"Is this… for me?"
"I thought it would help with the nightmares."
Max is closely examining the dreamcatcher I've made for him. His lips curve up in a small smile, and mine do the same.
"Thank you so much, Clarissa. This means a lot to me."
"You at ease will decrease my own worry, so it's alright."
He doesn't put much of a front against me, I think. And that makes me hopeful.
I'm not sure why, though. Dylan is more than an amazing parent. I don't need a strong connection with Max to assume he's safe. Wanted.
Yet, it still hurts. Part of my heart has felt like I'm betraying myself.
I feel like I've always given up so easily, though. It shouldn't be much of a surprise.
Despite the stranger's words, a sort of force pulls me to keep investigating. I need to figure this out.
Why did they want Max? I should do this for his sake.
The cool air around me as I stroll through the park calms me down… for only a moment.
"Do you see that couple over there?"
By the time my eyes drift to where those words are coming from, they're even wider than before.
"Jeremiah? Max?"
I've barely used my powers since the encounter with that woman in the dark. How could they be displaying them so carelessly, even if no human can see it?!
My feet run before my brain processes it, and the flowers dissolve as my hand quickly extinguishes them.
Wait.
"You have-"
"Clarissa…?"
Max seems shocked. Is it because of what I did? And Jeremiah's here as well-
"You shouldn't use your powers so obviously in a place like this."
Jeremiah looks equally as bewildered. His hand lowers, and he approaches me.
"You can see them. And you canceled out what Max was trying to do."
"I didn't exactly cancel it… I just redirected it elsewhere, without a target."
Technically I did do that, but truly only anti-cupids can reverse the effects of a cupid.
It's suddenly quiet now. Between us, at least- children are still playing, and the couple Max was aiming for is now walking away.
All of a sudden Jeremiah grabs me, and I feel a cold shiver run down my spine.
"Whoa!-"
Where are we? And how did he just-
"You seem surprised."
Max mentions, still trying to examine me. Isn't he getting a little close?
"Can you not teleport, Clarissa?"
If I had a drink in my left hand, I would've spit it out by now.
Teleport?!
"No…"
My own kid has more techniques than I do? Before I can think about it too much, Jeremiah speaks up again.
"Bur you're one of us. If you are- are the other guys of Genesis7 in on it too?"
"I'm not sure. If they are, they're doing a better job of not getting caught than you two."
"Sorry…"
Max then seems to think for a moment about something. Is he curious about something?
"You're really not in your twenties, are you? You seem… old and wise about things like this."
"Did you just call me old?"
"Oh-"
"Nevermind, forget it."
"I didn't think that someone else like us would be nearby. I just assumed that would be the case with relatives."
Should I tell him? The thought crosses my mind, for just a moment longer than usual.
No. I don't want to ruin what we have. He must have a grudge against me.
"I thought the same, but I'm glad I was wrong."
I actually take a minute to assess our surroundings for once… we're in-
"Did you guys teleport me to your dorm?!"
This is a scandal waiting to happen?! Why would Jeremiah think this is a good idea?!
"Do you think we'll try something on you? Max and I are dating."
Oh, they already have girlfriends? The news is a little shocking- but of course they would. What kind of girl wouldn't like them?
Well, I don't. Just a little, for that move they tried to pull at the park. I feel like scolding them as if they were little kids.
"Then why did you bring me here?"
"Because I wanted to ask if you knew anything about the crook that kidnapped Max before."
Max himself seems caught off guard with the confession. Did he not know Jeremiah's intentions?
"I told you to stop worrying about that, Jeremiah. It's over now."
"We don't know that."
Their gazes shift away awkwardly, and Jeremiah looks at me with a sort of desperate stare. It's different from what I usually see.
"Will you please help, Clarissa?"
"... I don't know- maybe?"
If I had planned on intervening, I would've done it myself. What have I just committed to? I wanted to keep Max safe.
"But you can't act so recklessly. We need to make a plan."
Maybe I shouldn't tell them that my plans almost never work. Could it work if they helped brainstorm? Jeremiah begins speaking first.
"We should talk to the guy himself, shouldn't we?"
"How would we know if he's telling the truth, though?"
"Then can't we find out the people connected to him?"
"If you can think of some way we can do that without getting on their radar, sure."
Both boys seem a little bit annoyed with all my counter arguments, but I'm just trying to be realistic. This won't be as easy as they think.
"Wait-"
Max seems oddly suspicious of me, and I can feel myself gulp. Am I guilty of something?
"Their radar? Is there multiple people behind this?"
Crap. I wasn't thinking at all when I said that.
"What? No, I just-"
"Are you hiding things from us now? And the fact you just happened to be at the park when we were…"
"What are you insinuating, Jeremiah?"
"Whatever you think I am. I'm not letting Max get hurt again!"
"Neither am I!"
Is this pathetic? I feel pathetic.
I don't want to make my own kid choose behind me and his friend (though clearly every member of Genesis7 is probably higher on the priority list than I am).
"... Fine. I understand where you're coming from, but you shouldn't underestimate these people?" "Then you shouldn't try acting as if you know everything, and we don't deserve to be told anything." An actual sigh escapes my lips, yet I don't want them to know how old I really am. Even with centuries of experience, I've never encountered a situation like this before.
"They know about my existence as well, but they only took Max. There must be a good reason for that."
I can see the hesitation growing on Max's face. The self-appointed leader of this mission whispers something to him that I can't hear, and he takes a deep breath.
"I've only had my powers since my birthday, which wasn't that long ago. Maybe they're interested in me because I wasn't born with powers like Jeremiah… and I'm assuming you, too?"
Oh. Well, this is certainly new. Or I might just be stuck in the past.
"I thought only girls could be cupids, though. There's never been a male one before."
At least… the system has become a little more open minded now? When I first saw Max again, I thought my own memories were wrong. That he couldn't have been mine.
"I guess it's because I identified as a girl in the earlier part of my life. But I've always had parts of both genders…" "There's nothing wrong with that!-"
Was that the appropriate thing to say? I don't think my acceptance means very much to him at this point… until a soft smile grows on his lips.
"Thanks, Clarissa."
Relaying back on the first memories I had with him, as the tiniest baby- I suddenly feel pain again, which quickly gets pushed back.
Then a thought crashes into me like a baseball bat swinging a ball straight into a window.
"Doesn't Dylan know about this too?"
Emo over here blinks twice, as if I'm speaking French or something. Which was a difficult joke to come up with just now, because I just remembered he knows both Spanish and Mandarin,
"... But he can't see our powers."
"He's an anti-cupid too. Have you ever used them in front of him?"
"Well, no-"
"Then I'll recruit him."
"You're acting as if this is a super top secret division of the FBI."
"Who says it can't be? Back in my day we thought the DOJ was the best crime fighting agency out there."
"The what?"
Goodness gracious. I'm old.
"Nevermind."