Hmm, I can barely focus on my work. I want to see him tonight. He's not doing anything too important, is he?
My hand comes up to ring the doorbell, and I can see the camera. A smile flashes on my lips, and I wave just for fun. For Dylan, actually.
"Clarissa?"
He looks confused to see me. Did I do something wrong?
"Were you just about to head to bed?"
"No, I… come in."
Something feels off. However, he doesn't seem uneasy. Just skeptical. That's somehow worse.
"If something's on your mind, you can tell me. No need to hide anything, unless you think I shouldn't know…"
My expression contorts into a pout, until I see his mouth start to open.
"I just thought you didn't come by here when-"
"Dylan, it's hot in here! Can I turn the temperature down?"
Wait… is that-
"Clarissa?"
"Max?!"
Okay, I shouldn't sound so surprised. It's his house too, isn't it? But why is he not at the dorms?
"Uh, Max has exams and he doesn't want to get distracted."
Dylan explains, and I suppose it makes sense. I mean, if I lived with my friends I wouldn't get much done either.
"Is she also staying here?"
Does it look like I'm leeching off of Dylan or something? I got a job after getting fired… though barely anyone knows.
"Ahahaha, of course not! I just came over to say hi."
Well, they can probably tell that's all I came here to do, right?
I didn't bring a single gift for either of them. Just great.
"Oh… okay. Goodnight again."
Max disappears in his room, and a sigh inevitably escapes me. Why do I feel like I've done something wrong?
"You're more brazen than I thought."
"I am?"
"Showing up at my house so late at night? I'm sure you definitely had the purest intentions…"
"What?!"
Oh. No wonder I felt like something was off. If I come over late at night, I'm usually wearing a lot less clothes than I currently am-
"Was I mistaken?"
"That wasn't my initial plan, no."
"What's your final plan?"
Well, we can't do it if Max is here!
"Nothing! My final plan is nothing."
"Aww, I was looking forward to a little bit of a reward. Work was exhausting."
"... Wouldn't that exhaust you more?"
"I would be alright with it if you're the cause, Clarissa."
"Ugh, stop!"
We both snicker at the cheesiness of it all, and get to talking. It's natural. Fun.
Until I wake up the next day to… Max?
"Wake up, Dylan… and Clarissa, maybe."
"Ack! What time is it?! Are we late?!"
"Uh… it's five."
"In the morning?"
I didn't think he'd also wake up this early. Huh.
"Dylan told me you leave early for work. I made pancakes."
Dylan? Where is-"
"Guilty as charged… I owe you, Max."
A yawn escapes his mouth, and he gets off of the bed. Wait.
My eyes widen as my gaze shifts back to Max. Does he-
"We didn't do anything, I swear!"
That didn't help my case, did it?
"Okay."
Max leaves the room so nonchalantly, I totally understand why his fangirls adore him so much.
"He just accepted that?"
"Did you want to be questioned?"
"No…"
We eat the pancakes (which are literally delicious) before I get up to leave.
"Aren't you forgetting something?"
"Am I?"
My hands grip my pockets, in case I'm missing anything- and Dylan just laughs.
"I'll do it, no worries."
"Huh?"
His lips are suddenly on my cheek. Warm and soft, just like the rest of him. Wow.
"See you later, Clarissa."
"Bye…"
I can't help smiling to myself at work. Is it obvious? Do I look insane?
"Clarissa, someone's here to see you."
"Who-"
"... Hi."
"Max? What are you doing here? How did they let you in?"
"I asked Miss Stone."
"I don't think anyone has ever called her that."
"That's not why I came."
"So…"
"You have my blessing."
"Huh?"
"To date my dad."
I'm not sure if he's ever referred to Dylan that way. Yet the realization dawns on me, the trust he's putting in me to not hurt him.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome. I should get going now."
"Bye!"
Looking back, maybe a "see you later" was better.
"Clarissa? Do you know where Max is?"
"Isn't he at home studying?"
"No, none of the other boys know where he is."
"What if he just went out somewhere?"
"He isn't picking up his phone."
I can hear the panic in Dylan's voice, even if he usually seems so composed.
"Why don't I gather the other parents and we can all look for him?"
"Thank you so much, Clarissa."
Was it a stalker? A hater? I don't understand… why him of all people?
It's late now, but I don't wanna lose hope. I keep calling out his name. All of us do, at the park, at the places he usually frequents-
"Ow! Who just fell on me?"
"Clarissa…"
"Jeremiah?"
Wait. He wasn't even here just now- like he just…
"Teleportation…?"
