Awakened

Chapter 4: Clean Up On Aisle Three

"What the fuck?" Mia shouts, her voice sharp as she flips through the papers in her hand, eyes wide as she stares down at them. "What is all of this?"

It's been a few hours since I discovered them myself. Mia and I are walking home, the sun already dipping low in the sky, casting long shadows across the sidewalks. The rest of the school day was tame compared to the morning it had in store. The whole day I had a pit in my stomach, thinking that Mrs. Hawthorne was going to come find me, but she didn't.

Mia's head is bent over the documents in disbelief. I didn't exactly explain what I found in Mrs. Hawthorne's office, but I guess seeing it for herself makes her understand why I can't stop thinking about it.

I glance over at her, not sure if I want to hear her response. I'm still trying to process everything myself.

"You seriously found these in Mrs. Hawthorne's?" she asks, her voice loud, in disbelief.

I shush her, worried that someone might overhear us. I don't know, maybe that Mrs. Hawthorne would overhear us.

"Yeah," I say, taking the file back from her. "I don't know why she had them, but I found my birth certificate, the death certificates... all this stuff about me. All stuff that I've never even seen. It doesn't make any sense."

The question hangs heavy in the air. I don't know what Mrs. Hawthorne plans to do, but something about the way she looked at me through the courtyard makes me feel like she knows I have them.

Mia glances at me, her expression shifting. "Okay, as fucking weird as it is, we can't jump to any conclusions, there's gotta be a reasonable explanation."

I look up at her, feeling that familiar knot in my stomach tighten. "What do you mean?"

She gives me a smirk, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly. "I don't know. I mean, when we get home, we can get a closer look at those papers and figure out what we're actually dealing with."

I feel a flicker of relief. It's a plan. Something actionable. And maybe, it'll help make sense of everything. I can't shake the feeling that these documents mean more than just what's on the surface.

Mia glances at me and then sighs, her breath visible in the cool air. "Let's not worry about the papers anymore. You've got enough on your plate," she says, her tone softer than usual, but firm.

I nod, grateful for the break from the constant buzz of questions. "Yeah, you're right," I mutter, trying to shake the unease.

We walk in silence for a bit, the steady rhythm of our footsteps the only sound between us, until we pass the convenience store on the corner of 34th Street. The neon sign flickers in the fading light.

34th Street Convenience has a very distinct smell. I think it's from the dumpsters out back that never seem to get emptied.

Mia suddenly stops. "I need to grab something," she says, glancing at me. "You good waiting here?"

"Ugh, why would you need to go in there?" I mutter, rolling my eyes. "We have soda at home."

She rolls her eyes, unfazed. "No, Kyle. I need feminine products."

I blink at her. "Feminine products?" I repeat, wrinkling my nose like I can't believe she just said that out loud. "You couldn't have waited until we got home?"

She lifts an eyebrow, looking entirely unamused. "You're such a guy, you know that?" she says, but the corner of her mouth twitches into a smirk.

Mia's already walking toward the door, and before I can stop myself, I mutter, "Just hurry up before I have to go inside and... I don't know... buy a pack of gum or something."