Crossed Worlds

Prologue: Jo and Bill

Three years before the Split

Jo resisted flinching as she felt Bill's fingers delving into her hair. This was only their third date, and for some reason him playing with her hair made her worried. She knew she had washed it that morning, was certain it had looked glossy in the bathroom mirror before she left the house, yet now she was scared that he'd think it smelt funny, or felt funny, or-

"Your hair is luxurious, you know that?" Bill interrupted her spiralling thoughts as he picked a daisy from the grass beside her. "Would you mind if I were to... style it?"

"You're telling me your hands are capable of craftsmanship and hairdressing?" She hoped he couldn't hear the nervous quiver in her voice; she couldn't control herself around him and how he made her feel just yet. She wondered if she would ever be able to.

"Hairdressing is a craft!"

They both fell into laughter and the kind of easy, lazy conversation that a golden summer's afternoon inspired. Being together made them feel as though they'd finally found the last puzzle piece and triumphantly set it into place. They were the beautiful finished picture, and knowing this so early on in their relationship scared them as much as it excited them.

One year before the Split

Jo held the newspaper and felt her palms begin to sweat, so much so that the ink was smudged under her fingers.

"Bill, come in here!"

He walked into her living room and observed the front page his love was eagerly holding out to him.

"Do you see that? They're talking about splitting us up! Having certain areas for Beings and others for Wild Ones. It's to avoid any conflict, they say. How the bloody hell does that avoid conflict? They do know that they'll be tearing families apart, don't they? I mean Susan is a Being and her daughter is a Wild One after her husband. They can't do this, Bill. They can't..." Jo had fallen into tears.

It was a common occurrence ever since these stories began. Bill had been living in denial, reassuring her, staying strong for her, but with it now hitting headlines weekly, and the claims growing ever more serious, he felt the armour he had built up to protect them both beginning to shatter.

One week before the Split

"There's no difference between us," Jo whispered into the darkness. "You just have special powers and get a trendier label. I wish I was a Wild One."

"You don't want to be going around saying that," Bill rolled onto his side to face her. "The so-called special powers are the issue, my love. They're a threat."

He felt her reach out to grab his hand. She squeezed.

"You aren't a threat, though. None of you are."

Bill didn't know what to say. There was little that he could say anymore. In seven days, he would be transported to another town permanently. The only travel allowed would be to other areas populated by Wild Ones. No more of the town he grew up in, no more freedom, no more Beings, no more Jo.

"I'm scared," he admitted, a foreign thing to come out of his mouth. His father had been emotionless, had raised him to follow this, yet Bill had discovered, largely thanks to Jo, that emotions were no sign of weakness. That's why he let the tears fall.

She held him as he whimpered, her stomach growing nauseous at the feeling of his body shuddering against hers. It worried her sick to see him this way. It hurt her to feel his hurt. Yet she held on, kissing his head and murmuring calming words that it would all be all right, though they both knew that this was a lie.

After that week had passed, he was taken from her. They never saw each other again. And there was nothing all right about that.