Eden's Alpha

Chapter 26

"Eden"

A voice calls out to me from nearby but I refuse to listen, too tired to do anything. My arm hurts and my head is pounding...

"Eden!"

The voice continues to pester me so I finally give in, opening my eyes slowly to reality.

"Oh thank god!" Finley's head pops into my field of vision and I see the evident relief on his face. "You're okay!"

"Yeah," I saw groaning, looking at my left arm that is surrounded by a cast, "what happened?"

"You've been unconscious for a bit. Something must have happened before because your arm was also broken," Finley says while frowning.

He stares at my arm a few seconds longer before turning back towards me, "Calfur wants to talk with you."

I sigh, "Not now Finley." The last thing I want to do is try to describe what happened to some stuck-up old guy.

"Sorry Eden, but he's already here," Finley says, gesturing toward the door just as Calfur strolls in.

I groan and close my eyes, wishing I was anywhere but here. Maybe he'll think I passed out again.

"Eden, let's talk."

"Can we do this later?" I ask, still keeping my eyes closed.

"Unfortunately no, I need to hear what happened while it's still fresh," Calfur states, while Finley helps me sit up in the infirmary bed I'm in.

"I'm assuming you had another mind-flood?" Calfur asks, grabbing a little notebook from his pocket.

I look over at Finley who's sitting nearby. He has a questioning look on his face but stays silent, only watching.

"Yeah, Baylor just threatened to find me again," I say.

"Okay, and what else?"

"Nothing," I lie, "that was it."

Calfur silently stops writing and gives me an intense look, "That was it?"

"Uh yeah. I mean, he broke his arm to get to me, but that was it."

"Are you certain?" Calfur says, a doubtful look on his face.

"Yep," I say, hoping I sound confident.

Calfur waits a second before standing up, "Alright then, I'll let you rest."

I watch him leave the infirmary and wait until the door is completely shut before turning to Finley.

"I need you."

"What's wrong?" Finley asks, immediately rushing to my side, thinking something's hurt.

I hold up my good hand, "nothing's hurting, I just need help getting up."

Finley shrugs and supports me in getting out of bed. My left arm weighs a ton because of how thick the cast is around it. I cradle it gently but it feels numb and tingly.

"They gave you numbing medicine," Finley says, watching me examine my arm, "to help with the pain."

I nod once and put my right hand into Finley's.

"I need you. I'll explain later, but I need to tell you something"

Finley looks at our intertwined hands and back at my face. He tries to hide his confusion as he nods once, following me out the infirmary.

Immediately I begin jogging, needing to get us to my room. It doesn't take long and eventually, we're both inside.

"What is it?" Finley asks.