Checkmate || OUAT Fanfic || DISCONTINUED

Chapter 12; Dream Catchers

"Dreams can be such dangerous things: they smother on like a fire does, and sometimes they consume us completely.

~ Arthur Golden

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Alice's P.O.V

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"Are you done yet?" I hear a voice ask impatiently.
"Stop rushing me," another voice snaps.
"You're Will freaking Robertson!" Lewis whisper-yells. "You're the best at codes and lock picking."
"Well, I don't know if you noticed, but this is a very old fashioned safe. It's not one I can open under ten seconds."

I roll my eyes at their petty argument, deciding that I should wait until they've managed to open the safe before I walk into the room to confront them.
Lewis continues to rush him. "Then figure it out. I have to talk to Jo."
"Don't you think I'm trying my best?" Will asks. "I need my daily dose of caffeine in the morning or I won't be able to function."

"We have other things to worry about other than your caffeine withdrawal."
Will mutters a colourful curse under his breath.
"I'd say the same to you," Lewis replies.
They both stop bickering at the sound of someone walking down the stairs.

"Hurry up, that might be Alice!"
"I'm trying, damn it!"
"Well, try harder."
"You try figuring out what combination it is while under pressure."
"How hard could it possibly be?"
"Very hard," Will tells him. "There are approximately 90000 different combos for a five digit code. You can't figure it all out in two min-"

A solid click sounds in the air as the lock to the safe door opens.
"So much for there's 90000 different combos," Lewis says, mocking Will's voice.
"I can't believe I didn't guess this combination earlier."
"Why?" Lewis asks. "What was it?"
"13-7-9-3. She used a Cipher code."
"Well, what does that mean?" Lewis asks.

I choose that exact moment to walk into the room.
"Good morning, boys," I greet, making myself known to the duo.
Will fumbles with the lock as Lewis tries to distract me.
"Oh- hey, Alice," Lewis replies, trying to use his body to shield Will from my gaze.
"Hello, Lewis." I lean to the side to see Will. "Hi, Will."

Will stops trying to close the safe door, stepping out from behind his parabatai. "Hi, Alice."
"So, what you boys doing on this fine morning?" I ask, leaning against the door frame.
"Nothing," Lewis answers, pretending to act causal.
I raise my eyebrows. "Will?"
"I give up. Here," he says, handing me his Starbucks card.

Lewis shake his head as I walk over to the two of them. I take Will's Starbucks card from him then turn to face Lewis. I hold my hand out towards him expectantly, placing my hand on my hip. Lewis sighs before reaching into his pocket and handing me his phone.
He turns to face his parabatai. "Will you have a terrible poker face."
"I know, I'm sorry."

"You guys are gonna have to work on that if you ever want to get past me," I say.
"What's the point?" Lewis asks. "Your basically psychic."
"Just because I know you well to know when you're lying it doesn't make me psychic."
"It does when you're always right," Lewis counters.

Will rolls his eyes, walking past us. "Well, you guys have fun discussing this pointless argument I'll be back in two hours, so tell me who won."
"Wait, where are you going?" I ask.
"Nowhere, just don't be alarmed if I'm back late," he replies before walking out the front door.
I glance at Lewis. "Is it just me or has Will been acting strange recently?"

He nods. "Yeah, do you think it's because of Tia?"
"I don't know," I say, shaking my head. "But whatever it is, it doesn't seem to be bad."
"We'll see, we still have three more weeks here to find out what it is."
I hum in agreement. "Okay, you've got to get out now. I'm going to change the password."