Outside was warm and the people were friendly enough. Every so often one would regard me with interest and either pass by after hesitation or stop altogether and start, unashamed.
Maeve says we are to ignore all the stares and if anyone stops us, nobody is to tell them where we are going or where we came from. I ask Mark why everything seems so bright and yet so hidden and he responds with a grunt and a shrug. He thinks that I'm crazy. I would believe him if he told me that. Nothing has been the same since I got sunstroke. Jason turned against me and there are so many things that I don't remember.
A curious monkey hops off the top of one of the fruit stands as we pass by. It taps my forehead from its perch on my shoulder. Its small head twitches and it makes a loud screetching that makes me and Aaron laugh, but Maeve shouts and swatts it away. She doesn't have a good sense of humor, I guess.
After a bit of walking, we get to the edge of the compoud and Maeve begins to climb the fence that separates the town from the wild trees. I hesitate and she shakes her head from the other side of the fence. "Don't be like Dani."
A memory came flooding back of the last time I saw the girl called Dani. We were walking towards a fence. I had climbed over while she stayed behind. Jason met me on the other side and we went to a meeting.
A fuzzy spot the size of my thumb left my brain. I climbed up the fence and dropped to the ground without a scratch on me. "Right, Dani got boring."
She smiled and disappeared into the trees.
