer."

Before long, the three girls were sitting on the edge of the nature garden, where kids other than those responsible for maintaining it rarely ventured.

These three had found the stone benches there a good place to get away from the noise of all their peers, whether they wanted to listen to some music more refined than cheesy pop, or to talk about something that might be a secret. Adi decided that in the circumstances, this was probably very much the latter case.