ARCANE

025

Eden shrugs. Lee didn't exactly go into details, but it was enough to freak out the police. Besides, Wesley might have died. Nobody has quite come to a consensus on that yet, and Eden hasn't been able to do anything but sleep since then.

"Why would you tell Jamie that and not me?" Wesley asks. He would stand up if he weren't still tired. Besides, he hopes he doesn't have to fight Eden. "Is it because I'm gay?"

Eden's eyes go wide. He drops his arms off the back of the couch into his lap. He begins to wring his hands over and over again. The skin on his fingers has gone dry from the habit he has picked up from Cara, but Eden doesn't give a damn. "Are you kidding? No. I was just talking to Jamie about other stuff, and it came up."

It takes a second for Wesley to exhale. Eden finds himself breathing in rhythm with the other boy.

Then, their stomachs seize. It's almost like they've been thrown upside down. Neither of them says anything since they've both seen the text, but the feeling persists.

"Do you mind if I chill here until Jamie gets back from the hospital then?" Wesley asks. "Unless you were planning on visiting Cara. That's what you were texting him about, right?"

Eden cheeks tinge pink. "It's fine."

~~~

"You are not playing at any more bars," her mother stammers, trying to grow herself to Lee's size. Lee watches the frail woman's fists shake. Her mother has always been thin, but she seems to grow gaunt each passing day since Cassian disappeared.

Not disappeared. Left.

"Okay," Lee rolls her eyes.

Her mother shakes her head. "No, you are going to listen to me. There aren't going to be any more bars, and you are going to get together a college application together. Once the FBI no longer... we are going to be moving to Penobscot. Hamilton has nothing left for us, especially not those damn bars!"

There is a knock at the door. Lee brushes off her mother, but she can feel her lips forming the crook of a smile. Maybe Lee isn't going to apply to college, but she is happy her mother is finally going to get them out of Penobscot. Even if Cassian ruined her life by leaving, Lee is going to try to put the pieces together.

Lee gets to the door and opens it. She leans in the doorframe to protect her mother, who she can already hear scurrying out of the room.

"Lee Hayde?" There is a woman in the doorway. Her dark eyes are hidden by a pair of exorbitant black frames. The woman runs a hand through her silky black hair. The woman seems to only exist in shades, not full colour.

Lee nods. She notices the woman has a slight accent, though Lee can't exactly place where it is from. Which is her bad, really, because Lee isn't exactly worldly.

"I'm Emily Hsiao," the woman offers Lee a gloved hand, which Lee doesn't take. "Do you mind stepping outside?"

Sparing her mother only a passing glance, Lee joins Emily on the portage. The woman glances around, checking the streets for anyone, before she pulls off her glasses. Lee catches a spark of amber around the woman's irises.

"I don't have a lot of time before someone notices," the woman leans into Lee, who takes a step back. Suddenly, she can feel her stomach doing summersaults. She isn't sure if it's Emily, or if Erik is making good on his texts.