CHAOS THEORY (ON HIATUS)

III. INVESTIGATION

Amelia has that kind of unconventional beauty you would see on a runway, or in some high fashion ad, except she's 5'2.

She has monolid eyes, upturned perfectly at the corner. These bold, bushy brows frame her face so well. Her jet black hair comes down lower in the front than in the back, almost pixie-length in the back, but just past the chin in the front.

Her haircut and general appearance makes her look older than she is; she just turned 18, but her general demeanor as well just gives her an air of maturity.

Her hair is interesting to watch as she drives fast; the layers rippling together, forming a black ocean in the wind.

Her lips are parted and her eyes are glazed over as she maneuvers the highway, focused on the road, taking us to downtown New Haven; my happy place. My thinking place.

Downtown New Haven is mainly known for Yale. And that's it. But to locals, it's so much more.

We've been driving and walking around downtown for awhile at this point, and before we know it, it's well past lunchtime.

On York Street, there's this amazing Thai place. It's called Noodle House. I'm not going to act like I have a favorite waiter or anything, because I don't. I barely know the people that work there. The food is just so good.

We arrive and sit down. It's a small place, but the ambiance is what makes it so great.

"So, do you want to talk about anything?" Amelia says to start the conversation.

"Yes. I want revenge."

"Excuse me?"

"I want to get revenge on whoever did this."

"I don't think that's the best idea. This is a murderer we're talking about."

"I don't care. You know how manipulative I can be. I can do something. I will do something. And I won't be satisfied until I do it."

"Yes, Kali, you are manipulative. I get it, okay? I have learned that. But I feel like you're too damn naïve for your own good when it comes to this stuff. You think you have it all on lock, but you don't."

"Oh Amelia, I know I don't have it all down. But I will. And you're going to help me."

"Who ever said I was going to help you?"

"I did."

Amelia goes into a whisper, "Listen, Kali. I get it. You can rewind time. But I feel like one day you're going to do something bad and it's not going to work. It's going to fail you."

"Amelia, I've had that fear many times, but I have not been failed once, and I don't think I'm going to be."

She sighs and leans back in her chair

"What's even your plan for this? You can't rewind back to Friday night. You can't prevent her death. You can't stop whoever did it in their tracks."

"No, I can't prevent it. But I can avenge it."

I lean closer in, whispering to her.

"Think about it, Amelia. I was given this power from God or something and I should put it to use for good. You know those police can't do anything about it. I think we can take this into our own hands and do a better job."

She rests her elbows on the table, and, as a result, rests her chin on her hands. She sighs.

"What's your plan?"