His eyes widen, and so do mine. He quickly scrambles off, and lends a hand to help me up.
"Some random person touched me, and I fell here."
"We need to find Max."
After looking for hours, I can hear loud yelling. But it's muffled. Where is it coming from?
"Get away from him, you psycho!"
"I was supposed to be the chosen one! Not this little girl!"
Police sirens grow louder, and I run in the same direction.
Some screaming man in handcuffs is being taken away… then I see him.
"Max!"
Jeremiah and Alphonse are the ones who found him. I see Jeremiah murmur something to the other, but it's not audible.
"Clarissa..?"
He looks frightened. All I want is to reach out and hug him, tell him it'll be alright.
But I don't mean that much to him.
"Max!"
Someone rushes past me, and does it instead. Dylan. I'm not one to get jealous of a man of all people… but I feel a pang of envy.
"Dylan, I… I didn't run away-"
"You don't have to explain right now. Whatever the hell just happened could not have been pleasant for any of us."
That night, Dylan sends me a photo of all the Genesis7 boys at his house. The mood is calmer now.
"They all came for a sleepover. I guess they must've missed Max."
"Well, good friendships like that seem rare."
"I almost had a heart attack when we lost him, I swear. I might join their sleepover too."
"Have fun- too bad I have work tomorrow, it's so late already…"
"Do you want me to pick you up tomorrow?"
"It's alright, if you are free I'll just text you when my shift ends."
"Okay. Sweet dreams, Clarissa."
"Goodnight."
There's still something on my mind. Or maybe it's everything.
Someone touched Jeremiah… and he teleported? Can cupids and anti-cupids even do that?
I've never been able to do that, though.
Is starting an investigation a bit much? Maybe I need a plan-
But did my revenge plan even work? Clearly not.
The whole incident is kept private between the police, Max, and Dylan. I haven't been told anything.
Not that it should concern me so much.
Couldn't an anti-cupid have done it, though? Could he have been the one that teleported Jeremiah as well?
I only know one anti-cupid. Dylan-
Surely there are others that live here? He might've known the guy even more personally.
Should I ask? Would he think that I'm accusing him?
Do I still think he's guilty of something..? My hand reaches to grab my phone.
"Do you think the criminal was a stalker?"
"The police said he had been monitoring my whereabouts for some time."
"You're not hurt, are you?"
"I only got a few scrapes and scratches… maybe some bruises will form, but they're not that visible yet."
"I was worried if you were okay."
"The injuries were more… mental, I guess."
"Are you having a hard time?"
"Just nightmares. Possibly paranoia too? As if something like that might happen again."
"The chances of it reoccurring are low. But if you ever need to vent, you can use me."
"The guy called me "the chosen one"... did he also audition for Genesis7?"
"Can you tell me his name?"
"His name is Theodore."
"Nobody with that name auditioned. He probably wasn't in his right mind."
"Is it bad that I'm still scared?"
"I'm pretty sure anyone would feel the same way if they were in your shoes."
"Thanks for listening, Clarissa. I feel a bit better."
One evening, I'm walking home after work. I almost flinch as my shoulder is tapped.
"Who-"
"You're not supposed to be intervening."
Someone in all black… I can't even see their face. But it's clearly a woman.
"Intervening in what, exactly?"
"You know… the prophecy has already been fulfilled."
So when Dylan and I- has something in me changed? A scoff escapes my lips, to mask my unease.
"So what? It was fate, not chosen by any of us. Why should the blame be put on a single person?"
Please don't hurt me. I may be immortal but I absolutely still feel pain.
"You're proud, aren't you? Are we supposed to bow down now? Because our powers seem less significant in comparison?"
I didn't even realize it. Has my status changed? Because of Dylan?
And to think I was skeptical of him-
"You're not worth my time. Leave me alone."
"Live as you were before. I don't mind if you suck up to men in suits all day, just don't mix the what you know with the unknown."
"Will I find something more useful?"
"Don't."
"Ack-"
A knife is up against my throat. Dang it, I shouldn't have provoked her.
"Fine. I won't."
I totally will. But I'll have to be more discreet about it then.
"Curiosity only kills, Clarissa. Hah."
"What's so funny?"
"The alliteration in my sentence just now. But the moment's passed, and it's no longer funny."
"I'm going home, okay?"
"Don't even try getting Dylan involved."
"Alright! I know."
"This is your only warning."
In a second, they're gone.
Though, even in the night, I can clearly see them simply trying to run away quickly. So she can't teleport, can she?
This makes things even more confusing… how would a human know about the prophecy? About my powers?