Parallel (Travelers Series Book 1)

Parallel (Chapter 12)

Chapter Twelve
You Can’t Avoid the Inevitable

The next morning I’m jerked out of a deep sleep by the sound of a beep. I slap my hand against the alarm clock, but two seconds later, I hear the beep again. My eyes struggle to open and I notice a flashing light coming from my cell, right where I left it on the edge of the nightstand after my conversation with Jaime. I don’t remember setting an alarm on it, so I hesitate to reach out to stop the beeping. Only it won’t stop.

Damn. Now I actually have to get up…

I lay motionless in bed, hoping this time the beeping will stop, but there it goes again. Frustrated, I swing my legs over the side of the bed and reach for the phone. Trying to figure out the buttons on the cell, I see another flash of light, and the damn thing beeps again.

“Alright already,” I say in frustration.

What I first thought was an alarm, turns out to be a text message. It’s a text from Alex.

Alex: Want to see you this a.m. Meet me on the back deck before breakfast.

It is way too early in the morning to be texting, so I almost don’t respond. Later, I can pretend I hadn’t seen the message because I was sleeping. Why in the world does Alex want to meet me before class? We already agreed we’d get together at school. If I respond, I don’t want it to appear like I’m encouraging him. What’s another hour anyway? In the end, against my better judgment, I message back.

Etta: Okay. See you in a bit.

I take note of the time. Its 5:30 in the freaking AM. It’s way too early to start getting dressed in my Dominion uniform, so I throw on a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. I hope Alex doesn’t expect me to be all showered and presentable at this hour. Surely I’ll have time to get ready for school after he leaves. I don’t plan on entertaining him long anyway.

I check myself over in the mirror to make sure I don’t have crust in my eyes, when it dawns on me that my current wardrobe has to go. Over breakfast, I’ll ask Aunt Maggie if we can go shopping to pick up some new clothes. Wearing outfits from its previous owner gives me the creeps. I know they’re mine; clothes that the cosmos picked out for me, but still. In my mind, the girl who chose this wardrobe was an entirely different person.

Satisfied with my appearance, I’m ready to meet Alex in five minutes flat. I’m not exactly sure where he lives and how long it will take him to get here, so I don’t want to waste any time. With my cell phone in hand, I rush down the stairs and take a quick peek in the kitchen. Maggie is already there, cooking up some bacon. Seriously, since my arrival, I’ve never seen my aunt in any other room in the house. I walk back into the hallway. I don’t want to get into a discussion about boys and relationships, so I avoid the kitchen, so as not to alert her to the fact that I’m already up. I sneak out to the backyard as quietly as I can.

What Alex is expecting to accomplish by coming over this early in the morning, or what I hope to gain from this talk, I don’t know. But after what happened last night, I know we can’t leave it unsettled. In a way, I’m almost glad he chose to have this conversation before school. For all I know, this could lead to a heated discussion and I’d rather not call attention to myself in the middle of a crowded lunch room.

I’m glad I didn’t spend too much time getting ready, as Alex doesn’t have me wait long for him to arrive. By the time I take a seat in one of the lounge chairs, he’s already coming through the back gate.

“Thanks for meeting me.” He says with a sheepish grin and takes over the lounge chair next to mine. We’re in the exact same spots as we were last night, almost as if we never left.