Dead Ringer *Watty 2016*

Confidant

The next morning Larkin waited to receive a call from Everett and tried to look like she didn't care all that much but Oakley saw right threw it.  She even had trouble concentrating on Harlow's half remembered drunken escapades from the night before, which were being retold over an empty table, since Harlow was too busy struggling with a hang over to cook.  "Give him some time," Oakley said nudging Larkin out of her day dream.

"What?"  Larkin tried to play dumb.

"Even I've noticed you pining after elevator boy," Harlow giggled having being distracted by her own lively story retellings for most of the morning.

"His name is Everett," Larkin said just as her ring lit up signaling a call, and she tapped it, unfortunately the voice that rang in her ears making her jump was only Archer's.

"You are not home," it wasn't a question, it was a condemnation.

"No," Larkin answered checking her friend's faces to see if they could hear the voice as well but they showed no indication that they did.

"Where are you?"  Archer prompted over protectively.

"Oakley's," Larkin responded looking around the dimly lit kitchen, still uneasy about the weird technology she was using.

The voice in her head went silent without another word.  "Did you guys hear that?"  Larkin asked the other girls before realizing that it would be suspicious.

"No..."  Oakley said eyeing Larkin in a confused yet accusing way.

"Does elevator boy shout on the phone?  Sometimes when people shout I get so confused how everyone else doesn't hear them."  Harlow said smoothing over the issue in her usual chipper way.

"It wasn't Everett it was Arch," Larkin said.

"What's wrong?"  The other two asked in unison and until that moment Larkin hadn't known that his calls would arose suspicion.

"Nothing he has been over protective since the sustainment," Larkin said using the only excuse that she had available to her.

"Your attendant is so weird," Harlow responded but Oakley didn't look like she was so easily fooled and Larkin made a mental note to be careful when mentioning Arch in the future.

The conversation flowed elsewhere but Larkin could constantly feel Oakley's eyes on her.  Larkin began to wonder how long it would have taken her to realize if there was an imposter in Briar's body.  She imagined the imposter not vocalizing a million fears when it was time to fall asleep and wanted to say that she would know then but she couldn't be sure.  She would know if she didn't tease Wilder or if she looked confused when they called the train station Hoarder's Hollow.  These thoughts sent Larkin away from the kitchen and on a quest through her memories.  She wondered if Briar still did all of those things now that she wasn't there to see and hear them.  "Who would she share her fears with?  Was she still thinking about what she was told in the train station?"  Larkin wondered.

Then Larkin began to wonder about the little things that she was missing when pretending to be Coraleigh.  "CORA!"  Oakley shouted clearly angry.

"Are you ok?"  Harlow asked much gentler than her friend.

"I'm really hung over and not feeling great from the last we I'm going to head home," Larkin said knocking over a chair as she clambered up from the table and trying to avoid eye contact as she fled from the house at full speed, not worried about the suspicion she was causing.

As Larkin stepped into the morning air she let out a sigh of relief finally able to breath again, without their eyes on her.  A car pulled up to the curb and she climbed in the backseat, scanned her ring so he would know where to go, and leaned against the cool leather seat with her eyes closed.

When Larkin arrived at Coraleigh's apartment the doorknob signaled that someone was waiting inside so she peeked in carefully, trying not to let herself be seen, but when she saw Archer's frame impatiently perched on the hot pink couch she walked in.  "Nice to see you know how to break in," Larkin said plopping herself down beside him.

"I'm supposed to be watching you and you make that very difficult when you go hide out at other people's houses," he said trying to sound angry but still trapped in his cloud of sadness.

"I wasn't hiding out I was spending time with my friends." Larkin insisted sounding like a stubborn child.

"Her friends," Archer said in a voice that sounded more like a growl and then he corrected his tone to sound more pleasant, "No one knows, no erratic behavior?"  He asked.

Larkin's face gave her away and he jumped to his feet furiously, "She... We didn't work this hard for you to blow it, who knows?"  He was turning redder by the second and Larkin became afraid that  he might hit her.  She cowered, waiting for the inevitable blow, but it never came.

"No one knows," she said meekly although she was sure that Oakley was suspicious, "I just have been having a few slip ups."

"Like?"  Archer said, his face returning to its normal hue but his voice still sounding very upset.

"I talked to Wilder's cian and I probably seemed too excited about it.  Also meeting Sander's Cian scared me and I gasped which made Oakley suspicious... maybe.  I just can't help it I keep thinking about them and how in a few months they won't exist and how I already don't exist, then even my thoughts get me into trouble because Oakley knew her too well.  Everything I do she scrutinizes me and I can barely look at Harlow because I don't want Harlow to die but I don't want her to kill Briar either.  What about Everett is he worth Wilder dying?  I know that boy in the elevator isn't worth Sanders death but Sanders has to give away his organs anyway."  Larkin rambled relieved to finally be able to vocalize her thoughts to someone who understood the situation, not used to having to keep silent after years of having Briar as a confidant.

Arch engulfed her in a hug and she felt his wet tears against her neck.  "I know," was all he could manage to say before he was cut of by his own sob.  He then pulled away, "I miss her and I hate that I miss her because if she was here then you would be lined up for slaughter."  He said in a whisper as if he was afraid someone would overhear his confession.

"When I was an animal lined up for slaughter I didn't have to think about this I just had to blindly wait to die," Larkin said thinking how the thing that previously plagued her sounded like a great comfort at this moment.

"That's the point of the system," Archer said mumbling more to himself than to Larkin.

"What?" Larkin asked confused.

"Nothing," Archer responded, regretting that he had spoken in the first place, knowing that Larkin wasn't ready to hear all that he knew.

Larkin decided it was best not to push it any farther so she was shocked when Arch spoke up again.  "Lark, I think you need to see them again."  He said seriously.

"Who?" Larkin asked feeling like she was ten steps behind the conversation at all times.

"Your friends," he answered then he got off the sofa, "I'll be back tonight." 

Without an explanation he left.