Haphephobia

Chapter 18

Maybe the name will give you a hint, but this town was... well, plain. Beautiful in its own right, of course; perfect for those who loved simplicity, or that passionate elegance that can only be found in a small, homey town just like this one.

The sky was grey, and small puddles were scattered here and there on the asphalt Ava and I trodded upon. Every now and then one of our feet would splash into a puddle, sending rings rippling to the furthest edges of the small pool. It was a fascinating thing to watch.

Wet leaves in red, green, yellow and orange rustled as they blew across the pavement, as though the crisp air itself had a mind to draw attention to the unnoticed beauty of fallen leaves such as those. 

In short, I found myself falling in love with this town as it painted its very own picture on the forefront of my mind. It was like getting a tattoo: maybe someday, somehow, I'd forget it was there, but something would happen and spark that interest yet again that would let me love the image I'd taken as my own.

And what made it better? Ava was by my side, walking along as quickly as ever, looking sharp with her hands in the pockets of her black trench coat. Her jeans made a slight rustling noise as she walked. The green streak in her hair seemed even brighter than ever in the grey light: it sort of made me want to take a picture. In fact, I would, if I had a phone. 

"Well, that was poetic, Benedict. But would you please keep your eyes on the street signs? I can't remember the street names that bring us to the Inn." Ava said, and I winced. I always felt like I'd been caught murdering somebody when Ava read my mind.

"Yeah, remember, Jensen said we need to walk, like, halfway down New Road, then make a right and we're at the inn." I replied, running through the directions in my head. I looked warily down at my palm, where a thin, pink scar was etched; about an inch in length. It stung slightly, like a fresh wound. Stupid transmitter. Stupid surgery. It seemed so unnecessary. 

"Okay, then where are we right now, if you're so smart?" She retorted, clearly annoyed by the fact that she hadn't remembered and I had. Why didn't she just pull it out of my head?

"Ben, I can only access memories that you're thinking of at the moment. You weren't thinking of directions until just now. And don't get smart with me about the contact thing and me having all your memories, because I only have all the ones up to the point I touched you. Anyway, what road are we on?" Ava repeated, her teeth clenched together like she was really annoyed. That, or she was cold. I knew I was.

"Uh... looks like we're on Main Street. If we keep walking and take a right, we'll be by the 1 freeway. Which means we should be careful to walk on the grass on the side. Then we'll follow the off ramp to New Road, which should take us right to where we wanna go." I said, trying to read the map I'd pulled from my jacket pocket. Suddenly, the transmitter in my palm beeped and flashed a low red. I jumped, wondering what the hell it was doing. Ava took my hand in hers and pressed the light. It emitted a low beeping noise, and a beam of light came out, scanning my face. I flinched, not sure what I was expecting.

"Facial Recognition detected for Benjamin Richards, Level B, Shapeshifter. Initiating device orientation." It droned. Suddenly, a hologram of an extremely pale, thin lady in an expensive looking business suit came up from my palm. I had to cover my mouth with my other hand not to shriek. She stood about seven inches tall, hovering an inch above my hand.

"Welcome, Benjamin Richards. This orientation will provide you with the information necessary to use this device for all its worth. Included are several voice commands. I will go through the list slowly, offering you a chance to try them all as we go. The first and most simple is simply 'time.' I will pause for ten seconds while you try it." She paused, and I warily repeated her.