Underground

39

Estelle
"I need you to explain." September says. "Why's Leeciy's blood black, and why is your's purple?"
"It's a long story." I say.
"We've got time." He says.
I look over at the clock. It was nearing midnight, we'd been in the labs for well over ten hours. "Well, It's obvious we're not from around here."
"Australians don't bleed black and Brits don't bleed purple." September interjects.
"We're from underground. We call it Pangaea. Basically it means we have the Oura konnes, which are like super powers." I say.
"What's your's?" He asks.
"I haven't unlocked mine yet, but Leeciy's is knowing on the word and Annaliesee's is fire." I say.
"How could you fi---"
A door bursts open. "Estelle he says he'll only speak if you're in the room." Jackson says.
"I'm sorry, I have to go." I stand and walk to Jackson.
"Thank you." Jackson says, closing the door to the hallway.
"Is he okay?" I ask.
He shrugs. "His nose bled."
"What did you tell him to do?" I ask.
"Nigel gave his some yarn and needles and told him to crotchet and then Logan told him to knit, Jane came in and started talking about yoga, so we may have broken him." He says. "But he only trusts you."
"That's what I thought." I say.
Jackson opens the door to the room, letting me pass through.
Leeciy's eyes are closed, his long, dark eyelashes resting on his cheekbones.
"Leeciy." I say.
His eyes snap open and look up at me.
"Are you alright?" I ask.
He nods. "Bloody headache wants me dead."
"He refuses to take any pills." Nigel says.
"Do you need anything?" I ask.
He sighs. "I just want you in here, I don't trust these people."
"Alright." I say, grabbing a chair.
"Okay, Leeciy, we're going to say one skill and test you."
"I don't want to learn how to crotchet." He says.
I stand, grabbing a laptop from the desk, setting it on his lap.
He looks up at me, confusion set in his eyes.
"Hack the United States Government." I say, crossing my arms.
His eyes glow, then he nods, getting to work.
Ten minutes later, we had full access to all of the secret files in the government system.
"Good job." I say, scrolling through the webcam list.
"E." August says from behind me. I turn.
He beckons me to the hallway.
I walk out, shutting the door behind me. "Yeah?"
"September's tired and he wants to go home." August says.
"You guys can head home if you want. I'll stay with Nigel tonight." I say, lightly touching his bicep.
"You sure? I can drive him home and come back." He offers.
I shake my head. "I should probably stay with Leeciy, because he literally won't respond to anybody."
"Alright, should I pick you up after work?" He asks.
I nod. "We'll probably be done by then."
"Okay." He leans down to kiss my cheek before I stop him.
"Make sure to drive safe, It's past midnight on a Sunday, you never know who could throw themselves in front of your car. Also, make sure to feed Reiba and Atlas, not just Atlas. Make sure that September starts his online school thing before you lea--"
August cut me off by pressing his lips to mine, his hands burying themselves in my hair, while I keep my hands on his chest.
Eventually, He pulls away. "I'll feed Reiba, drive safe, and make sure September starts his lesson."
"Thanks." I say. "See you tomorrow."
"Yup, I love you." He says.
"Love you too." I remind.
"Call me with updates?" He asks.
I nod. "Text me when you get home, okay?"
"Alrighty." And with that, he turns and leaves.
***
Four hours later, and Nigel finally offers that we go home, So Jane, Annaliesee, Nigel, Leeciy, and I pile into the car, desperate for sleep.
Leeciy exhaustedly plays with his fingers, his head pressed against the glass.
I fiddle with my phone case, sleep being my main priority.
It feels like ages, but Nigel finally pulls into the driveway. "Leeciy you can sleep on the couch."
"I feel really welcome." He sarcastically says.
Nigel gives a half-hearted chuckle before getting out of the car.
***
Logan moved onto campus, so Annaliesee inherited her room and gave me the left side of her queen sized bed.
She lends me a nightgown, decorated florally.
"How's life?" I ask her.
"I miss my sister." She blurts. "She wants me dead but I miss her."
"I miss my sister, too." I say.
"Maverick right? Last I saw her, she was dead inside or something. I tried to apologize for her loss, she just wouldn't listen."
"Oh?" I ask, wanting to hear more.
"She blames herself, for the fact that you were exiled. She was like a shell." Annaliesee blabs.
"Oh." I say, looking at the ground. "We should make a pact or something." The younger girl says.
"A pact?" I ask.
"More a promise than a pact, but we should be eachother's unofficial sisters. Plus, you can be the older sister since you're, like two years older than me." She takes her glasses off, setting them on the side table.
I pull my hair out of its restricting ponytail. "How are you adjusting?"
"I really like it up here." She says. "Everybody is so nice, and it's so pretty."
"That's nice." I say.
The shorter girl falls back onto the bed. "How many Pangaeans do we need to find?"
"We?"
"I want in, you cant find one hundred, and then some, Pangaeans alone." She says. "I can do the tracking rune and so can Leeciy, so I want to help."
"Are you sure?" I ask, flipping off the light, walking over to my side, and crawling under the covers.
She does the same. "I'm sure as heck. I want to help build an army."
"I don't even know what the army is for." I say.
She laughs dryly. "You don't build an army when you need, you build it so everyone thinks you're really prepared and they don't challenge you."
I look at her, astonished.
She gives me an innocent grin. "Night sis."