Laconic » a.i

3.8

//luke//

"Luke, let go!" Noel cried.

Before I had time to react in any way, an electric shock went to my hands and I assumed Michael felt it too because he also yanked his hands away from Mali-Koa. And then she was on top of me, my back hitting the carpeted floor with a hard thud. Her hand was glowing, gripping my shoulder while she held an also glowing knife to my neck.

"What the fuck was that?" Michael yelled, probably in reference to the shock.

Uh, hello, I'm about to get erased and you're still worried about a fucking shock?

"Luke's gift." Noel sniffed.

"But it can't help him now," Mali taunted, cocking her head as she smirked. "You're about to go back where you belong. And if anyone comes any closer, I won't hesitate to slice his head off."

I can't believe Calum didn't bother searching her while she was out.

"Mali, he didn't even do anything; let's talk about this." Calum begged.

"Get Ashton and Bridgette back here now." she said through gritted teeth, still staring down at me.

"Please." I breathed.

"Alright, alright," Michael said. I could faintly hear the ringing from his phone as either Bridgette's or Ashton's phone continued to ring and ring. Finally, their voicemail kicked in and Michael just hung up. My heart sank. "They didn't answer."

"Where are they?" Mali demanded, finally looking up and around the room.

"We don't know!" Emily burst. "They left without telling us, okay? Why would they tell us where they went if they knew you'd interrogate us about it? They're dead, not stupid."

This was the first time that I knew of that Emily had ever stood up to anyone and was rude about it. She knew that the Marco sisters were looking for her and that Mali could easily bring her back to them or just kill her herself but she was still standing up for us while trying to keep the secret that we actually do know where they are.

I looked into Mali's eyes and saw exactly what she was planning. Of course, I wasn't the only person that knew because Noel was still crying. Mali's current course of action was to stall for a bit and see if we would break and tell her where Ashton and Cooper had gone. If no one did, I was going to be gone, even though she kept thinking about how bad she felt about it -- Mali had always liked me because I was friends with Calum and because she knew about my dad. Obviously Mali-Koa had forgotten that I didn't just have the one gift of freedom, but I was a mind reader.

Use this to your advantage, dumbass.

How? If I move, that knife goes into my neck and I'll poof into thin air.

Just talk to her. You guys may see her like a savage but she's still human. The only person that seems to get that is Calum.

"Mali," I blurted and she looked down at me with wild eyes, "you know this plan is terrible."

Her menacing look faltered, "What plan?"

"The one in your head," I told her. "Are you forgetting that I can see thoughts through eyes? I know what you're planning and we both know that it's not going to do anything for you. You know we don't know where they are and you erasing me isn't going to help you find them. And we both know that you don't actually want to kill me."

In her head, she was panicking. She had forgotten all about my first gift and wasn't planning on anyone knowing what she was thinking.

"Surprise," I said with a weak smile. "Please, just put the knife down and stop this. We're not going to treat you like an animal. We want to help you but you have to stop trying to kill people and trying to get Ashton to love you again. We can help you fix him because we all want him fixed. Please, Mali. You used to be like my sister and now look at you."

Sadness filled her eyes and her head. Her thoughts were swimming with what I could only describe as thoughts my own mind would have. It was like she was fighting with herself: one part still craved Ashton's love and Bridgette's death while the other just wanted to stop going against her friends and family. She, like me on a daily basis, was torn.

"I get you're confused because trust me, I am every day. Those thoughts you're having right now, like it's yourself against yourself, that's what goes on in my brain 24/7," I told her, "and it's okay. But if I've learned anything, it's to listen to the smarter half; the one that's telling you to do the right thing. And you know that the right thing to do here is to hand the knife over to your brother and to get up."

She sighed and hung her head, resting her hand that still held the knife on my chest. Calum gently touched her arm before grabbing her and pulling her up. Emily rushed over and bent down next to me, a soft smile on her face, "That was incredibly smart of you."

I smirked, "I know."

She rolled her eyes and chuckled, "Don't be a Michael."

"Fuck off." he grumbled, hearing our conversation.

"I've never seen someone change their future before," Noel said, shaking her head like she couldn't believe it happened. "You know, you're supposed to be gone right now."

Emily helped me up and I straightened out my shirt before turning to look at Mali. She looked upset but she wasn't crying, which was good because I was kind of awkward with crying.

She looked up at me and mumbled, "I'm sorry."

I shrugged, "Apology accepted."

She sighed before looking up at her brother, "So if you don't even know where they are, then how are we supposed to help them?"

"We can't just leave with Marcus and the Marcos still running around," Annie added in. She was still standing by Michael -- they hadn't really left each other much since we brought her back with us. "They're crazy and we need to get rid of them. I can't possibly be the only one thinking this."

"What about Elroy?" Michael wondered, quickly adding, "Sarah, not Marcus. She wasn't mean at all. We can't leave her to fend for herself."

"She's just as strong as her brother, I think she'll be fine," Mali told him. "But I do get what you're saying. She was the only one there that didn't treat me like I was nothing. The Marco sisters are very full of themselves and Marcus and Annie were just never around. Sarah acted as though I was her equal, so I have to admit I like her too."

"And maybe she could come in handy for us," Emily shrugged. "She could help protect us."

"What about Ella?" Noel asked, looking around the room. "It's different leaving her alone at her house when we're still somewhat close but if we're planning on leaving to go to Bridgette and Ashton, who will be able to protect her?"

"We can't bring her with us," Calum shook his head. "We put that poor girl in enough danger to begin with."

"Are you guys still talking about Ella?" Jeremy asked. We all looked to the bed to see him laying against the headboard with his hands behind his head and his ankles crossed.

"Stop acting like Irwin." Michael told him, sounding annoyed.

Jeremy only shrugged, "You used to flash in randomly all the time. But that's not what I want to talk about right now."

"Well what do you want to talk about?" I wondered.

His face turned solemn and he brought his hands out from behind his head and rested them in his lap, "I told my parents."

"That you're a ghost?" Calum burst. "What the fuck, Jeremy? I thought you were smart! Why would you-"

"Not that," Jeremy told him. He took a deep breath before saying anything else. "I didn't know what to do and I know it seems like a huge dick move but I sent them a letter saying that Bridgette had run away and that I- oh, fuck," he groaned, wiping under his eyes with the back of his hand. "I told them Bridgette ran away and I haven't seen her in a few months that I found a suicide note tucked away in her box -- the one she kept the stuff important to her in. And in the letter I sent my parents, I told them that I committed suicide; that I'm dead too."