Unique

Chapter 5

        I felt Ash's hand on my arm.  I looked at her, and saw a look of concern on her face.  

        "You alright there, Sam?  Almost ran us off the road!" she exclaimed, not trying to hide her concern.

        "Yeah, I'm fine.  Just had...  I just remembered something, that's all."  As I looked at her, her features softened, and she looked...  well, the simplest way to say it, is... she was beautiful.

        I sat there, staring at her like an idiot for what seemed to be an eternity, until she broke the now-very awkward silence, by asking "Want a hug?"

        Now, I usually hate hugs.  Can't stand 'em.  When I have to let off some steam or frustration, I usually punch a wall.  But, for some reason, I found myself nodding.  She reached over, and pulled me into a hug.  I felt the warmth of her body envelop mine.  I smelled the scent of her hair, which, oddly enough, smelled like strawberries.  I just sat there, in her embrace, for as long as I could.  I hadn't had a hug in years.

        After a while, I reluctantly broke the embrace, put the car in drive, and pulled away.  I was about to put the earpeice back in my ear, when I said "Thanks...  I needed that."

        "No problem."

        I turned on the earpeice, and, as I inserted it into my ear, I heard James yelling question after question about my sanity and the girl I was bringing home with me.  I shrugged them all off, saying "Not now, James."

        We got home in one peice, but without the wires or computer.  We walked up to the door, and I taught Ash the knock, letting us in at the same time.  We walked into the house, and I said "Guys?  We're not alone."

        "Oh, well, thanks for treating me like an alien!" she exclaimed, playfully punching me in the arm.

        "Well, I mean, it's not like you're the first Unique person that any of us have ever seen, or anything..." I replied.

        She got quiet, as she said "You think I'm unique?  As in... one of a kind?"

        "YESS!" my brain was screaming at me, but my mouth was already saying "That's the name we gave to people like us, with the... abilities," I explained.  

        "Oh,", she said, with what I thought was a hint of dissapointment.

        "Ugh, get a room, you too," said James from behind us, as Adam began laughing, making Ash and I blush furiously.

        "Guys, this is Ash.  She can make stuff."

        Their faces immediately got serious, as they began firing question after question.  "Woah, really?  Can you show us?  Please, pleeease, PLLLLEEEEAAASSSSEEEE????" 

        "Well, okay, but only if you show me what you two can do first."  I rolled my eyes at that.  James chose to levitate a knife out of my backpack, while Adam camoflagued himself and pantsed me again.  All three of them began laughing, as I tried to pull up my pants again, letting out a string of curse words that could make a sailor blush, and they began laughing harder as I fell down.  Again.

        Once they could all breathe again, Ash asked "Okay, are you guys ready?  Do you need anything specific?"

        "Well," said James, "we do need a computer monitor, a keyboard, and some wiring..."

        "Can do!" said Ash enthusiastically.She closed her eyes in concentration for a minute, opened them back up, and knit her brow as she stared at her hand.  There was a soft "pop" as some wires appeared in her palm.  She handed them to James, who was standing there, catching flies.  She still had the look of concentration on her face, and then...  Another "pop," and she was holding a keyboard.  She handed it to Adam, and focused on her hand again.  I looked at the keyboard, and noticed that it was missing a few keys.  I looked back at her, and saw beads of sweat on her forehead.  

        "You okay, Ash?  You look a bit pa-"

        "Yeah," she cut me off, "I'm fine.  I just need to concentrate."

        The look of concentration grew on her face, and then, all of a sudden, her knees fell out from under her.  Everything went into slow motion.  I saw her eyes roll into her head, as she began to fall. Somehow, I was at her side.  We were then in my room, as I was lying her on her bed.

        "WATER, NOW!!" I yelled to Adam and James.

        "Where are you?" Adam yelled, sounding panicked.  

        "Bedroom, hurry!"

        They came running up the stairs, James holding a first-aid kit, and Adam with a cup of water.  I began ot lightly slap her face to try to wake her up.  When I saw that that wasn't working, I threw the water in her face.  She sat up, lookind disoriented.  

        "What happened?"  she asked, trying to sit up.  I gently pushed her back down, as I said "Shhh, you overexerted yourself a bit, that's all.  You just need to rest.  Can you remember this ever happening before, getting faint and passing out?"  But she was already asleep.

        "Guys, we need to talk," I said.  They looked at each other, unsure of what was going to come.  We went downstairs, and into the living room.  We sat on the couch, and I began telling them what happened.  "When we were on our way back, I had a memory of what happened before the labs.  You two...  You two were in it.  You guys are twins.  You're my brothers.  Did you know that?"

        They both shook their heads no, and made a hasty retreat silently.  I could hear them whispering to each other as they went downstairs.  I went back upstairs, and sat by Ash's side.  Not knowing what to do, I took her hand.  It seemed like the right thing to do.  

        I sat there for hours., my hand in hers.