The city is such a strange place. I don't know how, but I can recognize and name everything I see, despite never learning about anything. The cars, the streets, the tall buildings, the creepy lady that seems to be stalking me. It would all be very exciting, except for the fact that I just saw Ian be shot at and dragged away. Plus, creepy people following you tends to put a damper on the mood.
I turn the corner into an alleyway in an attempt to escape the woman, which is a big mistake. It's a dead end.
"Lost?" I turn around to see a my person hidden in a hooded cloak.
"Who are you?" I ask, for the third time this week. "Why are you following me?"
She pulls down her hood to reveal the face of an African-American teenage girl. She's pretty, in a dark, mysterious way. She holds out her hand. "Pleased to meet ya. The name's Zula Booker, professional thief, liar, and, on a good day, I can help you find just about anyone within Pittsburgh's city limits."
I look at her outstretched hand. "D-do you want something?"
She rolls her eyes. "It's called a handshake. You grab each other's hands, and shake them."
I awkwardly shake her hand.
"What a weird... greeting. Why would you want to shake someone's hand when you first meet them? Doesn't that spread germs?"
She ponders that for a moment. "You know, I've never really thought of it like that. That is a weird gesture."
"So, yeah, I'm Eden Forge." I say.
"I know."
"Um... That's not creepy at all."
"No, I know Ian. He told me to find you. Check. Teach you the culture. Oh gosh, that's going to take a while. I don't have a pop-up book called, All About America: The Superhuman's Edition."
"Maybe the local library has one," I suggest.
The corners of her mouth point upward, and she bares her teeth. Something tells me this is an expression of amusement, but she looks like she's in pain.
"What is wrong with your face? Are you in pain?" I ask.
The corners of her mouth point downward now, an expression of sadness.
"Gee, thanks." She says.
"No, I didn't mean it as an insult, but why are you moving your mouth like that?"
Her mouth turns upward again, and she lets go some sort of strange sound with her voice. "It's called smiling and frowning. And that, which I just did, is called laughing."
I try to laugh, and find it feels amazing. I laugh and smile and frown the whole way to Zula's apartment.
"Okay, quit it. You look insane." She says multiple times on the way there, but I don't listen. Besides, I'm not entirely sure that I'm not insane.
We stop at a green door with the sign 636 on it.
"Here it is." She says. "My beautiful penthouse."
She opens the door to a run-down apartment.
"Um... I guess it's... got some charm." I say.
"Don't worry about it. It's a new concept called sarcasm." She points to a hallway closet. "You look kind of suspicious in those clothes, like a scuba diver. Change into whatever you want, as long as it hides your face."
I open the door and find an assortment of beige and olive green clothes, and lots of hooded coats like Zula's. I choose a pair of camp cargo pants, an olive green t-shirt, and a beige hood that looks like an extended hijab.
"Go ahead and shower and change while I make some food. Bathroom's down there." She points down the hallway.
I walk to a little room with strange appliances in it. Somehow, I know how to use them. It must be my enhanced thinking sinking in. I take a shower and change into Zula's extra clothes. They're so comfy and loose compared to my skintight lab suit. I skip into the kitchen where Zula is making some sort of food for dinner.
"What is that?" I ask, looking at a pan filled with brown circles and yellow sticks.
"Hamburgers and fries. Don't worry, it tastes good." She grabs something from the cabinet and sprinkles it on the "fries". "I forgot that all the scientists feed you is that stupid mush."
She puts the food onto plates and we talk at the little table by the window while we eat.
"So, where's your family?" I ask her.
"I don't know. They're possibly dead." She takes another bite of her burger and looks at the cars far below us.
"And you're okay with that?"
"I never knew 'em. You can't miss someone you don't know."
"Oh." I say. We don't talk for a while after that. She just stares out the window; I study a colorful painting of an eagle.
"That's pretty," I say after a few minutes and point to the picture.
"Yeah," she sighs. "It resembles freedom, something I don't have."
"What? Why? You have plenty of freedom."
"No, I really don't. I made a deal a while ago and... it-it's complicated." Zula picks up our empty plates and takes them over to the sink. "Look, it's late, and you need some rest. We'll plan your escape in the morning."
"My escape? What do you mean?"
"Well, you can't stay here. It's too close to the lab, and they'll spare no expense finding you."
"Oh... Okay. I guess I'll go to sleep then." I walk to the guest bedroom and lay down. The bed is plenty comfy, but I can't sleep. I've never slept without taking some kind of sedative before, but I close my eyes and think about calming things. After a few minutes thinking of ocean waves and trees swaying in the wind, I fall into a deep sleep.
