Plexiglass (On Hold)

XIX - Madwoman

"Phooebbeee!" Elf whined, "When can we go get Chick-fil-a? You promised!"

I was facing the easel, pen tapping my lower lip, while Anton and Elf were upside down on the couch.

"We're starving here, Phoe. I'm pretty sure staring at that easel isn't going to make anything pop up on it." Anton mentioned in a groggy voice.

"Did you eat last night?" I spun around and faced the two whiners.

"Yeah, so?" Anton lifted up his body slightly.

"What about breakfast this morning?"

"Yes, Alby, we ate breakfast and lunch, what's your point?" Elf moaned.

"Then you're not starving."

I turned back to my easel.

Both of them groaned.

I had flipped the gigantic notepad to a fresh page and so far the only words scribbled across the top were: Destroy Jamie 2.0.

"Maybe if you guys helped me this process would go by faster!"

"We did help you!"

I looked back when I heard someone come off of the couch.

Anton crossed the few feet that was between the couch and the easel and flipped the notepad back to the previous page.

"Here. We helped you here. Why do we need anything else?"

Anton's arm was outstretched so that his finger landed on the black words we had written for the original operation.

His electric blue eyes just added to his intensity.

He was too close for comfort, but he had to know that he didn't intimidate me.

So I made the gap close even more than he had,

"And we need to step up our game." The words seeped through my teeth.

I slapped his arm away from my easel and turned back to the nearly blank page.

"I swear, one day you two are going to kill each other."

Elf hopped off the couch.

"We already have a plan and it's working." Elf continued, coming between me and Anton.

"Not fast enough." I uncapped the black marker.

"Haven't you ever heard that patience is a virtue?" Anton asked.

"Patience is crap and so is that saying."

My hand was back to being under my chin so Elf reached up and pulled it down; she made me face her.

"You were happy about this plan just yesterday. What happened between yesterday and today?"

I contemplated whether I should make eye contact with her.

She has this superpower that makes me want to tell her everything that's going on with me when I look into her emerald eyes.

But, if I don't look at her, she'll get suspicious and cause a whole scene right here in front of the guy that's the source of a whole set of new problems for me.

Elf and I locked eyes and she stared up at me expectantly.

Now I know what Tris felt like as she was battling the truth serum.

"I just have a lot on my mind, okay? This helps me not to think about it."

It's the truth, isn't it?