Freaks

18 • locked, unlocked

❝where does a thought go when it's forgotten?❞
ｓｉｇｍｕｎｄ ｆｒｅｕｄ

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   ＶＡＬＥＲＩＥ is not coming back.

No one is saying it out loud, yet between the uneasy looks and the queasy way the subject changes whenever someone brings her up, it's obvious. Valerie Kyle has vanished off the surface of the earth and there is nothing anyone can do about it. Not Morgana, who refuses to divulge any information about it or Redmond who smiles despite it, or any other member of staff that visits the Island over the next week.

There is something off about the whole thing that just gnaws at me.

Valerie had never been one to open up but even this was out of character for her. Not only that, but the mere mention of her name has me instinctively reaching out for necklace and I don't know why.

I feel like I'm missing something.

After meeting Cole, I thought the feeling would go, but it hasn't. In a way, it's gotten worse. I spend all my free time frowning and trying to dig at a memory that is trying its hardest to stay buried, and frankly, it's frustrating.

"You okay there?" a concerned voice asks.

Looking up, I spot Markus approaching me. He rebalances the large history textbook in his arms before pulling out a chair from the desk next to mine and taking a seat.

"Yeah," I reply with a quick nod. Markus twists slightly in his seat, quirking an eyebrow at me. "It's just the Valerie thing that's bugging me."

He nods understandingly, but there is still a look on his face that insinuates he's waiting for more. "Nothing else?"

My eyebrows furrow. I stop twiddling the pen in my hands and ask, "What do you mean?"

"Oh, I was just wondering if it had anything to do with your disappearing act at dinner a few days ago."

He meant when I went to see Cole.

"You've been acting weird since then."

Because Cole doesn't remember anything so kicked me out shortly after telling me so.

"You're also kind of a bad liar."

That statement pulls me out of my reverie. "I'm not a bad liar," I say defensively. "...Not that I was lying. At any point."

"Uh huh," Markus replies, unimpressed. "You're only proving my point."

"I—"

"No, it's cool. You don't have to tell me what your little secret is. You've got issues like the rest of us. I get it. Nothing wrong with wanting to keep them to yourself." I drop my gaze down, pretending to be overly interested in the faint graffiti carved into the table. "Just— if you do ever want to talk to someone... you can trust me or Willow with anything, y'know?"

"I know," I answer sincerely, my eyes flickering back up to his.

Markus looks pleased. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Logan saunter into the classroom, surprisingly on time for once. Markus notices him too.